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ABOUT US

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Since 2013 Zen Launchpad has provided support to early-stage companies in British Columbia, Canada. In 2023 we partnered with Spring Activator to offer access to the Canada Startup Visa program.

 

Whether you are just starting to explore the idea of starting your own company, looking for the funding and advice to develop your prototype or running a large Research and Development program we can assist.

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CYRI JONES

| Founder


Cyri Jones has over 25 years of business experience specializing in marketing, information technology, entrepreneurship & project management.  
Thought leader in the STEM/STEAM education sector.

CYRI JONES

| Founder

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JOHN SCHAUB

| Managing Partner


John Schaub has led in a broad range of organizations and has a deep background in product management particularly with b2b SaaS Fintech companies. John splits his time between Vancouver Canada and London UK.

JOHN SCHAUB

| Managing Partner

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SUSAN ROMEO-GILBERT 

| Partner


Susan has a Graduate Certificate in Executive Management Program (EMP) from Simon Fraser University. She also possesses a Master of Science degree (Geographic & Geodetic Information Systems) from University College London and a Bachelor of Science degree (Computer Science) from the University of the West Indies

SUSAN ROMEO-GILBERT 

| Strategic Advisor

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SCOTT SHENG

| Regional VP - Asia

 

Scott is CEO of Aikang Private Equity Group and has over 20 years of experience in private equity and startups. Scott uses his deep connections in Asia to bring promising startups to ZenLaunchPad.

SCOTT SHENG

| Regional VP - Asia

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AYO ONASANYA 

| Regional VP - Africa

 

Ayo Onasanya is a UX Practitioner and a serial founder with a passion for helping companies craft unique product experiences. In the last 11 years, he has had the privilege of shaping the consumer experiences for top fintech and consumer brands in Africa and the US including Google, Deutsche Bank, Virgin Money, LexisNexis, Revance, Brassica .

AYO ONASANYA

| Regional VP - Africa 

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KAREN NOLASCO

|  Program Coordinator

 

MBA - Marketing and Entrepreneurship
Process Engineering, Operations Management, and Communications

KAREN NOLASCO

| Program Coordinator

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KAREN CHANG

|  Program Coordinator

 

Marketing, Graphic Design, 

Operations Management, 

Project Management

KAREN CHANG

| Program Coordinator

R&D Team

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FARDIN BAREKAT

| Electrical Engineer


System programming, PID control system, PCB design, troubleshooting and testing using laboratory equipment 

FARDIN BAREKAT

| Electrical Engineer

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BRIAN MAGENNIS

|  Product Design                 Engineer


Engineering Design, Cross- functional Team Leadership, CAD/CAM Software, Manufacturing 

BRIAN MAGENNIS

| Product Design Engineer

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TANNER BRINE

|  Computer Science         and Mathematics


Operations Management , Project Management Recruiting , and Training

TANNER BRINE

| Computer Science     and Mathematics

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ELAHEH KHORVASH

|  Materials Engineer

 

Product Design and Development

ELAHEH KHORVASH

| Materials Engineer

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RILEY SIMPSON

|  Physics Engineer

 

Electrical Engineer and Project Development

RILEY SIMPSON

| Physics Engineer

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DAISY BROWN

|  Mechatronic Engineer

 

Research and Development

and Robotics

DAISY BROWN

| Mechatronic Engineer

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RASHED CHALATI

| Graphic and Web           Designer

 

Production Deign, Graphics, Printing, Laser Cutting

RASHED CHALATI

| Graphic and Web    Designer

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KOUSHA HASHEMI

|  Electronics Engineer

 

Ms. Electrical , Electronics and Communications Engineering Management, Digital
Electronics, Railway Systems, and Robotics

KOUSHA HASHEMI

| Electronics Engineer

Executives In Residence

If you are a seasoned executive with experience launching products internationally we would love to talk to you about becoming an Executive in Residence. Please reach out to contact@zenlaunchpad.com

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SALMAN ALAM

 

Salman is a startup founder with a focus on Fintech, AI and Cloud Computing. He is a Techstars alumni who founded Fostrum, a neobank for creators, influencers and solopreneurs. 

SALMAN ALAM

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ALEXANDER RADCHENKO

 

Alex is a Senior Executive with long-standing experience in different leadership roles in companies ranging from early-stage start-ups to large multinationals. He has a significant experience in designing and developing products, platforms and solutions in several verticals.

ALEXANDER RADCHENKO

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PATRICK HOGAN

 

Patrick is an innovative and insightful sales leader with 35+ years’ of technology sales experience hiring and growing highly engaged sales teams.  His proven success in recruiting high-caliber talent and fostering professional growth is matched by his ability to build consensus among executive teams and stakeholders, promoting transparency and driving positive change.

PATRICK HOGAN

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JAMES SMITH

 

James has been committed to supporting Canadian startups since 1995. Throughout his career, he has helped raise over $10B in venture capital, facilitated exit transactions totaling $14B, and served as the principal legal advisor for leading Canadian startups like Wattpad, TopHat, Ada Support, Jobber, and Shopify.

JAMES SMITH

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NATHAN WAWRUCK

 

Nathan is a Vancouver-based recruitment consultant with over a decade of technical
recruiting experience. He specializes in connecting software and IT professionals with career opportunities, mostly in Vancouver, British Columbia.

NATHAN WAWRUCK

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JUSTIN BERTAGNOLLI

 

Justin is a seasoned product leader and startup founder with a successful acquisition. He has scaled products for large and scaling companies such as Amazon and G2V Optics, and across the hardware, software, government, utility, and service sectors. 

JUSTIN BERTAGNOLLI

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