HRPA Leadership

Alana Free

Vice President, People and Culture, GoodLife Fitness

My passion is to live life to the fullest with Energy, Excitement and Enthusiasm and inspire others to their greatness.  Every day I hope that we each choose the great adventure of being brave and afraid at the exact same time.  Applying to be a member of the HRPA board is all about this.  My goal is to help the HRPA continue to support all organizations and employees in Ontario to be stronger, better, and more successful each day.  Over the past 20+ years in HR I have learned from my mistakes as well as my wins.  Recently earning my CHRE was a huge personal accomplishment, but I only achieved it due to interesting situations I have had to deal with over the years.    I feel that I can identify with so many of the HRPA Members being a driven female who can ‘do it all’; full time career with two young children, partner & lots of personal interests outside of work.

If you choose me, I will not only bring my passion for HR and the business world, the learnings from my 20+ years in HR, the experience I have on how to link HR priorities and a for profit business, but I will also bring a fun, joyful and a positive can-do attitude.

John Hardisty, MBA, CHRP, CHRL

Professor, Sheridan College

John Hardisty is a Professor and Coordinator of Human Resources Management programs at Sheridan College and is the principal at Hardisty & Co. HR Consulting. His career began with a focus on training and management in large corporate environments before working his way up to executive HR leadership roles for major financial institutions CIBC and Scotiabank. He has worked in North America, the UK, Europe and the Middle East.

As a professor he has taught a broad range of courses at the degree, diploma and graduate certificate levels, preparing graduates for professional careers in HR. He has designed and delivered courses in Talent Acquisition, Total Rewards, Learning and Development, Strategic HR Competencies and HR Metrics.

John holds an MBA from York University in Organizational Behaviour. He is a past member of the HRPA Board of Directors (2007-2013) and has contributed to many HRPA communities including the Halton Chapter Board of Directors and the Academic Standards and Appeals Committees. John has a Certified Human Resources Leader designation from HRPA. He is a longstanding member of the Advisory Board of the Greater Toronto Area Rewards Association and is a past member of the Sheridan College Senate.

Lisa Isaac, CHRP, CHRL

Owner and Founder, Lisa Isaac Human Resources

Lisa is a Certified HR Leader and Professional, who is passionate about helping leaders with their people. Her authentic approach to leadership is to work in partnership for sustainable success, with a focus on creating strong communities.

Prior to founding Lisa Isaac Human Resources, Lisa cultivated broad experience and expertise in the manufacturing, energy and banking industries in Alberta, Nunavut and Ontario, including her home community, Moose Deer Point First Nation, on beautiful Georgian Bay.

Lisa is an active member of the entrepreneurial community and volunteers at the local college – she is committed to giving back, not only to those who supported her growth and development, but seeing her community grow as a whole. She values sharing knowledge and continuous learning, finding creative solutions and helping others succeed.

Lisa is a graduate of the University of Ottawa and the University of Lethbridge, holding the designations of Certified Human Resources Leader (CHRL) and Professional (CHRP). When she’s not finding solutions, you can often find Lisa with her dog and kayak, checking out beautiful lakes and rivers.

Louis Kan, FCPA, FCA, CFE

Non-Member Director

An experienced finance and governance executive, Louis Kan is the Special Advisor to the Honourable Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education of Ontario. Louis was the former Chief Executive Officer of Professional Geoscientists Ontario. His professional experiences also include senior administrative roles at the Chartered Professional Accountants Ontario, the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, Elections Ontario and the Office of the Auditor General of Ontario.

Throughout his professional and private life, Louis has shown a passion for serving the public interest with a focus on public policy, Louis has extensive board experience, including St. John Ambulance – Toronto Chapter and currently serves on the board of Community Living Ontario Foundation and Heritage Toronto, where he is the Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee. Working in partnership with the former Auditor General of Ontario, Louis participated in a high-profile review of the City of Brampton’s finances at the request of the city council in 2015. His ongoing involvement in electoral finance reform included appearing as an expert witness at committee at Queen’s Park in 2016. A long-time volunteer of CPA Ontario’s tax clinics for low-income Ontarians, Louis is a recipient of the 2015 Government of Canada Volunteer Award.

Louis moved to Toronto from Hong Kong with his family in 1974 and obtained his Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Toronto. He is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA) and Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and was elected as a Fellow (FCPA, FCA) of Chartered Professional Accountants Ontario in 2018.

