CEO Message

June has been an exciting and busy month for Profound Impact!

I am thrilled and grateful to welcome a group of female investors, including many who are first-time investors, into our network as part of our latest funding round. Women need opportunities to invest and grow their portfolios, and I’m proud that so many made the decision to make their first-time investment in Profound Impact, sending a clear message of confidence in the company’s vision and the team’s leadership!

We are also pleased to announce the launch of Profound Impact’s inaugural Board of Directors, composed of distinguished business leaders with a wealth of skills and diverse backgrounds. Joining me, as founder, president and CEO of Profound Impact, this experienced board, which will help guide the company toward its next phase of growth and success, includes:

Board Chair – Deborah Rosati, FCPA, FCA, ICD.D, GCB.D, CCB.D: An award-winning corporate director and entrepreneur and founder of Women Get On Board.

Board Director – Sharon Castelino, MBA, LLM, ICD.D: An award-winning financial services executive and corporate director with three decades of experience in multiple sectors and across global jurisdictions.

Corporate Secretary – Kasia Malz, CPA, CA, MAcc.:  In addition to her role as CFO, Kasia will serve as corporate secretary for the board of directors.

We were excited to present and demonstrate our Research Impact product at Collision in Toronto from June 26 to 29. As this conference brings together global technology leaders and companies, high-potential start-ups and top journalists to participate in more than 20 content tracks, Collision was the ideal venue for showcasing Research Impact’s capacity to serve as a matchmaker for collaborators and researchers to connect with industry partners and government granting agencies. In addition to demonstrations in our booth, I was pleased to present the benefits of Research Impact along with Deloitte partner Jigna Shah on the AWS StartUp Loft Theatre stage. You can learn more about Research Impact and our participation in Collision in this newsletter.

This month’s Impact Story profiles Shann McGrail, Chief Executive Officer of the Haltech Regional Innovation Centre. You’ll learn how Shann uses both her extensive experience in the technology sector and her improv skills to lead Haltech in its mission to serve as a strategic connector and educator for start-ups in Halton and across Ontario.

Finally, we have received impressive nominations for the Impactful Action Awards. Thanks to all who let us know about incredible people around the world making a great impact!

Thank you for connecting with us and the Profound Impact community!

Sherry Shannon-Vanstone

Profound Impact Exceeds First Tranche of Financing Round Led by Female Investors

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PROFOUND IMPACT™ CORPORATION EXCEEDS FIRST TRANCHE OF FINANCING ROUND LED BY FEMALE INVESTORS

The company on target to close the second tranche of the $3 million round in August 

WATERLOO, ON | June 15, 2023 — A group of female investors, including many who are first-time investors, is leading the way for Profound Impact™ Corporation’s latest funding round. 

The first round of financing closed on May 5, 2023 and included more than $2.2 million in seed funding for the company. The participation of first-time female investors sends a clear message of confidence in Profound Impact’s vision and the team’s leadership. The company will be closing the remainder of the $3 million when the second tranche closes on Aug. 4, 2023. 

“As the leader of a female-founded company, I am thrilled and grateful to welcome these investors into our network,” says Sherry Shannon-Vanstone, Founder and CEO of Profound Impact. “Women need opportunities to invest and grow their portfolios, and I’m proud that so many made the decision to make their first-time investment in Profound Impact.”

Profound Impact is poised to continue its growth in the Canadian market, and this latest funding will allow the company to expand into the United States and internationally.  

“Congratulations to Sherry and Profound Impact on this closing. As an angel investor in women-led ventures, I’m excited to see more women invest at the seed level. Women founders in North America face many systemic barriers in pre-seed, seed and venture finance. I firmly believe that raising awareness of the opportunities for women to invest in women-led ventures is key to helping us remove those barriers,” says Lara Zink, President & CEO, Women in Capital Markets.

“We are excited to see female investors committed to growing their portfolios and unlocking financial opportunities in the innovation sector,” says Ken Grewal, Founder and CEO, Forthlane Partners. “It is vitally important that financial education and opportunities are available to women and all investors interested in growing their portfolios.”    

“It is gratifying to finally see so many women stepping up to steer their financial futures. Investments by women for women in Canada’s female-founded companies not only bridges identified funding gaps, but also builds a future for female entrepreneurs,” says Anne-Marie Canning, cultural entrepreneur and investor in Profound Impact. 

“Many women want to invest in the tech sector, but face difficulties in taking the first steps into the investment space. Connecting female investors to female entrepreneurs helps empower women across the tech industry to find success,” says Claudette McGowan, Co-founder of The Firehood. “I was pleased to support Profound Impact in this funding round and will follow along closely as their company continues to grow.” 

Profound Impact, which operates out of the Toronto-Waterloo technology corridor, offers Research Impact, an AI-powered tool that helps academic and industry researchers find the perfect funding match. More than just a search engine, Research Impact offers automatic, targeted and timely grant matching.

This phase of investment represents an important step along Profound Impact’s growth trajectory. The company has made significant strides over the past few months, including hiring Kasia Malz as Chief Financial Officer and forming an Inaugural Board of Directors. 

