You Gotta Meet! – Details, episodes & analysis

Parag Saigaonkar is a Partner at Deloitte Consulting Canada and the Global Business Services (GBS) leader for the firm worldwide. With over 34 years at Deloitte, he has worked extensively across Asia-Pacific, including Hong Kong, Beijing, and Mumbai, before relocating to Canada in 2021. He specializes in helping organizations globalize their operations and establish high-value delivery centers. Previously, Parag led Deloitte India’s GIC channel and played a key role in scaling Deloitte’s USI Consulting practice to over 10,000 professionals. He is also the author of The Perfect Storm, a book on India’s evolving talent landscape.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/parag-saigaonkar-7a09a16/

Charina Amunategui is a global finance leader and advocate for women’s empowerment. With over 20 years of experience in asset management across North America and Europe, she currently serves as Executive Director of Fund Finance Business Execution at MUFG Investor Services. Born in Tondo, Manila, and raised in Canada, Charina’s journey from humble beginnings to earning an MBA from Yale and studying at Oxford exemplifies resilience and ambition.

She’s been recognized as one of the Most Influential Filipina Women in the World and has spoken globally on personal branding and leadership. Charina also serves on the board of Inspiring Girls USA and was the founding chair of 100 Women in Finance’s New York MidCareer Bridge. In 2024, she was Grand Marshal of NYC’s Philippine Independence Day Parade and contributed to Disrupt 5.0, celebrating Filipina leaders worldwide.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charina-amunategui/ 

Jesse  is a futurist, researcher, artist, and public speaker based in Lanark County, Ontario, Canada. He owns and operates Metaviews Media Management Ltd., which focuses on research and consulting around new media business models, automation, artificial intelligence, and the strategic use of social media. He is also a co-founder of the Academy of the Impossible a peer to peer lifelong learning and intelligence network.

Stephen Shapiro cultivates innovation by showing leaders and their teams how to approach, tackle and solve their business challenges. Applying the knowledge he has accrued over decades in the industry, Stephen is able to see what others can’t: opportunities to improve innovation models and the cultures that support them. http://stephenshapiro.com/  Twitter: @stephenshapiro 

Terry O’Reilly is the familiar voice behind the hit CBC radio shows O’Reilly on Advertising, The Age of Persuasion, and his current program, Under the Influence, where he explores the business, the craft, and the promise of promotion. In his intriguing talks, O’Reilly explores how our culture is shaped by marketing, as well as providing his expertise on branding, campaigns, spin, and more.

O'Reilly began his career in radio, and then went on to become an award-winning copywriter for a number of Toronto advertising agencies. He created campaigns for many of the top brands in the country, including Labatt, Molson, Bell, and The Hudson's Bay Company. In 1990, Terry co-founded Pirate Radio & Television with a staff of 50, with eight recording studios in Toronto and New York City.

O'Reilly has received Lifetime Achievement Awards by the Advertising & Design Club of Canada, The Television Bureau of Canada, and the American Marketing Association. He has also been granted an Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree from McMaster University in 2012, an Honorary Bachelor of Applied Arts Degree from Humber College in 2014, and an Honorary Doctor of Civil Law Degree from St. Mary's University in Halifax in 2015.

He has co-written the bestselling book, The Age of Persuasion: How Marketing Ate Our Culture, and his second book, tentatively titled Lessons From Under The Influence will be published in the spring of 2017.

Jessica Holmes, a favourite on CBC TV’s Royal Canadian Air Farce, has brought the house down opening for giants such as Ellen DeGeneres, Russell Peters, Jerry Seinfeld, and Oprah Winfrey. Her hilarious and validating take on life’s challenges have audiences in stitches, and her unique knack for skewering celebrities (including Nikki Minaj, Liza Minelli and Celine Dion) launched her to the top of Canadian comedy. Her grace, bilingualism, and ability to react on the fly make her a natural choice as an entertainer or emcee, and she has garnered rave reviews for her wellness and motivational presentations.

As a performer, Jessica’s productions have garnered her a “Platinum Award” at The Worldfest International Film Festival; nominations for Gemini Awards; and the prestigious Tim Sims Scholarship. She is also known for her work in films, including Welcome to Mooseport, Citizen Duane, and Moonpoint. She continues perform comedy across the country, with a recent appearance on CBC’s Winnipeg Comedy Festival television special.

