Success Stories

RANDY PILON

Founder, President and CEO of Virox Technologies Inc.;
Sheridan Polytechnic Institute Board of Governors;
Toronto Hospital for Sick Children Strategy Advisory Board

Randy is a graduate of the Rotman/ICD Directors Education Program.
One of the key issues Randy Pilon identified as imperative to his company’s success, was to acquire approval of its technology from dozens of regulatory bodies worldwide – a daunting task requiring alignment of strategy at all levels of the organization. The ICD/ Rotman Directors Education Program gave him the skills and acumen he needed to develop a clear, compelling and efficient plan, with mitigated risk, and to galvanize Virox’s leadership to make this and other key imperatives real. He taught the company’s managers to use the same techniques, both to dovetail their own planning with corporate strategy, and to perpetuate learning through all levels of the company. Rotman gave Randy the credibility and confidence to inspire his co-workers to become an empowered, high-performance team. “We manage the process, not the people,” Randy says; as a result, Virox has grown from an Ontario-based firm to a successful global enterprise.

ROB DRYNAN

President of MacLAREN kiindrid
Board Chair, Planned Parenthood Toronto
Member of the Emerging Leaders Network, a Greater Toronto Civic Action Alliance initiative; Named one of Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 in 2009

Rob is a graduate of Financial Literacy Program for Directors and Executives, the Advanced Program in Human Resources Management, Rotman's Integrative Thinking™ Program and the Governance Essentials Program for Directors of Not-for-Profit Organizations.
In his seven years as Executive Director of Camp Oochigeas, a camp for children with cancer, the skills Rob Drynan acquired concurrently at Rotman were invaluable. As he grew his organization fivefold, he learned to align HR with business strategy, and developed a firm understanding of the basics of finance – facility that strengthened his confidence to lead the charity. But most important, according to Rob, was learning how to think and solve problems. Becoming an integrative thinker had a significant impact on his most recent career move. Dissatisfied with the standard career models available to him, he created a better solution, one that combined the goals he wanted to pursue, and pitched it to advertising giant MacLAREN McCANN. Rob is now President of MacLAREN kiindrid, a for-profit strategy and communications practice that works with charities and businesses to improve their social impact. Of his experience at Rotman he says,“The answers I came out with weren’t the answers I expected. They were better,” and they will continue to contribute to his success.

PAULA ROBERTS

Executive Vice President, Marketing & Development, Plan Canada; Board of Directors Home Equity Corporation; Selected first female valedictorian of Rotman’s Directors Education Program in 2008

Paula is a graduate of The Judy Project: An Enlightened Leadership Forum for Executive Women, the Rotman/ICD Directors Education Program and the Governance Essentials Program for Directors of Not-for-Profit Organizations.
When Paula Roberts moved from the corporate to the not-for-profit sector, Rotman Executive Programs gave her the skills and acumen to make a successful transition. She learned timely strategies for an era in which not-for-profit companies are under intense scrutiny to be accountable and transparent with donor dollars. “Papering everything to death is not the same as managing risk,” Paula says. Rotman gives leaders a full tool-kit to identify and address the critical factors. As VP of Marketing for the Hospital for Sick Children Foundation Paula did exactly that, leading a successful marketing campaign to supporting efforts double fund-raising; she is now Executive VP of Marketing and Development for Plan International Canada which works to alleviate child poverty in sixty countries worldwide. More than fine-tuning her leadership and management skills, Paula says, “Rotman gave me self-knowledge and the perspective to lever my unique gifts to contribute in any situation and make a difference.”

