Ross Roxburgh, Interim Executive Director

Ross has worked in the fields of organizational change, human resources, leadership coaching and development and change management for more than 35 years. Prior to joining Deloitte & Touche LLP, he worked in human resource management roles in the university sector as well as the transit and telecommunications industries. With Deloitte Ross helped to build strong Human Capital practices in Ottawa and Toronto. Ross was a Deloitte Partner for fourteen years, leaving the Firm in 2000 to establish his own practice.

Ross earned his Bachelor’s degree in Honours English at Carleton University, then completed a Master’s degree in the Interdisciplinary School of Canadian Studies at the same institution. More recently, he graduated from the one-year Organization and Systems Development (OSD) Program (Becoming a Better Intervener) offered by the Gestalt Institute of Cleveland and continued his development through various coaching-focused programs both in Cleveland as well as at the Gestalt International Centre in Massachusetts. Through National Training Laboratories (NTL), he completed the DOPS Program (Development of the Personal Self). Ross is a Certified Management Consultant and was accredited by Deloitte as a Master Facilitator.

Ken Ainsworth, Lead Facilitator

Ken has worked in the areas of organization development, learning, and coaching for over 20 years. He began his work in these areas in management positions with Bank of Montreal and continued this work when he became Director of Human Resources for Work Wear Corporation of Canada in the mid-1980s. He established his consulting practice in 1989.

Ken holds a master’s degree in clinical and counselling psychology from the University of Ottawa and an MBA from York University, and is a Certified Management Consultant. Ken is a Senior Associate of The Niagara Institute and is on the adjunct faculty at Royal Roads University. He instructs at the York University, Schulich School of Business Executive Development Program.

Valerie Davis, Head Coach

Valerie is a Senior Associate and currently serves as Head Coach for The Niagara Institute. She has over a decade of experience coaching executives and leadership teams in all business sectors, and has leadership experience as an Executive Coach in both the private and not-for-profit sectors. She also associates with a number of successful international consulting firms. Valerie holds a Master of Science in Organization Development from the American University/National Training Labs in Washington, D.C. and is a certified Professional Coach from the Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara. She is currently completing her Ph.D. at the Fielding Graduate University, focusing on leadership.

Tom Tavares, Chief Assessor

Tom Tavares is responsible for maintaining the quality standards set by the Niagara Institute in all facets of leadership coaching. These include training and certifying coaches, delivering feedback coaching, matching coaches with clients, maintaining best practices in assessment, and collaborating with Niagara’s Head Coach and Lead Facilitator to deliver learning experiences with lasting results.

Having worked at the executive level of organizations his entire career and written extensively, Tom has a deep appreciation for the challenges facing leaders today. He has over 20 years consulting experience with firms in diverse industries: natural resources, financial services, long-term care, pharmaceuticals, packaged goods, technology, and manufacturing. He also led the assessment practice at Miller Dallas, Canada’s premier executive transition consulting firm. Most recently, his first book, The Mind Field: What’s Missing in Running Our Organizations, was published by Carswell as part of their new Thought Leadership series.

Tom completed a B.A. in psychology at the University of California at Berkeley and received his Ph.D. from York University in 1979. While training in clinical psychology, he developed a lifelong interest in behavior in organizations.

Ken Ainsworth, MBA, MSc. Psych, CMC

Ken has worked in the areas of organization development, learning, and coaching for over 20 years. He began his work in these areas in management positions with Bank of Montreal and continued when he became Director of Human Resources for Work Wear Corporation of Canada in the mid-1980s. He established his consulting practice in 1989. Ken holds a master’s degree in clinical and counselling psychology from the University of Ottawa and an MBA from York University, and is a Certified Management Consultant. Ken is the Lead Facilitator of The Niagara Institute, adjunct faculty at Royal Roads University, and instructs at York University, Schulich School of Business Executive Development Program.

Randy Brooks, MSOD

Randy has over 20 years’ experience leading change initiatives that reflect fundamental shifts in strategy and culture; facilitating leadership development; coaching executives; and helping teams to function more effectively. Randy is a founding partner of her own consulting practice that focuses on team building, leadership development, organization design, change management, and executive coaching. She has worked inside large, complex corporations as well as in small firms, and has consulted to a broad array of clients in industry, government, and the arts in both Canada and the U.S. Randy holds an honours undergraduate degree in Psychology from Fairleigh Dickinson University and a Master of Science in Organizational Development from Pepperdine University.

Calvin Brown, Ph.D., C. Psych.

