Launch & Grow Program

Managing Director of District 3

JD Bégin is a venture capitalist turned entrepreneur and angel investor. As head coach at District 3, Bégin helps founders find product market-fit, grow their key metrics, and secure financing. Having previously worked as a growth advisor and mentor to firms such as VM6 Software Inc., Techstars and Traction Ventures, Bégin leverages more than 15 years experience to uniquely equip startups with the tools they need to grow into successful enterprises. Bégin holds an MBA from Concordia University, as well as a bachelors of Business Administration in accounting and finance from UQAM.

Senior Coach, Healthcare Stream Lead

With a wealth of international experience in taking ideas to market—always at the dynamic intersection of where entrepreneurship and experiential learning meet—Edna Chosack, M.Sc., MBA, is the Healthcare Stream lead and Senior Coach at District 3. 

As the co-founder and VP, Strategic Marketing at Simbionix Inc., Edna co-built the company into an international surgical-simulation leader, becoming internationally recognized as one of a few experts who leverage medical-simulation experiential learning into business success stories. 3D Systems acquired the company for $120M USD.

In Montreal, she established and served as Director of CAE’s surgical-simulation business line. She was a member of the advisory committee at McGill University’s Steinberg Centre for Simulation and Interactive Learning. She held her consultancy services for private internationals in the US, Europe & China, as well as for Canadian customers such as the Canadian National Research Council.

Innovation Enabler, Concordia for now

Xavier-Henri Hervé has a 25 years track record for transforming strategic plans for innovations into business on an international scale. An engineer, Hervé leverages 20 years of experience in several technologies and engineering intensive domains such as aviation, information systems, simulation, and green tech, at Mechtronix, Oracle Corporation, CAE Electronics and Bombardier. Hervé enjoys a worldwide network built in over fifty countries. In 2011, Hervé was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Science from Concordia University’s Gina Cody School of Engineering and Computer Science. He holds an MBA from INSEAD, as well as a bachelor of engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering from Concordia University. 

Co-director of District 3

Jane Somerville, MBA is the Director of Programs at Concordia University’s District 3. In this role, she is responsible for leading and developing the program offering targeted to entrepreneurs building startups. Jane is a passionate business professional with more than 25 years of experience working with Canadian entrepreneurs. Prior to joining D3, Jane worked at BDC where she helped small, medium and large companies across Canada, across all industry sectors, building and delivering innovative advisory services in strategic management, digital marketing and sales management. As an entrepreneur herself, Jane founded an online directory of furniture and furniture stores in major Canadian cities.

Director, AI Commons

Gilles Fayad spent his entire career launching new products. His track record has been to move up the food chain to successfully solve one problem after the other, and in doing so he acquired a broad technical expertise, managerial acumen, and international exposure. He is deeply fascinated with the impact of technology on society, complex mathematical problems, deep learning, reinforcement learning, and the relationship between form and function in design. If you cannot find him sailing or diving, you can lure him with a coffee into a game of chess, Go, or simply in a discussion on reinventing the world.

CEO, BEEM & Validation Coach

With over 15 years of racing experience, Kevin Ferah has developed an essential link between engineering theory and practice. Kevin cofounded BEEM, an automotive technology company, in 2014. He brings expertise in sales, commercialization, and product engineering. Along with his co-founder, they have successfully scaled their startup BEEM. BEEM is a data automation platform helping businesses unlock the power of their data. Their product Fleet is a leading loaner car management software helping car dealerships across Canada eliminate expenses and generate revenue with our proven process and technology. Kevin holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the École de Technologie supérieure.

President, BEEM & Validation Coach

Alexandre Lataille is driven by a true passion for automotive technologies that have always pushed him to innovate. As the CEO and co-founder of BEEM, an auto tech company, he is focusing on reinventing the way we interact within the automotive ecosystem, starting with the customer, the vehicle, the dealership and the manufacturer. 

Prior to founding BEEM, Alexandre specialized in data-driven automotive product development, business processes and analytics. He managed projects to the highest industry standards, with a tenacity that saw him rise swiftly in the ranks of Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP), a leading recreational products manufacturer. Alexandre started his career as a testing engineer for the Volvo Group, where he realized his passion for a data-driven approach to problem-solving and product development, which he applies to BEEM today.

Global Managing Partner, Quadbridge

Ryan Peters is an experienced founder and managing partner with a demonstrated track record of entrepreneurship and an ability to scale companies for over 10 years. His company, Quadbridge Inc. is a leading-edge, full-service IT Solution partner that specializes in hardware and software supply to medium and large enterprise clients in both the U.S. and Canada. Ryan has strategic advisory and general operational expertise, and strong business development experience with an understanding of International Socio-Economic Development, including NAFTA, E.U., Mid-East, and Asia. Ryan holds a bachelor’s degree in political science.

Coach, District 3

Louis has a 20+ years track record of helping emerging and growing technology and media companies propel their business to the next level. An experienced operator, Louis can help businesses meet short-term revenue targets while building longer-term growth capabilities. Louis is particularly experienced in sales management, marketing, partnerships, M&A, and general operations.

Louis started his career as a commercial attorney in a leading Canadian law firm, advising high technology and biotechnology companies in areas such as mergers and acquisitions, corporate financing, and partnerships. With this experience and an MBA, Louis made the move to business operations early on and never looked back, rapidly progressing through the ranks of established and growing international tech companies, including Open Text, Bell Canada, Softvoyage, k-eCommerce, and mdf commerce.

Louis holds a master’s in business administration (MBA) from the École des Hautes Études Commerciales de Montreal (1996), a bachelor’s degree in law (Ll.b.) from the University of Montreal (1993), and is a member of the Quebec Bar (1994).

Co-Owner, DX Consultant

Daniel Stoll has always strived to design and develop products that bring delightful customer experiences, to have products sell themselves. He has a track record of galvanizing innovation and creating go-to-market strategies based on a product-led growth approach, providing value to customers by shortening time to value. His work has been recognized for shortening the sales cycle significantly in complex sales. Daniel holds a Master’s degree in Telecommunications Engineering from the École d’ingénieurs du numérique.