Prior to joining OCLF, Michael spent almost 30 progressive years in the private sector, most recently with Cisco Systems Canada where he was responsible for leading its education and government vertical markets as well as related community priorities. His focus enabled Cisco Canada to achieve record market share, growth and customer access in education.

He is a frequent speaker at conferences, active community volunteer and mentor to entrepreneurs. Michael is also a former Director of the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce, Ottawa Community Loan Fund and High Performance Computing Virtual Laboratory (HPCVL).

OCLF welcomes Michael’s leadership and business experience. His mandate is to oversee the administration of OCLF, so that we may achieve our mission of fueling innovation, expanding opportunities and improving lives.

Kendra Thorogood is a Bachelor of International Business student who has interned with the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh. Kendra is in her fifth year of the BIB program with a concentration in International Investment, Finance and Banking. She completed the Spanish stream of the program and spent her third year in Chile where she studied at the Universidad de Chile in Santiago.

Ignacio Estefanell is a graduate student, studying journalism at Ryerson. Prior to commencing his studies, Ignacio worked at OCLF as VP of Marketing and Communications. He is the founder of Kickabout, Ottawa’s local soccer magazine and a World Cup blogger for CBC.