Operations built on a strong IT foundation.

I lead operations for a living, and an IT career is the foundation I do it from. Today I run six departments and more than 150 people aboard a hospital ship, which suits organizations that need a leader who is comfortable across functions, cultures and tight constraints.

Where I am now

I am the Operations Director aboard the Africa Mercy, a 72-bed hospital ship run by Mercy Ships, where I hold operational authority over six departments and more than 150 multinational volunteers delivering surgical care across Africa. I joined the ship as IT Manager in July 2024 and moved into this role in October 2025. Before that, I led IT through a provincial healthcare transformation and through hypergrowth at ApplyBoard. Different settings, same job: walk into an organization that is changing, find the friction, and fix it with people who care about the result.

Operations and logistics

I run operations where the work cannot stop. I delivered a record six-day setup on arrival in Madagascar, and planned the shore-based relocation of 72 people during annual maintenance in South Africa, from airport transfers and housing to daily commuting.

People and mission

I lead a multinational volunteer crew across six departments and keep people engaged around a shared mission. I have recruited, trained and retained volunteer talent, and I chaired a team of 100 volunteers at the RBC Canadian Open.

Budgets and vendors

I oversee about $125,000 CAD in annual operational spend and run structured vendor processes. One secured the ship’s rental vehicles under budget, and a gift-in-kind partnership added formal fleet oversight at no direct cost.

Systems and change

I build the frameworks that make service predictable, from a formal ITSM framework aboard ship to a province-wide centralized support desk in Ontario. At ApplyBoard, I built the IT backbone behind a 48-hour, zero-outage move to full remote work.

Experience

ITIL v3 Foundation certified. Operations leadership in humanitarian, healthcare and high-growth technology settings.

October 2025 to present

Operations Director

Mercy Ships, M/V Africa Mercy, Toamasina, Madagascar (volunteer)

Hold operational authority over six departments (Stewards, Finance, Supply, IT, Transportation and Facilities, and the Ship Academy), covering 150+ people across a multinational, cross-cultural crew supporting Mercy Ships’ surgical mission in Africa.
Delivered a record six-day operational setup on arrival in Madagascar, one of the fastest on record for the vessel, so surgical operations could begin without delay.
Planned and executed the full shore-based relocation of 72 people (13 families and 11 teachers) during annual maintenance in Umhlanga, South Africa, covering airport transfers, housing, dedicated academy vehicles and daily commuting. Phased re-embarkation went off without incident.
Initiated and secured a gift-in-kind partnership with a fleet management software provider, expanding the organization’s resources at no direct cost and establishing formal fleet oversight aboard ship.
Introduced a structured vendor management process that secured rental vehicle needs under budget, the first time this had been achieved in the role.
Planned and executed a two-day holiday for the full ship’s crew, coordinating three days of catering and transportation to uShaka Marine World.
Oversee approximately $125,000 CAD in annual operational spend across departmental budgets.

Worked with: vendor and contract management, budget oversight, fleet management, logistics planning, crisis response, cross-cultural team leadership.

July 2024 to October 2025

IT Manager

Mercy Ships, M/V Africa Mercy, Toamasina, Madagascar (volunteer)

Led a volunteer IT team of seven drawn from multiple countries, managing service delivery and onboarding across rotating crew cycles, with hands-on experience recruiting, training and retaining volunteer talent.
Designed and implemented a formal ITSM framework for the ship’s service desk, establishing incident intake, triage, escalation and resolution where none formally existed.
Conducted a shipwide IT asset audit that identified significant hardware reuse and deferred an estimated $15,000 to $20,000 in new hardware procurement for the 2025 cycle.
Restructured IT roles and responsibilities to better align team capabilities with operational demand.

Worked with: ITSM, volunteer recruitment and training, IT asset management, team structure and role design.

January 2021 to July 2024

IT Manager

Home and Community Care Support Services Waterloo-Wellington

Served as the most senior IT role in the organization, leading a team of up to nine direct reports across infrastructure, service desk and systems.
Designed and implemented formal SLA frameworks and incident management processes, improving response accountability and service visibility across the organization.
Led a province-wide Incident Management initiative, architecting and launching a centralized provincial support desk serving all Local Health Integration Networks across Ontario.
Managed local vendor procurement relationships and contributed to IT budget planning and oversight.

Worked with: SLA frameworks, incident management, vendor procurement, IT budget planning, team leadership.

March 2019 to January 2021

IT Manager

ApplyBoard, Kitchener, Ontario

Joined as the company scaled from about 135 employees and managed IT infrastructure through explosive growth to nearly 2,000 without a major service disruption.
Architected and maintained the IT backbone behind the pivot to full remote operations within 48 hours during COVID-19, with zero outages.
Built and managed remote onboarding pipelines processing 40 to 60 new employees weekly at peak growth, including endpoint provisioning, Active Directory management and access controls.
Established and enforced network security best practices and Active Directory governance as the organization scaled.
Led vendor management across hardware, software and service providers, managing the full procurement lifecycle.

Worked with: remote onboarding, Active Directory, endpoint provisioning, network security, vendor management, procurement.

Beyond the org chart

Africa Mercy

Since July 2024, I have lived and volunteered aboard the Africa Mercy, a 72-bed hospital ship in Madagascar, leading alongside volunteers from many countries who share one mission.

RBC Canadian Open

For five consecutive years, from 2019 to 2023, I chaired Player Transportation for the RBC Canadian Open, recruiting, training and leading a team of 100 volunteers to run a fleet of 170 courtesy vehicles for players, coaches and VIPs.

Let’s talk about what you are building.

I am interested in director and executive roles in operations, particularly where a strong technology foundation helps.

Email me Connect on LinkedIn