About

An independent consultancy with a Bold Attitude.

Optimus SBR is an independently owned management consulting firm that helps leading firms get done what isn't.
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Our People

Our team of consultants are passionately inquisitive thinkers who take on your problems as if they were their own.

This natural curiosity expands beyond working with you – it permeates throughout the organization as they work to grow both your business and ours.

Our consultants are a mix of home grown talent and seasoned industry experts who understand the complexities and nuances of your business. We recognize the value of having a variety of individuals with unique life and work experiences that each bring something different to the table, ultimately enriching solutions and the impact it makes for our clients.

Beyond client deliverables, we have made a strong investment and commitment to growing our culture. We have a number of employee-led committees: Corporate Social Responsibility, Ministry of Fun, Optimus Women’s Network, People & Culture, Health & Wellness, Geek Lab, and Pro Bono. Each of these committees takes great pride in defining and executing on our amazing culture, internally and externally.

Our Team

Our senior leadership team comes from a range of backgrounds to support the broad array of challenges today's organizations face.
Photograph of Kevin Gauci

Kevin Gauci

Kevin Gauci is one of the founders and Chief Executive Officer at Optimus SBR. Kevin focuses on the overall strategy for the firm, championing our culture, and guiding the executive team. A passionate leader, Kevin empowers the team to challenge the status quo and ask the right questions. His contagious enthusiasm and entrepreneurial ethos inspires the growth and bold attitude of the firm.

Photograph of Joe Oppedisano

Joe Oppedisano

Joe Oppedisano is one of the founders and Director at Optimus SBR. A calculated risk taker, Joe focuses his attention on our growth and business development strategies. His quick wit and relaxed demeanor is a welcome presence in and out of the office. A skilled communicator, Joe excels at building relationships and guides the team to do the same.

Carolyn Kingaby

Carolyn Kingaby leads our Financial Service Group. In addition to advising her clients, Carolyn is responsible for the growth of the practice and of her team. Her 30 years of industry experience is an invaluable resource to her group, and she inspires her team to excel. Carolyn’s focus on the customer experience, instinct for innovative problem solving, and ability to develop solutions that inspires and ensures her ability to deliver the utmost value for her clients.

Terri Lohnes

Terri Lohnes leads our Industries and Government Practice. She focuses her time on supporting her clients and teams, while driving our growth strategy within our public and private practices. A driven leader and creative problem solver, Terri brings over 20 years of experience in public and private organizations. Terri brings a wealth of valued experience to her team and clients alike. Her commitment to building lasting partnerships is apparent in her ability to provide innovative solutions and effectively tackling clients’ challenges.

 

Peter Snelling

Peter Snelling leads our Sales and Relationships efforts. With over 30 years of experience, he is an engaging and empowering leader who excels at designing and implementing innovative strategies to drive growth and performance improvement by crafting pragmatic solutions to complex challenges. He works with organizations to create excitement and commitment in improving their operations, embed service excellence, boost the corporate profile, and accelerate growth.

John Whincup

John Whincup is one of the founders and Director at Optimus SBR. John’s passion for solving complex challenges with innovative and creative approaches helped to lay the foundation for our consulting practice. An entrepreneur at heart, John has built several successful businesses in his nearly 40 year career prior to Optimus SBR and is quick to share his knowledge with organizations of all sizes to capitalize on opportunities to maximize potential. Clients look to John for his advice, calm rationale, and sector expertise. As a trusted business advisor, John is a mentor to emerging leaders.

Mike Bingham

Mike Bingham is a Director at Optimus SBR and responsible for leading the strategy of our Travel vertical. With more than 30 years of experience in the travel industry, Mike is a true thought leader in the areas of Travel & Expense Management. His calming presence and thoughtful approach to business challenges inspires his team and clients alike to push the status quo and think differently about opportunities.

Bill Carrigan

Bill Carrigan is a Director and leads the Risk practice at Optimus SBR. A strategic thinker, Bill leverages his relationships with clients and partners to build rapport and develop creative solutions to their biggest challenges. Bill has over 35 years of experience and a successful track record of directing and managing numerous initiatives in partnership with senior executives and broad stakeholder groups.

