Yara Damasceno
Yara Damesceno, Interim President & CEO Yara Damesceno is a seasoned Chief Operating Officer with a proven track record in building and managing high-performance teams and ensuring the effective oversight of essential central service departments. With an extensive background in human resources, she has specialized in conflict resolution, change management and fostering an inclusive, respectful culture. Guided by a commitment to authentic leadership, Yara champions a people-centered approach, empowering teams to reach organizational goals through collaborative, transparent, and solution-focused practices. She joined ACCES Employment in 2002 and has held progressive roles until being named COO in 2016. Today, she has […]
Allison Pond
Allison Pond, Advisor Allison has dedicated her career to workforce development, establishing highly effective employment services that link jobseekers to employers across the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario, and Canada. As ACCES Employment’s former President & CEO for 25 years, Allison, championed accessible employment services made possible through community collaboration and broad public and private sector partnerships. Under her leadership, ACCES Employment grew into a $35-million organization, attracting support from all three levels of government, corporate partners, and community stakeholders. During her tenure she has been a passionate advocate for internationally trained workers, helping to ensure that they have full and equitable access to employment in their professions and trades in Canada. Allison has served on many boards in Ontario’s non-profit sector, […]
Anita Carroll
Anita Carroll, Chief Development Officer (CDO) Anita is a proven relationship builder with a strong track record of leading innovative initiatives in corporate social responsibility, diversity, learning and development, employee engagement and corporate community giving. At ACCES Employment, she is responsible for corporate and stakeholder engagement, leading the team that manages sponsor and donor relations. To advance our role as a leader in employment services for newcomers, Anita’s focus is on creative corporate partnerships and donor engagement that will grow and diversify funding needed to support our expansion. A George Brown College graduate with a degree in arts, she has […]
Gordon Lee Chan
Gordon Lee Chan, Senior Vice President Information Systems Gordon is a leader in information technology, with progressive experience throughout his career in building, integrating and developing organizations so that they can expand their business value and provide modern, reliable service. He has held roles from a broad spectrum of industries and organizations including the YMCA, Dundee Wealth Management, Universal Music Canada, Universal Studios and Compaq Canada. He joined ACCES Employment in 2021 as Senior Vice President Information Systems and has since helped lead the adoption of technology to support effective delivery of our services both in-person and online. Gord takes a […]
Manjeet Dhiman
Manjeet Dhiman, Senior Vice President Services & Strategic Initiatives Manjeet has been a leader in the non-profit, charitable sector for more than 25 years. At ACCES Employment, she has been a key contributor to our growth and to the development of employment and training services for jobseekers from diverse backgrounds. For over two decades, she has led services and strategic initiatives for newcomers, marginalized youth, women, and other equity deserving groups facing barriers to labour market integration. Manjeet provides leadership in collaborative service delivery, program development, community engagement, and marketing and communications. She leads our Equity Diversity and Inclusion Council, which […]
Sue Sadler
Sue Sadler, Senior Vice President Services & Program Innovation Sue is a leader in workforce development program delivery who has dedicated her career to easing the plight of marginalized jobseekers and combatting systemic racism in hiring practices. She works with employers, industry, colleges, universities and sector councils to establish programming designed to integrate internationally educated professionals and other marginalized jobseekers into the Canadian workplace. Sue has had progressive roles in program development at ACCES Employment since joining in 2007, and is now responsible for the design and oversight of specialized programming that helps refugees, newcomers to Canada, and other disadvantaged jobseekers […]
Aimee Holmes
Aimee Holmes, Vice President, Data Strategy & Digital Solutions Aimee connects our business objectives to technology, allowing us to maximize our investment in technical platforms, make data-driven decisions and measure the impact of our work. She worked in the newcomer settlement sector before joining ACCES Employment in 2012, where she held progressively responsible roles before joining the leadership team in January 2024. She supports our success through improved access to reliable data and by ensuring that staff have the tools and training they need to perform their work in a hybrid delivery model. High quality data allows us to report on […]
Dan Wilson
Dan Wilson, Vice President Operations Dan has more than 30 years of experience in the charitable and public sector spanning the areas of policy, strategy and evaluation. Throughout his career, he has been a champion of equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives at the grassroots and institutional level, advancing EDI through education, policy and culture. At the Ontario Trillium Foundation, he provided research, executive advice, insight and problem-solving to the CEO as Chief of Staff. He joined ACCES Employment in 2021 as Vice President Operations, where he leads administration and procurement, provides governance and board support and is responsible for risk management. […]
Jennifer Hall
Jennifer Hall, Vice President Human Resources Jennifer is a proven human resources leader, leveraging more than two decades of experience to build and maintain a workplace that leads by example in preparing people for job success. ACCES Employment believes that supporting our clients and employers in building desirable workplaces must start with our own organization. As a result, Jennifer is focused on creating a supportive and inclusive environment and investing in our diverse workforce so that they have the skills needed to succeed. Since she joined ACCES in 2020, Jennifer has led the HR team to create programs and practices that […]
Marlene McGrath
Marlene McGrath, Vice President Services and Program Administration Marlene ensures that all programs and services offered by ACCES Employment help us meet our goal to build a fully inclusive labour force that reflects Canada’s diversity, skills and experience. She oversees the development, delivery and improvement of our services and programs, ensuring they support equitable opportunities for jobseekers facing employment barriers as they enter the Canadian job market. Her work supports the long-term goals of the organization, including strategies to advance organizational growth. She ensures we uphold the highest standards of financial accountability and regulatory compliance. She is responsible for accountable disbursement of […]