Team

Wendy Cukier

Founder & Academic Director
Professor, Entrepreneurship & Innovation

Dr. Wendy Cukier, MA, MBA, PhD, DU (hon) LLD (hon), is a Professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, and the Academic Director and Founder of the Diversity Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU). She is the co-author of the bestseller, Innovation Nation: Canadian Leadership From Java to Jurassic Park and former Vice-President of Research and Innovation at TMU. She has authored more than 200 articles on aspects of diversity, inclusion and innovation. Cukier is one of Canada’s leading experts in disruptive technologies, innovation processes, and diversity and inclusion. The Diversity Institute has more than 130 full-time research staff. Projects include DiversityLeads, which has tracked the representation of women in leadership roles, and a host of projects focused specifically on women in technology. The Diversity Institute has also pioneered innovative projects such as the Advanced Digital and Professional Training program (ADaPT), the Women Entrepreneurship Hub and the Newcomer Entrepreneurship Hub. She is the Academic Research Director of the Future Skills Centre and leads the Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub, as well as the Inclusive Innovation and Entrepreneurship Network (IIE-Net).

Wendy received many awards for her work advancing diversity and inclusion, including the Meritorious Service Cross, one of Canada’s highest civilian honours. She has been recognized with the Harry Jerome Diversity Award, the 2019 CATA Alliance Sara Kirke Award, a YWCA Women of Distinction Award, WXN most powerful women and, most recently, the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion, Community Builder Award and was named one of the International Women’s Forum 2020 Women Who Make a Difference. She has an MA, MBA, PhD in Management Science and two honorary doctorates

Program Directors

Research & Program Delivery

Communications

Finance & Administration

Collaborators

Contributors

Dr. Robert Anderson, (external link) Emeritus Professor of Entrepreneurship, University of Regina
Dr. Rupa Banerjee (opens in new window) , Associate Professor of Human Resource Management, Toronto Metropolitan University
Clare Beckton (external link) , CREWW-Carleton U, Carleton University, Carleton University
Dr. Kristin Blakely, Course Director, Department of Sociology, Glendon College, York University; Instructor, University of Toronto
Dr. Candace Blayney (external link, opens in new window) , Professor, Marketing, Mount Saint Vincent University
Dr. Daniela Blettner, (external link) Associate Professor of Strategy, Simon Fraser University
Dr. Karen Blotnicky (external link) , Associate Professor, Tourism & Hospitality Management, Mount Saint Vincent University
Dr. Yolande Chan (external link, opens in new window) , Associate Dean (Research & PhD/MSc Programs) and E. Marie Shantz Professor of IT Management, Smith School of Business - Queen's University
Dr. Marie-Therese Chicha (external link) , Professor, School of Industrial Relations, University of Montreal
Dr. Elizabeth Evans (external link) , Dean, Business and Communication Studies, Mount Royal University
Dr. Suzanne Gagnon (external link, opens in new window) , Great-West Life Chair in Leadership Education and Associate Professor, Leadership and Organization, Director, Institute for Leadership Development, University of Manitoba - Asper School of Business
Dr. Thomas Gegenhuber (external link, opens in new window) , Junior professorship of Business Management, In Paticular Digital Transformation, Leuphana University
Dr. Abby Goodrum (external link) , Professor and Program Coordinator, User Experience Design, Wilfred Laurier University
Dr. Kenneth Grant (opens in new window) , Associate Professor, Entrepreneurship & Strategy, Ted Rogers School of Management
Dr. Mary Han (opens in new window) , Associate Professor, Entrepreneurship and Strategy and Director, Council of International Research and Teaching, Ted Rogers School of Management
Dr. Patricia Hewlin (external link) , Associate Professor, Organizational Behaviour and Associate Dean, Undergraduate Programs, McGill University
Dr. Jaigris Hodson (external link) , Assistant Professor and Program Head - Interdisciplinary Studies, Royal Roads University
Dr. Jack Jedwab, (external link, opens in new window) Executive Vice-President, Association for Canadian Studies
Dr. Sarah Kaplan (external link) , Director, Institute for Gender and the Economy, University of Toronto
Dr. Andre Laplume (opens in new window) , Associate Professor, Entrepreneurship and Strategy, Ted Rogers School of Management
Dr. Howard Lin (opens in new window) , Professor, Global Management Studies, Ted Rogers School of Management
Dr. Sarah Lubik (external link) , Director of Entrepreneurship , Simon Fraser University
Dr. Robert Luke, Vice President, Research and Innovation, OCADU
Dr. Lauren McNamara, Research Director, CEO, Recess Project, and Research Associate, Toronto Met Diversity Institute
Dr. Norah McRae (external link) , Associate Provost, Co-operative and Experiential Education, University of Waterloo
Dr. Catherine Middleton, Director (Interim) of Information Technology Management, Toronto Metropolitan University
Dr. Horatio Morgan (external link, opens in new window) , Associate Professor of Global Management, Ted Rogers School of Management, Toronto Metropolitan University
Dr. Ed Ng (external link) , Professor; F.C. Manning Chair in Economics and Business, Dalhousie University - Rowe School of Business
Dr. Charlene Nicholls-Nixon (opens in new window) , Director, Entrepreneurship Research Institute (ERI), Associate Professor, Entrepreneurship and Strategy,Toronto Metropolitan University
Dr. Pamela Palmater (external link, opens in new window) , Chair in Indigenous Governance, Department of Politics & Public Administration, Toronto Metropolitan University
Dr. Diana Parry (external link) , Professor and Associate Vice-President Human Rights, Equity and Inclusion, University of Waterloo
Dr. Pushkala Prasad (external link) , Professor of Management, Zankel Chair, Department of Management & Business, Skidmore College
Dr. Jeffrey Reitz (external link, opens in new window) , R.F. Harney Professor and Director of the Ethnic, Immigration and Pluralism Studies Program, Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto
Dr. Michael Roy, Professor of Economic Sociology and Social Policy, Glasgow Caledonian University
Dr. Tania Saba, BMO Chair in Diversity and Governance, Université de Montréal
Dr. Francine Schlosser (external link) , Professor of Entrepreneurship, Executive Director, Entrepreneurship, Practice, and Innovation Centre, University of Windsor
Denise Shortt (external link) , Vice President, Industry Development, Diversity & Inclusion, Information Technology Association of Canada
Dr. Malinda Smith (external link) , Full Professor, Arts and Political Science, University of Alberta
Dr. Kevin Stolarick, Associate Director and Research Associate, OCADU
Dr. Sui Sui (opens in new window) , Associate Professor, Global Management Studies, Ted Rogers School of Management
Dr. Jawad Syed (external link) , Dean and Professor of Organizational Behaviour, Suleman Dawood School of Business, Lahore University of Management Sciences
Dr. Jutta Treviranus (external link) , Director, Inclusive Design Research Centre (IDRC), Professor - Faculty of Design, OCADU
Valerie Fox, Chief Innovation Officer, The Pivotal Point (external link)
Dr. Anil Verma (external link) , Director, Centre of Industrial Relations & HR, Professor of Industrial Relations and HR Management, University of Toronto - Joseph L. Rotman School of Management
Dr. Natalia Vershinina (external link, opens in new window) , Professor of Business and Society, Audencia Business School
Dr. Margaret Yap (opens in new window) , Professor of Organizational Behaviour and Human Resources Management, Toronto Metropolitan University