Experience

Queen's University - Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science

• Canada
• Higher Education
• 100 - 200 Employee

• Director of Marketing & Communications

  • Jul 2020 - Present

  Engineering is where the world gets built -- and rebuilt -- constantly, and I'm proud to be the steward of the brand and storytelling of Canada's greatest engineering school, leading a growing team on marketing initiatives ranging from program launches to web redevelopment; from thought leadership to fundraising. Students pushing the boundaries of the possible, in labs at the bleeding edge of technology, working with faculty and alumni who have changed the face of everything from nanotechnology to biomechanics. I'm at the nexus of a place where future thinking becomes our daily reality. My first few years in the role have seen restructuring, rehiring and 250% growth of the marketing and communications unit; an ambitious project to "insource" a comprehensive web redevelopment project for a best-in-class engineering web presence; a brand identity overhaul; a redefinition of our USP and undergrad recruitment messaging; bringing internal communications into the unit and completely overhauling the Faculty's internal comms structure and processes; and ongoing support for research promulgation, alumni/advancement fundraising, graduate studies recruitment and more. As a complex faculty with five departments and twelve programs, a restructuring and new approach to brand and brand story requires work grounded in collaboration, diplomacy, and the ability to hew to the faculty's strategic vision while aligning others to the same goals. From the dean to individual program assistants, the core work is in not only developing a brand strategy but aligning the organization around it. The unit and role has extended beyond traditional storytelling marketing and communications to now encompass undergrad recruitment, internal and external event planning, and alumni communications and events. The breadth of the portfolio presents unique opportunities for synergy and brand development; I'm excited to be in a role and unit whose full potential is yet to be realized. Show less



Queen's Law

• Canada
• Higher Education
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Director of Marketing and Communications

  • Jul 2014 - Jun 2020

  I directed brand development and stewardship at Canada's finest law school, including building a visual identity for the faculty (and later our law clinics) and the launch of multiple successful new programs. I also oversaw alumni relations, including digital fundraising and annual giving. A six-year mandate was a build-from-scratch approach to the faculty's brand, vision and strategic approach. We reinvented recruitment for our JD and graduate programs, saw exponential expansion of alumni communications and fundraising, and the created and launched three entirely new, online-only, national revenue-generating programs that took the law school beyond the JD and into providing access to justice through education nationally and internationally. The scope of my role extended from strategic planning through marketing and communications and alumni relations, supported by a small but incredible group of people that punch far above their weight. I built a team and an approach that champions story-driven marketing, communications and alumni engagement. The unique nature of this role -- very few organizations bundle alumni relations into the marketing and communications position -- gave me an opportunity to deliver a coherent and aligned brand and story, from high school through to 50-year alumni. We've seen our marketing/communications/alumni relations strategy transition from a newsroom model to opportunity-driven models, integrating both traditional storytelling tools and the latest digital best practices to champion our unique story as Canada's greatest -- and most innovative -- law school. Show less



Lemieux Bédard

• Canada
• Advertising Services
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Senior Strategic Director

  • May 2013 - Jun 2014

  Working with both the client and our internal team, I provided creative and strategic direction from initial client meetings through concept execution, including brand and market analysis. My role also encompassed responsibility over our agency's English-language content, both directly in the creation and execution of creative concepts, and indirectly through the supervision, training and capacity-building of our internal team of writers and editors. Working with both the client and our internal team, I provided creative and strategic direction from initial client meetings through concept execution, including brand and market analysis. My role also encompassed responsibility over our agency's English-language content, both directly in the creation and execution of creative concepts, and indirectly through the supervision, training and capacity-building of our internal team of writers and editors.



Lemieux Bedard

• Creative Strategist

  • Oct 2005 - May 2013

  I specialize in a fused marketing approach; first, direct client contact to discuss brand narratives, history and goals, then bringing that back to our creative team to find solutions to the marketing problems presented. I specialize in a fused marketing approach; first, direct client contact to discuss brand narratives, history and goals, then bringing that back to our creative team to find solutions to the marketing problems presented.



Fiction Fights

• Creator/Administrator

  • 2011 - 2013

  Creator/designer of a novel web platform fusing short-fiction writing and head-to-head competition. Wildly acclaimed in its infancy, I was the project's creator, with work including hiring programmers and designers, organizing user testing and investigating venture funding. Creator/designer of a novel web platform fusing short-fiction writing and head-to-head competition. Wildly acclaimed in its infancy, I was the project's creator, with work including hiring programmers and designers, organizing user testing and investigating venture funding.



SLG Publishing, Ape Entertainment

• Writer

  • 2005 - 2010

  Wrote an array of comics, from the critically lauded Dead Eyes Open to the short-lived (but brilliant) adaptation of the 19th-century novel Captain Blood. Wrote an array of comics, from the critically lauded Dead Eyes Open to the short-lived (but brilliant) adaptation of the 19th-century novel Captain Blood.



Stevenson & Writers

• Translator/Editor/Writer

  • Oct 1998 - Oct 2005

  Edited translations, performed FR-EN translations, wrote original copy and text for varied clients. Edited translations, performed FR-EN translations, wrote original copy and text for varied clients.



CJMQ 88.9 FM

• Station Manager

  • 1996 - 1998

  Ran a team of over 200 volunteers as the first station manager of a new campus/community FM station. Ran a team of over 200 volunteers as the first station manager of a new campus/community FM station.



The Eyeopener

• Toronto, ON

• Editor In Chief

  • 1994 - 1995

  Editor in Chiefing. Editor in Chiefing.