OGI is made up of a dynamic and highly experienced team. Our staff brings deep expertise across the life sciences sector, with backgrounds in public and private sector research spanning academic settings, upstart biotechnology companies and major pharmaceutical corporations, finance and commercialization, bioethics, education and communications.
- Christian Burks - President and CEO
- Teresa Clarke - Research Program Manager
- Narinder Dehal - VP Finance and Operations
- Klaus Fiebig - Chief Scientific Officer and VP Research Programs
- Caitlin Hammond - Research Program Manager
- Alastair Harris-Cartwright - Manager, Corporate Communications
- Matthew Johnson - Research Program Manager
- Dennis McCormac - Director, Platform Development
- Helen Petropoulos - Business Development Manager
- Kimberly Riley - Manager, Events & Outreach
- Christine Scaramuzzo - Executive Assistant to the President and CEO
- David Schibli - Research Program Manager
- Julien St-Pierre - Finance Officer
- Alison Symington - VP Outreach
- Rhonda Tannenbaum - Director, Business Development
- Sonja Wesholowski - Web Coordinator
Christian Burks, PhD
President and CEO
cburks@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6598
President and CEO, Ontario Genomics Institute
Toronto, Ontario
Christian Burks has since 2004 been at OGI and served on the Board of Directors.
His role at OGI draws on his career in basic and applied research institutions and start-up biotechnology companies: creating, developing, and managing database resources for molecular biology; analysing molecular sequence data; generating and managing genomics and proteomics technology and data to support drug discovery; and involvement at the onset of the Human Genome Project.
He was earlier Chief Scientific Officer with Affinium Pharmaceuticals in Toronto and Vice- President and Chief Information Officer with Exelixis, a global biotechnology company in San Francisco, California. Prior to that, at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Dr. Burks was part of a team that created, and was later Principal Investigator for GenBank, the global DNA sequence database resource under the aegis of the US National Institutes of Health; there he was in succession postdoctoral fellow, staff member, group leader, and program leader.
Dr. Burks has co-authored over 65 scientific publications and served on a number of national and international editorial, review, and advisory boards, including most recently: Board of Directors for Jaguar Bioscience (Canada), Scientific Advisory Board for Cognia (USA), Advisory Board for ITI Life Sciences (Scotland), Board of Directors for the International Barcode of Life consortium (Canada), and Executive Committee for the University of Toronto’s Joint Centre for Bioethics (Canada).
After undergraduate education in the Great Books Program at St. John's College (Santa Fe), he completed his PhD in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry at Yale University.
Teresa Clarke, PhD
Research Program Manager
tclarke@OntarioGenomics.ca
416.673.6592
Teresa Clarke joined OGI in June 2007. Her experience as a researcher and team leader assists her as she manages OGI-funded programs, seeks project investments, and monitors projects’ accountability and progress.
Previously, Dr. Clarke led a crystallography lab research group at the University Health Network (Toronto), in collaboration with the Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC). Under her guidance, the team worked on novel protein structures and sought new lead molecules for drug development using fragment screening by x-ray crystallography. She was previously a senior scientist at Affinium Pharmaceuticals (Toronto), where she excelled in a highly integrated drug discovery team.
Dr. Clarke received her BSc in Biochemistry from McMaster University and her PhD in structural biology from the University of Calgary, after which she undertook an NSERC industrial post-doctoral position at Affinium. She has written several peer-reviewed scientific publications and has been a co-author on several patent applications.
Narinder Dehal, MBA, CMA
Vice President, Finance and Operations, and Board Treasurer
ndehal@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6584
Narinder Dehal joined OGI in February 2006. He oversees OGI’s strategic approach to corporate governance, reporting, and accountability, drawing on his experience as a senior financial executive.
Prior to joining OGI, Mr. Dehal was Vice-President of Finance for SOS Personal Learning Solutions, an online interactive mentoring and coaching company. During his five years as Director of Finance for WaveRider Communications, a start-up firm in wireless data communications, the company grew from 20 employees to 165. He had earlier served as Controller for Infomart Dialog, a 45-person joint venture in electronic publishing.
Mr. Dehal is a CMA, with an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario (UWO). He received an honours BSc in Genetics from UWO and worked as a research assistant at the Robarts Research Institute in London, Ontario.
Klaus Fiebig, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer and Vice President, Research Programs
kfiebig@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6583
Klaus Fiebig joined OGI in February 2006. He brings a wealth of corporate and research experience to his role as CSO and VP of Research Programs, where he is responsible for OGI’s cultivation of and support for genomics and proteomics projects in Ontario, and liaises with external stakeholders on these fronts.
Most recently, Dr. Fiebig was Senior Director of Structural Biology and Computational Chemistry at Affinium Pharmaceuticals in Toronto, where he directed a 20-person strategic alliance with Pfizer that focused on structural proteomics and structure-based drug discovery.
