Judges Announced for Canada Post E-Commerce Innovation Awards

Canada Post has announced the judging panel for the third annual Canada Post E-commerce Innovation Awards. The returning and new judges are all prominent and respected leaders in Canada’s rapidly evolving digital and retail industries.

Returning judges include Duncan Payne, Hut2Hut Events President and DX3 Co-Founder; Rafe Petkovic, Google Canada Head of Industry (Retail); and Stéphane Ricoul, Sid Lee Director of Client Relations, eBusiness, and eComMTL Founding President.

Canada Post is also excited to welcome two new judges to the Awards this year: Diane J. Brisebois, President and CEO of the Retail Council of Canada; and Kirstine Stewart, Managing Director of Twitter Canada.

“We are delighted to have such outstanding judges, who are experts, thought leaders and successful entrepreneurs. They will bring an exciting energy to the Awards, which are growing in popularity every year,” says René Desmarais, Senior Vice-President, Parcels, at Canada Post.

The judges will be tasked to determine the finalists from this year’s applicants and then ultimately decide the winners who will share in $1 million worth of total prizing. The winners will be announced at a gala event in Toronto on September 23.

Diane J. Brisebois

Ms. Brisebois is the President and CEO of the Retail Council of Canada (RCC), the largest retail association in Canada, serving over 45,000 retail establishments including independent merchants, chain stores, mass merchants, big box and online retailers. Ms. Brisebois is also the Immediate Past Chair and a member of the Executive Committee of the Forum of International Retail Association Executives, which represents retail associations from more than 35 countries to collaborate on issues affecting the global retail sector.

Duncan Payne

As cofounder of Hut2Hut Events, Mr. Payne launched Dx3 Canada in 2012 and helped it grow into Canada’s largest technology event for digital marketing and retail.Before this, Mr. Payne was Executive Vice-President of Business Development Worldwide at dmg world media.

Rafe Petkovic

As Head of Industry (Retail) for Google Canada, Mr. Petkovic leads the sales teams that guide customer online/omni-channel strategy development and implementation, helping them drive more customers to their stores, and, in the process, positively redefine the Canadian retail industry. Before joining Google Canada, Mr. Petkovic developed and implemented Google Australia’s mid-market acquisition strategy, working with Australia and New Zealand’s most dynamic retailers.

Stéphane Ricoul

Mr. Ricoul is the Director of Client Relations, eBusiness, at Sid Lee, which handles the e-commerce accounts of major companies including Rona, the SAQ (Société des alcools du Québec), and Cirque du Soleil. Mr. Ricoul is also co-founder and President of eComMTL, a popular industry event attended by key e-commerce players to discuss, share and drive online retail strategies and best practices.

Kirstine Stewart

Ms. Stewart is Managing Director for Canadian operations at Twitter, including its advertising business and partnerships. Prior to joining Twitter in May 2013, Ms. Stewart was the executive vice-president of CBC’s English services, CBC/Radio-Canada, where she oversaw CBC’s English radio and audio, television and digital operations. Earlier, she was senior vice-president of programming for Alliance Atlantis where she headed up brands HGTV, Food Network, National Geographic, BBC Canada and others.