Management Team

• Andy Osburn President and CEO

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  Andy has over 20 years of experience in software and systems engineering and management. Prior to co-founding Equals6 he was CEO at Diaphonics and a Senior Product Manager of Combat Control Systems with the Canadian Navy. Andy has also worked and performed research in the fields of digital signal processing and acoustic modeling. He holds an undergraduate degree in science, a master's of science in acoustics and a master's in business administration.

• Dr. Mark Boyle Chief Technology Officer

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  Mark has 20 years of experience in the field of human-computer interface design. Prior to co-founding Equals6, he held executive engineering positions at Diaphonics and Aliant Telecommunications. As a human factors specialist, Mark has been responsible for the design and development of software and user interfaces for telephony and Internet products. He has also held senior positions in the fields of application development and database design. Mark holds a master's degree in psychology and an Interdisciplinary Ph.D. in computer science and business.

• Jeremy Bernard Chief Marketing Officer

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  As a marketing and business development professional, Jeremy has been helping companies grow for more than 15 years. Prior to joining Equals6 he was the Director of Sales at Lixar, a web and mobile development company. He has also worked as an strategic advisor and marketing consultant for numerous organizations, and co-founded Diaphonics, a VC-backed startup. Jeremy has an MBA from Saint Mary's University.

• Michael Sanderson Vice President of Education and Training

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  Michael has over 14 years of experience in entrepreneurship, economic development, professional training and teaching. He has extensive leadership and project management experience from his role as manager of skills development and training for the Saint Mary's University Business Development Centre. Michael is a seasoned entrepreneur and also serves as a part-time professor in the department of management at Saint Mary's University.

Board of Directors

• Mr. Greg Phipps Director of Investment, Innovacorp

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  Gregory (Greg) Phipps is director of investment at Innovacorp, where he is responsible for sourcing investment opportunities, due diligence, and deal structure, closing and governance. He also provides hands-on business guidance to Innovacorp’s investment portfolio companies. Greg is an investment, finance, and operations professional with extensive start-up and business building experience and more than a decade of venture investment management, 12 start-ups and 50 equity investment transactions under his belt.

  Previously, for 11 years he served as the Atlantic region’s director, venture capital, with BDC Venture Capital, the venture arm of the Business Development Bank of Canada. There, he was responsible for deal development, diligence, negotiation and investment management for the largest, early-stage venture capital fund in Canada. Greg also has seven years of experience in marketing management, and was the founder and president of two companies in the media services sector. He holds a bachelor of arts: administrative and commercial studies from the University of Western Ontario in London, and an eMBA/master of management from Lansbridge University in Fredericton.

• Mr. Michael Perry Director, Alumni Engagement Dalhousie University

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  Michael brings over 15 years of experience in marketing, technology, and operations. His career has included leadership roles in large organizations, technology startups, and digital marketing agencies. 


  Michael is currently the Director of Alumni Engagement at Dalhousie University in Halifax, one of the top universities in Canada. In this role, he is developing and executing on a strategy to create a close connection between Dalhousie University and it's 110,000 alumni. As part of the leadership team of External Relations, Michael is also playing an important role in Dalhousie's Bold Ambitions Capital campaign.  With a goal of raising 250,000,000 by the spring of 2013, this is the largest capital campaign ever for an Atlantic Canadian university.



  Prior to joining Dalhousie, Michael held the role of VP Operations and Principle at Modern Media, a leading digital marketing firm based in Halifax.  Michael holds an undergraduate degree in business, and is currently enrolled in an executive level masters of information management program.

• Mr. Jeff Forbes Vice President, Managing Partner Executive Search, Knightsbridge Robertson Surrette

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  As Managing Partner of the Executive Search practice, Jeff is primarily responsible for leading searches for Executive leadership, senior management and accounting/finance professionals.  He has successfully completed hundreds of searches for a wide spectrum of public and private organizations. From regional start-ups to multimillion-dollar organizations, Jeff has consistently recruited some of Atlantic Canada’s leading talent over the past 15 years. His extensive knowledge of the industry, region and labour market, and his ability to match skills with requirements, has earned Jeff a highly loyal and impressive list of clients.

  Before joining Knightsbridge Robertson Surrette, Jeff earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Dalhousie University and held a series of sales management positions with one of Atlantic Canada’s leading private companies.

Board of Advisors

• Susanne Goldstein Founder & CEO, The Accelerator, Career Expert and Author

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  Susanne Goldstein is an engineer turned filmmaker turned experience designer turned Business Doctor. Author of best-selling Carry a Paintbrush: How to Be the Artistic Director of Your Own Career, she’s helped countless individuals, companies and audiences define what success means to them, and then accelerate their ability to achieve it. A sought after Business Doctor and ad hoc C-Level executive, Susanne has helped bring more than 50 technology start-ups to market, and has counseled teams and executives at all levels of the Fortune 1000. Susanne holds a Master’s in Public Administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, as well as a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and an A.B. in Theatre and Film Studies, both from Cornell University.  www.susannegoldstein.com

• Dr. Dawn Jutla Saint Mary’s University, Sobey School of Business

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  Dawn holds the positions of Full Professor at the Sobey School of Business, Saint Mary’s University and Adjunct Professor to the Faculty of Computer Science at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Dawn is the 2009 recipient of the World Technology Award for IT Software in the Individual Category where assessment was on her work in the research and design of online privacy software to provide users with control over their information. Previous recipients of the award include employees from INRIA, Stanford, UC Santa Barbara, Microsoft, and the co-founders of Google. 



  Her teaching interests are diverse. Her recent graduate courses include electronic commerce and technology entrepreneurship with emphasis on the management of platforms. Her interdisciplinary research interests are in privacy and security management, web services, electronic commerce, information systems, technology architecture, and technology management. Dawn currently serves on numerous international committees, including as a member on the Research Scholarship Selection Committee, Natural Sciences and Engineering section of the Canadian Bureau of International Education.

• Mr. Darrell Harvey Royal Canadian Mounted Police (Retired)

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  Darrell is a retired Royal Canadian Mounted Police senior executive with more than 25 years of service in various areas of the organization, including, Forensics, Ballistics Research, Project Management, logistics for large police operations and Corporate Management.  Mr. Harvey's varied experience lends itself well to blending police operations, infrastructure, technology, with corporate and client requirements.

• J. Maureen Henderson Founder & Principal, Secret Agent Research

  J. M. (Jennifer) Henderson has been researching and writing about Millennial issues since 2009, with a specific focus on socioeconomics, education and cultural trends. In addition to freelance copywriting and consulting, she pens a regular column for Forbes and her work has been featured in venues such as Salon, The Atlantic, The Huffington Post and NPR. She holds an undergraduate degree in business, a graduate degree in public policy and has a background in project management and strategic planning in the corporate and not-for-profit sectors.