John McKimm sets corporate direction and business strategy, which includes an aggressive emphasis on growth through mergers and acquisitions. Mr. McKimm possesses a deep knowledge in dealing with emerging and growth companies, strategic and financial restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, operational restructuring and the arrangement of financing. As the lead visionary of SEB Inc., he is also actively involved in both day-to-day operational and sales and marketing activities of the enterprise and its subsidiary and affiliated companies.

Mr. McKimm’s experience spans over 35 years serving as a director and an officer of many public and private companies where he provided operations, investment banking, and corporate financing expertise. This experience covers a range of sectors, including financial services, computer hardware, software and services, manufacturing, petrochemical, mining, oil and gas, food processing, telecom, waste management, biotechnology and retail. He has personally identified, negotiated and executed more than 150 individual merger, acquisition and financing transactions, both as a principal and as an agent.

He also founded and was Chairman and CEO of Brainhunter Inc. (TSX: BH), a technology-based service company that he took public after raising more than $70 million in debt and equity capital, growing it from start-up to more than $235 million in annual revenue. Previously, he was executive chairman of Daedalin eSolutions Inc., a firm he recapitalized and reorganized, then took public and sold for $29 million.

Mr. McKimm is a graduate of the University of New Brunswick with a Bachelor of Business Administration, and a graduate of the University of Western Ontario with a Masters of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Law. John also has a number of industry certifications and designations. He has published extensively on select investment and financial restructuring topics.

Mohamad El Chayah, is a high-energy executive having joined SEB as the President of SEB Administrative Services Inc. in 2017 He has held various leadership positions at several global IT services companies. Bringing extensive experience building, growing and transforming strong teams in organizations such as Atos Origin, Hewlett-Packard, and Aon Hewitt he has maximized revenue, increased operational effectiveness and improved profitability in all his roles.

Strategic, aspirational, and driven by a vision for excellence, Mr. El Chayah possesses a deep knowledge of the IT services market and has a proven track record for qualifying business prospects, shaping and developing opportunities, using his persuasive negotiation skills, and managing and closing large complex deal constructs.

He has orchestrated win/win value propositions, closed hundred-million dollar sales, and helped Fortune 500 companies grow in mature, developed and emerging markets. His methodical approach to developing viable and lucrative business cases includes measuring assets, human resources and financial factors among many other credentials.

Tim is responsible for overseeing the accounting, compliance, reporting and financing functions of the company. Since joining Maplesoft, an SEB company, in 2008, Tim has helped build and support the finance organization through the company’s aggressive growth and multiple ventures.

Tim shepherded the sale of Maplesoft to Smart Employee Benefits Inc. and then played an instrumental role working with SEB’s Executive Management Team in the restructuring of SEB-Maplesoft’s financing arrangements. He was recently appointed to the role of CFO for the SEB Group of Companies and as such is now responsible for all corporate financial operations and reporting on a consolidated basis.

Since 2010, Tim has also supported the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation management team on various financial related matters and since 2013 has sat on the Board of Directors as Treasurer. Previously a manager with BDO Canada, Tim had over 15 years of experience serving both businesses and individuals in the area of assurance and accounting services, business valuation, litigation support, tax planning, due diligence and corporate financing in providing leadership to the Maplesoft Finance and Accounting team.

Tim is an active member of the CICA, the ICAO and the OCAQ. Tim graduated from the University du Québec à Hull in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a specialization in accounting. He also obtained a graduate degree in 2002 with a specialization in accounting with the University du Québec en Outaouais.

Cathleen is a seasoned financial professional with over fifteen years’ experience including a long history of building strong finance organizations within fast growing, customer focused companies. She has expertise in financial reporting, planning and M&A functions.

Prior to joining SEB Inc., she was Director of Financial Reporting and Analysis for Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, a world-renowned international luxury hospitality company headquartered in Toronto. Prior to working at Four Seasons, Cathleen led the international Initial public offerings auditing engagements at SLF LLP. Cathleen began her finance career with the audit department at Ernst & Young LLP. As part of SEB Inc.’s senior leadership team, Cathleen is committed above all to providing a client experience that is second to none.

Cathleen is a Chartered Accountant. She holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting from Concordia University and B.COM Honors in Accounting from McGill University.

