So, What's New?

Alumni Profiles have been a mainstay of the magazine since its earliest days. Last year’s QSB Magazine Survey told us that our readers enjoy learning about the interesting paths our alumni have chosen. In several cases, these paths have taken even more interesting turns, so we checked in with three alumni recently profiled to ask for an update.

By:

Shelley Pleiter

Issue:

Winter 2016

Brenda Trenowden, BCom’89

Last we heard: Brenda was a member of the 30% Club, a global campaign to increase the representation of women on corporate boards, and a senior executive at ANZ (Australia and New Zealand Banking Group), based in London, U.K. She was profiled in the Winter 2015 issue.

Since then: Brenda was named Global Chair of the 30% Club in May 2015, responsible for the day-to-day leadership of the group’s activities. Says Brenda “I was honoured to be asked to take on the leadership of the 30% Club from founder Helena Morrissey and to build upon her extraordinary vision, which was responsible

for establishing the organization in 2010. In developing the next phase, from 2015 onwards, we will continue to focus on engaging with board chairs, investors and government; develop a pipeline of women for Executive Committees; continue our research to produce actionable recommendations; and further develop our international footprint.”

Nik Nanos, EMBA’10, Artsci’88

Last we heard: Nik was leading the Ottawa-based Nanos Research Corp., one of the country’s leading polling and market research firms, and was also a Global Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. His profile in the Summer 2014 issue showcased his firm’s uncanny accuracy in predicting party standings in federal and provincial elections.

Since then: Nanos did it again. In the October 2015 federal election, Nanos Research predicted the final results (as a percentage of the total vote) within a 3.7% margin of error. He predicted the Liberals at 39.1% (vs 39.5% final); Conservatives at 30.5% (vs 31.9% final); and the NDP bang on at 19.7%.

“We were pleased to, once again, accurately predict the federal election outcome for our clients, CTV News and The Globe and Mail, and to maintain our position as one of Canada’s most reliable research firms,” Nik reports.

Also in October, Nik was named a Senior Fellow at the University of Ottawa’s Collaboratory on Energy Research and Policy.

Talon Lloyd, BCom’15

Last we heard: Lloyd & Co. Bespoke Tailoring was taking off, with two locations in downtown Toronto and annual revenues of $200,000. Its founder, Talon Lloyd, had launched the business after his first year in Commerce to bolster his marketability in the management-consulting field. His multitasking abilities and entrepreneurial smarts were highlighted in the Winter 2014 issue.

Since then: Talon, now President of the Loyal Textile Group, has expanded his tailoring operation to ten Canadian retail locations under two brands, generating annual revenues of $1.8 million from a customer base in excess of 10,000.

“In October 2015, I was thrilled to open my first U.S. retail operation, at 14 Wall Street, directly across from the New York Stock Exchange,” says Talon. “My dream to join the world of management consulting has also come true. I’ll be starting a full-time role with Oliver Wyman in Toronto in February 2016, after having secured an executive team to oversee the day-to-day operations of my business.”