The Directors College Faculty

Our faculty of professionals, corporate directors and academics covers the full range of governance, accounting, law, regulations and human dynamics. Modules are delivered through a combination of lectures, interactive working sessions and case studies.

Faculty Directory

Mr. Don McCreesh, C.Dir.
Corporate Director and President, The Garnet Group Inc.


Don is a corporate director and management consultant following a career as an HR professional with five major international corporations culminating in roles as a corporate officer and global head of the Human Resources functions at Nortel Networks, CIBC and Celestica. He is currently Chair of Educators Financial Group, a mutual fund firm serving the education community, and a director of Oakville Hydro where he also serves on the HR Committee. In the past Don has served as Chair, Lead Director and Chair of HR Committee of Brainhunter Inc. (TSX:BH); Lead Director, and Chair of both the Corporate Governance and HR/Compensation Committees of RAND A Technology Corporation (TSX:RND) and a member of the Traditional Industries Advisory Board of VenGrowth Asset Management. He participates in the development of other directors as a faculty member and director in residence at the Directors College, both at the Director Program and the HRCC Program, where he led the program’s design. At the Chartered Director graduation ceremony in February, 2006, Don was awarded the inaugural “Gilbert Bennett Gold Standard Award” in recognition of outstanding achievement in the Chartered Director Program. As a management consultant, Don focuses on governance and organization design, personal and organization performance issues and executive compensation.
As a corporate officer and global head of Human Resources during his final 11 years as a corporate executive he provided the key management interface with the respective HR Committees and had significant interaction with the full boards of directors of these corporations providing input on overall reward design, executive compensation, succession, CEO selection, and organization culture. In these business leadership roles, Don experienced business, human resource and organization challenges throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia.
Don has been an active leader in voluntary sector governance for over three decades having served as a leader on the boards of 13 different not for profit organizations. He currently serves as Past Chair of Imagine Canada (formerly the Canadian Centre for Philanthropy), and Chair of the National Standards Council where he is leading a national initiative to introduce standards in the areas of: governance, fundraising, accountability and HR management for Canada’s charities and not for profits. In the past Don has served as the Chair of the YMCAs of Hamilton-Burlington, Greater Toronto and YMCA Canada and has served 11 years on the Executive Board of the World Alliance of YMCAs. He has led the Peel Region United Way Campaign and served on the boards of the United Ways of both the Peel Region and the Greater Toronto Area, as well as 5 other charities and not for profits.
Don has an MBA and BA, Psychology from McMaster University.

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What our graduates say?

“I thought the entire program was very well developed and comprehensive. You never know what to expect when you sign-up for these programs and this exceeded my expectations and was a great learning opportunity.”

James Scongack, Head of Corporate Affairs, Bruce Power LP

“I found the Chartered Director Program to be an excellent forum to understand how strong governance complements effective management. The ability to create and execute an effective strategy is significantly enhanced by a robust process inclusive of board engagement where the right questions are asked and expected outcomes are identified. I truly enjoyed the setting which fostered a strong level of interaction that was supported by quality presentations and material. As CEO of a Shared Service Organization set to deliver benefits to its members, I see the advantage of having a number of our board members participating in this program.”

Tony Di Emanuele, MBA, C.Dir., President and CEO, Mohawk Shared Services

“I found the Directors College to be an excellent survey of the important matters of which a director must be aware in today’s corporate environment. The quality of the presentation and materials was first-rate and the perspectives gained were invaluable. I would highly recommend the Directors College.”

The Honourable John Manley, P.C., O.C., C.Dir., Former Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister

“The changes that impact corporate governance are establishing a pattern of increased accountability for the delivery of long-term value to customers, shareholders, employees and society. Proper corporate governance is now being defined to include knowledge of critical elements such as risk management and the measurement of strategic performance. At the end of the day, each board will be judged on its ability to effectively deliver value, rather than on its structure. The Directors College innovative program fills a unique and important gap in providing knowledge and insight as to how this expectation can be met. CMA Canada is pleased to be a sponsor of this timely initiative.”

Steve Vieweg, C.Dir., Director, Executive Development, I.H. Asper School of Business – University of Manitoba

“As an organization focused on educating corporate secretaries, the ICSA believes in furthering the potential of board members to better contribute to building effective governance structures. Given the key role of directors and corporate secretaries in applying proper boardroom practices, corporations need to ensure that these individuals meet a professional standard. The Directors College curriculum covers all the formal regulatory issues for directors and also addresses the informal skills of building effective and appropriate relationships with senior management. We see significant benefits to this program and ICSA is pleased to endorse it.”

Lynn Beauregard, Executive Director, Chartered Secretaries Canada

“The Directors College has developed a director education program which goes well beyond the fundamentals to address the structures and the behavioural components of principle-based governance. I am proud to be associated with the Directors College and I am honoured to lend my name to the College’s graduate award. ”

Gilbert Bennett, Director and Recently-Retired Chairman of the Board, Canadian Tire Corporation Limited

“Our strategy is to raise the horizons and potential of directors by deepening and enriching their knowledge and application of advanced skills. Increasing the effectiveness of existing directors and broadening the pool of potential directors will contribute to the professionalism of boards across Canada.”

David Beatty, Managing Director, Canadian Coalition for Good Governance