Jessica also devotes much time to helping others live well. In her wellness keynotes, she mixes humour with her message about the importance of de-stressing and laughing at life’s shortcomings, and speaks with intelligence and insight on her own experiences of dealing with post-partum depression, finding work-life balance, and re-igniting passion. She recently received certification as a wellness coach from San Diego’s Life Purpose Institute. Her autobiographical book, I Love Your Laugh, was published in 2010, and she’s currently working on a follow-up book about mental health.

I loved this powerful conversation I recently had with Mubin Shaikh, where he fully opens up about once wanting to join the Jihadi Movement and what lead him to pivot toward a completely different direction.  During our conversation I was awoken to the ways in which a person can be swayed by the ideas of a group especially when that person is experiencing their own inner struggles.  Today, Mubin works with law enforcement agencies all around the world to help uncover terrorist plots and is most well known for his efforts in the famous “Toronto 18” case which lead to the conviction of eleven aspiring violent extremists.  Get ready to take a ride during this exciting conversation.

Six albums deep and Juno Award winner Kellylee Evans is still shaking it up on Come On, her latest Decca album. The stylistic connoisseur has tackled everything from jazz to R&B and pop in such previous tasty classics fight or flight?, Nina – her Juno-winning tribute to the legendary Nina Simone – and I Remember When. Praised by the Latin Jazz Network for a "gorgeous voice (that) rises to the heavens in rapturous wonder as if in consanguinity with a chorus of angels" and by the Yukon Arts Centre for "a stunning crystalline voice, both powerful and emotive," Evans now pushes her muse firmly into the soulful pop territory with Come On: a wonderfully refreshing album about love and life that comes on the heels of two nearly career-ending accidents: a freak lightning strike in her Ottawa kitchen and further effects of a concussion suffered during a fall at her home. However, Evans is nothing if not resilient: the runner-up of the 2004 Thelonious Monk Competition offers views on love and loss in an alluringly rhythmic approach that has touches of psychedelic pop, resonating soul groove and that je ne sais quoi that is strictly Kellylee and forged by her jazz discipline. From the stirring soul-stomper "Come On" - which combines an effervescent Motown feel with traces of psychedelia – and the funky groove-a-liciousness of "Hands Up" to the string-and-horn-spiced magnetism of "Know His Worth," the 10 songs of Come On find Kellylee at her most magically potent. Produced and co-written by Eric Legnini (Stefano Di Battista), this is post-romantic soul at its finest; a project of strong vision and great execution that signals the return of Kellylee Evans as a bold explorer and interpreter. It only gets better when you experience her live, in her element.

Many people talk about following their heart, but not everyone does it.  Ember Swift is one of those rare people who understands at her core that she has a legacy to create and she’ll be damned if anything is going to get in the way of that.  A single mother of two beautiful children, Ember lives in Beijing where she makes a living as an artist and what it’s taken to get there is jaw dropping.  Ironically, she will be the first one to tell you that it wasn’t as crazy as it seems.  Take a moment and treat yourself to a conversation where Ember offers insights on what it takes to follow your passion, while navigating through the risk, sacrifice and responsibility that comes with it.  

Sultan Akif is an award-winning CEO of two social entrepreneurships, published author, tech professional and speaker who has traveled to and inspired people in over 75 countries of the world. He was recently recognized in the Top 10 Global Changemakers list by The Introducer Magazine. He left a success 17-year career in the technology industry to connect with his purpose and inspire thousands with his story. Prior to his success, Sultan was once a boy who could not afford any books. He is now on a mission to build 100 libraries around the world with his own hands and has completed 23 so far in 7 countries.

Prior to becoming a social entrepreneur and professional speaker, Sultan was a corporate executive for 17 years and performed various senior roles around the world for companies like Microsoft and IBM. In his tech career, he delivered and contributed to over 1.2 billion USD of consulting revenue for some of the largest organizations on the planet. During his travels around the world, he discovered his real purpose which was to empower the next generation leaders, help people overcome personal barriers and set change makers in motion. He has now committed his life to empowerment of people as the CEO of Library in a Week organization and the founder of Experience Your Life Expo, which is one of the largest youth empowerment and employment events in Canada.

Sultan has taken the stage as a professional speaker for only one reason – to drive real change in the hearts and minds of people. He uses his voice and his own personal story to communicate to the world that we are the change the world needs, and we have the power to make a difference. If a very ordinary boy who could not afford any books can build libraries around the world, then anyone can do anything!”