A Globally recognized executive, Dr.Ma led JDs as an SVP and was responsible for the R&D initiatives of the entire organization. Dr.Ma was responsible for key departments such as open platform, distribution information department, and R&D department. Dr.Ma is the founder of Qiyi Technology, focusing on cloud PaaS, big data, AI, flexible business components amongst other key initiatives within the IoT arena. Dr.Ma has been pivotal in the group of JD nationally and internationally. Dr.Ma has also served on the Board of several organizations within the IoT and Fulfillment space. Dr.Ma also serves as the President of GS1 ECR E-commerce China.
Amir Sahba is the Chief Executive Officer and founder of Thinkingbox, a creative advertising agency with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. Amir founded the studio when he was 24 years old and has led the shop to its current North American footprint, service Adobe, Riot Games, Starbucks, Ford Motor Company and many other global brands.
Alongside Thinkingbox, Sahba has spent more than a decade as a technology entrepreneur and venture capitalist. He also has a seat on the jury panel for the FWA awards and on multiple tech company advisory boards.
Dr.Tina Dacin is the Stephen J.R. Smith Chaired Professor of Strategy and Organizational Behavior and a Scotiabank Scholar in the Smith School of Business. She is the Principal Investigator of the Community Revitalization Research Program at the Smith School of Business. Tina’s current teaching is in the areas of AI, bias and ethics, community resilience, social impact and inclusive leadership. Tina is former Chair of the Principal’s Innovation Fund at Queen’s University and former Director of the Centre for Social Impact at the Smith School of Business. Tina’s research has been published in leading management journals and she has served in a variety of editorial positions for these journals. Tina received her doctorate from the University of Toronto and prior to joining Queen's University, she spent nine years at Texas A & M University. She is currently a Visiting Fellow at the Judge Business School at the University of Cambridge, a Visiting Professorial Fellow at the University of Melbourne and the Winspear Scholar at the University of Victoria. Tina has served on the Advisory Boards of the Community Foundation for Kingston, PRME Champion and Advisory Council Member, UN PRME, Board of Trustees member of the Globally Responsible Leadership Initiative Foundation (GRLI).
Jim’s mission is to seek out high-growth companies, capitalize them appropriately, build management teams and then help grow companies through to exit via IPO, RTO or outright sale. Jim has held senior executive finance roles with a variety of high-growth companies over his career, including roles as CFO with Tribe Property Technologies Inc, BC Tweed Joint Venture Inc., Sunselect Produce Ltd., and DDS Wireless Inc. Jim also held a senior role with Canopy Growth Corporation as its first Director of Finance of its USA operations. Prior to these positions Jim was a senior executive and board member and Head of Investment Banking for PI Financial Corp. and served as a senior Vice-President in Investment Banking to a predecessor firm of National Bank Financial. Jim began his career with Deloitte’s and left as a senior member of the Vancouver Financial and Special Services Team (Corporate Finance, M and A Advisory and Restructuring) Mr. Defer holds an Honours Degree in Commerce from the Asper School of Business at the University of Manitoba, is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA) and is a Chartered Business Valuator.
Jerome is a seasoned international executive with 30+ years of experience in some of the most reputable brands and household names in Europe. Holding Senior management positions in Kernig, Carrefour Group and Veepee, Jerome brings a breath of experience in Operations, automation, and systems excellence. Jerome has been responsible for overseeing the deployment of automation and fulfillment-based businesses across 7 countries within the European market.
Elsie is a Chartered Professional Accountant of Canada and Australia. She is the Chief Financial Officer for Central City Brewers & Distillers Ltd, and the foundering partner of ALNA Packaging Co., Ltd. Elsie is a versatile and resourceful senior finance executive and entrepreneur with diverse experience in manufacturing, wholesale, retail, and professional services organizations. She has a broad and diverse portfolio in business operations, corporate planning, finance, lean manufacturing, project management, system implementations and supply chain. With strong leadership and business acumen, Elsie excels at financial restructuring, driving operational excellence, impacting business growth and increasing profits through cost reduction programs, productivity/efficiency initiatives, and building strong relationship with stakeholder groups. Elsie has a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from Queen’s University. She is also a Lean Manufacturing Green Belt Holder.
A 40+ Veteran in the CPG industry, Jim was a partner / SVP at one of Canada’s largest Sales and Marketing agencies and a member of the Sales Leadership Team at Clorox Canada (Including responsibility for the largest retailer in Canada, Loblaws/Shoppers) During his Career, Jim has represented over 150 companies, sold thousands of skus and called on 100+ different customers, attended all tradeshows from coast to coast and represented the industry at the highest level. Jim has an exceptional network of retailers and suppliers where he interacts with them regularly.
Jon is an energetic and experienced strategy, operations, transformation and organizational turnaround executive with proven ability to drive change through execution of growth initiatives, innovative cost reduction, negotiation, process redesign and technology improvements. He currently serves as Founder & CEO of the Strongpoint Group, an independent global business advisory firm dedicated to helping organizations create their long-term business strategy and optimize their operations through a sustainability lens. Prior to his current role, Jon was the Senior Vice-President of Operations at Indigo, a large Canadian retailer. He has over 20 years of experience working in manufacturing, logistics and supply chain management with global organizations like Walmart. Jon has an MBA from Cornell University and Queen's University, a BA from McGill University and an advanced degree in Manufacturing Management from the Fashion Institute Technology in New York. He also has extensive experience in highly complex negotiations and has completed advanced training in many institutions, including the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.
