Cathy Pin

I have a real passion for Canadian business. Growing up in an entrepreneurial family, and having run several businesses, from a bakery to a property management company, I have a wide range of experience in many diverse industries.

In my current role of Vice-President, Commercial and Small Business Strategies and programs at BMO, which I've held since 2006, I lead the commercial and small business strategy and customer experience work. I'm also responsible for BMO's specialized customer segments, including Aboriginal Banking, Franchising, Industry Programs and Agriculture.

I have earned a B.A. from York University, a Bachelor of Education from the University of Western Ontario and a Masters of Business Administration from the Richard Ivey School of Business. In my free time I enjoy spending time with my family which mostly includes staying warm while watching my son and daughter play competitive hockey.

Shaemas Lal

I started my career with BMO Bank of Montreal as a Customer Service Representative. I continued to progress throughout my 5 year career taking on various roles focused on relationship management and sales. Most recently, I have been a part of BMO's revitalized focus on the Small Business segment as a Small Business Banker. In my off time I am very active, participating in sports such as Soccer, Baseball, and Hockey. Furthermore, I am active within my community giving back through various charitable causes such as the Canadian Cancer Society, Junior Achievement of BC, and the BC Children's Hospital.

Reza Sabour

I'm a Small Business Banker with BMO Bank of Montreal who has been raised in a small business household all my life. I am passionate about helping the spirited entrepreneur find his/her path to success! I have 10 years of experience in the financial services field and bring a wide and diverse background of knowledge to my current role.

Outside of my career, Philanthropy is another major passion of mine. I attended the British Columbia Institute of Technology where I studied Fundraising Management and later launched my own non-profit organization. I am the founder and Principle of a registered Canadian charity that has helped feed and clothe over 10,000 Vancouverites since our inception! I have also been a life long Martial Arts Instructor who has coached over 500 students throughout the North Shore.

Having lived in Vancouver for the last 25 years, I have developed a great network of business and personal connections. I turned to Social Media to help me manage it all, and it has been a love affair ever since!

Jamie Buhler

Making the career change to finance in 2004, I have found professional joy in helping business customers understand their deposit business and manage it through the changing tides of our fluid economy. Currently working for the Bank of Montreal in Canmore, Alberta, I am a Commercial Account Manager serving a wide variety of business customers in the heart of the Rocky Mountains.

In my personal time, I pastor a small community church, am an amateur boxer.

Rob W

I have been growing communities and managing user-generated content since before the term 'social media' even existed.

I grew up in Charlottetown, PEI and attended both Holland College and UPEI to study journalism before moving to Toronto.

Over the last few years I have worked in large newsrooms, virtual environments, social media and marketing agencies and built relationships with thousands of members from the citizen journalism site NowPublic.com.

My expertise lies in following the ebb and flow of online culture – understanding the people behind a community and the best way to engage them.

Chris M

As a writer and digital communications professional, I have worked with diverse organizations, online publications and media outlets to engage audiences with compelling editorial and marketing content.

A graduate of Carleton University's Bachelor of Journalism program, I became well-versed in telling stories using digital media. My subsequent masters research at Ryerson and York universities explored strategies to promote online content creation, with a focus on how traditional media are adapting to new technologies.

As a community manager, I am excited to start lively conversations and build active communities around interesting, entertaining content using constantly-evolving new media tools.

Pubudu Amila Kaththotage

I am a recent addition to the Bank of Montreal and work in Global Payments Services. I moved to Canada over five years ago and studied in Montreal at the John Molson School of Business. I graduated with an Honours Degree in Finance and developed a passion for reaI estate, financial planning and stock market trading. I believe in planning for the future and investing for my retirement and love talking about these issues.

In my free time I am a photographer and a poet. I also like to read self-help books and experiment with new recipes. I am a very positive thinker and always try to look at the brighter side of life and believe that future is not a gift but and achievement.

Anthony Manoharan

Growing up I spent the majority of my childhood living in Dubai. I moved with my family to Nova Scotia as a young teen and now call Toronto my home.

I earned a BA in Public Policy and Business Management at York University. After spending several years with the BMO Assurance division, I made the move to BMO Commercial Support Services, and am currently pursuing a career as a Commercial Investment Officer.

In my spare time I compete and teach the sport of Muay Thai. Through this sport I have been able to meet some of the most unique and interesting people from different paths, and also have been able to travel all around the world through competition.

Rob Chernoff

I have been with BMO Bank of Montreal now for just over 21 years holding various positions through out the company. I have been on the Commercial Banking side now for the past 14 years. What keeps me coming to work in the morning is continuing to learn from and assist the many businesses that I deal with. My clients are involved in many different areas; Agriculture, Oil & Gas Services, Transportation, to only name a few.

I was born in Regina and moved to Calgary when I was 16 and have been living in various other communities in Alberta since. I earned a Bachelor of Social Science (Major in Economics) at the University of Calgary. We have now been living in Red Deer for the past 10 years with my wife Barb and son Max. I am actively involved in Scouts Canada for the past 3years currently as a Cub Scout Leader and recently trying to undertake a few wood working projects.

James Rafuse

I was born and raised in Halifax, Nova Scotia and have been a Commercial Account Manager with BMO since April 2010. In this role, I assist new and existing customers of the bank across all aspects of their business banking needs. Previously, I spent six years in hotel management with a leading Canadian management company and then exited the workforce to complete a Masters in Business Administration degree on a full-time basis. The result is a strong commitment to customer service, a passion for developing long term relationships, and a knack for numbers!

Hobbies and interests include; spending time with my family, boating, golfing, and keeping up to date with local news and business events.

