On Tuesday, CIOs celebrated the CIO Association of Canada (CIOCAN) 2022 Impact Awards.
The Impact Awards acknowledge and celebrate the company’s peers and technology leadership who are making a difference, executive director Lee Rennick said.
The six categories include The President’s Award, The Member of the Year Award, The Mentor of the Year Award, The Lifetime Achievement Award, the Crisis Leadership Award, and The CISO Division Award.
The recipients:
Lifetime Achievement Award
Humza Teherany, chief technology officer (CTO) and digital officer of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE), was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Teherany received the award in recognition of his leadership, significant contributions and commitment to CIOCAN and its members. Teherany has been a member of CIOCAN for almost ten years
His organization at MLSE is responsible for digital strategy, technology, IT, mobile apps, data science and innovation. This also includes the company’s e-sports team and initiatives, Raptors Uprising Gaming Club and Leafs Gaming League.
President’s Award
Rita Lazar-Tippe, director of information, insights, innovation and IT operations at Alberta Pensions Services Corporation (APS), received the President’s Award for her contributions to CIOCAN.
Last year, Lazar-Tippe won the CIO of the year award in the Next Gen Leader category for her outstanding talent as a future leader in the tech sector.
Lazar-Tippe said during her acceptance speech that she has dedicated over 13 years as a volunteer for the CIO Association.
Member of the Year Award (Vancouver Chapter)
Silviu Hinta, director of technology at BranchUp, received the Member of the Year Award for the Vancouver Chapter.
Since 2019, Hinta has been responsible for the Membership Portfolio of the Vancouver Chapter for the CIO Association of Canada, and a Board Member of the Vancouver Chapter.
His areas of expertise are software project management, system architecture, business analysis, database architecture, travel technology, and eCommerce.
Member of the Year Award (Calgary Chapter)
Paul Twigg was awarded the Member of the Year Award for the Calgary Chapter. Twigg is the CTO for Digital Commerce Bank.
Twigg is an award winning IT business leader with executive and hands-on experience in delivering leading edge cloud, data and innovation services.
Member of the Year Award (Toronto Chapter)
Derek Cullen, chief information officer for Stikeman Elliot LLP received the Member of the Year Award for the Toronto Chapter.
“It’s been a great year of collaboration and networking with some amazing technology leaders. We’ve tackled some very strategic topics for IT leaders,” he said in his acceptance speech.
Cullen’s various leadership roles have been at multiple organizations including Royal Bank of Canada, TD Bank, Manulife Financial, and IBM.
Mentor of the Year Award
Miguel Kanafany received this year’s Mentor of the Year Award. He is a principal consultant and founder at MK2 Enterprises Inc.
At MK2 Enterprises, Kanafany is responsible for the overall operational activities of the firm, including the delivery of advisory consulting services. He has over two decades of IT leader experience.
“Throughout the time I have spent in the association, my peers and I have made great efforts to support upcoming members, students, and people at large who have asked for our mentorship and assistance,” he said.
Crisis Leadership Award
Jan Bradley, chief information technology officer for the City of Calgary, received the Crisis Leadership Award.
As the CITO, Bradley’s role is to enable city business units to use technology to deliver services to citizens. She oversees the investment, delivery and maintenance of the city’s technology infrastructure, and is also in charge of planning for the development and growth of city business applications and communication systems.
Bradley has more than thirty years of experience in the IT industry and has been working with the city since 2006.
CISO Division Award
Steve Biswanger, vice president and CISO at ATCO group, received the CISO Division Award.
In his role, Biswanger has global accountability for all aspects of cybersecurity and cyber risk management across all ATCO operating companies and IT and OT environments.
He has more than 20 years of cybersecurity experience in several industries such as technology, banking, energy, and telecommunications.
