The Burlington Economic Development and Tourism’s Board of Directors works to ensure the economic health of our community through the creation of policies related to finance, growth and prosperity.
Ron
Laidman
Chair
Ron Laidman is the President and Principal Consultant at Enertia, a Burlington-based executive consultancy. Enertia offers leadership, operational, governance, and industry-specific solutions to the energy and infrastructure industry. Prior to this, Ron held various senior leadership positions in the energy, telecommunications, infrastructure, and life sciences industries and has extensive experience in leadership, operations, and business development. Ron is a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) and also holds his Chartered Director (C.Dir.) designation recognizing his commitment to board governance. He lives with his family in Burlington.
Daniel Kube
Vice-Chair
Daniel is currently the CEO of servicePath, a Saas configure Price Quote platform. Daniel has successfully helped a string of companies grow their business in an accelerated fashion: Stericycle, Prompt Alert, IGLOO Software, PricewaterhouseCoopers, performancesoft, Actuate, and IONA Technologies. Daniel has his ICD.d designation and currently serves on the boards of Haltech and AngelOne. In his spare time Daniel invests in start-ups and loves the outdoors and building.
Sean Ballard
Chair of the Finance Committee
Ward 5 Councillor Paul Sharman
Board Member
Paul is a highly accomplished leader who currently serves as the Ward 5 Councillor on the City of Burlington and Halton Region Councils and also serves as the Deputy Mayor for Strategy and Budgets. His journey in public service began in 2010, followed by successful re-elections in 2014, 2018 and again in 2022.
Paul’s tenure has been marked by active engagement in various committees and Boards, with a notable focus on sustainability. He played a pivotal role in driving the 2018 adopted Burlington Official Plan, aligning it with the city’s economic and strategic vision. Additionally, he has been a strong advocate for making Burlington net carbon neutral by 2041.
Paul’s career as an organization performance management consultant has seen him lead transformative change initiatives for global entities, earning recognition as one of the “Top 100 Most Influential People” in the US accounting world by “Accounting Today.” He is also distinguished for his contributions as an educator and author, further highlighting his commitment to excellence and professional standards.
Robert Bevington
Board Member
Robert Bevington is a Senior Director in the Telecommunications industry working for Cogeco Connexion. Cogeco is the second largest cable operator in Ontario and Quebec providing residential and business customers with Internet, Video and Telephony solutions. Robert joined Cogeco Conexxion in 2011 and is responsible for the engineering and operational support for Telephony and Internet products. Prior to joining Cogeco, Robert spent 11 years working for Bell Canada in various roles across the Voice and Data portfolios.
Working in the Telecommunications field for nearly 20 years, Robert is a seasoned professional with extensive experience in product and technology innovations, operational management, strategic planning and leading large teams.
Robert graduated from the University of Western Ontario in 1998 with an honours degree in Biochemistry and returned in 2007 to complete an executive MBA at Ivey Business School. Robert has lived in the Burlington area since 2015 with his wife and three children.
Kuljit Bhogal
Board Member
Kuljit Bhogal is Director of Procurement, Sustainability and HR at BSB Manufacturing Ltd. BSB is a leading contract manufacturer located in Burlington, Ontario of production machined components and tested assemblies servicing customers such as FCA, GM, Tesla, ZF Sachs, John Deere, CNH and Xylem Inc. Joining her husband in the family-owned business with an impressive 45+ years tenure in the machining industry her focus is to increase diversity into the manufacturing environment and lead the company to a more sustainable future.
Kuljit has over 25 years of Supply Chain experience in the retail, food and electrical manufacturing industries working for Canadian Tire, Pillsbury and most recently Eaton Industries Canada. Her extensive background has enabled her to develop skills in Operations Management, Network and Process Optimization, Strategic Planning, Business Process Improvement, Cost Reduction and Cross-functional team leadership.
Kuljit has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management from Toronto Metropolitan University and is currently actively volunteering on the Policy and Advocacy Committee for the Burlington Chamber of Commerce.
Leslie Cooke-Bithrey
Head of HR & Governance Committee
Leslie Cooke-Bithrey is a senior talent leader and Chartered Director (C. Dir.) with extensive experience in strategic human resources in both the private and public sector. Leslie currently holds the role of Chief People Officer at Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC), a private, non-profit organization, partnering with individuals, corporations, foundations, Indigenous communities and other non-profit organizations and governments at all levels to protect natural areas. Prior to joining NCC in 2023, Leslie held the role of Director of Human Resources, Faculty of Health Sciences, at McMaster University, a global academic leader in health education, research, and training. Her depth of leadership experience includes maximizing organizational performance in support of advancing business objectives and strategy, through fostering a collaborative and high-performing culture.
Leslie holds an Honors Bachelor of Arts (BA(Hons)) from York University, a Certificate in Human Resource Management (CHRM) from the University of Toronto, a Certified Human Resources Professional (CHRP) designation from the Human Resources Professional Association, and a Chartered Director designation (C. Dir) from The Directors College through The DeGroote School of Business.
Leslie currently serves on the Board of Directors for Summit Housing & Outreach Programs, and brings a passion for community, diversity, inclusion, and access to services and support.
Vanessa Dupuis
Chair of BGR Committee
Vanessa Dupuis is currently Executive Director, Strategic Initiatives in the Office of the President at Brock University. Prior to joining Brock in 2021, Vanessa was Senior Manager, Government Relations at Loblaw Companies Limited, overseeing communication and engagement with government at the federal and provincial levels. She also has senior leadership experience in former roles as Strategic and Operations Advisor to the Auditor General at the Office of the Auditor General of Ontario, as Interim General Manager at National Training Rinks, and as an entrepreneur managing her own small business for over eight years.
