Conference Speakers

Alex Gillespie

How to Get (and Stay!) On the Plan: Strategies for Success (Sunday, 1:30-3:00 p.m.)

Alex Gillespie is Account Director at PHD Canada where he assumes the leadership role with the high profile Honda account. Alex is a 20 year media veteran who has worked within all media agency departments. His career path has taken him through stops within the broadcast buying unit, research department, direct response, planning and online planning departments.

Prior to joining PHD in July, Alex managed a variety of clients across numerous categories with Doner Canada including Mazda, Future Shop/Best Buy and Canadian Tire.

Alicia Whalen

Destination Marketing Online (Tuesday, (9:00-10:15 a.m.)

After 8 years developing search engine strategies and measuring online return on investment for large branded hotels, resorts and destination portal Web sites in Niagara Falls, Canada, Alicia partnered with Patricia Brusha to develop an integrated, non-intimidating approach to Search, Marketing and Measurement online.

Alicia co-developed the annual Online Revealed Canada conference now in its third year which was held this May in Calgary Alberta, with participation from companies such as Yahoo, MSN, Travelzoo, Orbitz, Travelocity and major provincial Destination Marketing organizations from across Canada. Alicia continues to work with clients such as Nova Scotia Tourism, Niagara Falls Tourism, Travel Alberta, Marriott International, Tourism Ottawa, Intercontinental Hotels and the Sports Museum of America developing online marketing strategies.

Andy Jackson

Web Wealth: Best Practices for e-Commerce Success (Tuesday, 10:30 a.m.-Noon)

Andrew Jackson is an independent consultant to smaller and independent magazine publishers, specializing in strategic planning, online publishing, marketing, circulation and ancillary products. His long career in communications includes 20 years as Director of Operations at Vermont Life magazine, stints as Circulation Manager with McGraw-Hill’s BYTE magazine, director of marketing for a book catalog, and as a public relations photographer and copywriter. In 1994 he founded the first regional magazine Web site on the Internet for Vermont Life, VermontLife.com.  He earned his Masters degree in 1999 in Internet Strategy Management with a capstone project developing Vermont Life’s highly successful e-commerce site, VermontLifeCatalog.com.  He is a long-time member and former board member of IRMA and since the Nova Scotia conference, serves as its executive director.

Colin Gourlay

Online Metrics: Utilizing the Latest Tools for Measurement and Analysis (Tuesday, 10:30 a.m.-Noon)

Colin Gourlay is the Owner of Electric Playground Media where he is responsible for the company’s overall operation and strategic growth. He has more than 10 years of strategic Internet marketing and development experience. Colin’s skill set focuses around Web application development in PHP & MySQL, open source solutions, and leading edge Web marketing strategy. His previous experience includes leading the Internet marketing strategy for a portfolio of over 60 hotels at Intergy, a subsidiary of Pacrim Hospitality. Colin has managed hundreds of Web development and marketing projects. Past and current clients include Sears Travel, Saltscapes Magazine, and Ramada Hotels.

Colin’s expertise in the open source content management system Joomla has allowed him to develop some large scale portal projects with minimal need for custom development.

Dave Donald

Great Design on A Tight Budget (Sunday, 10:30 a.m.-Noon)
Cover Critique by an Expert (Sunday, 1:30-3:00 p.m.)

Dave Donald has been in publication design for over 17 years, working on a wide range of magazines: large circulation consumer (Chatelaine), trade (Masthead, Graphic Monthly, Mississauga Business Times), and not-for-profit (This Magazine). He is now using this varied experience as a freelance design consultant specializing in publication redesign. Recent projects have included the initial launch of Design Edge Canada and the redesign of The New Quarterly. He is a travelling consultant for Magazines Canada, Alberta Magazine Publishers Association, and Atlantic Magazines Association. He has been a guest lecturer for publishing programmes at Ryerson and Simon Fraser Universities.

Dr. Ron Colman

"Gross National Happiness" (Saturday, 8:30-10:00 a.m.)

Dr. Ronald Colman is founder and executive director of GPI Atlantic, a Halifax-based non-profit research group that is constructing measures of wellbeing and sustainable development (the Genuine Progress Index) for Nova Scotia as a pilot project for Canada. The GPI uses full-cost accounting methods to assess the social, economic, and environmental benefits and costs of economic activity.

Faith Drinnan

Utilizing People Power: Hiring, Motivating and Retaining / "Don't Worry - Be Happy" (Monday, 9:00-10:15 a.m.)

Faith Drinnan has worked with regional and special interest magazines to find and keep subscribers for 30 years. She has been a Circulation Adjudicator for Canada Council, a Traveling Consultant for the Canadian Magazine Association, and has sat on the Board of the Canadian Marketing Association.

Faith Drinnan is President and CEO of the Oyster Group. The Oyster Group works with regional and special interest magazine publishers in Canada and the US to cultivate relationships with subscribers and grow their magazines.

Faith and the Oyster Group are very proud to have played a significant role in launching two of the most successful regional publications in Canada – Progress magazine and Saltscapes magazine.

Gary Garland

Leveraging the Power of Your Brand, Parts 1 and 2 (Sunday & Monday, 10:30 a.m.-Noon)

Gary joined Magazines Canada in 1997 bringing with him relevant advertising & business management experience.

Having completing his MBA at Dalhousie University, Gary started his career in marketing, gaining brand management experience at Pepsi-Cola, CIBC and Cadbury Schweppes.

Gary then entered the world of advertising and spent the next 13 years holding increasingly senior Account Management and Media Management positions within MacLaren McCann, Initiative Media and Ogilvy & Mather. In June of 1997, Gary joined Magazines Canada where he remains today.