“As a serial entrepreneur, I admire Sherry’s strong vision of ‘connecting great people to great things,’” says Deborah Rosati, Chair of Profound Impact’s Board of Directors. “I invested in the company and believe that my experience in technology start-ups/scale-ups, commitment to good governance, financial expertise, and venture capital experience will bring value to the company as it scales.”

This female-led investment sends a strong message to the investment community that women will step up to support and invest in women-founded and led companies.

–30–

ABOUT PROFOUND IMPACT CORPORATION 

Based in the Toronto-Waterloo technology corridor, Profound Impact’s AI-powered tool – Research Impact – helps academic and industry researchers find the perfect funding match. With over $300 Billion in research funding opportunities, 100,000s industry partners and 8.8 Million researchers globally, finding the optimal grant for academic and industry innovators is often overwhelming and unnecessarily time-consuming.  More than just a search engine, Research Impact offers automatic, targeted and timely matching.  Profound Impact’s customers include top North American research institutions, universities and industry partners.  CEO and Founder Sherry Shannon-Vanstone is a serial technology entrepreneur with an unparalleled track record.  She has had five successful start-ups and exits in Silicon Valley and Canada, including two IPOs and acquisitions.  

Website: www.profoundimpact.com 

Facebook: @aprofoundimpact

Instagram: @aprofoundimpact 

LinkedIn: Profound Impact Corporation

Twitter: @aprofoundimpact

For media inquiries, please contact:

Katherine Hill

306-515-3611

katherineh@durrellcomm.com

media@profoundimpact.com 

PROFOUND IMPACT™ CORPORATION ANNOUNCES INAUGURAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Deborah Rosati and Sharon Castelino join Profound Impact’s first board of directors.

WATERLOO, ON | JUNE 6, 2023 —Profound Impact™ Corporation is a leader in AI-powered solutions including Research Impact, an optimization platform that matches research grants with academic and industry researchers. Today, Profound Impact is pleased to announce the launch of its inaugural board of directors. Composed of distinguished business leaders with a wealth of skills and diverse backgrounds, this experienced board of directors will help guide Profound Impact toward its next phase of growth and success.

The members of Profound Impact’s board of directors include:

Board Chair – Deborah Rosati, FCPA, FCA, ICD.D, GCB.D, CCB.D: An award-winning corporate director and entrepreneur defined in three interconnected ways throughout her 35-year career – as a corporate governance champion, catalyst for change and community builder. In June 2023, Deborah was bestowed an honorary Doctorate of Laws by Brock University, her alma mater, recognizing her significant contributions and social impact.

Board Director – Sharon Castelino, MBA, LLM, ICD.D: An award-winning financial services executive and corporate director with three decades of experience in multiple sectors and across global jurisdictions, including institutional banks, capital markets and technology.  Sharon earned her MBA from the Ivey Business School, receiving the prestigious Ivey Scholar, and her Master of Laws (Business), from Osgoode Hall Law School.

Corporate Secretary – Kasia Malz, CPA, CA, MAcc.:  In addition to her role as CFO, Kasia will serve as corporate secretary for the board of directors.

Founder, President & CEO – Sherry Shannon-Vanstone, BS, MS Mathematics, LLD

“We are pleased to bring industry veterans who will add tremendous value with their expertise in technology, business and corporate governance to drive our growth strategy,” says Sherry Shannon-Vanstone, Founder and CEO of Profound Impact. “Also, congratulations to Deborah on her honorary doctorate from Brock University! I had the privilege of receiving my honorary doctorate from the University of Western Ontario in 2019 and know what a special honour it truly is.”

With this new board, Profound Impact is poised for explosive growth and sustainable success as a leading AI-powered platform in the $300 billion research funding market. “We are excited to make an impact by ‘connecting great people to do great things,’” says Deborah Rosati, Board Chair.

ABOUT PROFOUND IMPACT CORPORATION 

Based in the Toronto-Waterloo technology corridor, Profound Impact’s AI-powered tool – Research Impact – helps academic and industry researchers find the perfect funding match. With over $300 Billion in research funding opportunities, 100,000s industry partners and 8.8 Million researchers globally, finding the optimal grant for academic and industry innovators is often overwhelming and unnecessarily time-consuming.  More than just a search engine, Research Impact offers automatic, targeted and timely matching.  Profound Impact’s customers include top North American research institutions, universities and industry partners.  CEO and Founder Sherry Shannon-Vanstone is a serial technology entrepreneur with an unparalleled track record.  She has had five successful start-ups and exits in Silicon Valley and Canada, including two IPOs and acquisitions.  

Website: www.profoundimpact.com 

Facebook: @aprofoundimpact

Instagram: @aprofoundimpact 

LinkedIn: Profound Impact Corporation

Twitter: @aprofoundimpact

For media inquiries, please contact:

Katherine Hill

306-515-3611

katherineh@durrellcomm.commedia@profoundimpact.com

CEO Message

More than a billion people around the world will celebrate Earth Day on Saturday April 22.  This year’s Earth Day theme, Invest in Our Planet, is designed to encourage businesses, governments and citizens to invest in solutions that will support the protection of the environment.  Profound Impact is marking Earth Day with our Research Impact article on the evolution of the automobile industry in Canada over the last 120 years and how the federal and provincial governments, along with Canadian companies, are leading the way in investing in and developing innovative technology that is transforming the industry as it transitions to zero-emission vehicle production.  

