Coffee With Convery

Students, New Grads, and Career Seekers, Welcome to #CoffeeWithConvery. On today’s podcast, my guest is Fikayo Aderoju. Fikayo holds a Bachelor of Arts, Economics from York University. He was recently recognized as one of the Top 30 Alumni Under 30 2023. Recipients of York University’s prestigious Top 30 Alumni Under 30 award are graduates who have inspired positive change in the world and have demonstrated the vision and drive required to make meaningful contributions to their communities.  Fikayo was also globally recognized as a recipient of The Diana Award. This award is the most prestigious accolade a young person can win for social action or humanitarian efforts in the world. The Diana Award was established in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales and is given out by the charity of the same name and with the support of both her sons, HRH The Prince of Wales and The Duke of Sussex. As the Founder and Executive Director of Project Impacting Lives, he has dedicated the past three years to creating positive change in the lives of those facing homelessness in Canada. Under his leadership, the organization has successfully provided over 1,500 winter care packages to people facing homelessness, created scholarship funds, organized toy drives, and distributed food to the community. Fikayo's life mission is to inspire others to take action and make a greater impact in their communities, families, and society. He has lived this out through his various leadership roles, such as a Peer Mentor at Vanier College, Dean Ambassador at York University, and TD Early Talent Ambassador, where he has connected diverse groups of students with exciting opportunities and experiences. Fikayo has also been featured on Breakfast Television and CBC NEWS. Fikayo recently was recognized globally as a recipient of The Diana Award. This award is the most prestigious accolade a young person can win for social action or humanitarian efforts in the world. The Diana Award was established in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales and is given out by the charity of the same name and with the support of both her sons, HRH The Prince of Wales and The Duke of Sussex. Currently, Fikayo serves as the Head of Housing at the Toronto Youth Cabinet with a clear mandate of reducing the rate of youth homelessness in Toronto. I had the chance to sit down with Fikayo and I am happy to share our conversation with you, enjoy! #CoffeeWithConvery #Podcast #Listen #Learn #BeInspired

Students, New Grads, and Career Seekers, Welcome to #CoffeeWithConvery. On today’s podcast, my guest is Alex Auerbach. Alex received his Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Counseling Psychology from the University of North Texas, he also holds an MBA, Business Administration from the Salve Regina University and a Bachelor’s of Science, Business Management from the University of Arizona — Eller College of Management. Alex is a licensed counseling and sport psychologist, certified mental performance consultant, and board-certified coach working in professional sports. He has worked with elite teams and performers from a range of domains, including the NBA and NFL, Olympians, Army Special Forces, Fortune 5 Companies, and Venture-Backed Startups. His expertise is in helping people adopt the mindsets they need to be their best when it matters most; building systems to support personnel health and high performance; talent identification and selection; and team and culture building. Alex currently works for the Toronto Raptors Basketball Club as a Senior Director, Wellness & Development. I had the chance to sit down with Alex and I am happy to share our conversation with you, enjoy! #CoffeeWithConvery #Podcast #Listen #Learn #BeInspired

Students, New Grads, and Career Seekers, Welcome to #CoffeeWithConvery. On today’s podcast episode we are continuing the series “Throwback Thursday” where I bring onto the show talented individuals that I met years ago to see where they are now. My guest today is Gregory Sanderson, a graduate of York University with an Honours specialization Canadian Operational Research Society (CORS) mathematics designation. Greg joined IBM apart of their top new graduate program, Consulting by Degrees (CByD), where his expertise grew within the Interactive Experience (iX) team and progressed to working in the Internet of Things (IoT) team and the Global Centre of Excellence (CoE) team. Gregory’s ability to align across sectors and service lines mirrored the learnings and vision to fostering top talent (where we first met). Greg achieved Subject Matter Expert (SME) designation with early A.I. development of speech analytics, voice biometrics, and exemplified his abilities as a project manager, Design Thinking Coach & Co-creator. These achievements lead to publishing internal white papers reflecting his expertise with Speech Analytics, and how Users’ experience can drive optimal problem statements and areas for improvement across the Enterprise landscape. Greg is currently the Founder & President of two Canadian start-up companies, and today’s focus is to learn more about his newest, My Roll Inc.. My Roll is an innovative ecosystem company exploring how our passions surface pure innovation with an honest motivation (more to come on that later). In his spare time, you can find Greg mentoring others, enjoying Canada’s great outdoors, active in his family and children’s success and adding effort to playing hockey and soccer with friends. I had the chance to sit down with Greg and I am happy to share our conversation with you, enjoy! #CoffeeWithConvery #Podcast #Listen #Learn #BeInspired