Kim Pittaway

Smart Editorial Spending: Budget Stretching/Repurposing, Parts 1 and 2 (Sunday, 1:30-3:00 p.m. and 3:15-4:30 p.m.)

Kim Pittaway is a magazine writer, editor and consultant. Her magazine writing credits include More Magazine, Cottage Life, Reader’s Digest,  Reader’s Digest Best Health, Gardening Life, Chatelaine, Homemaker’s, Zoomer and others. Pittaway is the former editor-in-chief of Chatelaine magazine (2004-2005). Prior to that, she was the magazine’s managing editor (2001-2004) and a columnist (Broadside, 1999-2004). While at Chatelaine, she oversaw the launch of a range of brand extensions, including recipe digests and an annual health guide, both of which utilized repurposed material, and worked closely with the web editorial team. 

Linda Gourlay

Finding Your Inner Cash Cow (Sunday, 3;15-4:30 p.m.)

After graduate studies and a career in public and private sector senior management in Nova Scotia, Linda Gourlay joined her husband in the publishing business in 1998. In 2000, Saltscapes was launched and two years later the magazine was the largest paid circulation magazine the region had ever seen. The family also publishes Atlantic Canada’s oldest paid-circulation periodical,  Eastern Woods & Waters and partners with 3 high profile organizations in special interest publications:

Saltscapes is now a household name in Atlantic Canada and enjoys strong consumer loyalty as is evidenced by the success of the now 4-year-old Saltscapes Expo, the largest lifestyle consumer show in Eastern Canada.

 

Michael J. Fox

How to Use the Web to Make Your Regional Circulation Plan Sing (Sunday, 10:30 a.m.-Noon)

Michael J. Fox is Senior Vice-President, Circulation & Development, of Rogers Publishing Limited, Toronto. Rogers’ 70+ brands in the consumer and business markets includes Maclean’s, Chatelaine, Flare, L’actualité,  Châtelaine (French edition), Canadian Business, Canadian Grocer, The Medical Post, and Marketing Magazine.


Michael led consumer marketing at Rogers for 10 years and his focus now includes business circulation as well as business development. He has helped to lead the magazine industry by introducing new channels of circulation.

Pierre Bisaillon

Digital Editions (Tuesday, 10:30 a.m.-Noon)

Pierre Bisaillon, VP, Strategic Development, has founded and led publishing-related companies for over twenty two years. As founder of Zmags Inc., the North American division of Danish-based Zmags ApS, Pierre and his team have personally guided hundreds of companies in adopting their digital publishing strategies. Having the fortune of being at the “hub” of companies entering this new market has provided him with a deep understanding of best practices when adopting a digital publishing strategy.

Ruth Kelly

Survival of the Fittest--A Guide for Regional Publishers (Sunday, 9:00-10:15 a.m.)
Finding Your Inner Cash Cow (Sunday, 3:15-4:30 p.m.)
Utilizing People Power: Hiring, Motivating and Retaining/"Don't Worry - Be Happy" (Monday, 9:00-10:15 a.m.)

Ruth Kelly is the president and CEO of Venture Publishing Inc., and the publisher and editor-in-chief of Alberta Venture, Alberta’s only province-wide business magazine. Through Alberta Venture, Ruth created and produced the annual E Awards, the only province-wide employee excellence recognition program in Canada, as well as the annual list of Alberta’s Fastest Growing Companies, the Venture 100, the Best Workplaces list and Alberta’s Business Person of the Year Award. Venture Publishing also produces contract magazines for Alberta Mental Health Board, Capital Health, Consulting Engineers of Alberta, Finning Canada, Growing Alberta and Merit Contractors. In September 2007, Venture launched Unlimited, the only business magazine in Canada targeted to the 20 to 35 year old emerging professional or entrepreneur. In May of 2008, Venture purchased Alberta Oil, an energy trade publication.

Terry Sellwood

Utilizing People Power: Hiring, Motivating and Retaining / "Don't Worry - Be Happy" (Monday, 9:00-10:15 a.m.)
Web Wealth: Best Practices for e-Commerce Success (Tuesday, 10:30 a.m.-Noon)
Community Building: Engaging People and Building Readership (Tuesday, 1:30-3:00 p.m.)

Terry Sellwood is the general manager of Quarto Communications, publishers of Cottage Life and explore magazines, their affiliated web sites, producers of the Cottage Life Consumer Shows, and producers of 12 years of Cottage Life Television and 2 seasons of the Summer’s Best TV show.

Prior to that, Terry was Vice-President, circulation marketing for Transcontinental Publications Inc. He was responsible for the subscription and database functions of TV Guide, Canadian Living, Style at Home, Homemaker’s, Elle Quebec, Hockey News, Good Times, and many other magazines. Prior to that, Terry was Executive Vice-President of INDAS, Canada’s largest magazine fulfillment company. He has over 30 years experience in the industry and has worked with or for most of Canada’s major magazine publishing companies.

Trish Connolly

Digital Editions (Tuesday, 10:30 a.m.-Noon)

Patricia Connolly (Trish) is currently the President & Chief Executive Officer of Advanced Publishing Corporation, a company she co-founded in 2003 that provides an innovative suite of technology solutions that assist print media publishers in the creation, hosting, and delivery of interactive digital editions. Advanced Publishing focuses on providing a full service solution and integrating new and emerging services and web trends into its product offering for publishers.

Prior to starting Advanced Publishing, Trish was involved for more than 20 years in senior executive roles in both technology start up and media companies.