In this issue, you’ll meet Flavio Volpe, President of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association (APMA).  Flavio was key in renegotiating the NAFTA agreement between Canada, the US and Mexico and is passionate about his work as an advocate of the automobile industry.  He tells us about Project Arrow – the prototype automobile that is a showcase for made-in-Canada technology to meet the federal government’s call for a Zero-Emissions future by 2050. I am honoured to be a member of the Project Arrow Advisory Committee and to have the opportunity to contribute to this impactful initiative.

This month’s Impact Story introduces Deborah Rosati, corporate director, entrepreneur, Fellow Chartered Professional Accountant and founder and CEO of Women Get On Board. Deborah works closely with the corporate governance community and is a powerful role model and mentor for women as she promotes and empowers women to join corporate, public sector and not-for-profit boards. I am excited to announce that Deborah is joining this month as Chair of Profound Impact’s Board of Directors.

We’re thrilled to announce that the Impactful Actions Awards, which recognize leaders from around the world who are making a profound impact in the global community, will accept nominations in two categories in 2023. Read more about the nomination procedures and timelines for the Young Leader and Lifetime Achievement categories here.

And finally, we hope you’ll check out the webinar on researcher/industry collaboration Profound Impact presented in partnership with CS-CAN|Info-Can in March, as well as the highlight demo video of our Research Impact product. We have another webinar coming up in April!

Happy Earth Month and thanks for connecting with us and the Profound Impact community!

Sherry Shannon-Vanstone

Deborah Rosati

Deborah Rosati

Fellow Chartered Professional Accountant
Women Get on Board

Deborah Rosati always knew that she wanted to follow in her father’s footsteps by pursuing a career in business. “He immigrated to Canada from Holland at age 14, and was placed in a grade one class. My father built his life in Canada and his business from the ground up,” she says. “My parents taught me that I could do whatever I wanted. And I’ve always had a deep love for business.”

Deborah’s focus on a career in business attracted her to the co-op accounting program at Brock University’s Goodman School of Business.  By her mid-twenties, thanks to co-op work term experience, Deborah had developed the skills that led to corporate roles ranging from controller to CFO. The appeal of emerging technologies and her inclination to entrepreneurship drew her to new roles as company co-founder and partner. It was during this phase of her work that she found herself to be one of only a few female partners or board members.

The lack of women at the board table and the absence of women mentors motivated Deborah to found Women Get On Board (WGOB) in 2015. In the ensuing 8 years, Deborah and her team have grown this member-based, social purpose company to more than 850 members. Collaborations with corporate sponsors have resulted in programs that have helped more than 300 women prepare and effectively engage on corporate, public sector and not-for-profit boards. These programs include: 

WGOB Mentorship Program, which matches aspiring women corporate directors with accomplished leading and serving women corporate directors to elevate their board effectiveness and advance their board journey to a corporate board seat.

WGOB Financial Intelligence in the Boardroom Program, designed to empower women with practical insights and tools to enhance their financial intelligence in the boardroom. This unique online program offers practical and hands-on support in a combination of micro-learning, virtually facilitated by financial experts. 

WGOB has also worked with corporate partners to celebrate the accomplishments of women. WGOB created the BMO Celebrating Women on Boards in 2020 to annually recognize 5 women across Canada who excel in and out of the boardroom.  In 2022, WGOB announced KPMG Canada as its first EMPOWER Partner to connect, promote and empower women to lead and serve on boards through events and thought leadership.

In addition to her work on WGOB, Deborah is actively engaged with the wider corporate governance community through frequent speaking engagements, panel discussions, podcasts, and authoring articles and e-books How to Get Yourself on a Board  and Elevating Your Board Effectiveness, to share her expertise and thought leadership..

Deborah has been recognized through numerous nominations and awards including The SustainabilityX Magazine’s inaugural Global 50 Women in Sustainability Award in 2022. In 2021, she was recognized as one of the Women’s Executive Networks Top 100 Canada’s Most Powerful Women in the Entrepreneur award category. Deborah has also been honoured as a 2020 Director to Watch and a 2014 Diversity 50 candidate. And in 2012, Deborah was selected as one of WXN’s Top 100 Canada’s Most Powerful Women in the Corporate Director award category.

Deborah’s career and WGOB are guided by the same principles: 

Be authentic; 

Be passionate in everything we do; 

Be engaged and take initiative; and

Be communicative beyond expectation.

Recognized for her success as a successful businesswoman, entrepreneur, corporate director, speaker and supporter of women in the boardroom, Deborah Rosati is a powerful role model and mentor. Her advice to women in business? “Be fearless and never doubt yourself. Lean in and learn up – because knowledge is power.”  

You can see more of Deborah’s impact in the visualizations below:

Do you have an Impact Story to share? Reach out to us at connections@profoundimpact.com for a chance to have your story featured in an upcoming newsletter!