Tom Fortin - Advanced Materials, Manufacturing, and Hardware

Tom is the owner of a Sudbury-based electronics design and manufacturing company, Ontrak Control Systems (www.ontrak.net ). Ontrak specializes in the design and manufacture of serial data acquisition interface devices used in industrial, medical and retail automation applications. Ontrak contains a complete product design center with in-house, PCB and enclosure manufacturing, safety and EMC certification, CNC machining, and injection mold design.

After graduating from Cambrian in 1984 from the Electronics Engineering Technology program, Tom started his career installing process control systems for paper machines in various Northern Ontario communities. He returned to Sudbury in 1985 and with a partner, opened a computer repair and installation business which evolved into Ontrak. He also taught electronics technology at Cambrian College for 12 years, resigning in 1998 to focus solely on Ontrak.

Tom is passionate about manufacturing in Canada and has helped start many technology companies producing medical devices, lasers, and automation products. The Fortin Foundation, created in 2004, promotes efforts by youth in manufacturing through free consultation and sponsorship of events such as the annual Ontrak 2X4 Innovation Design Challenge.

Luc Roy Information and Communications Technology, Online, and Digital Media

Luc is the Chief Information Officer for Laurentian University and co-owner of Old Rock Roastery. As CIO at Laurentian, Luc is responsible for IT, Media and Web services. In 1987, Luc graduated from the University of Ottawa with a Bachelor of Computer Science. Luc worked as the Director of Product Marketing for Bay Networks and many of its subsidiaries for 13 years. He continued to work in the computer networking industry as Vice President - Product Planning for Chantry Networks Inc. (acquired by Siemens), Vice President - Wireless Strategy for Siemens Enterprise Communications, Vice President - Market Management for Siemens Canada, Vice President - Wireless Strategy for Enterasys Networks, Director of Marketing for Greenfield Networks (acquired by Cisco) and Vice President - Product Management and Marketing for BlueCat Networks.

In 2007, Luc opened Old Rock Roastery with his wife Carole in Sudbury. Their coffee house looks to expand their brand, create a corporate headquarters in Sudbury, and open franchise locations. Old Rock has been a recipient of many prizes including 2008 Start-Up of the Year by Sudbury Chamber of Commerce, 2008 Enterprise of the Year (1-15 employees) by Northern Ontario Business Awards, and the 2009 “Entreprise Coup d’coeur” of Ontario by RDÉE Ontario (Réseau de développement économique et d'employabilité).

Cathy Nadjiwon Mining, Mineral Exploration and Spatial Information Technology

Cathy is a surveyor and a geomatics professional specializing in the mineral exploration and mining sectors. Currently she is the president of UnderCover Innovations Inc., a product innovation and development company. Until 2007 she co-owned and operated two successive GIS services and spatial application development companies and recently retired as Business Development Manager for CAE Mining Canada. Cathy has also consulted for a company based in Cambridge, Ontario, in the areas of business start-ups, financing, I.T., and strategic business and market planning. She was recognized as their first ever Entrepreneur of the Year (1-50 Employees) by the Greater Sudbury (GS) Chamber of Commerce, as an Influential Women of northern Ontario by NOB, twice recognized as Woman of the Day, and has received a Professional Leadership Award as a Professional Surveyor and Geomatics Specialist from Sudbury Business and Professional Women’s Club (BPW).

Cathy has served on many volunteer boards at both local and provincial level. In June 2011 she completed a term on the Laurentian University Board of Governors, was a member of the LU Senate and was the Vice Chair of the Finance Committee at Laurentian University. She was also appointed as the first ever female Treasurer of the Ontario Trillium Foundation in 2003, overseeing a $100M+ annual budget. She also served for 12 years on the Board of Directors for the Northern Ontario Business Awards and has been a Judge for the Ontario Global Traders Awards program at both regional and provincial levels.

Ron Rafuse Mining

Ron began his mining career with Inco in 1966. Starting out, Ron worked as a miner, a raise miner, a mill mechanic, and a rigger specializing in shafts and hoists. Over his 42 year career, Ron held many supervisory positions, including Maintenance Foreman - all mine maintenance, Mine Foreman - Production, Maintenance General Foreman - Smelter, General Foreman - Inco Construction, Division Emergency Coordinator and General Foreman - Safety, General Foreman - Operations and Maintenance - South Mine, Superintendent of Inco Construction and Central Hoisting, Superintendent of Safety Ontario Division, Superintendent of Transportation (relief Manager of Mills), Corporate Senior Environment Health and Safety Auditor, Superintendent Inco Divisional Shops, and Operations Superintendent Feed Prep and Bulk Furnaces, Smelter.

In 2008, Ron started a private company called SOLUTIONS 1. Ron helps senior managers achieve results in the areas of teamwork and safety, conducts comprehensive audits, delivers custom safety talks to large groups, and provides instruction on teamwork and risk assessment. Ron is a certified auditor for the International Safety Rating System (ISRS), a certified Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) auditor with Arthur D. Little, a certified trainer for Dupont Safety Training Systems, and has certification in both Supervisor Common Core and Smelter Common Core. In addition, Ron has served on many volunteer boards and is presently Board Director for the Northeast Mental Health Centre.

Joet Dhatt Brand Development

Joet is an entrepreneur that loves the concept of developing brands. Joet is currently the Digital Media Manager at Cambrian College, overlooking all digital assets. In this role, Joet manages and directs the College website, is responsible for developing the social media strategy, and introduces innovations from the digital realm into the overall marketing strategy of the organization.

Joet is a graduate of the Laurentian University MBA program, and has been applying his knowledge and passion for business into many ventures over the last 15 years. Introduced to the marketing+design world early in his career, Joet took an extreme interest in developing brands, which had him producing several Applied Arts award-winning projects, and even winning Gold at the Digital Marketing Awards. Joet’s entrepreneurial interests and knowledge of brand building had him venture out on his own, opening retail outlets on the West Coast and then extending his concept back to Ontario.

Joet has extensive experience in positioning brands through market analysis, developing marketing strategy, and understanding how to use marketing mediums most effectively. He’s an investor, entrepreneur and family man. And he’s ready to take his passions in strategy and innovation and help them fuel growth in the North.