William (Bill) Packham
President and CEO
Under Bill’s leadership since its launch in 2018, Aviso has emerged as a leading wealth services provider to the Canadian financial industry. Bill’s commitment to building a more diverse, healthier wealth management ecosystem benefitting all Canadians, and his experience building market leaders, make him a natural fit to lead the organization. Bill provides strategic insight into the challenges and opportunities for independent financial organizations, along with a clear vision for how Aviso can help its partners thrive in a fast-changing business environment.
Prior to his current role, Bill was CEO of Qtrade Financial Group and Executive Managing Director, Wealth Management and Life and Health Insurance, Desjardins Group. Bill has also served as President, CEO and/or Chair as well as Director of various independent investment dealers and asset management companies. Throughout his career, Bill has established a strong record of delivering sustained revenue and earnings growth for shareholders.
Bill is a board member of The Investment Funds Institute of Canada, and has previously held director roles with other industry bodies, including The Canadian Securities Institute, Canadian Investment Protection Fund, The Investment Industry Association of Canada, and Investment Dealers Association of Canada (became IIROC), where he was Chair from 2001 to 2002.
A Chartered Accountant, Bill earned a Mathematics degree from the University of Waterloo.
Rod Ancrum
SVP, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Administrative Officer
Rod is responsible for the overarching financial management of Aviso, supporting strategic decision-making with data-driven, forward-thinking planning and analysis. The corporate services teams within his mandate support Aviso’s growth evolution through sound risk management, a comprehensive IT roadmap, and efficient capital markets trading. As a member of Aviso’s Executive Committee, Rod provides guidance and leadership of major initiatives to drive business growth.
Rod served as Senior Vice President and CFO of Credential Financial, and his background includes 20 years with one of the big-five banks in progressively senior roles across several divisions.
He is a CPA (CA) and has completed the Partners, Directors and Senior Officers Course and the CFO Qualifying Examination Course from the Canadian Securities Institute.
Sherri Evans
SVP, Head of Service, Operations, Compliance & Talent
Sherri leads the Operations, Service Centre, Compliance and Partner & Client Onboarding teams and is responsible for Aviso’s People & Culture strategy. She is focused on enabling highly skilled teams that drive productivity gains through ongoing measurement and continuous process improvement. Based on the principle that employee experience drives client experience, Sherri ensures the organization invests strategically in identifying talent, developing leadership capabilities, and making Aviso an attractive place to build a career. Under her leadership, Aviso quickly achieved “Great Place to Work” certification. She is a member of Aviso’s Executive Committee.
Sherri draws on an extensive background in change management, productivity improvement, culture-building, and employee experience. Previously, she served as VP People & Strategy at NEI Investments, which was nationally recognized as a “Great Place to Work” (Top 50 Employer). Her prior experience includes progressively senior roles with a major Canadian retailer and with leading technology and financial services firms.
Sherri holds an MBA from the Ivey Business School at Western University, and a Diploma in HR Management from George Brown College. She is a board member and co-chair of Gambling Research Exchange Ontario and is a past member of the Great Place to Work Executive Forum Steering Committee.
Wanda Frisk
SVP, Head of Credit Union Wealth Management
In partnership with credit unions, Wanda is responsible for developing and delivering comprehensive advice-based wealth management programs that improve the financial heath of Canadians. She is focused on building advisors’ capabilities while continuously enhancing advisor and member experiences. Wanda is a member of Aviso’s Executive Committee.
Wanda draws on 25 years of leadership experience in retail distribution, most recently with Aviso and Qtrade Financial Group, working with credit unions. Previously, she held executive roles with a big-five bank, focusing on asset management, wealth management and retail leadership.
Wanda holds the Chartered Investment Manager (CIM) and the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designations, and is a Fellow of the Canadian Securities Institute. She earned a Bachelor of Commerce in Finance and Economics from the University of Saskatchewan. Wanda has been a long-time volunteer supporting organizations devoted to children and health, including the foundations of BC Children’s, Surrey Memorial and Peace Arch hospitals, as well as BC Cancer Agency, The Centre for Child Development and Semiahmoo Family Place.
Endu Gentles
SVP, Strategy and Chief Transformation Officer
Endu leads the development and implementation of Aviso’s enterprise strategy and ongoing business transformation. She is focused on enabling innovation, strategy and execution in order to meet the needs of partners, advisors, investors, and employees. She is a member of Aviso’s Executive Committee.
Endu draws from over 25 years’ experience in digital transformation and automation, strategy development, operations, and process improvement. Her experiences with a leading Canadian wealth management firm and with two of the big-five banks have centred on ensuring scalable and sustained growth while maintaining alignment to strategic imperatives. Her background includes roles with large, global firms in various industries and she has worked in North America, Europe and Asia.
Endu holds an MBA from the Ivey Business School at Western University and an Honours Bachelor of Arts in Labour Management Relations and Economics from the University of Toronto. A strong believer in “paying it forward,” Endu has volunteered in organizations supporting and mentoring youth and is a board member of Pink Attitude Evolution.
