About

Learn more about the chapter and meet the team!

American Marketing Association’s Toronto Chapter

The Toronto Chapter of the American Marketing Association (AMA Toronto) is a volunteer-run, not-for-profit organization that has empowered business growth and leadership within our community for more than 70 years. AMA Toronto provides opportunities to build professional connections, develop leadership, and accelerate professional knowledge and growth. With more than 20,000 members and 70 chapters across North America, the AMA is the largest marketing association in the world.

Locally, AMA Toronto is a welcoming community, focused on advancing the practice of marketing and the success of marketers in Canada. Internationally, we offer marketing resources and connections that will put you at the forefront of global industry knowledge. We also serve as a gateway for Canadian businesses wanting to grow and expand internationally.

Our goal is to help transform individual marketers into successful business leaders who can succeed on both the local and the global stage.

Commitment To Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

AMA Toronto, together with our community, are taking action and we need more than words to fight racism, inequity, and discrimination. AMA Toronto believes strong leadership, impartial action, and commitment to equity are required to build an inclusive culture that encourages, supports, and celebrates the diverse voices of our community. 

AMA Toronto strives to apply a diversity, equity and inclusion lens to our activities to remove barriers, fuel our innovation and connect us closer to the communities we work in and live to build a diverse, equitable, and inclusive future.

Recent Awards

The American Marketing Association recognizes and rewards a tradition of excellence among its professional chapters through the Chapter Excellence Awards (CEA) program. Established in 1974, the CEA program highlights AMA professional chapters’ outstanding achievements in all areas of chapter operations, such as strategic planning, volunteer management, membership engagement, programming delivery, and financial management.
 
The American Marketing Association (AMA) Toronto chapter is honoured to be recognized by the American Marketing Association with a Chapter Excellence Award, winning the Silver Chapter of the Year badge for 2020-21 program year.
 
This accomplishment marks the first time for an international chapter to be recognized with this award among all of AMA’s 70+ professional chapters across the US and internationally. Over the course of the year, our teams have successfully transitioned and delivered existing and new programs and events across virtual platforms, innovated new programs and communications, built a new brand promise, strengthened and created new partnerships and sponsorships, and transformed Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends to more accurately reflect Canada’s diversity.
 
AMA Toronto has also been recognized with a Chapter Excellence award for our work in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). From strategy development to implementation, our chapter’s DEI and Leadership team continuously makes it a priority to ensure greater diversity, equity and inclusion across all AMA Toronto programs and real impact on our community.
 
We are proud of the impact we are making, and the value we deliver to our community: empowering your leadership potential.
AMA CEA_Silver Chapter of the Year_2020-21
AMA CEA_DEI Response_2020-21

What We do

We believe that marketers need to take charge of their own careers and to never stop challenging themselves and growing. AMA Toronto helps you gain the inspiration, experience, mentorship and connections you need to have an increased impact in business and provide thought leadership in the boardroom and beyond. Getting involved with the local chapter is also a great way to boost your leadership skills by serving on any of our committees, our Board of Directors, or as a mentor.

Our signature events, our Mentorship programs and the annual Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends celebration bring Canadian marketers together to inspire success, celebrate leadership and learn from experts on a broad range of topics. We touch and connect more than 3,000 marketers locally, and can help you get exposure to over 100,000 marketers across North America. And our past and present supporters include high profile business leaders, marketing legends, trailblazers and amazing mentors.

Education

Recognized educational partnerships: We partner with educational institutions such as Schulich to offer you accredited marketing programs.

Mentorship

Outstanding mentorship opportunities: We run one of the most extensive and successful mentorship programs in Canada. We pair more than 50 senior marketing leaders with mid-level marketers who want to accelerate their learning and move their career to the next level.

Awards

Our Marketing Hall of Legends gala recognizes the contributions of the leaders who have transformed Canadian marketing.

Membership

Membership in AMA Toronto gives you an internationally recognized credential and access to the resources of the largest, internationally recognized marketing association with more than 20,000 members around the world.

Volunteers

Rewarding volunteer opportunities: The AMA opens doors for its volunteers. Many of our volunteers have built their careers through their AMA experience.

Events

Accessible learning and networking events: We host convenient and affordable monthly learning and networking events that expose you to senior level marketers across a broad range of industries. Events focus on relevant topics such as social media, branding, customer experience and loyalty and more.

Presidents Welcome

Miglena Nikolova
President, AMA Toronto

Miglena Nikolova is a senior marketing and communications strategist with over 20 years in the industry. Currently she is a Marketing Lead, Canada and Innovation Lead, North America at IBM.

PRESIDENT
MIGLENA NIKOLOVA

Marketing Lead, IBM
Miglena Nikolova is a senior marketing and communications strategist with over 20 years in the industry. Currently she is a Marketing Lead, Canada and Innovation Lead, North America at IBM.

Presidents Welcome

Welcome message from Miglena Nikolova
President of AMA-Toronto

Welcome to our 2020/21 season.

I’m honoured and excited to be leading the AMA’s Toronto chapter this year. Together with our AMAzing Board of Directors, I am confident we will accomplish a lot in creating value for our marketing community.

AMA-Toronto has been serving and engaging marketers with opportunities to learn, connect, and grow for over 70 years. Our members work, teach and study in the field and have a passion for advancing our industry. Together we’re continuing to build an essential community for marketers, looking to access ideas and a network across North America.

Under immediate Past-President Michelle Flynn’s leadership, AMA-Toronto had a stellar year, hosting differentiated and unforgettable events like our Legendary Leadership series, signature CMO and Agency panels, and inducting new legends into Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends. We also concluded the tenth year of Mentor Exchange, our industry-leading Mentorship program for mid and senior level professionals…

I am especially proud of our team as all of our accomplishments and programming come from the passion and dedication of over 70 volunteers. Unlike other marketing and professional organizations, we are run and supported solely through volunteers, and I want to give a huge shout out to each and every one of you! I am also incredibly grateful to our growing list of partners and sponsors for believing in us and making our work possible!
The year ahead will no doubt be challenging – COVID has impacted us in many ways. We have successfully pivoted to digital for both our programming and networking events. One of the surprising silver linings has been our expanded reach, and how we have been enabled to better integrate and leverage our sister Canadian chapter BCAMA and the global AMA network. Yet the imperative to transform does not end there. We have an opportunity to rethink and expand how we add value to the community, and to engage at an even deeper, more authentic level.
A key focus for me and our Board of Directors is to further strengthen the role our association plays in enhancing the diversity of our community and increasing representation across all our programs. AMA-Toronto is fully committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Our mission is to support meaningful careers and communities in marketing, which in turn spur economic growth and social progress that raise the standard of living for everyone. An explicit commitment to the values (and behaviors) in service of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is inherent and fundamental to the AMA mission.
AMA-Toronto has worked intentionally to increase the diversity amongst our Mentors and has built a diverse volunteer base and Board of Directors. Our welcoming community of marketers has long served as an onboarding launchpad for newcomers to Canada who, through our Mentor Exchange and Career Accelerator Mentorship programs, our networking meeting, education, volunteer opportunities, endorsements and even references, have leveraged AMA-Toronto to successfully integrate in the Canadian marketing industry. Our new partnership with ACCES Employment will only deepen this commitment. We have many such success stories to point to, and I am very proud of the role we have played in enhancing the diversity of our industry. We are living in a historic moment where there is a real focus, real momentum, and a real opportunity to make change happen! And I am excited to help drive this change!
Over the coming months, you will be hearing from us regularly through our Monthly Digest Newsletter highlighting all key activities and things we are excited about. I will also be launching an AMA-Toronto AMA (Ask me Anything) hour to stay in touch with you – for me, it is important to have regular and genuine conversations with all of our stakeholders – be it our volunteers, members, mentors or mentees, partners and sponsors, advisory council, students, new Canadians, and our legends – indeed, from all marketing professionals in our rich and dynamic community. Watch out for our kick-off session under our Events.
Our focus continues to be on what you have come to expect from us – Mentorship, Membership, Education, Legendary Leadership and signature events. We will also continue our successful MNG (Marketing Networking Group) series – offering free monthly networking events to all our members and also inviting the broader community. We will also be bringing you the incredible value that our international network of over 70 chapters brings – having the power and size of the AMA organization, with its rich history and thought leadership, professional accreditation and resources – that is something truly special.
Above all, our focus is on building and engaging our community – wherever you are in your marketing professional journey! We are stepping up our mission to LEARN, CONNECT, and GROW.
Let’s talk, let’s exchange ideas, let’s make change happen. Let’s work together to create an essential and inclusive community for marketers.

Onwards and upwards,

I’m honoured and excited to be leading the AMA’s Toronto chapter this year. Together with our AMAzing Board of Directors, I am confident we will accomplish a lot in creating value for our marketing community.

AMA-Toronto has been serving and engaging marketers with opportunities to learn, connect, and grow for over 70 years. Our members work, teach and study in the field and have a passion for advancing our industry. Together we’re continuing to build an essential community for marketers, looking to access ideas and a network across North America.

Under immediate Past-President Michelle Flynn’s leadership, AMA-Toronto had a stellar year, hosting differentiated and unforgettable events like our Legendary Leadership series, signature CMO and Agency panels, and inducting new legends into Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends. We also concluded the tenth year of Mentor Exchange, our industry-leading Mentorship program for mid and senior level professionals…

I am especially proud of our team as all of our accomplishments and programming come from the passion and dedication of over 70 volunteers. Unlike other marketing and professional organizations, we are run and supported solely through volunteers, and I want to give a huge shout out to each and every one of you! I am also incredibly grateful to our growing list of partners and sponsors for believing in us and making our work possible!
The year ahead will no doubt be challenging – COVID has impacted us in many ways. We have successfully pivoted to digital for both our programming and networking events. One of the surprising silver linings has been our expanded reach, and how we have been enabled to better integrate and leverage our sister Canadian chapter BCAMA and the global AMA network. Yet the imperative to transform does not end there. We have an opportunity to rethink and expand how we add value to the community, and to engage at an even deeper, more authentic level.
A key focus for me and our Board of Directors is to further strengthen the role our association plays in enhancing the diversity of our community and increasing representation across all our programs. AMA-Toronto is fully committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Our mission is to support meaningful careers and communities in marketing, which in turn spur economic growth and social progress that raise the standard of living for everyone. An explicit commitment to the values (and behaviors) in service of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is inherent and fundamental to the AMA mission.
AMA-Toronto has worked intentionally to increase the diversity amongst our Mentors and has built a diverse volunteer base and Board of Directors. Our welcoming community of marketers has long served as an onboarding launchpad for newcomers to Canada who, through our Mentor Exchange and Career Accelerator Mentorship programs, our networking meeting, education, volunteer opportunities, endorsements and even references, have leveraged AMA-Toronto to successfully integrate in the Canadian marketing industry. Our new partnership with ACCES Employment will only deepen this commitment. We have many such success stories to point to, and I am very proud of the role we have played in enhancing the diversity of our industry. We are living in a historic moment where there is a real focus, real momentum, and a real opportunity to make change happen! And I am excited to help drive this change!
Over the coming months, you will be hearing from us regularly through our Monthly Digest Newsletter highlighting all key activities and things we are excited about. I will also be launching an AMA-Toronto AMA (Ask me Anything) hour to stay in touch with you – for me, it is important to have regular and genuine conversations with all of our stakeholders – be it our volunteers, members, mentors or mentees, partners and sponsors, advisory council, students, new Canadians, and our legends – indeed, from all marketing professionals in our rich and dynamic community. Watch out for our kick-off session under our Events.
Our focus continues to be on what you have come to expect from us – Mentorship, Membership, Education, Legendary Leadership and signature events. We will also continue our successful MNG (Marketing Networking Group) series – offering free monthly networking events to all our members and also inviting the broader community. We will also be bringing you the incredible value that our international network of over 70 chapters brings – having the power and size of the AMA organization, with its rich history and thought leadership, professional accreditation and resources – that is something truly special.
Above all, our focus is on building and engaging our community – wherever you are in your marketing professional journey! We are stepping up our mission to LEARN, CONNECT, and GROW.
Let’s talk, let’s exchange ideas, let’s make change happen. Let’s work together to create an essential and inclusive community for marketers.

Onwards and upwards,

AMA Toronto Board Members

Miglena Nikolova
Miglena Nikolova
VP, SPONSORSHIP & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Picture of volunteer Olga Pigeon
Olga Pigeon
President Elect
Barbara Boyd
Barbara Boyd
Immediate Past President

AMA Toronto Advisory Council

Trinh Tham
Trinh Tham
Santo Ligotti, American Marketing Association (AMA), Toronto
Santo Ligotti
AMA Toronto President
Mansi Vagt
Mansi Vagt
Global Brand Leader & Vice President, Fairmont
Fatima Israel
Fatima Israel
Chief Marketing Officer, EY

AMA Chapters

The American Marketing Association (AMA) strives to be the most relevant force and voice shaping marketing around the world: an essential and inclusive community for marketers. One of the biggest advantages that it offers is its reach. Explore the global organization to access leading marketing journals, research, a number of educational conferences or to join other chapter events. 

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