Jodi Kovitz, HBA, LL.B, Hon. LL.D

CEO and Acting Registrar

Jodi is an experienced, visionary CEO leader and a transformative global brand builder. She is a growth strategist and a passionate connector of people.

Jodi was the founder and CEO of #movethedial, which focused on the growth and equitable participation of all women in tech. Leveraging Jodi’s vision, wealth of experience, pioneering spirit and passion, the movement impacted over 60,000 people at events throughout Canada, the US, the UK and Israel. Jodi also previously led growth at Vetster, a telemedicine platform, and was the CEO at Peerscale, a technology membership association.

Jodi is passionate about the intersection of equity, innovation and the future of work.

Featured in Forbes Women, Jodi was recognized as an Adweek Brandstar in Toronto in 2018, One of Canada’s 25 Women of Influence in 2018, and one of WXN’s Canada’s 100 most powerful women in 2017 and 2019.

Jodi holds an HBA from Ivey Business School at Western University, an LLB from Osgoode Hall Law School at York University, and an honourary Doctor of Laws from the University of Calgary. Jodi also authored Go Out of Your Way, a book about the power of people, relationships and building genuine connections, endorsed by Sheryl Sandberg.

Timothy Lang

President & Chief Executive Officer, YES – Youth Employment Services

Timothy Lang is President & CEO of YES – Canada’s leading youth employment service provider, who annually counsel, train, empower and inspire tens of thousands of youth to become contributing members of society through employment placement.  YES has a close to 90% success rate and focuses on our most vulnerable youth, helping create safer, stronger communities and change lives.

Timothy Lang is an accomplished leader in the private and not for profit sector with a record of inspiring organizations to achieve results and growth. Previously Tim held senior management and executive positions with Xerox, Bell, Energy Savings Income Fund, and St. Francis Xavier University. As Vice President at ES Income fund Tim drove its growth and expansion across Canada and into the U.S. while increasing customers 200% to 400 thousand and to a $2 billion market cap.  As VP External at StFX University he helped raise $120 million for the Brian Mulroney Institute for Government and the Frank McKenna Leadership Centre and developed innovative branding and communications to enhance the reputation of the university. Tim has a B.A. from StFX University and a Master’s degree from the University of Manitoba.  Tim was born in Saskatoon, is bilingual and has lived and worked across Canada, the U.S. and Great Britain.  He sits on several not-for-profit Boards and received the Queen’s Jubilee Medal for outstanding contributions to the community in 2012.

Émilie Le Tual

Director, Enterprise Risk Culture and Ethics, Scotiabank

A seasoned people focused change leader with over 15 years of experience, my growth as a professional has resulted from my interest in continuously learning, going out of my comfort zone, and firmly believing that any role can be made better when an HR person is considered for it.

As an HR professional, I have helped our IT team carve a position in the Agile world; I have supported leaders through major restructurings and helped set up an overseas team; I have led cultural changes including setting up a learning organization; I have created scorecards; launched a mentoring program; overseen global surveys for thousands of employees; completed compensation reviews; and supported department operations management.

I leveraged my HR experience to make a foray into the ‘business’ where I joined IT as their Transformation Director and took on Technology Risk. I then used this experience to join Compliance and lead their Risk Culture strategy to build the moral character of our employees, strengthening our Corporate Culture for a sustainable future. This explains my atypical progression which is founded on a passion for the humanities field.

My global mindset comes from growing in Montreal, establishing myself in Toronto and completing internships in California, in Doha and studying in Rotterdam. It also come from my family. I am the proud mother of two girls, and I am in an interracial marriage. I have fully embraced the beauty of multiculturalism and thrive to educate myself, honor, and respect the multiple dimensions of our world.

I am eager to contribute to the human resources association and give back so we can solidify our stance and expand the realm of opportunities for our professionals.  I want to thank the community for their consideration and this opportunity.

Assad Mallick, CHRL

Vice President and Head of Global Total Rewards and HR Operations

Assad has had progressive HR and Total Rewards Experience over the past 15 years in a variety of industries including, high-tech, telco, pharmaceutical retail, financial services, entertainment, and total well-being. He has worked across Canada and had accountability and managed teams across the globe.  The brands he has worked for include: RBC, Bell, Rogers, Telus, Shoppers Drug Mart, Aviva Insurance, Cineplex and LifeWorks.

