Thursday, May 3rd, 2012
11:30 am to 2 pm
The Four Seasons Hotel
Join our panel of executives as they explain how they have successfully made community and cause based marketing a core focus of their marketing strategy. The panel will explore not only the good that comes to the communities, associations and individuals they support, but also the good that comes to the organization and its employees.
The panel brings together industry leading organizations as well as independent community based strategic advisors to help inspire you and your organization into bringing the community to the forefront in your organization.
Panelists:
- Jill Schnarr – Vice President, Community Affairs, TELUS
- Richard Seres – Vice President, Marketing, VanCity
- Mike Rowlands – Principal, Junxion Strategy
Speakers
Jill R. Schnarr
Vice President, Community Affairs, TELUS
As Vice President, Community Affairs, Jill Schnarr leads national community investment at TELUS including community boards, cause marketing, charitable sponsorships & grants, strategic community investment communications, Team TELUS Cares, employee & retiree volunteerism, and humanitarian relief.
Jill also is the national chair of Connections – the TELUS women’s network. With her leadership of Connections, Jill has helped to foster a culture of learning and development, growth, engagement, recognition and well-being for women.
Since joining TELUS in 1992, Jill has managed a variety of portfolios and held leadership positions including marketing analyst, product manager, customer service manager, executive producer, business manager; marketing director; acting Vice President, Corporate Communications; acting Vice President, Customer Marketing; Director, Community Engagement; and Executive Director, Connections.
Jill earned her Honours Business Administration degree from the Richard Ivey School of Business, and has completed several Executive Education programs at leading universities including INSEAD; Rotman School of Business; University of British Columbia; Banff Executive Leadership and the Sauder School of Business. She is currently completing her Graduate Diploma in Social Innovation from the University of Waterloo.
She was recognized for her outstanding contributions to TELUS and the community by Canadian Women in Communications (CWC) with a Leadership Excellence Award in the Innovator category in 2011.
Jill is a Director on the boards for the BC Women’s Hospital Foundation, the Women’s Leadership Circle as part of the Vancouver Board of Trade, the TELUS Foundation, and the TELUS Vancouver Community Board.
She is the youngest of eight children and lives in Vancouver, BC with her husband, Dave and her two young sons, Dylan and Andrew. In her spare time, she loves to play golf and watch hockey.
Richard Seres
Vice President, Marketing, VanCity
Richard Seres is the Vice President of Marketing at Vancity, Canada’s largest credit union with over 417,000 members and an organizational vision to “redefine wealth” in the communities it serves. At Vancity, Richard leads a capable team of marketing professionals responsible for brand experience, product marketing, member development programs and marketing intelligence. Richard has enjoyed varied marketing challenges throughout his 20-year career. Prior to joining Vancity in 2008, he was the Executive Director of Marketing & Communications at Queen’s University, has held numerous marketing leadership roles at the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) and has managed several large consumer packaged goods brands. Richard holds a BComm and MBA from Queen’s University and an MBA from Cornell University.
Mike Rowlands
Principal,Junxion Strategy
An accomplished business strategist, entrepreneur and leader, Mike crafts distinctive strategies and delivers award-winning marketing.
Based in Vancouver and engaged internationally, Mike is a client lead with Junxion, focused on brand and communication strategy, cause marketing, social enterprise consulting and values-driven leadership development. He specialises in helping organisations define and develop TrustBrands™–meaningful, values-driven engagement strategies that inspire diverse audiences and distinguish businesses as market leaders.
Mike has worked with a diverse range of clients, including CARE Canada, Prince Harry’s charity ‘Sentebale’, the Australian Trade Commission, and many start-up ventures and not-for-profit organisations. In 2002, he founded Octopus Strategies and established it as a leading thinker in brand strategy, cause marketing and a proponent of sustainable business practices. The firm was recognized among the ’100 Companies to Watch’ by London’s international investment agency, in a category that also included LinkedIn and Panasonic. In 2011 Octopus merged with Junxion Strategy.
Mike is a member of the US Social Venture Network, and sits on the Advisory Board to the Faculty of Management at Royal Roads University. He is a Faculty member of both Social Venture Institute Hollyhock and Social Change Institute. He has presented for these events—and to chambers of commerce, business organisations and MBA candidates—on brand strategy, strategic planning, sector collaborations, and communications and media. He chairs the Vancouver Professional Chapter of Net Impact, and sits on many other not-for-profit boards.
Mike holds dual citizenship in Canada and the United Kingdom, and splits his time between Junxion’s Vancouver and London offices.
