Carole Beaulieu is an innovative leader with significant expertise in corporate governance, strategic management, marketing, design thinking and public affairs. Through her work, she has acquired a profound understanding of the public, private, media and creative sectors, and their impact on Canada’s cultural industries.

From 2015 to 2021, Carole was Chair of the Board of Directors for Groupe Média TFO — a top-ranked Ontario agency and media company providing award-winning educational and cultural content on television and on digital platforms. In addition, she has been Vice-President of Advancement at OCAD University, Chief of Staff to the Minister of Culture and Francophone Affairs in Ontario, and Head of Marketing and Development at Canada’s National Ballet School.

Carole is a graduate of Laurentian University, les Hautes Études Commerciales, and the Rotman School of Management’s Directors Education Program. She is a member of the International Women’s Forum and the Institute of Corporate Directors and has an ICD.D designation.

John G. Hampton (they/them) is a curator, artist, administrator, and current Executive Director and CEO of the MacKenzie Art Gallery. They hold a Masters of Visual Studies – Curatorial Studies from the University of Toronto, and a BA in Visual Arts from the University of Regina. John is a citizen of the Chickasaw Nation, the United States, and Canada, and grew up in Regina. They have previously held positions as Executive Director of the Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba, Artistic Director of Trinity Square Video, Curator-in-Residence at the Art Musem at the University of Toronto, and Curator at Neutral Ground Artist-Run Centre.

Margaret Allan brings over 36 years of experience as a senior public servant and corporate senior manager in the natural resources sector. For 18 years, Margaret worked on large-scale resource projects, focusing on community interactions by overseeing regulatory approvals, industrial benefits, public affairs, diversity planning, human resources, and community investment.

An experienced director, Margaret believes in the value of the arts for starting important conversations in our rapidly changing society. She is chair of The Rooms Corporation, Newfoundland and Labrador’s provincial museum, art gallery and archives. Margaret has contributed to multiple arts organizations, serving as a founding member of Business and Arts NL and as vice-chair of the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra.

Margaret served on Memorial University’s Board of Regents, the Marine Institute Industry Advisory Committee and the board of Memorial’s Genesis Centre, the university’s tech start-up incubator. Margaret holds an MBA and BA (Hons) from Memorial University and the ICD.D designation.

Jean-François Bélisle became Director and CEO of the National Gallery of Canada on July 17, 2023. He was previously the executive director and chief-curator of the Musée d’art de Joliette (MAJ), one of Canada’s most important regional museums with a permanent collection that spans 5 000 years of visual art history.

Before joining the MAJ, Mr. Bélisle was the cofounder and executive director of Arsenal contemporary art with venues in Montreal, Toronto and New York and was the executive director of the Association des galeries d’art contemporain (AGAC).

Monica Esteves was appointed Executive Director of the Canadian Stage Company (Toronto) in the 2018-2019 season. In her 20+ year career in arts management, she has specialized in capacity and capital building, earned and contributed revenue growth and new business models. Prior to Canadian Stage, Monica was the Managing Director of Crow’s Theatre (2010-2019). Her co-leadership contributed to organizational transformation, the completion of the $12M new arts centre Streetcar Crowsnest, ten-fold growth of earned and contributed revenues, and the establishment of Crow’s as an anchor organization for its local and broader communities. Earlier in her career, Monica was the General Manager of Nightwood Theatre, and worked with a wide variety of theatres including Canadian Stage, Tarragon Theatre, Stratford Festival, Mirvish Productions, Theatre Passe Muraille, and various festivals and productions. She is a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada and has served on numerous industry boards and advisories.

Robert J. Foster, C.M., MA, CFA, is the Founder, President, and CEO of Capital Canada Limited, an independent investment banking firm. Mr. Foster focuses on the entrepreneur in the private markets, negotiating and structuring mergers, acquisitions, and financings.

Robert Foster serves as Chair of Business / Arts, a national partnership between business & the arts focused on FACE (facilitating, advocating, convening, and educating) within the sector. He also serves on the boards of the Ontario Arts Foundation and the Harbourfront Foundation. From 2015 to 2022 he was Chair of the TO Live Foundation (Chair) and Chair of TO Live, a board appointed by the Toronto City Council which is responsible for overseeing the business affairs and operation management of the Toronto Theatres. He previously served as Chair of Toronto Artscape, Chair of The Canadian Arts Summit, and Chair of the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards.