While maintaining the position of SVP, CIO at SEB, Mr. D’souza is also the Managing Partner at Inforica, an SEB Company, focused in the areas of Enterprise Solutions and Technology Consulting. Mr. D’Souza plays the role Chief Solutions Architect at Inforica and provides technical solutions leadership on all projects. He has over 25 years of strong IT Systems and Business Solutions experience encompassing requirements analysis, design, development and implementation of business applications. Mr. D’Souza has extensive experience implementing Microsoft Dynamics CRM, PeopleSoft CRM and ERP, and has extensive software architecture and development expertise in Java and .NET frameworks. He also has extensive experience working on a number of Enterprise CRM, ERP, Business Intelligence and Business Process Automation projects for customers in Canada, United States, India and the Middle East.

Prior to joining Inforica, Mr. D’Souza held Senior IT positions at MFP Technology Solutions and Watts Communications. He holds Bachelor of Science from Nagarjuna University, India, and a Graduate Diploma in Computer Science from Concordia University, Canada. Mr. D’Souza a Microsoft Certified Professional and holds a number of Microsoft product certifications.

Alongside his position as SVP, CTO at SEB, Mr. Correia is currently a Managing Partner at Inforica. He holds a B.Sc in Electronic & Telecommunications Engineering bringing over 22 years of experience from the Information Technology Industry. Mario manages the local and International operations at Inforica and provides the leadership for the continued development of an innovative, robust, and secure information technology environment throughout the company. His primary responsibilities encompass a wide variety of strategic technology issues: governance and policy, resource allocation and information technology protocols. He is responsible for delivery of IT infrastructure and services, information security systems and compliance, administrative systems, and client support services.

Mario has also been instrumental in architecting, designing, project managing and implementing Customer Relationship Management enabled Contact Center solutions, Custom Application development and Cloud based solutions into a number of industry verticals including Banking, Mutual Fund, Retail, Non-Profit, Construction and Automotiver Manufacturing sectors. He has direct experience in the analysis, design, development, testing and implementation of application software.

Since joining Maplesoft in 2001, Carl’s sales leadership has been instrumental in growing Maplesoft’s annual revenue and driving significant value propositions to our clients.

Carl's responsibilities include spearheading and nurturing existing and new senior level relationships with key clients. He works with lead customers in the geographic region of Eastern Canada, in particular Ottawa and Montreal, fostering a culture of high performance and collaboration. Carl has been instrumental in refining the vision of the business as well as the strategic direction, including assessing the company's existing market opportunities, competitive positioning, domains of expertise, mix of service offerings and solutions in order to determine the appropriate strategic roadmap for Maplesoft.

While earning his degree in Business Administration with specializations in marketing and international business from the University of Ottawa, Carl served as president of the student association and claimed first place in the Entrepreneurship Case of the Commerce Games. Carl received the Ottawa Business Journal’s 40 under 40 Award, which recognizes business executives who balance bottom-line results with participation in charitable and community activities. He also received the 2010 Young Achiever’s Award from the University of Ottawa’s Telfer School of Management, recognizing alumni who have achieved business excellence before age 40.

Carl is active in his community, sitting on the board of the Montfort Hospital, Gala des Grands Chefs of Canadian Cancer Society, Telfer School of Management Advisory Board and the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation’s Ultimate Run for Mens’ Cancers Campaign. He's also a proud supporter of the United Way and the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario.

Alec leads the overall aspects of Life Insurance, Group Benefits, Creditor Insurance, and Wealth manufacturing and operations for Co-operators Life Insurance Company and CUMIS, including financial management, product development, profitability and insurance operations. He also leads the development of a Third-Party distribution network spanning 3 product lines to deliver a full range of products for Canadians.

Alec has 29 years of experience in the insurance industry. Prior to his current appointment as EVP and COO of Co-operators Life Insurance Company and CUMIS, Alec was Vice President Individual Insurance and Chief Actuary, Life. In this role he oversaw the Individual Insurance line of business including product development, underwriting, and strategy. From 2011 to 2013 Alec was Director of Pricing and Product Support for Individual Insurance and Wealth Management and VP Individual Insurance for CUMIS from 2005 to 2011.

Alec sits on the board of The Edge Benefits, Co-operators Financial Investment Services and AZGA Services Canada on behalf of the Co-operators Group. He is a Fellow with the Canadian Institute of Actuaries and the Society of Actuaries and holds a mathematics degree in actuarial science with a minor in statistics from the University of Waterloo.