Students, New Grads, and Career Seekers, Welcome to #CoffeeWithConvery. On today’s podcast, my guest is Ahnaf Rahman. Ahnaf is currently at the University of Toronto Scarborough pursing his Bachelor of Business Administration and Management, Finance with an expected graduation date of 2025. He is also a Lester B Pearson International Scholarship Winner. Ahnaf Rahman is originally from Bangladesh but moved to Malaysia when he was nine years old. He came to Toronto as a a Lester B. Pearson International Scholarship recipient to study business at the University of Toronto. The Lester B. Pearson International Scholarship is awarded to only 37 international students annually and you must be nominated by the school and each school can only choose one student a year. He received the “Executive of the Year” award from the Management and Economics Students’​ Association (MESA) after a terrific year serving as the Vice President of Business Development and was recently promoted to the Co-President of MESA. Ahnaf started his consultant journey as a Technology Risk Consultant Co-op with KPMG in January and is looking forward to the summer ahead. When he is not studying or working you will find him dining out — he is a massive foodie or binging TV shows and movies. His favorite is “Doctor Who.” I had the chance to sit down with Ahnaf and I am happy to share our conversation with you, enjoy! #CoffeeWithConvery #Podcast #Listen #Learn #BeInspired

Students, New Grads, and Career Seekers, Welcome to #CoffeeWithConvery. In Celebration of PRIDE Month, I will be featuring guests from the community to share their stories and what #PRIDE means to them. On today’s podcast, my guest today is Kevin Noguera. Kevin is a graduate from York University with Bachelor of Arts (Hons.), Political Science and Communications.  Kevin also holds a certificate in Successful Negotiation: Essential Strategies and Skills from the University of Michigan. As a seasoned non-profit leader with a proven track record of success in both the government and private sectors.  Kevin also spent sometime in the Banking and Finance Industry with TD and currently is Director Of Operations for the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research. In his spare time, Kevin likes to bike around the city during the summer months, exploring new cities and countries, trying new wines and cuisine from various cultures, learning new languages, listening to podcasts and music, at every possible chance, and reading.  I had the chance to sit down with Kevin and I am happy to share our conversation with you, enjoy! #CoffeeWithConvery #Podcast #Listen #Learn #BeInspired #PRIDEMonth

Students, New Grads, and Career Seekers, Welcome to #CoffeeWithConvery. In Celebration of PRIDE Month, I will be featuring guests from the community to share their stories and what #PRIDE means to them. On today’s podcast, my guest today is Russell Pollard. Russell is an independent consultant, Founder of Framework Leadership and Pride Talks.  He is entrepreneurial and empathetic, and aims to embed equity, diversity and inclusion into workplace culture and leadership. Russell’s career resides in the architecture and city-building communities, along with queer professionals across industries. He works between Toronto and the UK. Over the years he has volunteered for and led several non-profits that support people in their careers. Having grown up in Nova Scotia, he has since lived in several Canadian cities, Bhutan, France, and the UK.  Russell has a bachelor of interdisciplinary leadership, MBA and continuing education in equity and inclusion. In his spare time Russell likes to likes to catch the sunset from the island or from a neat rooftop patio in Toronto with his partner. I had the chance to sit down with Russell and I am happy to share our conversation with you, enjoy! #CoffeeWithConvery #Podcast #Listen #Learn #BeInspired #PRIDEMonth

