CIRI Announces Meghan Brown as New Board Chair and Elects New Directors

TORONTO, June 17, 2014 /CNW/ - The Canadian Investor Relations Institute (CIRI) announces the appointment of Meghan Brown as Chair of the CIRI Board of Directors for a two-year term. Ms. Brown is the Director of Investor Relations at Endeavour Silver and has served on CIRI's Board since 2011. She succeeds George Kesteven who will remain on the Board as Past Chair.

Ms. Brown has over 20 years of experience in investor relations and communications in the resource sector. In her current role, she manages the company's investor relations program. Prior to joining Endeavour Silver, Ms. Brown worked in investor relations and communications at Suncor Energy, TransCanada, Placer Dome Inc. and Ventana Gold Corp. Ms. Brown is a past Director of CIRI British Columbia, having served as President from 2011-2013, and a Director of CIRI National, where she serves as Co-chair of the Human Resource, and Corporate Governance Committee and a member of the Audit Committee. She has completed the Canadian Securities Course and the Institute of Corporate Directors' Governance Essentials Program for Directors of Not-for-Profit Organizations, and is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors. Ms. Brown holds a BA from the University of British Columbia and an MBA from Queen's University.

"Meghan brings extensive experience in investor relations from both small and large cap companies. This, coupled with her ongoing involvement with CIRI through the Chapter and National Boards, will serve CIRI well as the organization continues to contribute to the integrity of the capital markets and strives to advance the practice of investor relations," said Yvette Lokker, President & CEO, CIRI.

"I am honoured and excited to take on the role of Chair and work with this exceptionally talented team," stated Ms. Brown. "CIRI is a leader in advancing the IR profession and George has played a key role in promoting its mandate over his term as Chair. With George's support in the role of Past Chair, I look forward to contributing to the future direction and growth of the organization."

CIRI members also elected Rhylin Bailie, Vice President, Communications and Investor Relations, New Zealand Energy Corp., John Cobb, Vice President, Investor Relations and Information Technology, Keyera Corp., Denis Jasmin, Vice President, Investor Relations, SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., and Rudy Sankovic, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations, TD Bank Group.

Rhylin Bailie started her career as an IRO in 2006 with NovaGold Resources Inc., and is currently Vice President Communications and Investor Relations for three resource companies as an employee of J. Proust & Associates, which provides management services for publicly listed companies. Rhylin has worked in the resource sector for more than 18 years and brings a diverse skill set to her position, with experience as a freelance writer and editor, nearly, 11 years in the treasury group at Placer Dome Inc., and a degree in environmental studies and biology from University of Waterloo.

John Cobb has over 30 years of experience in all sectors of the oil and gas industry. He is currently Vice President, Investor Relations and Information Technology of Keyera Corp., one of Canada's largest midstream companies. He has held leadership positions with Keyera since its inception in 1998. Prior to that, he held a number of roles in the upstream and refining sectors of the oil and gas industry in the areas of accounting, finance, and engineering. John holds a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Nova Scotia Technical College and an MBA from the University of Aston in Birmingham, England.

Denis Jasmin is a Chartered Accountant with 24 years of experience, primarily in management positions. He has a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration from the École des Hautes Études Commerciales (HEC) in Montreal, and has been a Chartered Professional Accountant since 1991. Denis joined SNC-Lavalin in 2000 as Assistant Corporate Controller. In this position, he was responsible for preparing the company's annual and quarterly reports, revising financial analyses for acquisitions and investments, and for the financial aspects of strategic planning. Five of the six annual reports written under his direction have garnered awards. In 2007, he was promoted to Vice-President, Investor Relations. In 2011, under Denis' leadership, SNC-Lavalin Group received an honourable mention for the Grand Prix for Best Overall Investor Relations Mid-Cap at the annual IR Awards. Denis received an honourable mention for Best Investor Relations Officer Mid-Cap at the 2011 and 2012 annual IR Awards. Denis is a member of the Chartered Professional Accountants (CPA) of Canada.

Rudy Sankovic is Senior Vice President, Investor Relations, at TD Bank Group. As head of Investor Relations, Rudy works closely with the Executive Team to communicate TD's corporate strategy and financial and business performance to the investment community, and provide investor feedback to the Executive Team on strategy and capital management decisions. Rudy joined TD in February 2004 as SVP and CFO of the Wealth Management Division responsible for Finance, Risk and Strategy with teams in Canada, UK and the USA. Rudy was part of the executive team that helped grow the division from $125 million in earnings in 2003 to over $500 million in 2007. Prior to joining TD, Rudy was Senior Vice President and CFO of the Personal and Commercial Banking Division of Royal Bank of Canada, where he had a team of 300 in the USA and Canada, responsible for finance and strategy.

Also joining the Board is Gladys Caron, the new CIRI Quebec Chapter President. Ms. Caron is the Vice President, Public Affairs, Communications and Investor Relations. She has spent most of her career in communications and marketing. Holding a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Université Laval, Ms. Caron joined Laurentian Bank in 2002 as Director of Communications. She subsequently assumed the role of Senior Manager, Marketing, before being appointed Vice-President of Public Affairs, Communications and Investor Relations in 2004. In this position, she is responsible for investor relations, media relations, sponsorships, donations, public relations and internal communications. Prior to joining the ranks of the Laurentian Bank, Ms. Caron was Manager, Communications and Marketing for Roche Ltd, Consulting Group.

"We are incredibly fortunate to have such a talented pool of IR professionals to draw from. Each of these new Directors bring extensive IR skills and experience to the Board and I am delighted to have them join the team," said Ms. Brown.

Dmitry Kushnir, Corporate Director, Business Strategy, Agnico Eagle Mines Limited; Viki Lazaris, CAO, Wealth Management, BMO Financial Group; Pat Marshall, Vice President, Communications and Investor Relations, Cineplex Entertainment; and Jennifer McCaughey, Senior Director, Investor Relations & Financial Communications, Transcontinental Inc. are retiring from the Board. All have dedicated many years to volunteering for the organization and have made a tremendous contribution.

"On behalf of the entire organization I thank Dmitry, Viki, Pat and Jennifer for their contributions to CIRI," said Ms. Brown. "Their commitment to advancing the IR profession in Canada has translated into many successes for the organization and we wish them all the best."

A complete list of CIRI Board of Directors can be found at www.ciri.org.

About CIRI

CIRI is a professional, not-for-profit association of executives responsible for communication between public corporations, investors and the financial community. CIRI contributes to the transparency and integrity of the Canadian capital market by advancing the practice of investor relations, the professional competency of its members and the stature of the profession. With more than 500 members and four Chapters across the country, CIRI is the voice of IR in Canada. For further information, please visit CIRI.org.

SOURCE: Canadian Investor Relations Institute

Yvette Lokker
President & CEO
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