Calvin established his Organizational Psychology practice in 1985 to focus on the identification and development of senior management and executive talent in large organizations. He works internationally with some of Canada’s largest corporations, and he has established himself as a trusted advisor in the development of individual and team effectiveness. He has experience consulting to virtually all types of business and industry. Calvin is a Registered Psychologist with a Ph.D. from the University of Saskatchewan, complemented by training at the NTL Institute in group, and system dynamics; executive development from the Center for Creative Leadership; and negotiation skills from the Harvard Law School.

Maureen Brown, M.A. Applied Social Psychology

Maureen is an organizational development professional, working as a consulting partner in her own consulting practice. Maureen spent 10 years in human resources management positions in public and private sector organizations. She has held management-level specialist and generalist positions in both unionized and non-unionized settings. Her last corporate position was Director of Employee Relations and Communications at American Express Canada. She has been consulting in the area of organizational development since 1990 and specializes in helping organizations anticipate and manage change effectively. Maureen has an MA in Applied Social Psychology and has been an Associate of The Niagara Institute since 2000.

Stephane Brutus, Ph.D.

Stephane Brutus is the Chairman of the Department of Management at Concordia University in Montreal. He was a member of the research team at the Center for Creative Leadership® (CCL®) in Greensboro, North Carolina from 1995 to 1997. His area of research interest is the role of 360-degree evaluations and the contribution of the feedback process in leadership development. Stephane holds a Ph.D. in Psychology from Bowling Green State University.

Rilla Clark, M.S., M.Sc. B.Ed, B.A.

Rilla Clark is a highly skilled executive coach and facilitator who has worked with a variety of organizations, moving people to new levels of understanding, skill and mutual gain. 15 years of experience as a corporate leadership coach and fifteen previous years of experience in the fields of business, counseling and education have equipped her with the skills to challenge and support individuals and teams towards co-created outcomes. Rilla specializes in working with designated high potential leaders who need to expand their repertoire of leadership competencies and whose organizations wish to accelerate their development.

Rilla has a B.A.and B.Ed. from U of T and a M.Sc. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Oregon.

France Cloutier, C.A., MSOD

France is an organizational development consultant who has been involved in internal and external consulting and in management functions for the past 20 years. In 1998, she started her own practice, which is focused on supporting individuals and teams to reach their goals and move toward individual and team success. This is accomplished through coaching as well as specific training programs in leadership development, performance management, change management, and coaching. France is a chartered accountant and holds a master’s degree in Organization Development from Pepperdine University in Los Angeles, California. France also received an honours bachelor of administration at Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario, and is fluently bilingual.

Valerie Davis, MSOD

An Executive Coach and consultant with deep skills in individual and organizational change. She has coached executives for over 10 years, working with a broad range of leaders from CEOs of publicly traded corporations to owners of entrepreneurial ventures. Global organizations, including Nortel Networks and Accenture, provided her training ground where she has over 20 years experience as an executive in both corporate and operational roles and as a consultant for Fortune 500 companies. She holds a Masters of Science in Organization Development from the American University/National Training Labs in Washington, D.C. and a certified Professional Coach from the Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara.

Nick Evans, MBA, BA

With over 15 years of experience as a business leader in Fortune 500 organizations, Nick understands how to link business vision and strategy with personal engagement and growth. As a coach and leadership facilitator, he combines his experience in change management, team building, organizational dynamics, and business strategy to design high performance leadership programs. Nick holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Western Ontario, as well as an Honours Bachelor of Arts, Economics and Political Science, from the University of Toronto. He is a member of the International Coaching Federation, and a graduate of Corporate Coach U and the Successful Professional Coaching Program.

Sharon Flanagan, CHRP, ACPC

Sharon is a seasoned business executive and team leader whose managerial expertise has been honed over 20 years and includes a business foundation encompassing national and international operations, retail, head office information technology, as well as experience as a human resources generalist and employment law specialist.

Sharon holds an Hon. B.Sc from Carleton University, and is actively pursuing continuous learning in Personnel Administration at York University and Strategic Management at Schulich School of Business. She is a Fellow of the Institute of Canadian Bankers and a member of both the Human Resources Professionals of Ontario and the International Coach Federation.

Lorne Hartman, Ph.D.

Lorne has been a researcher and practitioner in the arena of human performance and organization effectiveness for over 30 years. He has partnered with leaders at all levels in business, government and education to help them implement change strategies successfully. His client portfolio contains a number of global companies in the Fortune 500 as well as many mid-sized and smaller organizations. Lorne is a member of several associations and boards, has been published in many scientific, business and professional journals and books, and is a frequent speaker and workshop facilitator. He has a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from McGill University and has held academic appointments at the University of Toronto and York University.

Jenny Howe, M.A.

Jenny is a highly skilled Executive Coach and Facilitator who has for the past 16 years specialized in working with senior executives, managers and teams to fully develop their potential in areas of leadership, influence, change management and resilience. Jenny works well with individuals at all levels throughout an organization, with a specialization in working with senior executives. She particularly enjoys working with people transitioning to new roles and expanded levels of responsibility—challenging and supporting them as they expand on upon their current abilities to create new options, build engagement and achieve exceptional results. As an ICF accredited coach, Jenny’s approach reflects her passion for people, lifelong learning and humour. In addition to one on one Coaching, Jenny has also taken a lead role in the design and implementation of the following custom programs: Building a Coaching Culture; Internal Mentoring; Influencing Skills for Women Leaders; Talent Development and Retention and Building Leadership Resilience. Jenny has recently completed a second Master’s Degree - this one in Global Change Leadership at Oxford’s Said School of Business and HEC, Paris.

Paul Hurst, Ph.D., M.A. Psych., B.A. Sociology

Paul Hurst is a psychologist in private practice specializing in counseling and leadership development. Paul provides executive and life coaching, team building, and personnel selection services. His experience includes organization development, training, facilitating strategic planning and managing community development and child and family services programs. He holds a Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Toronto.

Soosan Latham, MBA, Ph.D. Candidate

Former Assistant Dean, Executive Programs, University of Toronto Rotman Business School, and most recently a VP Human Resources with JP Morgan Chase in New York, Soosan brings strong adult education training and development knowledge in working with and coaching senior executives. She offers a diversity of business and academic work experience that demonstrate an understanding of the dynamics of individual and organization behavior. She has extensive accomplishments working with the private sector developing conceptual design and implementation of leadership and management development initiatives across organizational levels.

Soosan holds an MBA from Iran Center for Management Studies (a program associated with the Harvard Business School), and is currently a PhD candidate at the University of Toronto, with research focusing on multiculturalism, leadership and identity. She has written and published articles on training and performance management in top tier organizational journals.

Michel Lemieux, B.Comm

Michel has over 30 years of experience in the field of organizational development and human resources management in major corporations. He is now a Senior Associate of The Niagara Institute and owner of his own consulting firm. His areas of expertise are leadership development, team building, coaching, and custom-designed organizational development interventions. He graduated from Concordia University (business administration), furthered his studies at the NTL Institute (organizational development), and completed the executive business program at Queen’s University. Michel is fluent in both French and English.

Denise McLean, Ph.D.

Denise is a senior leader with a broad range of experience: leadership development; career development and succession management; diversity and inclusiveness; and HR strategy and organizational change. For two years, Denise held the full-time position of Director of The Niagara Institute; prior to that, she led The Conference Board of Canada’s Centre of Excellence for Women’s Advancement. Denise now manages a successful consulting practice, with a focus on designing and delivering interventions to ensure that organizations have the human capabilities and the leadership bench strength to support their business strategies. Denise received her Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Western Ontario in 1987, with a specialization in assessment instruments and educational psychology.

Gregory McQueen, Ph.D.

Greg facilitates the development of innovative approaches to planning, marketing and new business development and lectures in the fields of ethics, leadership and cognitive moral reasoning as it applies to leadership decision making and business management. He provides consultation and services to profit and not for profit companies and organizations in the fields of executive leadership development, planning, reorganization and executive team building.

He is presently the Senior Vice President for Advancement and President of the UNT Foundation, Inc. at the University of North Texas, Denton, Texas. Prior to moving to the main campus he was the Sr. Vice President for Academic Affairs at the UTN Health Science Center in Fort Worth Texas. He has a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration and Business, University of North Texas.

Helen Notzl, B.A. (Hon), M.S.W.

Helen Notzl is a structural consultant and an executive and life coach. Her practice is international, based in Toronto and Prague. She is a speaker, workshop developer and presenter, offering talks and workshops on subjects such as “Creating your Future” and “How to Create the Life You Want. A coach with the Hincks-Delcrest Centre, she also co-facilitates an ongoing 4-day Results Management program entitled “Team Coaching: Moving from Management to Leadership.” Helen holds a BA, Philosophy and English from Queen’s University, an Honours BA, Psychology from the University of Waterloo, and a Master of Social Work, Cum Laude, Gold Medal, from Wilfred Laurier University.