James Lowe

James Lowe is a Director at Optimus SBR and responsible for our Travel Sourcing and Optimization practice. He brings 25 years of senior level consulting experience to the team, and is committed to delivering tangible value for our clients. James embodies entrepreneurial spirit, having started a myriad of businesses throughout the years, and instills that into the team.

Raj Kapoor

Raj Kapoor is the Head of Finance at Optimus SBR. Raj brings over 20 years of valuable senior financial and corporate managerial experience from a number of Fortune 500 companies and start-ups. He excels at marrying the definitive nature of accounting with the nuances of a high growth firm.

Bonnie Ryan

Bonnie Ryan is the Head of People and Employee Experience at Optimus SBR. Bonnie brings over 20 years of a unique blend expertise in human resources, business acumen, and operational excellence to our business. A true champion, Bonnie is a strong advocate for maintaining a culture that supports the goals of not only our people and our business, but also our clients.

Doug Wilson

Doug Wilson leads our Technology practice. Doug’s 30 years of experience in IT & Strategy consulting coupled with enterprise program delivery and CIO-level roles means he’s uniquely qualified to bridge the gap between business and technology teams. Having lived on both the client and service provider sides of the fence, Doug applies a pragmatic approach to delivering technology solutions that make sense, and empowers his team to do the same.

Optimus Think

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Financial Services

IFRS 17 – The Race to the Finish – Actuarial Work and IFRS 17

IFRS projects produce their own actuarial challenges. We discuss what changes you likely face, and how to address them.

Public Sector

Executing on Round 2 of Municipal Modernization Program Reviews in Ontario: Should You Approach Them as a Marathon or a Sprint?

Our overview of areas of focus for the second round of the Municipal Modernization Program, Service Delivery Reviews themes, and advice on how to execute with the funds made available for this investment.

Financial Services

IFRS 17 – Race to the Finish – Technology Solution: The Right Strategy for Data

This article outlines how the right data strategy for IFRS 17 can be extended across the enterprise to advance an insurer’s data maturity rapidly and cost effectively leveraging the investments in IFRS 17 as a foundation.

Financial Services

IFRS 17 – Race to the Finish – Don’t Underestimate the Complexity, Even for P&C

Even the simplest, monoline property and casualty insurers have realized there are significant complexities in practice. We have detailed some of the items you need to consider on your IFRS 17 journey.

Financial Services

IFRS 17: The Race to the Finish – Technology Solution Point-to-Point vs. Data Hub

Here are a few of the key implementation realities that insurers are faced with as they look to decide on upgrading their point-to-point system or upgrade to a new data hub environment.

Financial Services

IFRS 17: The Race to the Finish – The Standard vs. Implementation Realities

We have detailed a few of the key implementation realities that insurers are faced with as they seek to comply with the new standard.

Financial Services

IFRS 17: The Race to the Finish – Disruption and Transformation at Your Doorstep

With time running out, the only question left for most insurers is whether they use the opportunity of IFRS 17 compliance to simply create a minimum viable product or to truly transform their business into the 21st century and take a market leadership position.

Company News
We are One of Canada's Fastest Growing Companies for the Eighth Consecutive Year!

Optimus SBR named to the Growth List for 8th Consecutive Year!

Canadian Business named Optimus SBR on the 32nd annual Growth List!

Strategy

Adapting in a New Era of Corporate Travel

Travel is one of the most impacted sectors hit this year due to COVID-19. Organizations need to begin to take a critical look at what corporate travel will look like in a post-COVID world.

Company News

Optimus SBR Named as 2020 Great Place to Work

For the second consecutive year, Optimus SBR is thrilled and honoured to be named on the 2020 list of Best Workplaces in Professional Services, and as one of this year’s Best Workplaces™ in Canada. This year, we’ve also been named to the inaugural list of Best Workplaces in Ontario.

Financial Services

The Driving Need to Reassess Processes & Controls Related to COVID-19 Responses

COVID-19 has thrust a massive amount of change onto financial institutions. Conducting a review of the processes and controls put in place during these unprecedented times is critical as financial institutions face an increasingly complex risk environment.

Public Sector

Pivoting When the World Changes: Getting the Most Out of Municipal Service Delivery Reviews in the New COVID-19 Reality

Municipal services matter, and not just the ones that people see. The ones that keep things humming behind the scenes matter too. And never has that been more apparent than during the COVID-19 pandemic.