Previously, he co-founded and was CEO of MRPharm (Frankfurt), which focused on NMR-based drug discovery. His academic team at the University of Frankfurt worked on drug discovery with Aventis. Dr. Fiebig was also a lead scientist with Xencor (Los Angeles), improving its automatic computational platform for designing proteins.
He received his PhD in Pharmaceutical Chemistry from the University of California at San Francisco and his undergraduate degree in Physics from the Technical University Munich. With fellowships from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, he completed postdoctoral research in protein folding at the University of Oxford and work in structural biology at Yale University.
Research Program Manager
chammond@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6589
Caitlin Hammond has been a Research Program Manager with OGI since June 2008. Her current work, matching scientists with funding sources and monitoring project accountability, progress, and outcomes, draws on her recent experience researching molecular and cell biology.
While completing her graduate work, Dr. Hammond was awarded graduate and postgraduate scholarships from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), as well as several University of Toronto fellowships. She had earlier worked as a laboratory technician at Toronto’s Sunnybrook Research Institute, where she analyzed clinical trials and managed a laboratory. Dr. Hammond has written several peer-reviewed scientific publications and been a co-author on two patent applications.
She received her BSc with honours in Biology from Mount Allison University and her PhD in Medical Biophysics (Cell and Molecular Biology Division) at the University of Toronto.
Alastair Harris-Cartwright
Manager, Corporate Communications
aharriscartwright@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6582
Alastair Harris-Cartwright joined OGI in January 2009, bringing to his role over eight years of marketing communications experience across a wide range of sectors including bioscience, pharmaceutical, health care, not-for-profit and government. At OGI, Mr. Harris-Cartwright manages the corporate communications activities, including working to raise the visibility of Ontario’s genomics research sector and promote public awareness of the science and social impact of genomics and related life sciences.
Prior to joining OGI, he worked in public relations consultancies managing media relations and corporate communications programs for GlaxoSmithKline, private health providers and the National Health Service in the United Kingdom, where he lived before relocating to Toronto.
He holds an honours BA in Political Science and International Relations from the University of Westminster, London, England.
Matthew Johnson, MSc
Research Program Manager
mjohnson@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6593
Since July 2008, Matthew Johnson has been a Research Program Manager at OGI. To his current responsibilities matching scientists with funding sources and monitoring project accountability, progress and outcomes, he brings experience as a project leader at a start-up biotech company where he helped develop nucleotide based diagnostics.
Mr. Johnson had worked as a scientist at Xceed Molecular Corporation, helping launch its proprietary multiplexed gene-expression technology and heading development of the company’s first assay applications for clinical use. He had earlier been on staff at the Genomics Research Centre at Griffith University on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, where he initiated a molecular diagnostic assay for familial colorectal cancer.
He received both his BSc with honours in Biology, with a minor in Biochemistry, and his MSc in Biology from McMaster University.
Dennis McCormac, PhD
Director, Platform Development
dmccormac@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6590
Dennis McCormac joined OGI in June 2006. His role promoting OGI-funded genomics and proteomics platforms benefits from his extensive experience with product marketing at several start-up companies. Dr. McCormac’s current focus is on marketing to both academic and commercial researchers, acquiring leading-edge technologies, and expanding the support base in Ontario.
Previously, he was a marketing manager with San Diego-based Stratagene, which acquired Iobion Informatics (Toronto) during his tenure there. Dr. McCormac’s relationships with opinion leaders in both industry and academe and his approach to educating researchers on pathway analysis expanded the company’s product user base. He had also been product manager with Imaging Research in St. Catharines, where he helped its profitable genomics software business to grow, ultimately leading to its acquisition by GE Healthcare.
He received his BSc, MSc, and PhD at the University of Waterloo in plant-cell and molecular biology. He undertook related postdoctoral research at the University of Oregon, the State University of New York (Buffalo), and Arizona State University. His work has resulted in a number of scientific publications.
Helen Petropoulos, PhD
Business Development Manager
hpetropoulos@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6591
Helen Petropoulos joined OGI as a Research Program Manager in 2005 and transferred to Business Development in 2006. Her experience in project management, strategic development and planning, and market and technology assessment is assisting her in her current role, developing new business initiatives and helping scientists find paths to the marketplace for their discoveries.
Before joining OGI, she worked as a consultant in the life sciences, both independently and as an analyst with SHI Consulting (Toronto).
She holds a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Western Ontario, where she studied and published several articles on the molecular mechanisms of skeletal muscle development. She completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she researched signaling pathways involved in cartilage development and osteoarthritis.
Kimberly Riley
Manager, Events and Outreach
kriley@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6587
Kimberly Riley joined OGI in May 2003. Her role organizing events and facilitating OGI’s participation in external workshops, trade shows and symposia, draws on her many years of experience managing special projects and maintaining clear commercial communications.
