Catherine Forbes
Thunder Bay,ON
Summary
Persistent leader eager to lead and grow organizations. Skilled in strategic planning, problem-solving, and communication with good understanding of business principles, project management and team leadership. Collaborative with relentless work ethic.
Overview
14
14
years of professional experience
Work History
Vice President Communications/Human Resources/Business Development and Corporate Secretary to the Board
IGY Immune Technologies & Life Sciences Inc.
03.2020 - 12.2024
- Company Overview: privately held company founded in Canada by my husband in 2009
- Collaborated with senior management to develop strategic initiatives and long term goals.
- Cultivated strong relationships with key stakeholders, including customers, vendors, regulators, and community leaders to promote collaboration and long-term success.
- Increased company growth through collaboration with sales and marketing departments.
- All corporate communications including social media, media releases, Investor Updates, and staff communication
- Human Resources management including on-boarding new hires, payroll, collection and storage of all employee data, managed staff benefits with GroupHEALTH (onboarding all staff when transferred from a different benefits group, updating, reviewing monthly billing statements and communicating changes to staff coverage ie LTD coverage, reviewing the benefits platform with new staff, assisting staff with claims and navigating their GroupHEALTH portal)
- Business Development through building strong relationships with potential and existing clients by establishing a reputation of integrity, honesty and authenticity
- Highly responsive and agile in providing key information to potential clients within the sales cycle
- Accountable for sales targets and business growth
- Corporate secretary to the Board of Directors including secure document management of confidential investor files, coordinating Annual General Meetings, recording official minutes of Board Business in the Corporate Minute Book, distribution of agenda and minutes for all shareholder and Board meetings
- Built the company LinkedIn page and grew it to over one thousand followers
- Established a series of quarterly investor updates
Student Services and Special Education Department Chair
Lakehead Public Schools
09.2010 - 07.2022
- Championed an inclusive school culture of 1200 students by advocating for the needs of special education students during administrative discussions.
- Boosted student confidence by providing consistent support and encouragement in the a guidance counselling session with the 400 students on roster.
- Developed meaningful relationships with students'' families through regular meetings and thorough updates on academic progress.
- Increased parent involvement through effective communication and collaboration on student progress.
- Continuously refined instructional approaches, staying current with best practices in special education through ongoing professional development.
- Allocated resources effectively, prioritizing specialized materials and tools for students'' unique needs.
- Mentored new Guidance Counsellors, providing guidance on best practices and classroom management techniques.
- Partnered with local community organizations to provide additional resources and support services for students with disabilities.
- Drove professional development within the department by organizing workshops, trainings, and conferences for staff members.
- Led professional learning communities focused on sharing expertise in special education teaching strategies among staff members.
- Monitored overhead, prepared budgets and directed spending and resources to support fiscal efficiency.
- Reduced paperwork burden by efficiently managing documentation related to IEPs, assessments, and evaluations.
- Improved classroom management by consistently implementing behavioral strategies and interventions.
- Enhanced individualized learning by developing and implementing tailored IEPs for each student.
- Optimized data collection methods to track student progress more accurately and inform instructional decisions.
- Lead school-wide initiatives that supported a positive culture of learning for all students.
Education
Bachelor of Arts - English Major
Lakehead University
Thunder Bay, OntarioBachelor of Education - First Class Standing
Lakehead University
Thunder Bay, OntarioSkills
- Coaching and mentoring
- Performance monitoring
- Relationship building
- Corporate branding
- Strategic planning
- Policy and procedure development
- Public speaking
- Staff development
- Staff recruiting and retainment
Languages
English
Native or Bilingual
Timeline
Vice President Communications/Human Resources/Business Development and Corporate Secretary to the Board
IGY Immune Technologies & Life Sciences Inc.
03.2020 - 12.2024
Student Services and Special Education Department Chair
Lakehead Public Schools
09.2010 - 07.2022
Bachelor of Arts - English Major
Lakehead University
Bachelor of Education - First Class Standing
Lakehead University
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