Endeavour is led by an executive team with diverse skills and experiences from the non-profit sector, consulting and industry.
Senior Leadership Team
Michelle Dodokin, President & CEO
Michelle has held senior executive positions at a range of leading corporations including: Intact Financial Corporation, Echelon Insurance, Royal Sun & Alliance and Canadian Tire. Her experience spans strategy, sales distribution, operations, finance, investor relations and corporate communications. As the newly appointed President and CEO, Michelle will be leading the expansion and diversification of Endeavour’s partnerships with other non-profits and corporations to improve organizational capacity and social impact. Michelle has long been an active supporter of the non-profit sector with a range of board and volunteer experiences including board director at JobStart; executive-in-residence/HBA Field Project at Ivey/Western University; past president and treasurer of the Canadian Investor Relations Institute (Ontario); and co-chair United Way Leadership Campaign. Michelle has an MBA from the Ivey School of Business, Western University, and is a graduate of the Advanced Executive Program from the Kellogg School of Business, Northwestern University.
Aruna Dey, Vice President, Marketing & Communications
Aruna is an ardent advocate of the non-profit sector, in which she has been working for seven years. She has experience working on integrated communications, marketing, public engagement, and fundraising campaigns in a broad range of regional, national, and international non-profit organizations.
Aruna is excited to contribute her enthusiasm for the sector to Endeavour’s work in supporting non-profits to fully leverage their capacity to increase their community impact, and in turn build awareness of the vital work being done in this sector.
Ada Tsang, Co-Founder & Vice-President, Talent and Strategy
Ada Tsang is Co-Founder and Vice-President of Talent and Strategy at Endeavour. In her role, she works closely with the President and Board of Directors on the development, implementation and monitoring of the organization’s strategic directions, and oversees the development and execution of talent acquisition, development and retention strategies that meet organizational objectives.
With a keen interest in both the non-profit and public sectors, Ada has been actively involved in the community. She volunteers as a board member at the Four Villages Community Health Center and has acted as Quality Improvement Lead for the Hospital for Sick Children and a pro-bono consultant with the University of Toronto’s Volunteer Consulting Group. Through her work at Endeavour, she looks forward to enabling more non-profit organizations to not only achieve their goals, but also make a lasting impact in the communities that they serve.
Ada currently works as Project Manager for the Regional Geriatric Program of Toronto at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. Her previous experiences include working as a Consultant in Deloitte Consulting’s National Health Services practice and as a Patient Safety Consultant at the Ontario Hospital Association.
Ada holds an MHSc Health Administration degree and a Bachelor of Applied Science and Engineering (Engineering Science) degree, both from the University of Toronto. Ada is a 2016/17 Fellow in the AFP Inclusion and Philanthropy Fellowship program.
Igor Skapinker, Vice-President, Information Technology
Igor joined Endeavour as the Director of Knowledge Management in 2011. In this role, he developed and enhanced the platforms to provide knowledge sharing and retention within the organization.
In 2014 he moved to Director of Information Technology role. In this role, Igor is responsible for developing and implementing an IT roadmap to support Endeavour’s strategic growth. He is also responsible for managing the development and maintenance of web applications to improve the overall productivity of the organization from an IT standpoint.
Impressed by Endeavour’s vision and mission, Igor joined the organization so he could contribute his extensive experience in business and information technology to the community. He is motivated by the passion and dedication of many professionals who contribute their time and talent helping non-profit organizations. Combining his extensive industry experience with strong analytical and strategic thinking skills, Igor’s focus is to help Endeavour build a technological base that will support the organization in achieving its strategic goals and growth.
Igor is one of the founders of RedSoft Global Services, a boutique IT consulting firm that helps organizations to achieve results and accelerate growth using Information Technology.
Igor holds an MBA degree from the Schulich School of Business at York University.
Karen Rao, Vice-President, Business Development
Karen first joined Endeavour in 2016 as a consultant and was inspired by Endeavour’s mission and vision. Last year, Karen led a team of consultants to complete a growth strategy plan for Endeavour. Together, Karen and team helped Endeavour align on strategic focuses, finalize on key growth initiatives and develop a roll out plan.