Margaret Ogilvie, Ph.D., M.A., B.A.

Margaret Ogilvie has over 25 years of experience working as a consultant and facilitator specializing in effective communication, team building, transition, stress management and leadership style. Her emphasis is on helping clients achieve personal and corporate goals through developing the client as “a whole person” which leads to continued improvement and life balance. Recognizing that clients own their own solutions she uses a variety of theories and techniques that invite them to grow through feedback and thrive during change and transition. She has been an associate with Niagara Institute since 1991. Margaret holds a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto in Cognitive Science and Special Education. Ph.D. Education, O.I.S.E.

Beverley Patwell, B.A. M.A. CHRA

Beverley Patwell is an organizational development professional with over twenty years experience in developing and implementing organizational change, coaching and business solutions in private and public sector organizations. She holds her Masters in Human Systems Intervention and BA in Applied Social Science and a minor in Psychology from Concordia University. She is also a certified Human Resources Professional (CHRA), published author, program leader at the McGill International Executive Institute, and an adjunct professor in the Masters of OD Program American University NTL.

Donna R.D. Porter, M.B.A., CHRA, CMC

Donna is an organization development specialist focused on helping organizations work effectively with and through their people to translate business strategy into successful outcomes. Prior to entering the consulting field in 1994, Donna held senior human resources positions within the financial services and accounting sectors, working with Royal Trust, North American Trust, and Deloitte & Touche. Her consulting experiences have focused on leadership and team development, succession planning, performance management, training program design, and general HR consulting. A further area of concentration is assisting organizations with the human side of mergers and acquisitions. A Certified Management Consultant, Donna is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario MBA program. She holds an honours undergraduate degree in History from the University of Toronto.

Gail Rappolt, M.Ed., B.A.

Gail Rappolt is a dynamic and creative business coach. Gail’s warmth, knowledge of human behaviour and positive energy form the basis of an outstanding learning opportunity for her clients. Her background as a successful leader/manager brings both awareness of the complexities faced by her clients and the coaching skills to help them find their own effective solutions. Gail has been an Associate of the Niagara Institute since 1999. She holds a Master of Education from the University of Toronto.

Arthur Ridgeway, Ph.D.

Arthur is a registered psychologist who works as a consultant and Facilitator, specializing in designing and implementing strategic interventions aimed at effecting personal, professional, and organizational change. Arthur is a Senior Associate of The Niagara Institute and a Senior Trainer with the Justice Institute of B.C., Centre for Conflict Resolution. His work includes facilitating programs with The Conference Board of Canada, such as the Union-Management Partnering Best Practices Study Tours. Internationally, he represented Canada at the APEC Alternative Dispute Resolution Executive Education Project in Bangkok, Mexico City, and Manila.

Palma Robinson, MPS

Palma is an organizational development consultant and executive coach. Her strengths lie in the ability to tap into the human processes of an organization, proposing and facilitating change processes that are both practical and strategic. Palma is fluently bilingual with in-depth knowledge and experience in all aspects of relationship issues in organizations. She has a Master of Psychology degree in Industrial and Organizational Psychology, from the University of Montreal.

Lydia Roy, B.Ed., B.A.

Lydia has over 20 years experience as a HR executive, business consultant and Master Certified Coach. She has led human resources activities for major organizations and delivers programs leading to certification of new coaches at the Adler International Learning Centre. Lydia holds a Bachelor of Education and Bachelor of Arts degrees from the University of Western Ontario and received her coaching training and certification at the Adler School of Coaching and Psychology in Toronto. She holds the highest designation through the International Coach Federation.

Marc Wilson, MSOD

Marc has over 30 years of experience in developing leaders, helping stakeholders to effect fundamental change in organizational culture, and enabling teams to achieve high performance. Marc is an accomplished designer and Facilitator of change initiatives, training programs, and action‑learning interventions. He is a founding partner of his own consulting practice and a Senior Associate at The Niagara Institute. Marc holds a Master of Science in organizational development from Pepperdine University and is fluent in both English and French.

Sharon Varette, B.A. (Hon), M.A.

Sharon holds her BA Honours in Psychology and MA in Public Administration, from Carleton University, and has conducted doctoral work in psychology and organizational behavior at Queen’s University School of Business. Her career has included senior leadership positions in the management consulting industry since 1977. Over the past several years, she has focused her practice primarily on designing and delivering Executive Coaching and Leadership Development Programs with a wide variety of public and private sector leaders. Her strengths lie in helping clients to improve leadership effectiveness, human resource management, strategic direction, and individual and group performance.