In 2011, Robert Foster was the Lead Co-Chair for a year-long examination of Toronto’s cultural capacity and priorities, which resulted in the Creative Capital Report for the City of Toronto. The City Council embraced this report, which was a guiding document for the city’s cultural funding and growth. He also served as Vice Chair of Toronto’s 2008 Olympic Bid.

Mr. Foster served on the National Aboriginal Achievements Foundation (now Indspire) and, as Chair of the John Kimbell created ballet “In the Land of Spirits”.

Robert Foster was appointed to the Order of Canada, awarded the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Medal, and named co-recipient of the Rita Davies and Margo Bindhardt Cultural Leader Award. He has received four Citations of Appreciation signed by former Mayors of Toronto for his leadership contributions to the city over an extended period.

Mr. Foster is an active participant in the democratic process and has played leading roles with all three levels of government. As he stated, “Democracy is not a spectator sport.” Over his lifetime, Robert Foster has generously donated his time, expertise, and financial support to more than 30 city and country-building initiatives and organizations.

Within the business community, Mr. Foster currently serves on the boards of Hunter Amenities, Securcor, and Anthem Media Group. In the past, he has served on the boards of Intertape Polymer Group, CHC Helicopters, Golf Town, Cargojet, Canada 3000, and Canadian Airlines Regional.

Paul Larocque has had a career in the arts and cultural sector which spans over three decades, and continues to be committed to promoting the importance of the arts and arts education in our communities. Paul is currently the President & CEO of Arts Umbrella—an internationally recognized leader in the area of arts education for young people. He has led the 45-year-old non-profit organization through a period of significant growth, notably, with the opening of its new 50,000 net-square-foot centre on Granville Island. Prior to his current role, Paul held the position of Associate Director of the Vancouver Art Gallery for more than a decade.

For several years, Paul has served as a mentor and a selection committee chair with the Loran Scholars Foundation, as well as the McCall MacBain Scholars program. For close to 20 years, Paul has been an active member of Chor Leoni Men’s Choir, an internationally recognized ensemble that is comprised of approximately 60 volunteer singers. He is also a member of the Granville Island Council.

In 2023, Paul received an honorary doctorate degree, Doctor of Letters, honoris causa, from Capilano University in recognition of his commitment and contributions to the arts and culture sector.

Chris Lorway is the President and CEO of Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. Chris brings senior leadership experience across a broad range of artistic disciplines in both Canadian and international contexts. Well-positioned to strengthen Banff Centre’s position as Canada’s creative leader in arts, leadership, and convening, Chris has a proved record as a global influencer in arts and culture.

Chris is a Canadian citizen, born and raised in Cape Breton, and comes to Banff Centre from his recent position as both Executive and Artistic Director at Stanford Live in California. His artistic and community programs draw on the breadth and depth of Stanford University to connect performances to the significant issues, ideas, and discoveries of our time in a season featuring over 200 performances and events across four primary venues.

Prior to his role at Stanford Live, Chris was Director of Programming and Marketing at The Corporation of Massey Hall and Roy Thomson Hall, where his focus was on developing a cohesive brand identity for the institution and ensuring that programming in the halls reflected the diversity of the city of Toronto.

Prior to that position, he was the inaugural Artistic Director of the Luminato Festival, where he commissioned or co-commissioned nearly 50 new works from Canadian and International artists.

Before his return to Canada in 2007, he was a consultant in the United States with AMS Planning and Research and AEA Consulting. These two roles offered him detailed insight into the governance and operations of major cultural organizations, including Carnegie Hall, New York City Center, Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Edinburgh International Festival, the Royal Shakespeare Company, the West Kowloon Cultural District and San Francisco Opera.

Prior to his consulting experience, he worked for Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, where for two seasons he was part of the Lincoln Center Festival team. It was there he was introduced to some of the world’s top artists and companies. He also had roles in marketing and development at Lincoln Center and worked on the first phase of the $1.5 billion campus redevelopment project.

