CapitalRoad, formerly InfoTech, is a not-for-profit organization committed to improving the opportunities for early and growth stage Canadian technology companies to better access investment financing. We are pleased to endorse the efforts of the Canadian Venture Capital and technology communities.

We are proud operators of events like the Banff Venture Forum and the Canadian Financing Forum. These events represent Canada's largest investment forum operation, and are aimed at enhancing the access to capital environment for Canadian technology entrepreneurs.

Our Leadership Team

 

Dr. Don Kjosness
CEO, CapitalRoad

Don Kjosness has nearly 40 years experience in the management and commercialization of advanced technology, particularly in ICT and space systems, with 30 years of executive and board experience. He graduated from Electrical Engineering at the University of Alberta with a B.Sc. (with distinction) in 1966 and a PhD in 1971. Don joined SED Systems, one of Canada's premier space and defence communications firms in 1971 and rose through a variety of engineering, project management and executive positions, becoming Chief Operating Officer in 1986. After leaving SED in 1988, Don became a senior technology management, planning and commercialization consultant to the private sector and government. In 2002, he co-founded the Poynt Corporation, the developer of the Poynt mobile, location-based service application, currently available in Canada and eight other countries. Poynt is the most popular application on BlackBerry and is also available on the iPhone and Android platforms.

Don is active in many industry associations - InfoTech (Chair)/Banff Venture Forum (Chair); Canadian ICT Federation (2007 Chair); WiTec Alberta (Director); and the Alberta ICT Council (Director). He also is the immediate past-Chair of the TELUS World of Science - Calgary which is building a new, $160 Million science centre; the first totally new science centre in Canada in 25 years. He has also served on many previous private sector boards and industry/government committees.

 

Marc Elrick
Executive Director, Banff Venture Forum
Executive Director, Canadian Financing Forum
Principal, Critical Path Group

As the founding principal of Critical Path Group, Marc has positioned his firm at the intersection of high growth companies and the private equity community. A graduate of the Royal Military College of Canada, Marc was an operational naval officer for eight years, serving in Halifax Class warships with allied navies around the world before being recruited by a global management consulting firm. Being passionate about working with entrepreneurial teams, he founded Critical Path Group to serve private and public sector clients in two underserved areas: strategic planning, and recruiting A-players for companies committed to building world class teams.

Marc holds a BA (Hons) and an MBA specializing in technology commercialization and new venture planning. He also holds the CMC (Certified Management Consultant) designation and is a dedicated member of the Canadian Association of Management Consultants. Marc believes strongly in distinguishing between leadership and management - defining management as coping with business complexity, and leadership as coping with the human element of change.

A prolific networker, Marc invests heavily in professional development leadership roles that are directly aligned with addressing the challenges and "pain points" facing his client organizations. He is a founding delegate to the Canadian ICT Federation, the Executive Director of the Canadian Financing Forum and the Banff Venture Forum, Canada's largest annual technology financing forum for emerging high growth companies, and has served on a number of advisory boards.

When not leading the firm, Marc practices being an "earth astronaut" - skiing, mountain biking, kayaking, mountaineering, and fly fishing. He has lived in Canada, the UK, Germany, and Australia.

 

Erynn Shannon
Associate Executive Director, Banff Venture Forum
Associate Executive Director, Canadian Financing Forum
Senior Consultant, Critical Path Group

Erynn is a Senior Consultant at Critical Path Group, managing multiple client projects exclusively within the venture capital and technology industries. Her project portfolio includes developing strategic business plans and managing financing forums and entrepreneur training activities in the technology sector. Erynn is also the Associate Executive Director of the Banff Venture Forum and the Canadian Financing Forum.

With a background in the life sciences sector and public administration, Erynn has held positions in the Faculty of Medicine at both the University of Alberta and the University of Toronto. Prior to joining Critical Path Group, she was in charge of marketing and public relations for one of Canada's leading cancer research centers.

Erynn holds a BMgt in Accounting from the University of Lethbridge and an MBA specializing in International Business from Toronto's Ryerson University. A classically trained pianist, Erynn also enjoys exploring the globe. She has travelled extensively throughout North America, New Zealand and Europe, having completed the final semester of her MBA program in Linz, Austria.