George Ho
SVP, Chief Digital & Technology Officer
George oversees Aviso’s strategic technology roadmap and guides the digitization of Aviso’s products, processes and services as Aviso transforms to become a technology-enabled organization that delivers exceptional client experiences. He serves on Aviso’s Executive Committee.
With over 20 years’ of progressively senior experience in the wealth management and regulatory sectors, George is an accomplished and dynamic information technology and technology operations leader with an impressive record of leading large-scale digital transformations, developing innovative technology roadmaps and forging robust partnerships. Before joining Aviso, he held senior IT executive roles leading wealth management technology at one of Canada’s largest financial services and insurance groups and, most recently, at one of Canada’s largest real estate investment trusts.
George earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto and has completed the Partners, Directors and Senior Officers Course from the Canadian Securities Institute. He has extensive credentials in information technology and cybersecurity.
Yasmin Lalani
SVP, Chief Legal Officer, Chief Governance Officer
Yasmin oversees Aviso’s cross-enterprise legal activities and policies, corporate and board governance, and privacy and ethics matters. She is a member of Aviso’s Executive Committee.
With over 20 years’ experience in the wealth management industry, Yasmin has a deep background as a business advisor, working with boards to harness their strategic potential. Previously, she was SVP, Chief Counsel and Head of Risk for Credential Financial, where she served as Corporate Secretary, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Risk Officer.
Yasmin holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Calgary and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Victoria. She is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors and the Governance Professionals of Canada.
Mark Nicholson
SVP, Client Experience, Marketing & Communications
Mark drives a company-wide focus on enabling high-value, personalized, reliable, proactive and easy-to-use client experiences. His responsibilities include brand, marketing, digital user experience, client experience, communications, and corporate sustainability across all of Aviso’s lines of business. He serves on Aviso’s Executive Committee.
Mark’s career spans over 20 years dedicated to marketing, branding, and customer and digital experience. Prior to joining Aviso, he was a senior leader with three retail digital banks. He developed and launched brands, client experience strategies and new products and services that earned industry awards for customer satisfaction and innovation.
Mark holds a Bachelor of Business Administration with a concentration in marketing from Brock University and he earned graduate credentials in design thinking and digital marketing. Mark has also completed the Partners, Directors and Senior Officers Course from the Canadian Securities Institute.
Tim Prescott
SVP, Head of Asset Management
Tim leads Aviso’s asset management division, including NEI Investments, and is a member of Aviso’s Executive Committee. Tim drives the investment and product strategy, including the product development roadmap, across all business lines to support the growth of Aviso. This includes leveraging NEI’s industry-leading responsible investment expertise.
Before joining Aviso, Tim headed the wealth distribution business for one of Canada’s largest insurers, executing the wealth strategy, overseeing platform technology implementation, and leading sales teams in support of 4,000 advisors. Previous experience includes retail and institutional sales roles at two of Canada’s largest fund companies, and a decade-long tenure at a big-five bank in increasingly senior management roles in wealth management, and retail and commercial banking.
Tim earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto, with a major in Environment and Resource Management. Tim is a long-serving member of the Finance & Investment Committee of the Headwaters Healthcare Foundation and has been a member of various IFIC steering committees.
Kevin Vanderheyden
SVP, Head of Correspondent & Institutional
Kevin is responsible for the Correspondent and Institutional business line, Aviso Correspondent Partners, and serves on Aviso’s Executive Committee. Aviso Correspondent Partners provides custody, trading, clearing, and settlement services to help portfolio managers and investment dealers meet their clients’ needs and grow their business. Under Kevin’s leadership, Aviso Correspondent Partners has tripled its assets under administration since April 2018, becoming a top-three correspondent and institutional provider in Canada.
With over 25 years’ experience in the financial services industry, Kevin brings significant trading, correspondent, wealth management and executive experience to Aviso. He held key senior positions at Credential Financial and other major financial institutions.
Kevin holds the Chartered Investment Manager (CIM) designation and is a Fellow of the Canadian Securities Institute.
Christine Zalzal
SVP, Head of Online Brokerage & Digital Wealth
Christine oversees Aviso’s online brokerage and robo-advice businesses, with a focus on empowering Canadians with best-in-class wealth management choices. She is a member of Aviso’s Executive Committee. Under Christine’s leadership, Qtrade Direct Investing has solidified its reputation as Canada’s best and most reliable online broker. A first-place ranking in The Globe and Mail’s 2022 review of Canada’s online brokerages adds to Qtrade’s unmatched total of 25 first-place rankings in major industry awards over the past 17 years.
Christine has over 25 years’ experience, including executive roles leading multiples businesses and creating new financial services products for big-five banks and other prominent Canadian financial institutions. Her expertise in product and digital strategy, marketing, and sales distribution contributes to her reputation for promoting innovation while building sustained growth.
Christine earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Concordia University, where she has been a guest lecturer. Among recent volunteer roles, she has been a mentor with Women in Capital Markets and with Women in Leadership Foundation, and she is a past Cabinet member for Women Against Multiple Sclerosis.
