The talent we have assembled on the Passion to Profit Stage is priceless. To have these amazing business experts available to you normally outside of the conference would be at least $500+ .
We are lucky to have access to many of these individuals for at least one day (October 20th) and in some cases two days! Not to mention, that as a conference attendee you also get access to them via follow up webinars after the conference is over.
2014 Line Up Includes: Kelsey Ramsden, Brian Miller, Darin Adams, Victoria Sopike, Teresa Kruze, Kelsey Ramsden, Aly Pain, Brenda MacIntrye, Athena Taddei, Melody Biringer, Nancy Harris.
A few Speaker Highlights:
- Two Profit Canada Magazine Top Women Entrepreneurs (Kelsey Ramsden and Victoria Sopik)
- Canada’s First TSN Female Broadcaster and Author of The Incredibility Factor – Teresa Kruze
- Author Christina Rasmussen of Second Firsts
- Juno Award Winning Aboriginal Artist Brenda MacIntyre (now Success Shamman)
- Award-winning broadcaster Darin Adams discovered that the secret of TV is the secret of life. As a lifestyle host, he tracked down celebrities like Martha Stewart and Pat Sajak.
Meet the 2014 Vancouver Passion to Profit Speakers Live on Stage:
Kelsey Ramsden
Kelsey Ramsden is Canada’s Top Female Entrepreneur, Entrepreneur Magazine writer, ranked #1 by Profit and Chatelaine Magazines in 2012 & 2013. She has founded and run businesses as diverse as construction and children’s toys. As President of Belvedere Place Development, a land development and construction ¬project, she wasn’t afraid to roll up her sleeves and strap on some work boots and get down in the dirt. As founder of Spark Play, a monthly play subscription service – as much for parents as for their kids – she ¬lands herself back on the ground. Formerly a wayward student, born of generations of true grit and determination, Kelsey triumphed when she graduated with her MBA from the highly regarded Ivey School of Business. She credits that same grit and determination for helping her overcome a devastating cancer prognosis last year – a cancer she has since overcome. In her work she balances venom and virtue, book and street smarts, with her belief that imagination and play are powers greater than knowledge. Connect with Kelsey on Twitter: @kelseyramsden
- Interview with Kelsey and What You Can Expect to Learn
- Kelsey’s Session Info -The Tug of War… Are you running your life and business or is it running you?
Teresa Kruze
Teresa Kruze is a veteran broadcaster and journalist. She was one of Canada’s first female sportscasters and paved the way for many of the women that are on the air reporting on sports today. After fourteen successful years, she left TSN to pursue her other goals and worked as an anchor for CP24, 680News and wrote a national career column in Metro News. She is currently the Host and Producer of “Living Clean – Living Well” on CTS-TV every Sunday night, Canada’s only live interactive television talk show that helps people in crisis.
In November 2013, Kruze published “The In-Credibility Factor”. Featuring some of the top business people in the world today, the book rocketed to the top of the bestseller list. Thirty entrepreneurs were profiled in the book along with their top five success principals. Terry Beech, an adjunct professor of entrepreneurship at UBC and Simon Fraser University, added thirty tools and strategies that people need to know about before starting their own company. “The In-Credibility Factor” has been featured on Canada AM, BNN, 680News and in the Financial Post.
- Interview with Teresa and What you Can Expect to Learn
- Teresa’s Session Info – Breaking through the Barriers in Life and Business to find YOUR In-Credibility Factor
Christina Rasmussen
Christina Rasmussen is a bestselling author, speaker and philanthropist on a crusade to change the way we live after loss.
As the founder of Second Firsts and Life Starters both organizations to help people create a pathway back to life after loss, Christina has helped thousands of people rebuild, reclaim, and relaunch their lives using the power of the human mind.
Her book of the same name — Second Firsts: Live, Laugh, and Love Again— aims to take her message even further.
Christina’s work has been featured on the Huffington Post, NPR, The Times of India, Beliefnet, the White House Blog, and MariaShriver.com.
Christina is the mother of two beautiful girls who watched their father die of cancer and saw their mother alchemize that tragedy into a new life of joy and laughter.
She resides in San Francisco, California, with her husband, Eric, their four daughters, and their dog, Tyson.
Learn more at secondfirsts.com and thelifestarters.org.
