Professor Jan Klakurka's background spans twenty years in consulting and industry, most recently as Director, Corporate Planning & Development. Now as Assistant Professor at Huron University College and long-standing sessional Lecturer at Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, Jan’s research interests are directed toward the intersection of strategic planning, lucid foresight, and governance. Having led end-to-end initiatives at Fortune 500 and public-sector clients, Jan energetically shares this holistic experience with students in experiential settings. Jan is a Chartered Director, Chartered Professional Accountant, and Certified Management Consultant.
Dr. Bill Irwin is an Assistant Professor at Huron University College in the Department of Economics and Business, where he instructs in the area of Management and Organizational Studies. He also instructs Program and Policy Evaluation at Western University in the Department of Political Science in the Masters in Public Administration Program, and Educational Evaluation in the MEd program at the Faculty of Education. Dr. Irwin's research interests centers on issues of policy, leadership, and community engagement. He is interested in exploring models of program and policy evaluation focused on qualitative evaluation and on outcome and impact analysis; with principal interest focused on the interplay between institutions and community.
The keynote speakers outline how post-secondary educators engaged in private sector consolation activities bring multidimensional benefits to both their educational institution and students. For the consulting academic, clients provide a wealth of information regarding current practice; “real world” case study material; and, help to ground their institutional research in practicality. For the clients, seeking advice from academics may be quite different than the services provided by traditional consulting firms; in turn leading to potentially better (and more than likely different) outcomes. Finally, in the classroom, the academic-consultant can provide experiential opportunities that link theory to practice and offer students coveted real-world knowledge. All sides win; but the biggest benefactor is the academic, who researches, consults and teaches, given the possibility of deeper relationships and insights.
