Qualifications
Michael Smith is a graduate of Concordia University (B.Comm,
marketing), McGill University (LLB/BCL), and soon Universite de Laval
(C.Dir/ASC). He is also certified CIPP/C and has his Canadian
Securities Course and Canadian Practices Handbook. He has done
scholastic exchanges through university, first at CERAM (now Skema
Business School), in Antibes, France, and NUS in Singapore.
Michael speaks English and French fluently.
Biography
Born and raised in Montreal, Michael has been traveling and studying
abroad for several years. He has had the opportunity to visit over 40
countries and has spent extended time in France, Singapore, and Mexico
City. A dual Canadian and French citizen, while he has called
Montreal, Canada home, he does consider himself a citizen of the
world.
With a blended background in business and law, Michael has spent the
later part of his career as a corporate/commercial lawyer, both
in-house and in private practice. Prior to law, Mike was a technology
entrepreneur and had worked for several years in marketing, mostly for
conglomerates and technology companies. He is also an avid investor,
and has taken an interest in privacy and governance issues. In
previous roles, he has served as the VP of Legal for BNP Paribas and
as a Sr. Counsel for the National Bank of Canada. He has also held
various marketing roles at companies such as Silanis Technology (now
part of Docusign) and VertigoXMedia/X20Media (now part of
Stratacache), Hasbro Canada and Pratt & Whitney Canada.
Mike believes that there is not only one way to have a successful and
fulfilling career and life is about continually learning, but also
sharing those experiences. In his spare time, he is an avid reader,
volunteers on an ethics research board, and mentors young
entrepreneurs and students. While each person's life experience is
unique he has joined with Bearing with the hopes that his successes
and failures can help others become wiser.
In his spare time, Mike enjoys traveling, spending time with his wife
and daughter, mentoring, reading, and working with entrepreneurs.
|