Philip Armstrong has spent 45+ years in the financial service industry, starting his career with Lloyds Bank in the UK. Philip emigrated to Canada in 1975 and worked as a senior ‎executive for two Canadian Trust companies. In 1987 he became an original investor, partner, CEO and member of the Board of Altamira Investment Services Inc. Altamira grew from a small mutual fund company, managing $50M in fund assets to manage approximately $15B in assets. Altamira had over $100M of revenue and was sold to the National Bank in 2000.

In 2002, Mr. Armstrong was a founder, CEO and board member of Jovian Capital Corporation, a public company, whose mandate was to acquire, create and grow companies in the asset and wealth management sectors. The company grew to over $100M of revenue. ‎Jovian was sold to IA Insurance Company. He was also a director for 5 years of DGM Bank (Barbados), a bank that managed approximately $800M in client assets.

Currently Mr. Armstrong serves on the boards of Torrent Capital, Maret Resources and Smart Employee Benefits - all public companies. He is also the Chair of the Richardson GMP Family Office Oversight Commitee. He is an investor in a number of private companies.

Mr. Armstrong has served as Chairman of the Investment Funds Institute of Canada, and Chairman of the Mutual Fund Dealer's Association, an SRO. In addition he served on the board of the Ireland Fund of Canada and as a past director of the Canadian Opera Company. In 2015, Mr. Armstrong was awarded the Morningstar Career Achievement Award. He holds a Bachelor of Arts (Law) Hons. from the School of Law at Manchester Polytechnic.

Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer, Co-operators Life Insurance Company and President and Chief Operating Officer CUMIS

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 Group Insurance Sales distribution network to deliver a full range of products.

Alec has 25 years of experience in the insurance industry. Prior to his current appointment as EVP and COO of Co-operators Life Insurance Company and President and COO for 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 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.

Ms. Elliott is both an LLB and a seasoned business woman, with extensive experience in the development of Canada-China business and investment strategies. Fluent in Mandarin, she has built significant relationships in China over the past twenty years, advising clients on corporate and immigration matters. Ms. Elliott is well-respected in her field, and has become a conduit for responsible Chinese investment in technology, real estate and resources, both in Canada and around the world. In addition to her legal practice, she has experience as both a shareholder and director of several companies, including private equity, mortgage brokerage, consulting and advisory companies. Ms. Elliott has also dedicated her time to volunteer work, particularly assisting new immigrants, and is a member of several community-based organizations.

VP Finance, Life Operations, The Co-operators Group Limited

Since joining The Co-operators in 2009, Dave has held increasingly senior leadership roles within the finance area for the group of companies. Currently, Dave is the VP Finance, Life Operations. In this role he is responsible to oversee the delivery of key financial information and plans to the management team, their business units, the Board of Directors, and the Audit Committee. He plays a critical role in the setting of the Life company’s strategic direction and delivery. Prior to this role, Dave was the VP, Financial Accounting Services where he was responsible for setting the strategic direction and ensuring operational success of The Co-operators shared service financial functions. Over his tenure with The Co-operators he has had a focus on strategy, execution, financial reporting, operational accounting and financial systems. He has made significant strides in reducing operational expenses and increasing team engagement.

Prior to joining Co-operators he worked in the auditing of manufacturing and not-for-profit sectors for PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Dave sits on the Boards of Smart Employee Benefits, The Edge Benefits, AZGA Services Canada and Technicost. He is also a member of the Board of Directors for Guelph General Hospital.

Dave holds an Honours Bachelor of Commerce degree with distinction from McMaster University as well as a CPA, CA designation from the Institute of Chartered Professional Accountants.

Ms. Hrudka’s experience in the pharmaceutical industry brings highly specialized expertise and business relationships to the Board of SEB. She has spent 30+ years in the pharmaceutical industry in Canada. Ms. Hrudka has an extensive understanding of retail pharmacy; a byproduct of having ownership of both pharmaceutical chain and independent pharmacies. Ms. Hrudka has also been involved in many other entrepreneurial endeavors, including software development and the roll-out of new-to-market pharmaceutical products. As a front-line user, Ms. Hrudka has an in-depth knowledge of most major benefit plans. She has played a significant role in the expansion of prescriptive authority for Saskatchewan pharmacists and continues to advocate for the further expansion of such authority, which she sees as key to ensuring the delivery of quality health services to the people of Saskatchewan, particularly rural Saskatchewan.

Since March, 2013, Mr. Iannicelli has been Chief Executive Officer of SEB Partner, Banyan Work Health Solutions, a healthcare company, offering a holistic range of services, from disability claims management to rehab field visits, including complementary specialized services, coaching and training, absence management and disability plan audits. Prior to this, Mr. Iannicelli served as a strategic and management consultant with OMERS, from March 1, 2012 to February 28, 2013. Mr. Iannicelli also served as President and CEO of the Standard Life Insurance Company of Canada from 2005-2012, and is currently Director and Chairman of Canadian Spirit Resources Inc., and Director at Groupe Bikini Village Inc. Mr. Iannicelli has been recognized for several business achievements, including being named one of the Top 5 Influential Business Leaders in Quebec for four straight years (2009-2012).

Mr. McKimm has over 35 years of experience providing operations and financial expertise to public and private companies. His experience covers many sectors, including financial services and technology sectors. Mr. McKimm has extensive investment banking and corporate finance expertise, specializing in several areas, including emerging and growth companies, providing specialty services in SR&ED claims, strategic and financial restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, and arranging financing. Mr. McKimm has served as a director and officer of many public and private companies, and has had extensive experience with board committees as both a Committee Member and Chair. Most recently, Mr. McKimm was Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Brainhunter Inc., a company listed on TSX.

Mr. Peacock is a seasoned financial executive who has held several senior positions in domestic and international organizations, including RBC, Lancaster Financial, Citibank, Levesque Beaubien, Shroders and HSBC. In 2002, he founded Mustang Capital Partners, a Calgary based limited market dealer, specializing in mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Peacock was also a director of Avery Resources Inc. when it was a TSX-V listed company. Mr. Peacock is currently the President of Bearspaw Capital Corp., a private investment firm.

Michael Pesner, CPA, CA, has been President of Hermitage Canada Finance Inc. since 2002. Prior to that, Mr. Pesner was a Partner, Financial Advisory Services, of KPMG and its predecessor firms, for over 25 years, specializing in financial advisory services, including finance, mergers & acquisitions, divestitures and restructuring. Mr. Pesner served on the Board of Directors of KPMG, was appointed Chairman of Thorne Ernst and Whinney Inc., and National Executive Corporate Recovery Partner and member of the Executive of KPMG predecessor firm, Thorne, Ernst & Whinney.

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.

Mr. Walsh has over forty years of experience as an entrepreneur in the technology field. Mr. Walsh is the founder of Bevertec CST Inc., a company specializing in both IT professional services and banking software solutions. Mr. Walsh has extensive global experience in both selling and building technology solutions. Mr. Walsh’s company, Bevertec, has a global infrastructure of technology implementations, particularly in banking solutions, in over 50 countries. He has a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science.