In addition to this, he has held several volunteer and Board roles with the David Suzuki Foundation, HR Council for the not-for-profit sector, Oak Valley Health, and WINS.

Selomon Menghsha, RPR

Order in Council Appointee, Sr. Manager, Talent Acquisition and Development , Buckland Customs Broker

Selomon brings over 10 years of talent acquisition experience as an accomplished professional for both recruitment agencies and corporate environments. Highly-skilled in creating effective search strategies for niche roles and sectors, Selomon focuses on creating long-lasting relationships.

Over the years, Selomon has specialized in executive searches for numerous sectors, such as Construction/Infrastructure, International Business and Market Research on a global level. Selomon is currently responsible for the total delivery of Talent Acquisition for J.D. Power, creating processes, policies and managing teams of recruiters to ensure the company’s mission, value and vision are followed from the sourcing stages all the way to offer acceptance, as well ensuring retention of new hires.

Selomon is educated in engineering and holds a Business Administration Diploma from McMaster University specializing in Human Resources. He has earned the Registered Professional Recruiter (RPR) designation.

Lisa Salvini, CHRL

Senior Human Resources Consultant at Good Sense Workplace Solutions

Born in Sault Ste. Marie, Lisa has been an active member with HRPA for over 20 years. She has been a previous Chapter Director on the HRPA Algoma Chapter Board.  Having over 25 years of HR experience in a variety of industries, Lisa felt that her experience and time volunteering with her local HRPA Chapter Board made her an ideal candidate. Lisa is a life-long learner who has completed many certificates. She believes that we must always grow and keep current with what is happening in our field.

Sartaj Sarkaria, CHRL

Chief Executive Officer

Sartaj is a first-generation Canadian who is dynamic, analytical, and a progressive leader. She has extensive experience in corporate business planning & HR operations on a national scale. Demonstrated talent for seeking out new initiatives & relationships with businesses & community organizations in order to shape the long-term mission & business goals. Proven record of developing & delivering programs. As a visible minority female, she has seen the challenges firsthand of representation in leadership roles & my hope is, through my contribution and work with HRPA, I will be able to help others see their potential.

Alison Staples

Vice President, People & Culture, March of Dimes Canada

I am a Human Resources Executive and recognized as the champion of talent & culture. I have over twenty years of experience in both the corporate and charity sector developing sustainable and strategic people & culture programs and solutions designed to unleash leadership potential, drive performance, increase organizational effectiveness and steer business results.

I identify as Black and immigrated to Canada from Jamaica.

I currently work at March of Dimes Canada as the Vice President, People and Culture, and prior to that, held executive Human Resources positions in companies such as the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, the Canadian Cancer Society, Kids Help Phone, Eva’s Initiative for Homeless Youth and Deloitte & Touché. I am also a Certified Human Resources Executive (CHRE) and hold a Master of Business Administration from Nova Southeastern University and am a certified Diversity and Inclusion professional through the Canadian Centre for Diversity & Inclusion.

A determined individual with a growth mindset, I also completed the High Potential Leadership Program at Harvard University in 2013. I enjoy volunteering, have served on the Board of Directors of the Human Resources Professional Association in York Region and the sub-Board Committee at North York General Hospital, and is a Peer Reviewer on the Accreditation Committee at Imagine Canada.

Lindsay Temple, CHRP, CHRL, CEC, MBA

Human Resources Executive

Lindsay has had the opportunity to sit as a Board Director on two boards gaining 10 years’ combined experience on a not-for-profit Board and on a Community DEI Board. During this time, she has also gained experience chairing the Board’s HR Committee meetings.

In her last three roles, she has also had the opportunity to develop succession plans for the CEO and the Executives of her organizations and gained experience in CEO compensation. During this time, Lindsay has also been responsible and accountable for all HR Strategy and keeping the organizations current on HR trends.

Lindsay has 5 years’ experience in ERM and linking ERM and organizational strategy. This included monthly monitoring of the company’s scorecard, KPI’s, and risk mitigation.

In her most recent role as CXO, Lindsay oversaw both the IT & Digital and Marketing & Brand departments. During this time, she helped lead a digital transformation and banking system conversion and complete re-brand of organization.

One of her more recent experiences was gaining knowledge and experience in Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) and she had the opportunity to work on development a change management plan that supported the organizations focus on SDG’s. These included 5 of the UN’s SDG’s: Gender Equality, Sustainable Work, Reducing Inequalities, Inclusive Cities, and Climate Change.