Board of Directors

Tom Astle

Chair, Corporate Director & Partner, Longevity Funds

Tom has worked in the Capital Markets and Technology sectors for over 30 years with a front row seat at some of the major economic and technology cycles of the 20th and 21st centuries. He sits on several boards of technology and media companies that range from early stage start-ups to publicly listed ones.

For the last five years, he has helped manage the Difference Capital VC/PE portfolio focused on late stage private technology and media investments as well as act as the CFO and Chief Investment Officer of this publically listed asset manager.

Prior to this, he gained over 20 years’ experience as a top ranked Wall Street and Bay Street equity analyst, covering some of the largest technology companies for some of the largest investment banks in the world.  During this time he worked for Merrill Lynch, but also National Bank Financial and other Canadian firms. This work culminated in several years’ experience as head of large equity research departments which covered all major sectors.

Tom holds his Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and ICD.D designation and has an Engineering Physics degree from Queen’s University and is a Professional Engineer (P.Eng).

Kim Butler

Business Advisor, Business and Financial Advisory

Kim Butler, CPA, CMA, ICD.D.  With more than 30 years of executive financial and operational experience with Canadian and multinational organizations, Kim has demonstrated extensive accomplishments in areas of financial and risk management, corporate financing, strategic planning, operational effectiveness, M&A, and investor relations. She has held position as Head of Finance and integration at Ericsson Service Assurance (through acquisition of CENX), she has served as CFO and interim CEO at both CENX and Benbria, an enterprise software company.  In her role as SVP Finance and CFO at Bridgewater Systems, a global leader in mobile policy solutions, Kim led the company’s initial public offering in 2007, and delivered shareholder value with the successful sale of Bridgewater to Amdocs in 2011. Prior to Bridgewater, Kim held senior finance roles at Asea Brown Boveri, and Mitel Corporation.

Kim is a member of the board of directors of Hydro Ottawa, member of the Audit Committee and Strategic Initiatives committee.  She also serves as a member of the board of directors of Canada Health Infoway, a member of the Human Resources Committee and Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee.  In addition, she is  a member of the Executive Committee of the Ottawa Chapter of the Institute of Corporate Directors, and Regional Ambassador for Women Get on Board. She has previously served as Board member and Chair of the Finance Committee for the Queensway Carleton Hospital Foundation, and is a past member of the Industry Advisory Committee for Entrepreneurship at Algonquin College in Ottawa. Currently, Kim is a volunteer coach and mentor for SheBoot, a program in conjunction with Invest Ottawa, supporting and empowering female technology entrepreneurs.

Tom Bursey

CFO & Vice President, Council of Canadian Academies

Tom is Board Chair of Ontario’s Public Service Health & Safety Association and Director of the Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Health Information. He served as Director of private company CODE Inc., C. CORE and LOOKNorth, a National Centre of Excellence.

Tom is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario and holds the designation of Fellow Chartered Professional Accountant (FCPA). He is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors, and is an Institute-Certified Director (ICD.D).

Tom received the designation of Chartered Director (C.Dir.) from the Directors College and two specialized governance certifications: Audit Committee Certified (ACC) and Human Resources and Compensation Committee Certified (HRCC). He also co-led the creation and launch of the Human Resources Compensation Committee Certified Program at the Directors College.

Tom is an Honorary Life Member and past Board Director of the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA) and is a two-time recipient of the Vision Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Human Resources Profession.

Tom received his Honours Bachelor of Commerce (B. Comm. Hons.) and his Master of Business Administration (MBA) degrees from Memorial University. He is the Founder and past Chair of the Affinity Newfoundland and Labrador Ottawa Dinner and received the J.D. Eaton Alumni Award in recognition of his outstanding service to Memorial University.

Prior to joining the Council of Canadian Academies, Tom was Vice President with Right Management and Managing Director with Alan Davis & Associates. He has held several senior leadership positions within the ATCO Group. Prior to his work with the ATCO Group, he worked at Bell Aliant (NewTel Enterprises). Tom was also a Senior Fellow with the Centre on Governance, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ottawa.

Julia Elvidge

High Tech Advisor, Investor, Corporate Director

Julia Elvidge BSc, BASc, ICD.D brings 30 years of high technology business experience to her work as an advisor, board member and investor. She is the co-founder of SheBoot, a bootcamp for women entrepreneurs getting ready for the investment phase of their business. In addition, Julia works as an advisor at Invest Ottawa, is a Director for Capital Angel Network’s (CAN) Board and a member of the Hardware Catalyst Initiative (HCI) VentureLAB Advisory Board.

Educated as an electrical engineer, Julia designed microchip circuits and analyzed semiconductors before moving into the business side of technology. As co-founder and President, Julia helped build Chipworks into an industry leader – delivering patent analytics and technology intelligence products and services to IP and R&D groups in electronics companies across Asia, North America and Europe. Key business experience includes scaling a business with a focus on strategic planning, execution, leadership development and culture along with shifting the business focus from services to SaaS products. Chipworks was sold to Techinsights in June 2016 and Julia exited the business in 2017.

Julia has been recognized as one of the world’s most foremost IP strategists by Intellectual Property Magazine (IAM). Winner of the Trailblazer of the Year Award in 2008 by Canadian Women in Communications and winner of the Sara Kirke award for women entrepreneurship by CATA WIT (Women in Technology) in 2007.