STACY DAUB

CEO, Toronto Central Community Care Access Centre; Co-Chair, Toronto Central LHIN Integrated Care for Complex Seniors Task Force; Executive Business Lead, Toronto Central LHIN Referral and Resource Matching System; Co-Chair, Toronto Central LHIN Virtual Ward Steering Committee; Member, Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care Avoidable Hospital Admissions Expert Panel; Member, Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, Expert Panel on Rehabilitation and Complex Continuing Care

Stacey is a graduate of the Advanced Health Leadership Program.
Stacey Daub has had an extensive career in community-based healthcare. Enrolling in Rotman’s Advanced Leadership Program gave her the opportunity to interact with leaders from a range of healthcare sectors across Ontario, in a setting safe to disagree, to challenge opinions, and come to an understanding of different perspectives. “When people are pushed out of their comfort zone, that’s when breakthrough learning occurs,” Stacey says. She now uses this concept and the Integrative Thinking skills she developed to work with her own leadership team. Rotman faculty were well-informed by current government policy – crucial in the public sector, and the exposure to current healthcare leaders, gave Stacey real insight into their career-development and the challenges they have faced. In fall 2010, she was appointed CEO of the Toronto Central Community Care Access Centre. She credits Rotman with evolving her thinking and leadership skills. “It helped me to articulate what kind of leader I want to be, and provided me with the skills and tools to take me to another level.”

IAN DAVIDSON

Ontario Deputy Minister of Community Safety

Ian is a graduate of the Police Leadership Program.
Two years before he became Chief of the Greater Sudbury Police Services, Ian Davidson graduated from Rotman’s inaugural Police Leadership Program. He was impressed by the credibility of speakers, whose current, real-life insights became highly relevant to his experience. He learned to inculcate “a leadership philosophy” throughout an organization to ensure its flexibility, creativity and success, and developed the political acuity to understand underlying budget issues that are key to leading effectively. The program was a tremendous opportunity to network with peers who would have a significant influence on the future of policing and public safety. “It is the interdependence of leaders that makes for a successful organization,” Ian says, and he has applied this principle as his own career evolves. He was elected President of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police in 2008; in 2010 he was appointed Deputy Minister of Community Safety. He often returns now as an invited speaker to the program, welcoming the opportunity for ongoing mutual learning.

ARTHUR IRVING Jr.

President, Cobalt Properties
Board of Directors, Irving Oil

Arthur is a graduate of the Directors Education Program, Financial Literacy for Directors and Executives and Excellence in the Boardroom.
When Irving Oil and subsidiary Cobalt Properties added outside directors to the family business, Arthur was keen to ensure the board operated professionally and effectively. Rotman programs helped him to clearly delineate managerial and director roles, and to lever all of the directors’ skills and experience to envision and meet the company’s goals. The comprehensive design of the programs gave him understanding of protocols and processes that made him a more effective director, even when stepping outside his comfort zone. As a result, he has “set the bar higher” for his own boardroom performance.

Arthur appreciated the quality of the professors at Rotman who were knowledgeable and enthusiastic, but also well-grounded and sincere, and he was impressed by the top-calibre industry guest speakers. He found it a powerful learning experience to study a particular business case and then hear directly from the executive who lived it. The diversity of backgrounds and experience among his classmates created a stimulating and dynamic learning environment; they gave Arthur new perspectives on many issues, and made him, in his words, “a better person.” Arthur credits Rotman’s “great staff” for running the programs smoothly and effectively and recommends them highly to his colleagues and peers.

KAREN MURTON

Principal, Branksome Hall
Board Member, Standards in Education and Learning (SEAL) Canada, (previously known as the Canadian Association of Independent Schools).

Karen Murton is a graduate of Integrative Thinking.
As Principal of one of the world’s premier schools for girls, a role encompassing that of both Chief Executive Officer and Chief Educational Leader, Karen Murton regularly deals with complex problems that affect multiple constituencies. The Integrative Thinking skills she learned at Rotman were immediately applicable, both in her role as a mentor, and in solving senior management problems at a strategic level. It was because of these skills, Karen says, that she had the confidence to tackle a colossal initiative currently underway that will see Branksome Hall open a sister school in Jeju Island, South Korea in 2012. Because Integrative Thinking aligns so well with Branksome’s approach to learning, it is now a comprehensive part of the school’s curriculum, and Karen has seen it improve students’ problem-solving skills. Karen enjoyed the opportunity to network at Roman with diverse, high-quality classmates. She is looking forward to returning to take the Financial Literacy for Directors and Executives program.