Vanessa holds a Master of Arts in Public Policy and Administration from the University of Guelph/McMaster University collaborative, and a Master of Laws from the University of Toronto. She is also currently pursuing Certification for people leaders through the Harvard Manage Mentor Program.
Vanessa is a community-minded individual who has a history of volunteerism and a passion for giving back to the community. She has coached girls’ rep hockey in Burlington; served on the Board of Directors for a Condominium Corporation; and was previously President of the Women’s Executive at Dundas Valley Golf and Curling Club.
Julie Ellis
Board Member
Julie Ellis is an Executive Coach to corporate leaders and scaling Entrepreneurs. Julie provides her unique experience and expertise to her coaching clients, gained through 25 years of working first in the corporate world, and then as a leading Canadian entrepreneur. She is a co-founder of award-winning Mabel’s Labels, one of Canada’s greatest small business success stories.
As a professionally certified coach with the International Coaching Federation (2020), Julie works directly with bold leaders propelling them to unlock their capacity, leading to accelerated success.
Since starting her own coaching company, Julie Ellis and Co. in 2016, Julie has been advising and working directly with dozens of organizations. Through Impact Coaches, Julie has been coaching Ontario partners for a leading professional services organization. She was enlisted as the Growth Mentor for female-founded companies in Beyond Boundaries, a program run by Haltech and funded by the Canadian government in their efforts to double the number of women-owned businesses in Canada by 2025. She also spent 18 months as Chief Operating Officer (COO) for Snuggle Bugz, a privately owned omni-channel retailer based in Burlington, Ontario. She has been advising entrepreneurs through the Hamilton-based Innovation Factory and Halton-based Haltech since 2019. She is also Chair of the Board at Angel One Investment Network, one of the most active angel investor groups in Canada.
A sought-after speaker and trainer, Julie has developed keynotes and workshops for private companies, corporations and associations, with titles such as “Ignite, Scale and Exit”, “Success Secrets of Wonder Women!” and “Why We All Need to Think Big!”.
John Furtado
Board Member
John Furtado is a seasoned finance executive with over a decade of progressive leadership experience across the infrastructure, technology, and business services sectors. He currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of Precise Commercial Solutions, a commercial cleaning and facility services company. John oversees corporate strategy, financial management, and operational performance, driving growth and modernization across the organization.
John has also held senior finance leadership positions at Amazon and the Capital Infrastructure Group, where he led large-scale financial transformation, enterprise planning, and corporate development initiatives. His expertise includes mergers and acquisitions, financial reporting, cash flow management, and strategic forecasting. While at Amazon he was appointed as a Board of Director member of Amazon.ca in support of Global Shared Services (GSS) and Risk and Compliance Solutions (RCS), overseeing the implementation of frameworks, policies and mechanisms to ensure adequate oversight over risk levels and compliance with the laws and regulations.
John is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA) and holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA)from the Lazaridis School of Business & Economics at Wilfrid Laurier University.
Joe Kutlesa
Board Member
Joe is a seasoned entrepreneur and executive with over 30 years of experience leading projects at the intersection of real estate, construction, technology, and public innovation across Canada and Europe. As Founder and CEO of iMatr Canada Inc., he’s driving the future of civic engagement through award-winning digital platforms recognized by the OECD, AMO, and Collision Conference. A full-stack developer and strategist, his career spans major infrastructure builds, tech innovation, and public-private collaborations. His earlier work included overseeing a portfolio of complex real estate developments and pioneering modular construction techniques—earning him the Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO) Award for Innovative Building Technology. He continues to advise on governance, risk, and digital transformation, while contributing to research partnerships with McMaster University. A long-time advocate for economic development, he remains a keen supporter of Burlington’s innovation ecosystem and a committed voice for inclusive, tech-enabled communities.
Keith Monrose
Board Member
Keith Monrose is an independent consultant with extensive leadership experience across public and private sectors spanning health, education, and information technology. He has held senior roles at McMaster University, Seneca Polytechnic, Mohawk College, TELUS, Canada Health Infoway, and Merck. In addition to the Burlington Economic Development and Tourism Board, Keith served as the past chair of the Hamilton Health Sciences Board and currently serves on the Boards of Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra and the Royal College Canada International. Keith has an ICD.D designation and is a graduate of University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management and McMaster University’s Faculty of Health Sciences.
Heidi McGaw
Board Member
Heidi McGaw is General Manager at RioCan, one of Canada’s largest real estate investment trusts. She oversees the property management and operations for Burlington Centre and multiple plazas within the community. With over 30 years in commercial real estate, Heidi combines deep industry expertise with a strong academic background, holding an MBA and BBA from Wilfrid Laurier University. An active member of Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW), Heidi is dedicated to mentoring and advancing future leaders in the field.
Marilyn Butkovic
Board Member
Marilyn Butkovic is a seasoned hospitality professional with extensive experience in hotel sales, marketing, and business development. At Vrancor Hospitality, she focuses on building meaningful connections with clients, community partners, and industry stakeholders, while driving revenue growth across the company’s portfolio, including the Waterfront Hotel Downtown Burlington. Known for her collaborative approach, strategic insight, and commitment to community and industry engagement, Marilyn also serves as Co-Chair of Regional Tourism Organization 3 (RTO3), where she provides strategic leadership to support tourism growth.