Sacha Gera

Tech Advisor and Corporate Director

A recipient of the 2019 Forty Under 40 award by the OBJ & Ottawa Board of Trade. One part CTO, one part COO, and one part Entrepreneur – Mr. Gera’s eminence is in leading SaaS innovators toward achieving escape velocity, recurring revenue growth, and a path to profitability.  Mr. Gera holds an MBA from the Ivey School of Business and a Bachelor of Computer-Systems Engineering from Carleton University – he has held a variety of leadership and technology roles ranging from Software Developer to Management Consultant to head of Product Management and R&D to General Manager. A self-proclaimed SaaS evangelist and a regular keynote speaker at various industry conferences including Perspectives, Enterprise Connect, SaaS North and the Gartner Summit.  Outside of work Sacha is an investor, assistant hockey coach, husband and the father of eleven-year-old triplets.

Jim Ghadbane

Former President, CANARIE Inc.

Jim Ghadbane is an accomplished executive with a career spanning four decades in progressively senior roles, culminating in a ten-year tenure as President and CEO of CANARIE, operator of the federal backbone of Canada’s National Research and Education Network. He has also led product management, business strategy, and executive teams in Canada’s technology sector.

Throughout his career, Ghadbane has spearheaded transformative initiatives and steered organizations towards strategic growth. Most recently at CANARIE, his leadership, technical expertise, and focus on stakeholder needs increased the impact and relevance of CANARIE programs and services in Canada’s public and private sectors. With a profound commitment to corporate values, he was instrumental in fostering a culture of service, accountability, and kindness within the organization. Nationally, he worked to strengthen the governance, collaborative operation, and evolution of Canada’s National Research and Education Network, and contributed extensively to the ongoing evolution of the Global Research and Education Network.

Prior to joining CANARIE, Ghadbane held a variety of executive positions at leading Canadian technology companies, including Bridgewater Systems, Ceyba, Alcatel, and Newbridge Networks. Now retired, he continues to serve people and organizations that advance Canada’s well-being and prosperity, sharing his expertise and experience through advisory roles and mentorship, including serving as Chair of the Board of Directors of Ocean Networks Canada.

Rafik Goubran

VP (Research & International) & Chancellor’s Professor, Carleton University

Rafik Goubran received the B.Sc. degree in electronics and communications engineering and the M.Sc. degree in electrical engineering from Cairo University, Egypt, in 1978 and 1981, respectively, and the Ph.D. degree in electrical and computer engineering from Carleton University, Ottawa, ON, Canada, in 1987.

Dr. Goubran is now Vice-President (Research and International) and a Chancellor’s Professor at Carleton University. He was involved in several research projects with industry and government organizations in the areas of sensors, data analytics, signal processing, biomedical engineering and the design of smart homes for the independent living of seniors. Dr. Goubran co-supervised 89 Master’s and PhD students at Carleton, and co-authored over 320 international publications and 10 patents.

Dr. Goubran served as Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Design at Carleton from 2006 to 2016 and as Chair of the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering from 1997 to 2006. He was the Founding Director of the Ottawa-Carleton Institute for Biomedical Engineering from 2006 to 2009. Dr. Goubran is a fellow of the IEEE, a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering, a member of the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario, and an affiliate investigator with the Bruyère Research Institute.

Pam Laycock

Experienced Board Director and Transformational Leader

Pam Laycock MBA, ICD.D is a strategy and digital transformation expert, working as an executive and board director to help organizations and leaders chart and deliver on growth plans and navigate through dynamic environments.  She has multi-disciplinary experience in the areas of strategy, transformation, change management, digital, new business development, brand and direct-to-consumer marketing, product management, and general management.  She has over 30 years of experience in the media and book publishing space in Canada, the US and the UK.

Pam is a member of the Board of Directors of Corby Spirit and Wine Limited (TSX: CSW-A.TO) and Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of the Girl Guides of Canada. She sits on the Audit Committee and HR Committee of both organizations. She was previously vice chair of the Toronto Public Library Foundation board and has previously sat on the boards of CAA South Central Ontario, Shop.ca, Olive Media and Workopolis. Pam holds the ICD.D certification from the Institute of Corporate Directors.  Pam has also been appointed to the Canadian Board Diversity Council’s Diversity 50.

Pam has an MBA from the Schulich School of Business.  She remains very active with the school in the role of President of the Schulich Global Alumni Network, as a Special Advisor to the Dean, chair of the Tech MBA Advisory Council and as an Instructor in leadership for the Executive MBA program.  She is also the recipient of the Alumni Recognition Award for Outstanding Contribution to the School.

Robin McIntyre

Managing Director, ConsultOne

Robin McIntyre BSc., ICD.D is the Managing Director of ConsultOne, a firm specializing in strategy development and the implementation of large digital transformation programs. This company provides consulting services to both the Government of Canada and private-sector clients.

With more than 30 years of experience, Robin has held executive positions in technology organizations delivering data consulting and IT managed services. She has served as Chief Transformation Officer at The Ottawa Hospital and the Ottawa Regional President for Rogers Communications. While much of her recent experience has been cross-disciplinary, a significant portion of her career was spent in engineering and network operations, where she oversaw several major technology launches.

Robin has served as Chair of LiveWorkPlay (2022-present), a nonprofit organization supporting people with intellectual disabilities and as Chair of Invest Ottawa from 2008 to 2010. She has received numerous awards, including the Women’s Business Network – Corporate Businesswoman of the Year, the Canadian Women in Communications – Trailblazer Award and the Rogers Engineering Award. Robin graduated from the University of Waterloo and holds a US/European patent. She continues post-graduate studies in Digital Transformation and Innovation at Ottawa University.