Speakers

Senior Vice President, Strategic Public Affairs Research and Managing Director, Ipsos Global @dvisor

He’s a corporate leader and businessman: he’s a Senior Vice President of Ipsos Reid’s Strategic Public Affairs Research Division and the Managing Director of the Ipsos Global @dvisor international poll. He’s grown with the company over 25 years as it transformed from a $4 million a year market follower to the largest market and public opinion research company in Canada and the third largest in the world with annual billings of $2.3 Billion and 17,000 Ipsos employees in 66 countries. He’s been the lead media spokesperson for the company in Canada since joining and has worked with clients world-wide. Prior to joining the company in 1989, he spent eight years between being a Vice President at a renowned advertising and media/public affairs firm, as an Executive Assistant to an Ontario Cabinet Minister and as the first Government Relations Coordinator for the Manufacturers Life Insurance Company. He also served on the Board of the Clarica Life Insurance Company and is a member of the American Association of Public Opinion Research.

He’s a patriot: he’s the Honorary Colonel for the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) 400 Squadron, is a member of the RCAF Air Board and the RCAF Commanders Council, has served as Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel for the Canadian Army Ontario Regiment (Armored Corps), and has been awarded three Canadian Forces Commendations, one each from the Canadian Army, Royal Canadian Air Force and Royal Canadian Navy. He serves on the volunteer boards of Canada Company which support Canada’s Forces and their families and the Canadian Forces College (CFC) Foundation. He also spearheaded the successful monument recognition of the Commonwealth’s most decorated soldier ever, Canadian Lt. Col. William Barker and served as the Chair of the Toronto Garrison Ball Program Committee for those events in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

He’s a civic volunteer: he’s served on numerous charitable organizations and foundations as a Board member, including the Canada Institute at the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars in Washington (founding), Cancer Care Ontario, the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Studies (Vice Chair), the Hincks Dellcrest Children’s Mental Health Centre, the Alzheimer Association of Canada, Heart & Stroke Ontario, the Global Business and Economic Roundtable on Addiction and Mental Health (founding), the Association for the Defense of the Wrongly Convicted, Wounded Warriors (Chair), the HistoricaDominion Institute Canada (founding), the Canadian Vimy Foundation (founding), the Natasha Woods Foundation (founding), the Canadian Journalism Foundation and the Empire Club of Canada.

He’s an Author: he’s co-authored three national best-selling books with colleague Darrell Bricker: What Canadians Think About Almost Everything (2005), We Know What You’re Thinking (2009) and Canuckology (2010). He and Darrell r have recently been signed to produce the 2017 lead business book for HarperCollins with the working title of DemandShift which examines the monumental demographic and attitudinal changes happening to Canadian society and the implications for markets and decision makers.

He’s been Honored: he’s been elected as a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographic Society, awarded the Queens Diamond Jubilee Medal and the Ontario Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Community Volunteerism, is an Arbor Award recipient from his alma mater the University of Toronto, was an Ontario Legislative Intern, is a lifetime member of both the Public Affairs Association (founder) of Canada and the Canada Institute at the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars in Washington, DC., and was a member of the U.S. Department of State 's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs  International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP).