Diane Armstrong	Gary McCracken
Paul Bruner	Robert Millward
Lee Davidson

 

Diane Armstrong
416.363.8900 x226
diane@mccracken-partners.com

 

In her capacity as Partner in charge of Research and Execution, Diane leads the research, candidate identification and candidate development phases of each assignment, ensuring the balance between thorough, but timely, assignment execution is maximized at all times.

A veteran of the search industry, with over fifteen (15) years experience, Diane has been a key member of the McCracken team for years and a Partner since 2009.  She has worked extensively across virtually all executive and senior management positions in a wide range of settings and industries, in particular, financial organizations including investment management firms, banks, insurance companies and pension plans.

For a number of years, Diane was a Senior Team Leader with a major Bank's internal search and recruitment arm.

While now a highly regarded executive search professional, Diane's first career and passion was in Healthcare, having trained as an RN at Toronto’s highly regarded Wellesley School of Nursing, where she received the Bruce Pin for highest achievement.  Diane subsequently practiced for eight years in intensive care and emergency units in a number of major teaching hospitals, principally as a Charge Nurse in the Medical and Coronary Intensive Care Unit at Wellesley Hospital in downtown Toronto.

In her personal time Diane is both an avid runner and one of Toronto's leading fitness industry professionals, teaching early morning, evening and weekend aerobics, spinning and specialty programs such as duathalon training and Reformer Pilates classes, in fitness facilities in downtown Toronto.  Diane is a certified Pilates Instructor and has successfully completed the 400-hour Yoga Instructors training program.

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Paul Bruner
416.363.8900 x225
paul@mccracken-partners.com

 

Paul is an experienced and talented executive search consultant, having led and completed searches in most functional positions, across a variety of industries.  He is also a seasoned operating executive, having enjoyed success in both multinational organizations and venture capital / private equity backed start-ups.  Having hired hundreds of people and built winning teams in numerous settings, Paul knows first-hand the importance of recruiting the "right people" - the most qualified candidates for your role and circumstances, people who fit with your culture, share your values and vision, and have the talent, energy and enthusiasm to make it a reality.

Paul began his business career with Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) working on strategy and information systems projects in the advertising, brand management, professional services, distribution and manufacturing sectors.  As an entrepreneur, he co-founded and ran successful businesses in the real estate, hotel, technology and human resource sectors.  In each case, great people and outstanding service were the cornerstones of success.

Today, Paul works with a wide variety of search clients in sectors including finance, technology, healthcare, environmental / sustainability and social services.  His clients rely on his broad perspective, strategic thinking, sound judgement and straightforward communication to help them make the best hiring decisions.  

In addition to being an avid tennis player, skier and golfer, Paul spent many years coaching children’s hockey and soccer.  Over the course of his career, he has also contributed to numerous charities and is a committed advocate for environmental sustainability.

Paul is a graduate of the Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario.

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Gary McCracken
416.363.8900 x222
gary@mccracken-partners.com

 

A widely experienced search consultant, Gary has led search assignments for virtually all management functions across a broad range of industries and organizations of all sizes.  He is particularly experienced, enthusiastic and successful working with emerging and other high-growth/change companies and management teams, whose recruitment needs and "fit" issues are both unique and critical to sustainable and accelerating success.

Gary has recruited inaugural CEOs and other founding executives for innovative private sector and unique "private-sector facing" public sector entities, such as Infrastructure Ontario and Waterfront Toronto, as well as high profile Board Directors for public companies and well-known charities.

Gary's work as a client partner/advisor is partially informed by his operating experience as an executive himself.  In his last corporate role, as an Executive Vice President with Barclays Bank of Canada, Gary ran Barclays’ then principal Canadian operation, specifically its mid-market focused wholesale commercial banking division, comprised of eleven (11) fully staffed offices located across Canada.  He also held executive responsibility for Barclays' Leasing and Real Estate financing activities in Canada.

Beyond his financial services and search careers, Gary has served as a Director on charitable Boards, actively participating on and/or chairing key Board Committees, as well as financially supporting these causes, through successful personal fund-raising efforts and direct personal donations.

Gary holds degrees in business and economics, including an MBA from the Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario.

 

 

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Robert Millward
416.363.8900 x300
robert@mccracken-partners.com

 

Bob is long-standing and valued member of the McCracken & Partners team.  An Associate Partner since 2003, Bob primarily acts as an advisor to the firm, keeping us abreast of planning, development and urban design related activities and issues, as well as occasionally assisting with related search assignments.  He is best known as the founder and principal of R. E. Millward & Associates, a respected consulting firm providing development and planning services to investors, developers, businesses, municipal governments and community groups.

Prior to founding R. E. Millward & Associates in 1997, Bob was Commissioner of Planning and Development for the City of Toronto from 1987 to 1996, in which capacity he was actively involved in all aspects of policy formulation, project management and economic development in Toronto.  During his term as Commissioner, Bob was the City of Toronto’s chief strategist and negotiator, successfully dealing with city building issues at the conceptual, administrative, political and technical levels in conjunction with major development projects such as BCE (now Brookfield) Place, the CBC Centre, the Metro Toronto Convention Centre and the Air Canada Centre, to name a few.

Bob also served as Director of the Central Core and Waterfront Division of the former Toronto Planning & Development Department and Director of Planning for the Toronto Housing Department.

A native son of upstate New York, prior to relocating to Toronto in the late 1970s, Bob was Director of Planning for Staten Island, NYC and held other positions in New York City's Department of Planning and Development.

A long-time member of the Canadian Institute of Planners, in 2007 Bob was elevated to Fellow status (FCIP) - the highest honour that can be bestowed by the Institute - in recognition of his outstanding career which, in the words of the Institute, has seen achievements with “professional implications Canada-wide and beyond.”  Bob is also a Full Member of the Washington, DC-based Urban Land Institute (ULI) and an active contributor to the Toronto Board of Trade where he is a member of the Infrastructure Committee and a past Chair of the Planning and Development Committee.

Bob holds a Masters Degree in Urban Planning from New York University and a BA from the University of Rochester, N. Y.

 

 

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Lee Davidson
416.363.8900 x221
lee@mccracken-partners.com

 

In addition to her role as our resident grammarian and copy editor, Lee is both the face of the firm as visitors arrive, as well as the voice of the firm when callers phone in.

However, she pretty much runs everything behind the scenes as well.  The scope of these responsibilities ranges from maintaining and securing our 25,000+ record database – an important job in itself - through coordinating schedules, choreographing interviews, producing all reports, presentations, proposals and other documents, to managing a myriad of other administrative matters, all integral to the smooth operation of the office.

Prior to joining McCracken & Partners in 2005, Lee contributed her considerable personal and professional skills to a wide variety of industries, including publishing, law, computer hardware, software development and management consulting.

Armed with a triple major B. A. in English, French and Education, followed by a Masters degree in English and two years of law school, Lee’s formidable written and oral communication skills are valued assets to the firm.