Students, New Grads, and Career Seekers, Welcome to #CoffeeWithConvery. In Celebration of PRIDE Month, I will be featuring guests from the community to share their stories and what #PRIDE means to them. On today’s podcast, my guest today is Patrick Hunter. Patrick is a Sault College graduate where he studied graphic design and embraced a two-term role as the President of the Indigenous Students Council which provided programming and advocacy for Indigenous students at the college. Patrick is a 2Spirit, Ojibwe artist, graphic designer and award-winning entrepreneur from Red Lake, Ontario. Though best known for his woodland art style paintings, Patrick has also had a positive and impactful impression in the corporate world through collaborations with Rogers Media Company, Staples, Ontario Power Generation, as well as TD and RBC banks to name a few.    The intention that drives the work Patrick does stems from how a better world can be created through art, so future generations can see themselves reflected in mainstream culture. With that in mind, Patrick has engaged the world of sports with artistic collaborations with the Chicago Blackhawks, creating the uniforms for the Canadian Olympic curling team, as well as APTN's new Bryan Trottier award for Indigenous excellence in the NHL . When not collaborating with exciting national partners, Patrick is creating awareness about his Ojibwe roots and inspiring creative confidence through in-person and virtual paint workshops across North America.  I had the chance to sit down with Patrick and I am happy to share our conversation with you, enjoy! #CoffeeWithConvery #Podcast #Listen #Learn #BeInspired #PRIDEMonth #IndigenousHistoryMonth

Students, New Grads, and Career Seekers, Welcome to #CoffeeWithConvery. In Celebration of Asian Heritage Month, I will be featuring guests from the community to share their stories and what #AsianHeritageMonth means to them. On today’s podcast, my guest is John Xu. John is a graduate of the University of Toronto with a Bachelor of Science, Honours, double major in Biology and Psychology. He is a highly motivated, versatile, and hybrid technology recruitment leader with extensive years of experience in full-cycle recruitment, team building, vendor management, HR strategy and process improvement. John has worked at TD Bank, Royal Bank of Canada, Scotiabank and now with Trupanion the fastest-growing player in the pet medical insurance space. He lives in Toronto with his wife, their two kids, and a pet (Choco). When not working, he loves to travel, learn new technology, and spend time at the cottage. I had the chance to sit down with Suanne and I am happy to share our conversation with you, enjoy! #CoffeeWithConvery #Podcast #Listen #Learn #BeInspired #AsianHeritageMonth

Students, New Grads, and Career Seekers, Welcome to #CoffeeWithConvery. In Celebration of Asian Heritage Month, I will be featuring guests from the community to share their stories and what #AsianHeritageMonth means to them. On today’s podcast, my guest is Suanne Wong. Suanne is a graduate of the University of Toronto — Innis College with an Honours Bachelor of Science, Human Biology, Psychology and East Asian Studies, holds a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery from Kings College in London and most recently completed a Certificate in Digital Marketing Management from the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies. Suanne has had a career that has shifted across many lanes and most recently is working with EHN Canada, home to the country’s largest network of industry-leading mental health and addiction treatment centres as a Senior Director Business Development, Strategy and Operations. I had the chance to sit down with Suanne and I am happy to share our conversation with you, enjoy! #CoffeeWithConvery #Podcast #Listen #Learn #BeInspired #AsianHeritageMonth

Students, New Grads, and Career Seekers, Welcome to #CoffeeWithConvery. In Celebration of Asian Heritage Month, I will be featuring guests from the community to share their stories and what #AsianHeritageMonth means to them. Lulu is attending the University of Toronto Scarborough with plans to graduate in 2023 with her Bachelor of Business Administration in Management Coop and International Business. Through the Management Coop and International Business opportunity, Lulu gained new skills in multi-field academic and practical experience in Toronto, Paris and Shanghai. Her work experience included being selected as a Delegate for Global Vision a national not for profit organization; a Production Coordinator for Ubisoft a computer gaming company; a founder of Flora Cosmetics & Jewelry E-commerce; and is now currently working as Graduate Marketing and Events Assistant at UTSC. In her spare time Lula likes to travel and dance! I had the chance to sit down with Lulu and I am happy to share our conversation with you, enjoy! #CoffeeWithConvery #Podcast #Listen #Learn #BeInspired #AsianHeritageMonth