Currently, Karen works with one of the leading banks in Canada and manages strategic projects around business transformation, process improvement and technology optimization. She holds strong professional expertise in creative problem solving and client relationship management. Prior to this, Karen had experience in capital markets and wealth management in large financial institutions in Canada.
Karen holds a bachelor of commerce degree from Rotman Commerce, University of Toronto and is also a Charted Financial Analyst. She loves going on adventures like hiking the Inca Trail to see Machu Picchu, but also enjoys a relaxing afternoon by the water with her Pomeranian, Kylie.
Zayyan Chowdhury, Vice-President, Consulting
As VP of Consulting, Zayyan oversees the operations for Endeavour’s advisory services. He leads a team of executives to prospect, select, and onboard new clients. He is also responsible for project scoping, engagement resourcing, and relationship management.
Zayyan is an engineer with a passion for solving difficult business problems. He started his career as a Program Manager at AMD, delivering their flagship graphics product with a rapid time-to-market. He then joined Bell Canada and progressively grew his responsibilities in various roles within Operations Strategy, Project Management, Pricing, and Process Optimization. He is currently focused on Credit Strategy at RBC, building advanced analytical frameworks that enable the acquisition of high-value clients.
Zayyan holds a BASc in Mechanical Engineering & Sustainable Energy and a MEng in Engineering Entrepreneurship & Innovation, both from the University of Toronto. He is an avid fan of soccer, enjoys biking, and reads about human-centered design. Zayyan has previously mentored newcomer immigrants with Youth Assisting Youth and volunteered with Transition Toronto.
Directors
Aanchal Jaikaran, Co-Director, Volunteer Recruitment and Retention
Aanchal is passionate about giving everyone opportunities and enabling them to meet their goals. This motivated her to join the Endeavour in Spring/Summer 2018 as a volunteer consultant to help a non-profit organization with its marketing strategy. Since then, she has been inspired by Endeavour’s mission and her experience has been the key driving force to continue her involvement with Endeavour as a Co-Director of Volunteer Recruitment and Retention.
Aanchal currently works with Ontario Public Service as a Senior Business Consultant leading and evaluating projects of her Ministry clients. She hopes that her diverse experience in strategy, analytical skills, policy development and project management will contribute to Endeavour’s mission and values. In her spare time, Aanchal enjoys jogging, reading, hiking and cooking.
Aanchal is a graduate of University of Western Ontario and holds in a M.A in Environmental Sustainability. She also completed her B.A in International Development Studies from York University.
David Jorjani, Director, Information Technology
David is a software engineer with a passion for using technology to empower people and solve problems. He started his career in consulting after finishing his master’s degree at the University of Toronto. In 2014, he joined the solo founder of a FinTech startup to build a cloud-based product and has grown with the company. In 2017, he started teaching at the University of Toronto covering topics such as software engineering and agile methodologies. He gives back by mentoring and coaching, mostly helping students, recent graduates and new immigrants start their career.
In his spare time, David enjoys reading, practicing Judo, camping, or backpacking to a new country. He takes advantage of any opportunity to learn something new and welcomes new experiences
Emily Ho, Director, Marketing and Communications
As a marketing professional with over 10 years’ experience working on global brands, Emily is excited to be part of the Endeavour Executive team as the Director of Marketing & Communications. In her role, Emily is responsible for building the marketing communication strategy and furthering Endeavour’s growth. While getting her feet wet and having a fun and amazing experience as a consultant within a number of Endeavour’s client engagements, Emily joined the marketing team to continue her pro bono commitment to our non-profit organization.
Currently, Emily is a Learning Business Partner at TD Bank. Leveraging her marketing and business expertise, she is responsible for helping to drive the talent strategy at TD. Previously, Emily held marketing roles in strategy, campaign planning, marketing effectiveness, and customer experience at HSBC Bank Canada and D+H, a global Fintech company.