Roger Downie

I am a self proclaimed "banktrepreneur" and am currently a Commercial Account Manager in Kamloops, B.C.

I am a past president of the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce and hold a diploma in urban land economics from the University of British Columbia. I was also the Director of Corporate Development for an international Canadian agribusiness and was a business owner for many years.

My varied career in business and finance provides a unique perspective on developing strategies for success.

Edmar Selda

All about me in 150 words, eh? After living and studying in Toronto, I spent 4 years with another bank and 11 years with the Business Development Bank of Canada helping companies grow in industries ranging from technology to manufacturing. Throw in 3 family businesses into the mix and I'm lucky enough to have the unique perspective of seeing entrepreneurial issues from both sides of the desk.

At BMO, I continue to have the privilege of helping entrepreneurs with their mid-market borrowing and figuring out how else I can add value to their businesses, whether it be through my network or experience.

I'm joined in this wonderful journey by a wife who loves to decorate, a son who loves to sing (like his Dad) and a daughter who loves to dance and I'm very excited to be helping more entrepreneurs succeed through this blog!

Vikram Behla

I have worked with entrepreneurs for 5 years, and in the financial services sector for 10 years. My two passions are business and helping others. Being a small business banker allows me to combine both of these passions into my job.

Growing up in Asia, being educated in Australia and working in North America provides me with a unique perspective on many things. I was raised in a household where business was front and centre, and my holiday trips often involved visits to various plants and factories.

Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my wife and kids.

Ian Portsmouth

Ian Portsmouth is the publisher and editor of PROFIT: Your Guide to Business Success. He has won several awards for his business writing, including three National Magazine Award nominations. Ian is also the editor of Marketing Masters: The Best Ideas of Canada's Savviest Marketers and is a frequent media commentator on the management issues and best practices of Canadian growth companies.

Dave Hale

As the founder and CEO of Soshal Group, an Ottawa-based agency that delivers digital, social, and mobile business solutions, Dave Hale has the opportunity to truly flex his entrepreneurial muscles. He acknowledges that he's young, lives in a government town, and works in the relatively misunderstood social media industry, which he says is "not the perfect environment to launch a start-up." Regardless, Dave's built a growing business in a challenging market while working with large brands and non-profit organizations.

Throughout his journey, he's learned a few lessons, put out his share of fires, and struggled to manage his personal brand. While he finds his profession stressful and time-consuming, he wouldn't live his life any other way. Dave enjoys running his business because there isn't a more humbling profession and each day he meets new people, solves new problems, and feels a true sense of purpose.

Please feel free to connect with Dave through his company blog Soshalize.

Tim Collins

Tim Collins is the owner of Stafflink Solutions Ltd., an IT staffing company located in downtown Toronto. Upon graduating from the University of Waterloo, Tim began working as an IT recruiter in Ottawa. He subsequently worked for a series of staffing companies until his love of networking and technology finally inspired him to found Stafflink Solutions in 2002.

Tim's passion is connecting talented people with the companies that need them. Over the past 20 years he has placed over a thousand technology specialists in the Greater Toronto Area.

Jillian Walker

Jillian Walker is a Vancouver-based HR professional with experience in recruitment, training, compensation, benefits, health & wellness and HR information systems. Jillian has substantial experience customizing HR solutions to fit business needs and aligning organizational requirements with employment law. She is a relationship builder and holds high regard to client satisfaction.

Jillian has completed her Bachelor of Management in Human Resources & Social Responsibility and Canadian Human Resources Professional (CHRP) designation. She was named the 2010 recipient of both the Human Resources Institute of Alberta's & Human Resources Association of Calgary's Rising Star Award. The award is given to a HR professional who shows great promise as a future leader in the HR community.

Jay Lebo

Jay Lebo is one of the founders of Gravitas Business Architects, and has over a decade of experience helping companies of all sizes multiply growth and outperform their competition.

Jay has worked with startups, small, medium and large enterprises and government agencies to set critical strategic goals and develop the road maps to get there. His focus is always on exploiting opportunities and eliminating obstacles wherever they are.

Jay blogs at www.getgravitas.com and tweets from @GetGravitas. He has an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business and is currently writing a book on business turnarounds.

Shelley Pringle

Shelley is the founder of Toronto Public Relations firm Polaris Public Relations Inc., a collective of experienced PR professionals who are passionate about achieving results for their clients. After beginning her marketing career as a product manager for Unilever Canada, Shelley joined a boutique PR firm. She has also worked at Hill & Knowlton and integrated marketing shop Communiqué (now John Street).

Marilyn Sinclair

Marilyn Sinclair is a serial entrepreneur who began her career as a freelance corporate writer, and went on to establish and run a number of successful businesses. The first, called WordCheck, provides proofreading, writing, editing and all-language translation services to businesses around the world. Another, called iContent, works to create content for some of the largest websites in North America.

In addition to these companies, Marilyn created Secretariat Central in 2010, which provides turnkey administrative and financial services to associations and small organizations. As an entrepreneur she's always interested in pursuing new ideas and making new connections.

Elizabeth Williams

Elizabeth is a Toronto-based marketing executive with a particular interest in business-to-business marketing. She has worked in just about every area of marketing including product management, digital and social media, advertising, direct marketing, branding, corporate communications, media relations and content creation. She holds a degree in journalism and has worked for large and small companies including Aon, 3Com, Bank of Montreal and Rogers.  She rants regularly as Bizmarketer on http://www.bizmarketer.wordpress.com and would like to be a celebrity chef when she grows up; or maybe an astronaut. You can follow her on Twitter @bizmkter.