Our Associates
- Robert Eamer
- Julie Gircys
- Linda Heslegrave
- Carmen R. Jones
- Jay Katz
- Alan Kay
- Michael Laing
- Heidi McKenzie
- Mary Catherine Mehak
- Ellen Wexler
Robert (Bob) Eamer
Often the best ideas for improvement come from the people on both sides of an organization's front lines. Bob Eamer helps clients capture the know-how and innovation potential from within their own ranks and from customers, clients, and other important stakeholders.
An experienced senior manager and corporate executive, Bob provides strategic advice related to emerging technologies and market drivers, client relationship needs and stakeholder management. He has helped to establish, coordinate and manage ongoing mechanisms for communication between businesses and the community when contentious issues threaten strategic initiatives. From his career experience as the former Commander of the Eastern Region of the Ontario Provincial Police, Bob works with clients to determine pragmatic, results-oriented and sustainable solutions to meet their business needs.
Julie Gircys, MBA
The critical task of organizations is to fully engage employees, managers and stakeholders in creating affirmative futures. Julie facilitates possibility-focused transformation by shifting organizations from traditional problem solving approaches to the leverage of core strengths and discovery of highest potentials. She employs Appreciative Inquiry, which recognizes that every organization has something that works right, and identifies and builds on that positive core.
Julie has facilitated strategic planning with groups from six to over two hundred in Canada and the United States. Client organizations, often rebuilding from restructuring and financial crises, move beyond entrenched patterns to heightened energy and commitment to change. Julie holds an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario and the Appreciative Inquiry Certificate in Positive Business and Society Change from Case Western Reserve University. Julie has also earned certificates from internationally recognized leaders in Open Space Technology and Case Method Teaching.
Linda Heslegrave
With over twenty years experience in government policy, strategic planning, stakeholder management, events planning, association management and communications, Linda brings a depth of expertise to clients at the intersection of the public and private sectors. She has worked with public and non-profit sector organizations, creating and implementing public policy, managing their relations with public and private stakeholders, organizing public consultations, and writing and editing for publication.
Linda uses her highly developed management, interpersonal and facilitation expertise to create results for clients and employs marketing and communications skills to effectively promote services. For nearly twenty years — as both a manager and a consultant — she has led strategic initiatives in the public sector in the areas of freedom of information and privacy, HR planning and policy, education policy, and skills training policy. Linda has an MA in history and a diploma in magazine journalism.
Carmen R. Jones
Carmen has more than 25 years experience developing and building strategic alliances, partnerships and networks, and designing complex projects, strategies and business plans from concept to implementation. She is recognized for her expertise in government and First Nations relations. Carmen worked for fourteen years with First Nations and Aboriginal organizations throughout Ontario focusing on constitutional and social issues. After joining the Government of Ontario, she specialized in strategic planning and government relations at the Ministries of Natural Resources, Social Services, Citizenship and Culture, and Health and Long Term Care.
Prior to joining Matrix, Carmen was Director of Aboriginal Cancer Care at Cancer Care Ontario, where she successfully developed the first Aboriginal Cancer Strategy in Canada, based upon the evidence gathered through community-based research across Ontario. She provided strategic leadership in this field to the agency's board and executive team and laid the groundwork for successful implementation by building bridges and linkages among strategic allies and community champions.
Jay Katz, BA, MBA
Jay's 20-year career as a senior manager has spanned Banking, Real Estate Development, Retail, Event Planning and Arts Management. He has a well-earned reputation as an Arts Executive for transforming organizations, developing national reputations and building partnerships between the private and public sectors. As a volunteer director, he has led organizations from their founding through to long term strategic planning and re-direction.
Alan Kay
An internationally recognized management consultant specializing in strategic and operational planning, Alan's work is widely influenced by the theory and application of the Solution Focus approach. He works with senior executives to improve results by developing strategies to encourage attitudinal and behavioural change within an organization. His recent consulting work has been featured in the book, The Solutions Focus by Paul Z. Jackson and Dr. Mark McKergow. A dynamic speaker and experienced facilitator, Alan is skilled at bringing together executives, management and staff from various fields or areas of an organization, and motivating them to share their knowledge and ideas over a range of complex business issues.
Michael Laing
Michael has over 20 years experience in government policy development, in coordinating strategic planning and business planning processes, and in research and analysis, primarily in education. He is adept at producing clear, well-organised prose, and at drawing the results of research together in ways that are useful to decision-makers.
Since retiring from the public service, he has: created a reference guide for I & IT performance measurement (for the Ontario Management Board Secretariat); developed a new research framework (for the Ontario Ministry of Education); and re-written the manual for a province-wide computer application (for the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General). As well, for the last few years he has been working on a book, Acting Opera: How Good Acting Can Make Opera Great, with the noted director, Leon Major.
Heidi McKenzie, BA, MA, CFRE
Heidi has worked in artist, symphony, broadcast, and multi-disciplinary arts festival management for nearly twenty years. Having held senior management positions in communications and development, Heidi has been integral to the vision, planning, and realization of numerous public relations and fundraising campaigns. She is a skilled facilitator and sought after for her abilities in strategic planning and board development.
Mary Catherine Mehak, B.A.A., MCIP, RPP
Mary Catherine has worked in culture and recreation services planning for over 15 years and, as a member of different consulting teams, has completed a wide range of municipal culture and recreation master plans, strategic plans and facility feasibility studies. Her experience encompasses both urban and rural municipalities. She has a solid portfolio in research and critical analysis, the design and administration of public consultation programs, facility and service needs assessment, and implementation plans.
Ellen Wexler, MBA
Ellen is an innovator, with executive experience in financial and business planning and modern controllership. Her work in the public and not-for-profit sectors has made her a strategist with insight and understanding of organizations, governance and accountability. Prior to becoming a consultant Ellen worked in the delivery of community-based services for fifteen years, and then joined the Government of Ontario, where she pursued a financial career with the Ministries of Labour, Health, Community, Family and Children's Services, Attorney General and Management Board of Cabinet.
Ellen has a deep commitment to providing excellent client service, demonstrated through her work supporting the implementation of alternative service delivery agreements, facilitating the development of successful solutions between clients and key stakeholders, supporting strategic business planning for a provincial justice department, and bringing public sector finance expertise to an innovative alternative financing project.