Ms. Riley spent nine years with the Arthritis Society, managing a variety of programs, including peer-review research and training, and stakeholder relations.
Christine Scaramuzzo
Executive Assistant to the President and CEO
cscaramuzzo@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6596
Christine Scaramuzzo joined OGI in November 2007, after more than 16 years as a senior administrator in both the corporate and the not-for-profit sectors. Supporting OGI’s President and CEO, she also works in office management, human resources, facilities management, special events, and project administration.
Before joining OGI, she worked at the Evanov Radio Group and Canadian ShareOwner Investments Incorporated. She has a secretarial diploma in business administration and has studied administrative management, human resources, communication, and time management.
David Schibli, PhD, MBA
Research Program Manager
dschibli@ontariogenomics.ca
416-673-6588
Since October 2009 David Schibli has been a Research Program Manager at OGI. He brings experience as a project manager in a large scale proteomics project and substantial science and business training to his current responsibilities matching scientists with funding sources and monitoring project accountability, progress and outcomes.
Most recently, Dr. Schibli worked as a project manager and research associate at the University of Western Ontario within The Dynactome project. There, he directed several projects focused on elucidating protein signaling pathways in multiple cell types, using peptide and protein arrays, mass spectrometry and other high-throughput proteomic technologies.
David received his BSc in Biochemistry and Microbiology from the University of Victoria, his PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Calgary, and completed postdoctoral work at the EMBL in Grenoble, France supported by an EMBO fellowship. Most recently, he completed his MBA with a specialization in the Health Sector, from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario, funded by the Plan for Excellence and the Ed Gudaitis-Bluzas scholarships.
Julien St-Pierre, CA, MSc
Finance Officer
jstpierre@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6585
An experienced accountant, Julien St-Pierre joined OGI in August 2008. As Finance Officer, he monitors funded projects and compliance with financial terms of funding agreements, advises research program managers, and provides other financial and accounting support.
Previously, he had been a senior auditor for a major accounting firm in Montreal, where his clients ranged from large, project-oriented corporations to small biotech companies.
Julien is a chartered accountant with a BBA, a graduate diploma in Public Accountancy and an MSc in Administration (Finance) from HEC Montréal.
Alison Symington, PhD
Vice President, Outreach
asymington@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6594
Dr. Alison Symington joined OGI in June 2010. She brings a wealth of educational outreach experience to her role as VP, Outreach, where she is responsible for OGI’s relationships with external stakeholders, corporate communications and educational outreach programs.
Most recently, Dr. Symington was Executive Director of Biotechnology Education Canada (BEC), where she led the organization through a substantive rebranding and refocusing, and sponsored a number of events that created national impact in Canada and international visibility for Canadian science education, including projects such as the Sanofi-Aventis BioTalent Challenge, the York Biotech Toolbox and several laboratory courses for high school teachers.
Prior to that, Dr. Symington was a professor and program coordinator at Seneca College’s School of Biological Sciences and Applied Chemistry. Before joining Seneca College, she was a development scientist at sanofi pasteur, Canada’s leading vaccine research and manufacturing company.
She earned her BSc at University of Toronto, where she also earned her PhD in Cell Biology, during which she was awarded an NSERC post-graduate fellowship.
Rhonda Tannenbaum, Msc, MBA
Director, Business Development
rtannenbaum@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6586
Rhonda Tannenbaum joined OGI in June 2003. Years of experience in business development and development of strategic alliances in the high-tech sector are key to her current role at OGI, where she spearheads marketing and commercialization of OGI-funded projects, helps raise private investments, and identifies co-operative initiatives in the biotech sector.
Previously, she was a consultant with Trillium Therapeutics, which developed therapies that rebalance the immune system in conditions associated with abnormal and harmful immune responses.
Ms. Tannenbaum earned an MBA, with a focus on strategy, from the John Molson School of Business at Concordia University and an MSc in Marine Biology from the University of Tel-Aviv.
Sonja Wesholowski
Web Coordinator
swesholowski@OntarioGenomics.ca
416-673-6595
Sonja Wesholowski joined OGI in March 2008, bringing a wealth of experience in website management, programming, and marketing. She maintains and promotes the OGI website and the Ontario Genomics Sector Innovation Network (G-SIN) portal.
Most recently, she managed a for-profit website in maternity apparel. This involved online marketing to increase traffic, content management, optimizing search engine rankings, and managing e-mail-based customer relations. She has also held positions in diverse areas of marketing, including agency-side direct marketing, geographically-based market research, and sales support.
She studied business, German, and psychology at the University of Toronto and obtained a BComm in Marketing Management from Ryerson University. She has taken courses in HTML programming and computer graphics.