- Interview with Christina and What you Can Expect to Learn
- Christina’s Session Info –How to Birth a Large Loyal Community – Movements & Communities Begin with a Human Story
Leigh Mitchell
Leigh Mitchell is a passionate relationship marketer and storyteller who specializes in helping business owners and bloggers define and amplify their value and message. Leigh is drawn to connecting her community across North America and in person in Vancouver and Toronto. Her career has led her to successfully work with major brands such as GM Canada, Microsoft Canada, Telus, Johnson & Johnson, Maple Leaf Foods, TD Canada Trust, Staples Canada and Random House. Leigh has been featured on CBC Radio, The Globe and Mail, Toronto Star and in other media and has been a featured speaker at Blissdom Canada and the Wellness Business Summit as well as a judge for UPS and Microsoft Small Business Contests.
Leigh is a passionate healthy living advocate (after a 15 + career in health promotion), yoga and self professed tech-y nerd . When she isn’t working or tweeting, you will find her outside exploring the great outdoors secretly posting excessive Instagram photos to Facebook while no one is looking.
- Interview with Leigh and What You can Expect to Learn
- Leigh’s Session info – Mentor Her Biz (October 20) | Share Your Passion Day (October 19)
Nancy Harris
Nancy Harris is vice president and general manager, Canada at Sage North America. Ms. Harris is responsible for driving the strategic and product direction for Sage 50 Accounting–Canadian Edition and Sage One–Canadian Edition and oversees key functional areas including sales and marketing and research and development. A primary focus of her role is strengthening relationships with and cultivating an exceptional customer experience for Sage small business customers, partner channels, accountants, and bookkeepers.
Prior to joining Sage, Ms. Harris was chief operating officer at ESO Solutions – a private, SaaS-based software solutions company servicing the emergency management services market – where she was responsible for the company’s day-to-day operations, specifically in the areas of client services, marketing, product management and product development.
Previously, Ms. Harris spent nearly a decade with Asure Software in progressively senior marketing, strategic planning and general management roles, culminating in her appointment as COO. Ms. Harris also spent eight years at BMC Software in a number of leadership roles overseeing product marketing, product management, research and development, quality assurance and technical support.
Ms. Harris holds master and bachelor of science degrees from Northwestern University.
Melody Biringer
From strawberry shortcake to home furnishings to a fitness business, Melody has trotted down virtually every entrepreneurial trail in existence. With 23 business ventures under her belt — a few of them even successful! — you might call her a lifelong “start-up junkie.” Her current entrepreneurial love-child is Urban Campfire, a movement to create a different conversation, produced by the CRAVE Company. CRAVE connects savvy business women through networking events, symposiums and a series of smash-hit city guides. Author of CRAVING Success: a startup junkies path from passion to profits. Includes 132 tips for ambitious entrepreneurs.
- Interview with Melody and What You Can Expect to Learn
- Session: How the marshmallow turned my life & business around
Athena Taddei
Athena started her career in the 80’s when she landed a key position in the advertising department of Colour Your World, which at the time was one of Canada’s leading retail chains with hundreds of store across the country. Under the leadership of the advertising director and Grey-Canada, Athena quickly learned the demanding world of advertising and soon realized that a successful company was made up of more than costly advertising: it was based on exceptional customer service. It was then that she decided to learn the other side of the business and was promoted to customer service manager for Canada, where she spent much of her time training franchisees how to deliver the “experience”. Eureka, the true concept of branding was birthed into Athena’s belief system – it was the perfect marriage between an effective visual brand and an exceptional brand experience.
With her newfound truth, Athena ventured into the world of business ownership and since 1987, her experience in marketing and business development has aided private and public corporations as well as smaller service providers, manufacturers and retailers, produce websites, branding and communications, sales materials, service training, and business and marketing plans.
Among her services, Athena has also been privileged over the years to speak at and run seminars for: UPS Customer Solutions | Global Program Management, Landscape Ontario, Opportunity International Canada, HomeWell Senior Care, Older Adults Association of Ontario, Performins Canada Inc., Framing & Art Centres (now owned by Deck the Walls, USA), and Awareness Corporation.
- Interview with Athena and What you can Expect to Learn
- Sessions – Share your Passion Day (Sunday) / From Passion To Infinite Possibilities
Brenda MacIntyre
Brenda is a Juno Award-winning singer, spirit-led business guide, speaker, goose-bump-giver, single mom, grandma and The Success Shaman. Behind the scenes, you can find her sipping herbal tea, belly laughing and ecstatic dancing.
She has appeared on MuchMusic, APTN, CTV, CP24, Global, Vision and CityTV’s Breakfast Television, as well as CBC Radio and various other radio stations across North America.
