Mike Murray has spent more than a decade helping companies large and small to protect their information by understanding their vulnerability posture from the perspective of an attacker.  From his work in the late 90’s as a penetration tester and vulnerability researcher to leadership positions at nCircle, Neohapsis and Liberty Mutual Insurance Group, his focus has always been on using vulnerability assessment through penetration testing and social engineering to proactively defend organizations.

Mike is currently the CISO of Foreground Security, where he leads engagements to help corporate and government customers understand and protect their security organization . He is also in charge of the advanced curriculum of The Hacker Academy, where he trains security professionals on the newest methods of computer penetration testing and social engineering to help them better protect their organizations.

Mike has a variety of other diverse interests: he leads Michael Murray and Associates, where he and his team work with organizations to assist them with their human systems, from their  organizational design and efficiency to the career paths and development of their individuals. Mike’s thoughts on security can be found on his blog at Episteme.ca, and his work on helping build careers can be found at InfoSecLeaders.com and ConnectedCareer.com.

Zoe Pepler is a Master hypnotherapist and a  NLP Master Practitioner. She is a member of the NGH and the International Medical & Dental Hypnotherapy Association. Zoe specializes in issues of health and wellness. She coaches and teaches programs designed to enhance self-esteem and confidence. With over 20 years of professional experience in the fashion and beauty industry, she has a good understanding of the pressures surrounding body image and weight loss.

Zoe combines the power of hypnosis and NLP with her intuitive caring to encourage her clients to improve the quality of their own unique lifestyle. Her clients learn to integrate their beliefs and intentions with their actions – to create a strong mind/body connection.

Bev is an NLP Master Practitioner, Certified Crisis Interventionist, Certified Crisis Prevention Interventionist & is a skilled Counsellor & Adult Psychologist.

While the aformentioned “pieces of paper” were encouraged by the world, as the world likes “pieces of paper,” Bev has been honing & sharpening this gift since she was 1 1/2 years old. She has insight, intuition & wisdom. . .and an ability to focus under intense pressure, unfavourable conditions, misunderstanding & rejection.

Bev is a Youth Services Worker in a homeless shelter for youth from the ages of 16-24.

Most importantly, she is the Mother of Brynn – the keeper of all wisdom & a leader in her own right. Brynn is the source of all the best stuff Bev brings to the table. For she was sent as a gift – to lead & light the way.

Principal, Reim and Associates

A Learning and Organizational Development specialist with more than 20 years of corporate experience,

Iryna’s practice focuses on Leadership, Innovation and Change. Her passion is to help organizations build competitive advantage through leadership that fosters personal best in others.

She has worked for organizations such as Royal Bank, Bank of Montreal, Schulich Executive Education and most recently as the Director of Learning and Organizational Development at DundeeWealth Inc. in which she established the employee and organizational development function.

As an independent consultant and executive coach, she has worked with clients including organizations in financial services, education, manufacturing and more. She has won awards for her work including the coveted GOLD award from the Canadian Society for Training and Development in 2008 for the Leadership Foundations program. She is a published writer on topics relating to Leadership and OD.

Iryna is a graduate of the Masters of Arts in Leadership and Training at Royal Roads University, holds an FICB (Fellowship, Institute of Canadian Bankers) designation and a CEC (Certified Executive Coach). She has taught in executive development programs at Royal Roads and currently teaches at Sheridan College’s Business School. Visit Iryna’s profile on Linked In.

Karen is an award-winning communicator in the field of marketing communications.

Karen began her public relations career at one of Toronto’s largest, most progressive hospitals where she headed up the department during several of the organization’s defining moments. As part of the senior executive team, she managed several landmark decisions including the hospital’s pioneering business venture that welcomed the first revenue-generating medical retail mall as part of a Canadian hospital and challenged its status as a not-for-profit government agency.  As one of the anchor tenants, McDonald’s Restaurants of Canada became the first McDonald’s restaurant in a Canadian hospital.

Karen helped launch the NBA’s Toronto Raptors Basketball team in Canada and directed the marketing communications efforts of Toronto’s Air Canada Centre as well as the final game and eventual closure of historic Maple Leaf Gardens.  She garnered unprecedented media coverage for a Canadian sports and entertainment facility, and successfully launched the venue’s credentials in the entertainment industry.

Following her tenure at Maple Leaf Sports, Karen joined Toronto’s Thornley Fallis Communications as a senior account director and led a number of major clients including: Nike Canada, TSN, Molson and The Lung Association.

In 2002 Karen launched her own public relations firm where she has represented a number of leading consumer companies as well as smaller not-for-profit organizations.

Interested in the area of high performance and maximum potential, Karen received her certification in Neurolinguistic Programming in 2004 through NLP Canada Training.  She is a published writer, sought-after speech writer and presentation coach, and has received international recognition for her public relations work, including three Gold Quill awards from the International Association of Business Communicators.

