Speakers

• Angela Coke
  Associate Deputy Minister, HROntario Province of Ontario
  
  

  Angela Coke is the Associate Deputy Minister, HROntario, Province of Ontario. Coke is responsible for Ontario Public Service enterprise human resource management and corporate policy, HR service delivery, employee relations, the Centre for Leadership and Learning, and modernization. She is also the Chair of the Public Service Commission. Coke, who joined HROntario in 2008, previously served as the Assistant Deputy Minister, Modernization Division in the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services; the OPS Youth and Young Professionals Strategy development project for the Centre for Leadership and Human Resource Management; and has held a number of senior management positions at the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term. Coke also worked in the Communications Services Branch, Management Board Secretariat, the Cabinet Office, the Ministry of Skills Development and the Ministry of Housing. Before joining the Ontario Public Service, she worked for the Jamaican Consulate General in Toronto. Coke has a B.A. in English from York University, Toronto.

• Mick Collins
  Principal Consultant SuccessFactors
  
  

  Mick Collins serves as the lead strategy consultant for SuccessFactors workforce analytics and/or workforce planning clients, including Aetna, Nike, Pearson, Amway, Wawa and McGraw-Hill. In this capacity, Collins provides executive engagement, data analysis, change management consulting and workforce planning/analytics training. He also performs pre-sales consulting support and product marketing activities. Prior to assuming this role, Collins served as VP of Marketing, founding and leading Inform’s North American marketing group.

  Formerly, Collins was a senior consultant with CLC Metrics, the former joint venture partnership established by Inform and the Corporate Leadership Council. He led research teams focusing on HR for the Corporate Leadership Council and strategy/R&D for the Corporate Strategy Board, two divisions of the Corporate Executive Board. Collins has conducted speaking engagements on a variety of human capital measurement topics at Inform’s North America, European and Asia-Pacific conferences, IHRIM, The Wharton Council and numerous HR.com webcasts, among others.

  Collins has a Master’s in Political Science from Virginia Tech and an Honours B.A. in Economics and Politics from the University of Leeds, England.

• Jim Fisher
  Vice Dean, Executive Education University of Toronto
  
  

  Jim Fisher teaches leadership, organizational design and strategy at the Rotman School of Management. Prior to academia, Fisher co-founded The Canada Consulting Group which merged with The Boston Consulting Group and had senior roles in the food industry. Fisher serves on a number of boards, across several sectors. Fisher graduated from the University of Toronto with a B.A. in Political Science and Economics and received his M.B.A. from Harvard University.

• James M. Grossett
  SVP, Human Resources Agrium Inc.
  
  

  James Grossett joined Agrium as VP, Human Resources in 2002. In 2005, he was promoted to Senior Vice President, Human Resources with responsibility for Agrium’s global HR function covering 14,000 employees. He has more than 25 years of HR management experience.

  Before joining Agrium, Grossett was SVP, Human Resources for Molson Inc. and SVP, Human Resources for Coca-Cola Beverages, Ltd. Grossett has his Institute of Corporate Directors — ICD.D designation and serves on the Board of Directors for the Alzheimer Society, Alberta and Northwest Territories. He was Chairman of the Human Resource Advisory Council for Seneca College in Toronto as well as Past Co-Chairman of the Human Resource Council for The Grocery Product Manufacturers of Canada. Grossett has also held positions with the Board of Directors of Junior Achievement of Southern Alberta, Interlink Community Cancer Nurses and Poverello Charities.

  He earned his B.A. from California State University at Stanislaus.

• Warren Jestin
  Chief Economist Scotiabank
  
  

  Dr. Warren Jestin is Scotiabank’s Chief Economist and has been with the bank since 1979. He has worked at the Bank of Canada and taught at several Canadian universities. Jestin is on advisory boards for the College of Management and Economics at the University of Guelph and the Sobey School of Business at St. Mary’s University. He has served on the C.D. Howe Institute’s Monetary Policy Council and has been involved with policy committees of the Canadian and Ontario Chambers of Commerce and the Toronto Board of Trade. As Chair of Scotiabank’s Sponsorship and Donations Committee, Jestin works closely with a wide variety of charitable institutions.

• Michael McCain
  President & CEO Maple Leaf Foods Inc.
  