John McKimm sets corporate direction and business strategy, which includes an aggressive emphasis on growth through mergers and acquisitions. Mr. McKimm possesses a deep knowledge in dealing with emerging and growth companies, strategic and financial restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, operational restructuring and the arrangement of financing. As the lead visionary of SEB Inc., he is also actively involved in both day-to-day operational and sales and marketing activities of the enterprise and its subsidiary and affiliated companies.

Mr. McKimm’s experience spans over 35 years serving as a director and an officer of many public and private companies where he provided operations, investment banking, and corporate financing expertise. This experience covers a range of sectors, including financial services, computer hardware, software and services, manufacturing, petrochemical, mining, oil and gas, food processing, telecom, waste management, biotechnology and retail. He has personally identified, negotiated and executed more than 150 individual merger, acquisition and financing transactions, both as a principal and as an agent.

He also founded and was Chairman and CEO of Brainhunter Inc. (TSX: BH), a technology-based service company that he took public after raising more than $70 million in debt and equity capital, growing it from start-up to more than $235 million in annual revenue. Previously, he was executive chairman of Daedalin eSolutions Inc., a firm he recapitalized and reorganized, then took public and sold for $29 million.

Mr. McKimm is a graduate of the University of New Brunswick with a Bachelor of Business Administration, and a graduate of the University of Western Ontario with a Masters of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Law. John also has a number of industry certifications and designations. He has published extensively on select investment and financial restructuring topics.

Mohamad El Chayah, is a high-energy executive having joined SEB as the President of SEB Administrative Services Inc. in 2017 He has held various leadership positions at several global IT services companies. Bringing extensive experience building, growing and transforming strong teams in organizations such as Atos Origin, Hewlett-Packard, and Aon Hewitt he has maximized revenue, increased operational effectiveness and improved profitability in all his roles.

Strategic, aspirational, and driven by a vision for excellence, Mr. El Chayah possesses a deep knowledge of the IT services market and has a proven track record for qualifying business prospects, shaping and developing opportunities, using his persuasive negotiation skills, and managing and closing large complex deal constructs.

He has orchestrated win/win value propositions, closed hundred-million dollar sales, and helped Fortune 500 companies grow in mature, developed and emerging markets. His methodical approach to developing viable and lucrative business cases includes measuring assets, human resources and financial factors among many other credentials.

A proud advocate of co-operative values, Rob drives Co-operators commitment to building a sustainable, financially secure, and resilient society for Canadians and our communities. He is instrumental in Co-operators evolution from a solely insurance-focused organization to a holistic financial-services provider, spanning multi-line insurance and investment products, services, and personalized advice.

Rob believes that the way to foster Canadians’ financial strength and security is to invest in communities, so they can better withstand and recover from increasingly frequent and severe climate-related events. That’s why he has overseen the investment of more than $2.6 billion – 21% of Co-operators portfolio – in impact investments that intentionally and measurably address Canada’s most-pressing environmental and social challenges. Additionally, he leads flood-resiliency efforts across the country, as a founding director and member of the Partners for Action Advisory Board, and as a board member of the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction.

On the global stage, Rob is the Chair of the International Cooperative and Mutual Insurance Federation (ICMIF), and its charitable foundation. He also shares his unique expertise as a board member of the Canadian Co-operative Investment Fund (CCIF), and of Équité Association. And as a member of the Insurance Development Forum (IDF) Steering Committee, and the Sustainable Finance Action Council (SFAC) committee.

Rob holds a B.A. with distinction in Theoretical Mathematics and an MSc. of Applied Statistics from the University of Guelph, as well as a Chartered Insurance Professional (CIP) designation. He lives with his family in Guelph, Ontario, where he remains a rooted and active member of the local community

Mr. Pesner is also currently serving as a Board member of Le Chateau Inc., Richmont Mines Inc. and Wi2Wi Corporation. Mr. Pesner is a CPA, CA and holds a B. Commerce from McGill University and a B. Arts degree from Concordia University.

Lesley is responsible for overseeing and providing leadership to all aspects of the Corporate Finance function including treasury, investor relations, financial reporting for the group of companies as well as the corporate planning and analysis functions. Lesley is also the program co-sponsor of the IFRS 17 initiative for the group of companies.

