This isn’t your typical networking event. Think of it as “speed dating” with some of Ottawa’s top communications leaders. You’ll get real-world insights and tips in a relaxed, informal setting. Rotate in small-groups. This format skips the small talk and dives into topics that matter most to your career.
Speakers:
Natasha Commanda: Entrepreneurship and Non-linear Career Paths
Andrea Greenhous, IABC Fellow: Internal Communications
Benoit Laplante, SCMP (Fully Bilingual): Communications as a Business Partner and Certification
Samantha Rae Ayoub, MA, CMP: Strategic Science Communications
Kelly Rusk: Digital Media and Communications
Location: Gabriel Pizza, 100 Metcalfe Street
Cost: $25 for members $40 for non-members (Limited spots available)
Included: Pizza included. Drinks can be purchased on-site.
Why you should attend
Maximize your professional connections. This format ensures you meet a wide range of communication leaders
Gain candid, real-world advice from industry professionals who have navigated everything from science communication to global brand management
Explore industry niches including internal communications, digital strategy and Indigenous entrepreneurship
Speaker Bios
Natasha Commanda
Natasha Commanda is an Algonquin and Ojibway from Kitigan Zibi and Grassy Narrows, an entrepreneur and communications strategist. As the founder of Indigenous Gifts, she has shipped over 24,000 orders across 40+ countries since 2020, and launched another company FN Clean Water in 2022 to give back to First Nations communities to access clean water. Her non-linear journey into business has been shaped by community, storytelling, and lived experience, and she now focuses on building purpose-driven work that uplifts Indigenous voices.
Andrea Greenhous
Andrea’s life’s purpose is to make the world of work better.
For over 30 years, Andrea has helped organizations improve the employee experience and build workplaces where people thrive. As founder and president of Vision2Voice, an internal
communications agency, Andrea and her talented team help organizations adopt a strategic approach to employee communications to help them achieve results.
Andrea has played a leading role in initiatives and transformation projects for Fortune 500 technology companies, large government departments, and organizations as diverse as,
construction, biotech, finance, and higher education. This has led to a signature approach emphasizing harnessing employee voices and amplifying their insights and ideas.
Andrea builds long-term relationships with Vision2Voice clients who trust her deep insight and practical advice. Andrea has been called a masterful facilitator, a breath of fresh air, inspiring and innovative. Her kids would add a few more things to that list!
Andrea is a storyteller, a PROSCI-certified change leader, and Dare to Lead-trained based on the work and research of Brené Brown. She is also a certified Fearless Organization Practitioner and uses the tools and processes developed by Amy C. Edmondson, the Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management at Harvard Business School, to build psychological safety in teams.
Andrea is a Fellow of the International Association of Business Communicators, a member of the Thought Leadership Circle at the Internal Communication Research Hub (ICRH) at the University of Florida, and has been named a top 10 influencer in internal communications.
Benoit Laplante
Benoit Laplante is a marketing executive at CPCS leading the growth of the company’s global brand and marketing platform, supporting market engagement, lead generation, and reputation building.
A certified Strategic Communications Management Professional (SCMP), Benoit helps organizations solve complex business challenges through clear, disciplined, and outcome‑driven communications. He brings more than 15 years of experience spanning brand and reputation management, change and transformation initiatives, employee engagement, media
relations, sales enablement, and stakeholder management. Fully bilingual, he operates fluently in English and French across domestic and international contexts.
Prior to joining CPCS, Benoit supported enterprise‑wide transformation initiatives as part of the Program Management Office at the Royal Canadian Mint, contributing to strategic communications and change management for large‑scale organizational programs. Before that, he led high‑impact media and public affairs initiatives at the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), generating record‑setting national coverage by translating complex data and studies into compelling stories that informed public discourse and policy decisions
across Canada.
Education
Master of Business Administration, UQO
Graduate Certificate, Change Management, UQO
Undergraduate Certificate, Work and Organizational Psychology, UQO
Bachelor’s Degree, Communications, University of Ottawa
Professional Credential: Strategic Communications Management
Professional (SCMP), Global Communication Certification Council
Samantha Rae Ayoub
Samantha Rae Ayoub is a strategic communications leader with 20 years of experience at the intersection of science communication, knowledge mobilization, and government relations. She specializes in helping organizations translate complex ideas into credible narratives that increase the visibility, influence, and real-world impact of their work.
Samantha has held positions as Vice President, Communications and Knowledge Mobilization at Canada’s Stem Cell Network, led the communications department at the Council of Canadian Academies, and supported policy work at the Office of the National Science Advisor to the Prime Minister.
Now leading her own consultancy, Samantha advises senior executives, researchers, and in-house communications teams to strengthen organizational narratives and develop strategies that bring clarity to complex issues, particularly within the fields of health and life sciences.
Samantha serves on the boards of IABC Canada East Region and CHD2 Canada. She holds a Master’s in Professional Communication and is a certified Communications Management Professional (CMP).
Kelly Rusk
Kelly Rusk is founder and CEO of Aura - a new Canadian career building app that provides intelligent job matching while teaching networking and reputation building skills. She’s also the president of KRC Digital which provides fractional marketing and communications leadership to growing companies and training. She’s a part time professor at Algonquin College in the Advertising, Marketing and Communications Management program and a past Forty under 40 recipient in Ottawa.