  

  Michael McCain is President and CEO of Maple Leaf Foods. He and his team have led the transformation of Maple Leaf Foods into Canada’s leading food processor and exporter, with flagship brands including Maple Leaf, Schneiders and Dempster’s. McCain joined Maple Leaf Foods as President and Chief Operating Officer in 1995 and was appointed President and CEO in 1999. Prior to joining Maple Leaf Foods, McCain spent 16 years with McCain Foods Limited in Canada and the U.S. and was, at the time of leaving in 1995, President and CEO of McCain Foods USA Inc. In 1986, he assumed the role of President of McCain Citrus Inc., and was appointed President and CEO of McCain Foods USA Inc. in 1990. McCain holds directorships at three Canadian food companies and is a member of the board for organizations in industries as diverse as Banking, Food and Healthcare. McCain was educated at Mount Allison University and received an Honours Business Administration degree from the University of Western Ontario.

• Julie Naismith
  Director, Talent & Rewards Towers Watson
  
  

  Based in the Toronto practice, Julie Naismith has led a number of significant global projects for Towers Watson. Her expertise lies in developing performance and reward systems that reflect the requirements of high performing organizations. Naismith specializes in total reward management including strategy, talent systems, development programs, base pay development and job evaluation, incentive and bonus design, line of sight reward systems, and individual performance management.

• Rose Patten
  Special Advisor to the President & CEO BMO Financial Group
  
  

  Rose Patten is Special Advisor to the President and CEO of BMO Financial Group and a member of the bank’s executive committee. She has held multiple senior level positions across banking, insurance, trust and investment banking industries. Patten was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree for Corporate Leadership from the University of Toronto and has been recognized as one of the ‘25 Most Powerful Women in Banking’ by U.S. Banker Magazine. Patten serves on several healthcare and government boards.

• Ferio Pugliese
  EVP, People & Culture WestJet Airlines Ltd.
  
  

  Ferio Pugliese is WestJet’s EVP, People and Culture, responsible for overseeing all aspects of the airline’s people (human resources, safety and corporate real-estate) programs for its more than 7,600 WestJetters. Pugliese and his team define and execute people plans that support WestJet’s culture and strategic direction. Under Pugliese’s leadership, WestJet has been named to Canada’s Corporate Cultures Hall of Fame, was recognized as one of ‘Canada’s Most Admired Corporate Cultures’ for four consecutive years (2005 — 2009), and was also cited by Hewitt Associates as one of Canada’s best employers in 2009. He is a member of the Conference Board of Canada’s Human Resources Executive Council and has worked in various senior leadership roles.

  Pugliese’s previous roles include VP, Human Resources at Catalyst Paper Corporation, Director of Human Resources Development at Windsor Casino Ltd. and Director of Human Resources Development at Casino Rama, Carnival Resorts and Casinos.

  A certified Human Resources Professional (CHRP), Pugliese holds an M.A. in Adult Education from Central Michigan University, an Honours B.A. in Social Science and an Honours Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Windsor. Pugliese was recognized by Caldwell Partners as one of Canada’s ‘Top 40 Under 40’ in 2007.

• Susan Robinson
  Partner, People & Organizational Change Ernst & Young LLP
  
  

  Susan Robinson is the Canadian national leader of Ernst & Young’s People & Organizational Change practice. She has spent the bulk of her career in consulting and industry roles in the change management and HR space. She has extensive experience in leading client engagements supporting the people and cultural impacts of transformational changes in both domestic and international markets across a variety of industries. Robinson has led HR transformations and large scale, complex business transformations in Canada, as well as in Asia, Middle East, and Europe. She is an active leader and participant of Ernst & Young’s global Inclusiveness efforts, and is passionate about helping organizations translate the statistics and theories of this topic into actionable and pragmatic plans.

• Mike Webb
  SVP, Human Resources HSBC Bank Canada
  
  

  Mike Webb is SVP and Head of Human Resources for HSBC Bank Canada and also serves as EVP and Head of Human Resources for HSBC’s Commercial Banking operations in North America. Prior to his posting to Canada, Webb was based in Hong Kong where he was Global Head of HR for HSBC Amanah, HSBC’s Islamic Banking division based out of the Middle East, and Asia Pacific Head of HR for Global Banking, Research and Principal Investments. Prior to joining HSBC in 2005, Webb was employed by Morgan Stanley Asia Pacific where he held numerous HR roles including Asia Pacific Head of Learning & Development; Head of Workforce Effectiveness Asia Pacific (including Japan); Head of HR, South East Asia; and Head of Operations for Morgan Stanley’s Knowledge Center in Mumbai, India. Webb worked in Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, India and Korea while at Morgan Stanley. He received his B.S. in Business Administration and Economics from William Jewell College.