Lesley has been with The Co-operators since 2010 in various capacities in Corporate Finance, including Corporate Controller, where she led the financial reporting and technical accounting for the group of companies, including all public company reporting. Lesley was also the AVP of Financial Planning and Analysis for Co-operators General and CUMIS General. In this capacity, Lesley has provided financial support to all aspects of the business as strategic decisions are made. Most recently, Lesley held the role of Vice-President, Financial Accounting Services.

Lesley is chairperson of the Co-operators Group pension committee, ranked #11 in Canada (Benefits Canada, 2021); a defined contribution plan with over $1 billion in pension assets. Lesley also sits on the CPA Canada Advisory Board for Sustainable Business and is a member of the United Way (Guelph Wellington Dufferin) Finance, Audit & Risk Committee.

Lesley holds an Honours Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Wilfrid Laurier University and is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA). Prior to joining The Co-operators, Lesley was in the Assurance Practice with Deloitte.

Kathleen joined The Co-operators in late 2017 as SVP, Group General Counsel and Associate Secretary. Kathleen is accountable for the provision of all legal, compliance and records and information management services across the group of companies. Prior to joining The Co-operators, Kathleen was the Senior Vice-President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Zurich Insurance Company Ltd. As lead advisor to the board and executive committee for multiple legal entities, Kathleen was accountable for all legal, regulatory, and compliance issues within Canada. Prior to joining Zurich, Kathleen served as General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for AIG Insurance Company of Canada. Her insurance industry background also includes time spent with Kingsway Financial, Chubb Insurance, and RBC Insurance. Kathleen's experience also includes years in private practice where she focused on complex commercial litigation. Kathleen has sat on the board of directors of numerous companies in Canada and the United States.

Kathleen is a strong communicator and business leader with a proven record of building respectful relationships with insurance and securities regulators across North America.

Kathleen obtained an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Guelph and she was called to the Ontario Bar in February 1998. She obtained her law degree (LL. B) from Queens University, School of Law.

On a personal note, some of Kathleen's passions include baking, cooking, sports, family and youth mental health matters. Kathleen is married to Warren Nicholson and has two sons and two golden retreivers.

As EVP, The Co-operators Group, Steve provides leadership to the Emerging & Adjacent Business Models business units, sponsors Enterprise Innovation and Corporate Venture Fund programs.

Steve joined Co-operators in 2017 and brought a wealth of over 20 years of executive leadership experience a variety executive-level roles at a major Canadian bank and a large global specialty insurer. He is passionate about developing businesses that leverage strategic distribution partnerships to provide innovative ways to bring protection solutions to customers. Steve thrives on building and supporting high performing management teams to execute the high impact strategies.

Steve has a Director's Education Program (ICD.D) designation from the Rotman School of Management/ Institute of Corporate Directors and holds an MBA from the Ivey School of Business. Over his career he has served on many insurance and service company Boards and has experience chairing the Board, Audit and Risk, and Compensation Committees. Currently, Steve participates on the boards of Co-operators wholly owned subsidiaries Sovereign Insurance, Premier Group and Smart Employee Benefits.

Harry is responsible for leading the overall strategy, planning, development, and execution of The Co-operators Group Limited’s information technology (IT) function, creating operational efficiencies and competitive differentiation.

An accomplished IT executive, Harry has over 30 years of diverse experience within the financial service and retail sectors, as well as with global consulting firms. He was recently Global CIO of Aimia, where he was responsible for all aspects of Aimia’s global IT transformation, including strategy, architecture/infrastructure, application development, security, and procurement.

Prior to this, Harry held senior executive positions at a variety of companies including Symcor, Manulife, CIBC, BMO, and IBM. A leader in the field, Harry has a strong industry network and a proven track record for successfully driving large complex digital transformations, outsourcing and revitalization programs. He has completed the Executive Program at the Banff School of Advanced Management

Joan leads operations for the Group Benefits business line at Co-operators Life Insurance Company. Her expertise in group benefits has been developed through progressive experience in pricing, valuation, product development, and leadership over the years, providing her with an in-depth understanding of operations, markets, distribution, and performance levers.

Joan has over 25 years of experience in the life insurance industry, including 20 years of management experience working on both business line and corporate management teams. Prior to her current appointment as Vice President Group Benefits Operations, Joan was the AVP Group Insurance Pricing & Valuation and from 2009 to 2017, she held the position of Director of Finance. Joan is a Fellow of both the Canadian Institute of Actuaries and the Society of Actuaries and graduated from the University of Manitoba with a Bachelor of Commerce majoring in actuarial mathematics.