Anastasia Valentine
CEO + Author + Speaker + Soci@l Maven + Strategist + Positive Instigator = Anastasia Valentine
Anastasia has been bringing ideas to market for global companies, startups and helping small businesses make their ideas reality for over 20 years. She is a passionate ideator, positive instigator, a results and facts driven business strategist and compassionate leader and visionary. Anastasia believes that all business ideas are valuable, but not all are profitable and works with all sizes of organizations to tap into their talent, invest in their culture and even look within themselves for the “next big thing.”
A subject matter expert on areas such as startups, business /product / marketing strategy, soci@l business, crowdfunding, and ideation, Anastasia is a great source of knowledge and skill with a demonstrated track record to back it up as well as glowing testimonials and endorsements.
As a sought after speaker, Anastasia delivers talks and workshops to organizations and at industry conferences worldwide designed to inspire, motivate and educate. She is also the host of the weekly @AVV Biz Talk Radio show debunking business myths with a little sass, style, and special guests.
Victoria Sopik
Victoria Sopik, CEO and Co-founder of Kids & Company, (and mother of 8), understands this delicate balancing act. Victoria’s experiences as a working mother and devoted parent have had a profound impact upon her, and they have made her determined to make a difference by helping working parents and concerned employers with work-life challenges.
As CEO, Victoria oversees the company’s strategic direction and provides leadership to the company’s management team to deliver industry leading child care services. Victoria has a long and distinguished career in the child care industry. Kids & Company is the culmination of over 30 years of experience as an entrepreneur and child care and parenting expert. Kids & Company has served over 30,000 children and created thousands of jobs across Canada.
Victoria lends her time, skill and leadership to benefit the child care industry and community by presenting at a variety of events, workshops and conferences across Canada.
Victoria’s professional accomplishments have been recognized with several honours and rewards, some of these include; 2013 RBC Women Entrepreneur Of The Year Award – Momentum Category, 2012 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year in the Business-to-Business Category, WXN Top100 Most Powerful Women, Passion Capitalist Award for Work Culture and Philosophy – 2012, 2008 Profit Magazine’s – One of Canada’s fastest growing companies, Canadian Top 100 Women Entrepreneurs for the past 7 years, Member of the Young Presidents Organization, and the International Women’s Forum.
Aly Pain
As a Certified Professional Coach, I work with Entrepreneurial and Executive Leaders struggling with overwhelm, connection to a meaningful purpose and lacking a clear plan of action. Their personal lives are often misaligned creating stressful issues around finances, health, marriages and personal relationships.
My clients are founders and leaders of award-winning private and publicly held companies representing the top of their peer groups. They seek input and perspective from close, trusted advisors and organizations such at TEC Canada, Entrepreneurs Organization (EO), and Young Presidents Organization (YPO).
After working with my clients, they connect to a clear purpose with greater awareness and effective habits in their business and personal lives. Their businesses increase profits while aligning their teams behind strong visions and accountable, strategic actions to meet and exceed their goals.
I bring my experience as the wife of a 3-Time Olympian and silver medalist, being on the inside of a high-performance team, to the boardroom. Coupled with being one of the first 70 accredited Certified Relationship and Organizational Team Coaches globally, the families and corporate teams I work with communicate better, make faster and more aligned decisions while using constructive conflict to truly get to the best outcomes.
My speaking audiences are Entrepreneurs, Managers and Business Leaders wanting to grow their awareness of how teams work, and leave with clear, simple tools to immediately implement in their organizations. I bring my ‘straight up success’ stories from high-powered boardrooms to my audiences so you can avoid the most common mistakes today!
Darin Adams
t took about 30 years of TV cameras and news scripts.
Then, the lights came on.
That’s when award-winning broadcaster Darin Adams discovered that the secret of TV is the secret of life. It’s always better with passion. He’s done just about everything when it comes to TV. As a lifestyle host, he tracked down celebrities like Martha Stewart and Pat Sajak. As a sports anchor, he has tried his hand at rodeo riding on a runaway horse. As a weather anchor, he drew pictures of animals in the satellite clouds. As a morning feature reporter, he has eaten crickets and had liposuction performed on him while talking on camera. He’s worked in cities from Louisville, Kentucky to Kalispell, Montana—from Boston, Massachusetts to Pocatello, Idaho. He currently lives in Utah with his wonderful wife and four perfect children.
- Interview with Darin – coming soon
- Session – Developing a Killer Sales and Business Strategy with a Customer Relationship Management System
Brian Miller
As a Partner Account Manager supporting Western Canada, Brian’s role is to deliver on the value of Microsoft’s all up strategy to the Partner community. By developing and working within a Partner Business Plan, Brian orchestrates a sales, marketing, and readiness process with his partners which focuses on delivering results
