Name: Summer Shaker
Start: 2023-6-13T16-16-00-00
End: 2023-6-13T18-18-00-00
Location: TechAlliance

TechAlliance expands Board of Directors with high-profile new appointments

To build tomorrow’s globally-competitive innovation economy that enables entrepreneurship, spurs accelerated growth, and attracts ambitious talent and new companies for hyper-local impact, TechAlliance is adding five business trailblazers to the Board of Directors.

Joining are David Brebner, Anna Foat, Peter Dillon, Brennon D’Souza, and Heather Macpherson, who each bring unique experiences as game-changing entrepreneurs and highly-respected business leaders to a board that is expanding its size and impact, as TechAlliance continues to collaboratively lead Southwestern Ontario’s innovation corridor.

“It’s vitally important for an organization’s board to reflect the community it serves.” says David Ciccarelli, CEO of Voices.com and Chair of TechAlliance’s Board of Directors. “The dedicated leaders, disruptors, and innovators that we are welcoming to TechAlliance’s Board represent the amazing depth of leadership across our region, and reflect the best values of our community: integrity, dedication, and passion.”

Ciccarelli enthuses “They have all engaged with TechAlliance, as entrepreneurs and mentors, and in their new role, I know we will see them all step forward and help us grow our region’s impact on a global scale.”

David Brebner is a serial entrepreneur who understands what it takes to build a thriving company in our region and take it global. He is a cofounder and CFO of Mobials Inc., a software development company innovating digital retailing solutions that makes vehicle and home ownership and shopping transparent and stress-free. David’s breadth of historical clients in various industries, and his own entrepreneurial activities, provide a foundation of knowledge and experiences to support the financial, accounting, governance and structural aspects of Mobials.

“Southwestern Ontario can show Canada what’s possible when you have smart entrepreneurs being supported by a wide network. TechAlliance is a major player in this next phase.” – David Brebner

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Anna Foat loves the power of possibility and the passion of entrepreneurs. She’s worked at a startup, grown with one of the most famous Canadian scale-ups and now works for a major financial services firm in Canada advising the chief transformation officer on digital transformation. She earned a BA in English Literature from the University of Waterloo and now teaches Design Thinking at Western.

“I’m inspired by those who swim upstream (rather than taking the road more traveled) fight for what’s right (rather than what’s easy) and believe in the exponential potential of coming together to solve complicated problems.” – Anna Foat

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Peter Dillon has 30 years’ experience working with startups, growth-stage, national and international brands. Peter leads Siskinds’ Tech, Privacy and Cybersecurity teams. He is a trusted advisor to Presidents and CEOs on matters relating to business acquisitions, strategic business decisions, product licensing, distribution agreements, and other issues that affect enterprise viability, survival, and prosperity.

“What motivates me is the potential to be an agent of change, as part of a larger tech community; to make tech work for us — and not vice versa.” – Peter Dillon

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Brennon D’Souza is the founder of DIBZ, a company providing instant seat upgrades through a text messaging service, and leads all business development, funding and sales for the startup’s service solution. As a former media lead for OpenText and Christie Digital, he has built his reputation on being a creative problem solver for large organizations.

“Having engaged the ecosystem as a newcomer, I can outline the challenges facing new technology startups, accessing resources like funding, education and mentorship, to help assist with growing their ventures.” – Brennon D’Souza

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Heather Macpherson is the founder and CEO of The Minery Ltd., building software to help organizations ‘get better’. After 20 years of working with all types and sizes of organizations, Heather found herself frustrated with the “manual” workplace – where training, quality improvement, and customer satisfaction were independent of each other. Determined to change this, Heather set out to develop solutions that would make an impact.

“My goal is to help TechAlliance create a strong culture of innovation within Southwestern Ontario, one that will sustain and grow stronger over time.” – Heather Macpherson

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“TechAlliance is a place for big dreamers, audacious innovators, and people who want to change the world; the more incredible people we have boosting them up, the more likely they will be to succeed.” adds Christina Fox, CEO of TechAlliance. “Anna, Brennon, David, Heather, and Peter have been in the trenches, they’ve seen the highs and lows, they’ve fought for every connection, every sale, and every great employee, and they know what it takes for an entrepreneur to start, scale, and thrive. I am thrilled to engage with each of them in this capacity, particularly because of their collective wisdom and vibrant energy.”

The five new members join current board members: