What do our 20 AMA Toronto Board members have in common? All are hands-on leaders who have stepped up to run the chapter’s business and capably lead 12+ volunteer teams ranging from finances to events to membership. We’re a diverse group of experienced business professionals with a range of backgrounds but we’re all fueled by our passion for marketing and united by our common purpose to help marketers build their leadership potential through learning opportunities, professional growth and influential relationships.
Our Board has grown in the 12 years since I joined it, but so have our ambitions. We’ve evolved and expanded our objectives, our programs and what we offer to the community. Our volunteer ranks have grown accordingly. We now have 95 board and committee volunteers and another 90 volunteer mentors. We are a not-for-profit “business” run by volunteers.
Our Board and Executive team is led by our current President Miglena Nikolova. Miglena deserves AMAzing kudos for her passion, commitment and inspiring leadership this fiscal year. She will pass a vibrant organization to Tina Portillo our President-Elect in July. Tina is an enthusiastic leader who has worked closely with Miglena and contributed on a number of transformative special projects.
Our Executive team also includes 4 past presidents and long-term volunteers:
Michelle Flynn our strategic “cut to the chase” and very successful immediate Past President
Matt Chong our VP Finance who now capably steers our financial ship
Craig Lund our VP Mentorship who leads our 2 highly acclaimed mentorship programs, Mentor Exchange and Career Accelerator
Debbie Bolton our VP Volunteers whose team leads recruitment, onboarding, engagement and professional development for our 95 committee volunteers
We have 14 other smart and committed Board VPs leading teams or special projects:
Barbara Boyd and Santo Ligotti who co-lead Marcom, our biggest team providing communications support for all our programs
Christine Andrew who leads the sub-committee bringing a more strategic approach to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)
Christopher Stathousis our Strategy & Insights leader whose team brings actionable insights to our teams
Christy Varicat who leads the Digital Marketing team and the important development of our new website
Jacob Kessler the leader of the Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends (CMHOL) team that ensures recognition of some of Canada’s highest impact and most inspiring marketing leaders
Jennifer Jones who leads our Business Development team’s outreach efforts with corporations, associations and academic institutions for mutual benefit
Lia Grimberg the leader of the Membership team who brings greater value through Marketing Networking Group events, programs and benefits to members
Malaika Palmer our Events guru whose team brings to life our 3 Legendary Leadership events, the CMHOL gala and 2 expert panels annually
Mike Muyal who oversees our strategic approach to our International connections and resources
Rob MacLean our PR strategist who brings media attention to our programs
Steve Simkus who leads the Partnership/Sponsorship team who recruit and manage relationships with a multitude of partners and sponsors who support our programs and community
Vincent Mok whose team addresses our growing internal Technology needs
Wendy Greenwood who has added strategic Thought Leadership content to what we offer our community
It takes a lot of volunteer power to run AMA Toronto. A shout-out to the inspiring and committed leaders of the Board team who provide the strategies and energy to bring opportunities to the members of our marketing community. THANK YOU! It’s a pleasure to work with all of you.