David Maggs carries on an active career as an interdisciplinary artist and academic researcher focused on arts, climate change, and sustainability. He was the founder and pianist for Dark by Five, has written works for the stage, and created interactive mixed reality projects included in the UK’s Future of Live Performance. David is the artistic director of Camber Arts, and founder of the Graham Academy, honouring his childhood music teacher, Gary Graham. David initiated and co-produced the CBC doc channel film The Country, exploring the Canadian government’s handling of indigenous identity in Newfoundland. As a fellow at the University of Toronto’s Munk School for Global Affairs, David co-authored Sustainability in an Imaginary World (Routledge Press, 2020) with mentor and longtime collaborator John Robinson, exploring the relationship between art and sustainability. He is former senior fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Sustainability in Potsdam, Germany, where he led work on culture and climate change.

Following the publication of Art and the World After This, David became the inaugural Fellow on Art and Society at the Metcalf Foundation where he continues to work on issues of cultural policy and revitalization. In collaboration with the UK Innovation Foundation NESTA, he co-authored Impact Investing in the Cultural and Creative Sectors: Insights from an emerging field on groundbreaking work on impact investing in cultural and creative industries. David has been a featured speaker at the Canadian Arts Summit, The International Transdisciplinarity Conference, The American Association for the Advancement of Science, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, the International Association for Analytical Psychology (Berlin), The Arts of Living with Nature (Kyoto), Impact Investing and the Arts (Sydney), the International Society of Music Educators conference (Helsinki), the 7th UNESCO Winter School in Hungary, and elsewhere.

Based in Mohkinstsis (Calgary) on Treaty 7 territory, Simon Mallett is proud to serve as the Executive Director of the Rozsa Foundation, a philanthropic, learning-focused organization that advances equitable leadership and management practices in the arts in Alberta through an integrated use of training, funding, and storytelling supports.

Prior to his work at the Rozsa Foundation, Simon was the Founding Artistic Director at Downstage, a professional theatre company that produces Canadian work that creates conversation around social issues. He also serves as Past Chair of the Board of Philanthropic Foundations Canada, and spends time in his other valued roles as a freelance theatre director, magician, baseball fan, husband, and father.

Lori Marchand became the first Managing Director of the NAC’s Indigenous Theatre in April 2018. A member of the Syilx First Nation, she has played a key role in the encouragement, development and production of Indigenous work, including during her time as Executive Director of Western Canada Theatre, 1999-2018. Her contributions in BC and nationally also include serving in many capacities for the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres and as a member of BC Arts Council (2010-2017), helping to drive policy change relevant to all theatre practitioners in Canada. Lori was recognized for her commitment to live theatre and the production of Indigenous work that has contributed to the arts and to Reconciliation with a Doctor of Letters, honoris causa, from Thompson Rivers University in June 2018 and the Mallory Gilbert Award for Artistic Leadership in 2021.

Kondwani Mwase is an accomplished strategy & marketing professional with over a decade's experience in the fields of engagement, loyalty and communications. He has used his skills to cultivate long standing relationships with communities and strategic partners alike. A true believer in the power of genuine allyship, he's acute at uncovering underlying needs and working with people in service of designing captivating experiences. As a leader, he's as much a doer as he is a listener. In 2019, Kondwani launched 54Lights podcast. The show, a showcase for African accomplishment, reflects Kondwani's genuine connection to the continent and its diverse peoples. A symbol of both passion and purpose, it stands as proof that he's committed to elevating cultures and spreading understanding.

A creative and dynamic leader, Ms Palmer has led the development and premiere of innovative and landmark theatre productions for over twenty-five years. She is currently Artistic Producer of Vita Brevis Arts, which developed the world premieres of Hamlet-911 (for the Stratford Festival) and Fall On Your Knees, an epic, two part stage adaptation of the iconic Canadian novel, in partnership with the NAC, CanadianStage, Neptune Theatre and The Grand Theatre. As an artistic leader, Alisa has led large and small-scale organizations through vital transformational change. An award winning artist, her work is known for its bold design, powerful physicality and a commitment to the body politic.

