Jill Birch

DIRECTOR, LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, TORONTO/CALGARY

Dr. Jill Birch is a leadership and strategic advisor, researcher and author. Jill is Founder and CEO of BirchGrove Inc., where she helps organizations develop individual leaders and teams and supports human resource partners to realize their strategic imperatives. Dr. Birch supports Pekarsky & Co as Director, Leadership Development.
 
Jill has held CEO roles as well as having been a member of several C-Suites in the not-for-profit and for-profit sectors. She worked at Knightsbridge Human Capital Solutions and the Schulich School of Business where she launched their in-company leadership practices. Jill has worked extensively to build leadership development and employee retention strategies in complex organizations ranging from Atomic Energy of Canada to American Express and the Canadian Art Foundation.
 
Among her experiences, Jill led the Business Development portfolio of Sheridan College where she repositioned entrepreneurial portfolios including applied research, fundraising, government relations and continued education. She’s held senior leadership roles with some of Canada’s most prestigious not-for-profit organizations in retail, broadcasting, publishing and marketing.
 
In addition to providing customized leadership development services, Jill has spoken to 1,000s of leaders around the world. Her presentations reflect the human capital concerns we all have today: to achieve organizational goals through employee engagement, development of innovative strategies, and creation of the right metrics to measure success. 
 
Jill holds a Doctorate from Griffith University in Australia where she studied relational leadership and a Master’s from OISE/UT where she researched how CEOs learn to lead and how they learn to learn. She is also a Certified Association Executive.
 
Jill enjoys travelling and learning about the latest in leadership research with colleagues around the world. She is always on the lookout to add to her collection of vinyl records and has a special interest in British Renaissance history.