Fully armoured, this MBA graduate with a marketing specialization and a Bachelor of Science degree in Neural Computation, Emily is a talented holistic thinker. Emily enjoys applying her creativity, analytical and problem solving skills in her personal and professional life. She brings high energy to the team and is passionate about helping others succeed and achieve their goals. Whether it’s a non-profit organization, a team, or an individual – Emily enjoys diving in to understand where the need is and helping to develop a solution that achieves results. Did we tell you that Emily loves to travel around the globe too!
Eric Liou, Co-Director of Client Relations
Eric is an engineer with extensive client experience and a passion for building great products. With a BEng. from McGill in Electrical and Software Engineering, he is currently a Product Manager at a Dessa, working on building products to enhance machine learning capabilities for enterprises. Previously, he worked as a Technical Consultant at Index Exchange – working closely with many Fortune 500 media publishers and companies to manage and implement advertising solutions, generating hundreds of thousands of additional revenue monthly. He is also the co-founder of ProductGo, a meetup group dedicated to bringing together Toronto’s product leaders to share their experiences and ideas to help push the boundaries of product management.
With a desire to help non-profit organizations grow and achieve their goals, Eric began volunteering as a consultant with Endeavour in Summer 2018. After seeing the impact of his work through two successful engagements in Rounds 22 and 23, he is excited to continue helping nonprofits with Endeavour as a Co-Director of Client Relations./p>
Hafsa Naveed, Co-Director of Project Management
Hafsa holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree with a major in Accounting and Finance from Smith School of Business at Queen’s University. She is currently working as Senior Manager for Loyalty and Retention Strategy at Bell. Her previous experience includes 2 years in Consumer Marketing focusing on Acquisition, Take-to-Market, Base Upsell and Retention strategies, as well as experience with data analytics for Process Optimization. She thoroughly enjoys people management, problem solving, and learning and evolving through new challenges.
Passionate about education, women empowerment and healthcare, she has previously volunteered with AIESEC, Plan International Canada and Sunnybrook Foundation to organize and run events and fundraisers as well as raise awareness on social issues. In her spare time, she likes to travel and listen to podcasts on a variety of topics from Science and Technology to Self-Development./p>
Ilene Hyman, Director, Evaluation
Ilene joined Endeavour in 2015 as a member of an engagement team in Round 16. She continued her involvement with Endeavour as an Evaluation Associate providing consultation to community multi-service agencies on theory of change models and evaluation, conducting internal evaluation activities and assisting with agency presentations and reports.
Ilene Hyman is a social epidemiologist, community-based researcher and adjunct professor in the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto. Her academic background includes an MHSc (currently MPH) in Community Health from U of T, and a PhD in Epidemiology from the University of Montreal. Much of her research explores issues of health and social equity. Since 2006 Ilene has been working as a consultant providing services in strategic planning, policy analysis, community-based research, and evaluation to government, academic, and community-based health and social service agencies.
Jason Lee, Co-Director, Business Development
With over 8 years of experience advising organizations both in internal and external capacities, Jason is excited to join the team as the Co-Director of Business Development where he will be responsible for growing new and existing partnerships that support strategic initiatives at Endeavour.
Currently Jason is an HR Advisor for Public Health Ontario where he is the Project Lead on HR strategy, policy and programs. Most recently Jason was a Senior Human Capital Consultant at IBM where he advised clients on talent management solutions for various Fortune 500 companies across different industries including financial services, technology, healthcare, manufacturing and retail.
Jason holds an HBA degree in Employment Relations and Political Science from the University of Toronto and is a Certified Human Resources Leader (CHRL).
Joseph Mees, Director, Finance
As Director of Finance, Joseph is responsible for financial management at Endeavour. This includes monitoring, budgeting, forecasting, and preparing and presenting financial reports to the Board of Directors and members at the Annual General Meeting. Joseph works closely with the President and Treasurer to ensure strong accounting and internal financial controls are in place to support the current and future financial health of the organization.