Ms Palmer is the recipient of numerous awards in Canada and internationally for her writing, directing and producing. She is the proud recipient of the Award of Excellence in the Arts from her home province of New Brunswick and is a three-time finalist for the prestigious Siminovitch Prize for Directing. She received a Harold Award for her contribution to Independent Theatre in Toronto. Ms Palmer is a mentor for her alma mater, McGill University as part of the Women's Mentoring Program, and Business / Arts’ Emerging Leadership Program. She sits on the Board of Directors for Centaur Theatre, Montreal's leading English Language theatre and Canada’s Theatre Museum. She has twice Chaired the Steering Committee for Business / Arts annual Arts Summit (2020 and 2022) and continues to serve on the committee.

Fluently trilingual in French and Spanish, and deaf in one ear, she takes a keen interest in adapted theatre development processes that focus on accessibility. Alisa is committed to amplifying queer, lesbian and feminist voices.

With over 30 years in the cultural field, my commitment is driven by excellence, authenticity, creativity, and collaboration to develop the music community, make the arts accessible, and build bridges between communities. 

After three years with the Orchestre national de Lyon/Auditorium de Lyon, I joined the OSM in 1999 and took over the position of Programming Director in 2010. Now Chief Artistic Officer, I am involved in developing the organization's artistic vision and strategic planning while overseeing musical programming, artistic partnerships, international outreach, education, community initiatives, and musician personnel. I rely on a dedicated team to carry out these projects successfully.

  I regularly participate in panel discussions and give lectures at events including Classical:NEXT (Europe), the League of American Orchestras, and the Women in Classical Music Symposium (United States).

In October 2020, Aubrey joined Business / Arts as CEO, a role that continues her mission to see the arts and culture industry move sustainably into the future. Previously, Aubrey held leadership roles at Culture Days since its inception in 2010. Aubrey was recruited to help launch the inaugural Culture Days Weekend in Ontario that year. She eventually became National Executive Director (2017-2020) and in that capacity, she provided leadership and spearheaded collaborations with provincial partners across the country, brokered key corporate, industry and media sponsorships and partnerships, and championed organizational goals and strategies to increase the reach, accessibility and impact of Culture Days.

Aubrey has also worked with the Ontario Arts Council, Trinity Square Video, Dance Current Magazine and has served on the Boards of the Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto and Dreamwalker Dance Company.

A multi-disciplinary artist, Aubrey possesses a unique set of sensibilities that allow her to champion initiatives encompassing the perspectives of artists, audiences, cultural organizations and partners alike. Her artworks have been exhibited across Canada and internationally.

Mark Williams’s fresh, progressive mindset imbues every facet of his work. A seasoned arts professional, Williams was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra in April 2022, to lead the internationally renowned organization into its Centennial and beyond.

Williams’s strategic acuity and pursuit of excellence have allowed him to flourish and deliver as an orchestra executive. His resume includes serving as Chief Artistic & Operations Officer at The Cleveland Orchestra and as Artistic Administrator at the San Francisco Symphony. He began his career in artist management, working at Columbia Artists Management and IMG Artists.

As a Black executive, Williams has been active in reshaping the arts landscape—he is committed to empowering the next generation of Black and Latinx arts leaders, and was a Trustee of College Now Greater Cleveland, supporting access to higher education for young people. He was also a Jury Member of the 2022 Nielsen Violin Competition.

Mark is an experienced arts leader and administrator at Banff Centre with over 20 years’ experience in the arts, culture and not for profit sectors.

He leads the overall planning process for arts programming at Banff Centre, including the performing arts (music, dance, theatre, and opera), Indigenous arts, and with direct oversight of the literary arts, visual arts, and cultural leadership programming areas. Mark regularly collaborates with leading artists, artistic directors, and curators from around the world, along with administrators, multi-disciplinary production teams, national arts and culture partners, provincial and federal government agencies, Indigenous artists and advisors, donors, and local audiences and community members. Mark has led several change management processes, has overseen numerous capital projects, including a major renovation of a recital hall and recording studios, and has been a negotiator through several collective agreement bargaining processes. He has served on several national arts juries, has attended leading multi-disciplinary arts festivals across North America, in Europe and in Africa, and has previously lived and worked overseas on a variety of community development projects.