Karen studies improvization at Second City and has studied comedy writing at the Humber School of Comedy.  When her two teenage daughters don’t do their chores, Karen tries new comedy material on their friends.

Find Karen on the web at her blog, This just in.

James Perly is the founder of the Perly Consulting Group.

James entered the world of business at the age of 22 when his father passed him away and left him the family business, Perly’s Maps.  He successfully sold Perly’s to Rand McNally Canada in 2004 and began James Perly Consulting with the help of a friend who had been in the business for more than ten years.  He currently focuses on overall brand and strategic management, as well as large client services.  He also serves on the board of advisors for Profit Magazine.

James is a practitioner of both NLP and Ericksonian Hypnosis.  In addition to his entrepreneurial skills, James is a masterful business coach who regularly makes time to inspire young people.

Chief Instructor and Founder, Safe and Sound

After training for nearly a decade in traditional Karate and other martial arts, Willard was accepted for a six-month training internship at Modern Warrior® Defensive Tactics Institute in New York . There he received several instructor certifications in defensive tactics for civilians and law enforcement professionals.

His main focus since 1998 has been teaching women’s self defense, and he’s been an active member of the Association for Women’s Self Defense Advancement (AWSDA) ever since.

Willard is also an accomplished musician and a Master Practitioner of NLP.

Biggest Fish, Management Consultant, Big Fish Interactive

Company founder Andrew Reid is the prototypical big fish in search of deeper, wider seas to explore. He began Big Fish so that he could invite others to share his passion for exploration, business relationship and innovation. He attracts strong swimmers who know when to move with the currents, when the tides are turning, and when to swim upstream. Andrew has worked as a senior management consultant with clients such as Teranet and Effem-Mars Inc. for over 7 years. He has also specialized consulting with rapid growth technology clients since 1991.

Andrew’s focus on alternative training practices began with his degree in Sociology in the 1980s with a focus on corporate human structures and management systems. Andrew’s focus on alternative training practices began with his degree in Corporate Sociology in the 1980s. It fishtailed into marketing solutions with international players, an experience that whetted his appetite for training professional teams. He cut his teeth with the world’s largest outdoor adventure company. Then he spawned Big Fish Interactive Inc. (1995-96), now one of North America’s freshest, fastest training companies.

Today, Andrew’s desire to make the workplace an optimized experience is the current that drives every training program Big Fish delivers. He makes it inspiring, relevant, and fun to Think Outside the Bowl™. Most recently, the fish has jumped from the water into the halls of historic Guthrie Castle in Scotland. Five hundred years ago, Andrew’s ancestors built the castle. Now it hosts fast-paced training programs for world-class business leaders.

Andrew learned how teams move fast as a member of Canada’s International Dragon Boat Team in Sweden in August 2000 where that crew surprised the Euro locals with a 500m win. Today, Big Fish Interactive sponsors its own dragon boat team that is on its way to becoming the fastest in the country. They rely on tenacity, teamwork and a focus on winning. Andrew brings his fierce, competitive racing edge to clients in helping them find their own new competitive edge through their people.

These same qualities characterize the leadership, management, sales and technical training Andrew has produced for leading clients since 1989.

Maxx Kochar is the Director of Community and Corporate Consulting and Owner of Core Training. He is a Nationally Certified Fitness Professional based in Mississauga who provides training in the Greater Toronto Area.

Core Training is recognized by Can-Fit-Pro as a Continuing Education Provider. Maxx helps his clients create custom programs that address their  fitness and lifestyle goals. He delivers workshops that prepare his clients mentally and physically so that they can be the best they want to be…powerful and balanced.

After training with Maxx, many of his clients have said that they have realized greater successes at work, been able to focus more and have done better in personal relationships.

Maxx has been in the Mind-Body Fitness Industry for nearly twenty-five years, where he learned from some of the best teachers and trainers in the world. Maxx is a NLP Practitioner and Hypnotist certified by NLP Canada. His programs for complete Lifestyle Management include Fitness, Nutrition and Wellness.

Barbara Luedecke, Ph.D., CMC  is president of Barbara Luedecke + associates. Prior to re-entering private practice in 1996, Barbara was Partner-in-Charge of KPMG’s Toronto Change Management Practice. Before joining KPMG in 1984, she ran her own management consulting firm, which followed a number of years with Ontario Hydro in the personnel research and management identification areas.

Barbara’s doctorate is in Industrial/Organizational Psychology. She is registered as a psychologist in the Province of Ontario and is a Certified Management Consultant.

Barbara specializes in executive feedback and coaching, the facilitation of strategic planning sessions, performance management, organization design/effectiveness, and change management strategies. Her experience also includes management assessment, training, and employee surveys.