Having held finance and sales positions across a range of industries including technology/information security, uniform services and construction, Joseph has developed a deep appreciation for diversity, new environments and unique perspectives. He has an inherent passion to help others understand and make financially sound decisions, with a focus on achieving results in a cost effective manner. He is also passionate about helping others and volunteers with CPA Ontario, Camp OOCH and Sickkids Foundation. He has always had a desire to help people and organizations who may not be able to help themselves, so was immediately drawn to Endeavour and felt a strong connection with Endeavour’s mission.
Joseph has a CPA, CMA designation and graduated with a BBA from Thompson Rivers University in BC.
Naina Gazula, Co-Director of Client Relations
Natalie Dykes, Co-Director, Training and Development
Natalie is passionate about improving the world of work. She is also a firm believer in life-long learning and development. In her varied career path, she has worked or volunteered in customer service, sales, property management and suicide prevention and crisis management. The one theme through all these roles, was that Natalie was always quick to become involved in the training and development of new staff or volunteers. She is excited to continue her involvement in training and development with Endeavour.
In her spare time, Natalie is an avid traveller and loves exploring new cultures. She has been to 25 countries, with her most recent adventures taking her to Iceland, and on a solo road trip through the Balkan countries of Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia and Hercegovina and Slovenia.
Natalie graduated cum laude with an MSc in Organizational Psychology from Maastricht University in the Netherlands. She also holds a BSc in Psychology with distinction from the University of Victoria.
Nirushyka Kanagarah, Co-Director of Project Management
Nirushyka is a Senior Associate at Assetsoft, a global technology firm, where her day-to-day responsibilities include working with clients to improve their overall organizational efficiency. Nirushyka’s passion for creating value and making a difference by transforming clients’ business extends to beyond her day job. She has been able to create value and make a difference in the community through her involvement with a wide range of non-profit organizations. Nirushyka currently serves as the Director of Mentorship on the Canadian Tamil Professionals Association Board.
Nirushyka started her journey with Endeavour as an engagement manager in Round 20, followed by the project manager role in Round 21, and is excited to continue her involvement with Endeavour as the Co-Director of Project Management.
Nirushyka holds an iBBA from Schulich School of Business, York University.
Pradeep Vijayan, Co-Director, Volunteer Recruitment and Retention
Pradeep Vijayan has over two decades of energy industry leadership experience across countries and cultures covering business origination to operations to end of asset life stages including 15 years with BG Group plc., previously a FTSE 100 oil & gas company and now part of Royal Dutch Shell plc., one of world’s largest private oil and gas companies. During his time at BG he provided commercial and strategic direction and led complex contract negotiations in the energy sector in India, Trinidad, Oman, Thailand and South Korea. He led due diligence multi-functional teams, divestments, partner and government engagements. He also acted as attorney-in-fact for transactions and as BG representative in industry associations. With Eastern Generation Limited (UK) he built the financial model for India’s first successful non-recourse project finance for a tariff-based power project. Pradeep was the Engagement Manager in Round 24 (client: Ukrainian Canadian Social Services – Toronto) and a Consultant during Round 23 (client: Canadian Tamil Professionals Association). Pradeep is a Chartered Manager from CMI, UK, a member of CIM, Canada and a Chartered Accountant from India. He graduated with an Honours Bachelor of Science degree from University of Delhi, India.
Rebecca Ruddy, Co-Director, Training and Development
Rebecca is a Business Intelligence Associate at GlaxoSmithKline. She recently completed her PhD in stem cell biology and neuroscience research at the University of Toronto. She is passionate about continuing to learn and develop new skills. Rebecca has previously volunteered with Endeavour, first as a consultant for Round 18, then as a co-Engagement Manager for Round 19. She enjoyed her experience immensely and credits that to the wonderful volunteers and clients that she had the opportunity to work with. As the Co-Director of Training and Development, Rebecca will be helping to train and guide incoming engagement managers and consultants. Rebecca holds a PhD and MSc from the University of Toronto and a BSc from McGill University. In her spare time, she likes to travel, read, listen to podcasts and enjoys going to concerts and sporting events.