Mission & Objectives
Our Mission:
To support ERM leaders (Risk Practitioners, Chief Risk Officers, and other Executives) to:
improve their organization’s capabilities to handle the risks in their business environment and
embed a risk lens into their organization’s strategic decisions.
Our Objectives:
To establish and nurture a community of ERM professionals in Canada;
To support the development of ERM professionals at every phase of their career; and
To enable ERM professionals to enhance their organization’s strategic risk management capabilities and integrate a risk lens into decision making.
What We Do
We provide peer-to-peer networking and education through in-person and online events.
Our events are focused on bringing ERM professionals groundbreaking ideas, and innovative perspectives, tools, and techniques they can use to enhance their enterprise risk management skills and their organization’s ERM practices.
All events also have a networking component to foster relationships and community among ERM professionals.
LEADERSHIP
LEADERS COUNCIL
The Society’s activities and initiatives to elevate the practice of enterprise risk management and support Canada’s ERM community are delivered by a volunteer Leaders Council.
CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS: In 2026, we are seeking additional volunteers to expand the Leaders Council in order to accelerate the building of the Society’s ability to grow and serve the community of ERM practitioners. SERMP members who wish to contribute to the Society’s growth and ongoing development are encouraged to log into the Member’s Portal and volunteer for one of the working groups/committees. All working group members will automatically become part of the Advisory Board.
The Leaders Council is comprised of the following volunteer members:
Mohsen Aghabegloo, Chair, Membership Value Proposition & Marketing Committee
Beatrice Bairos-Driedger, Member, Events Committee
Diana Del Bel Belluz, Chair, Advisory Board, and Member, Operations Infrastructure Committee, and Member, Membership Value Proposition & Marketing Committee
Jeffrey A. Johnson, Chair, Partners & Sponsors Committee
Taran Kaur, Chair, Member Recruitment
Frank Massey, Member, Events Committee
Rupak Mazumdar, Member, Strategy & Governance Committee
Monica Merrifield, Chair, Strategy & Governance Committee
Milena Nazaruk, Member, Strategy & Governance Committee
Rob Quail, Member, Strategy & Governance Committee and Member, Membership Value Proposition & Marketing Committee
Joanna Schoneveld, Chair, Partners & Sponsors Committee, and Member, Strategy & Governance Committee
Maja Shkolnik, Member, Events Committee
Catherine Taylor, Chair, Events Committee
Serene Tellou, Chair, Operations Infrastructure Committee
Mauricio Vasquez, Member, Partners & Sponsors Committee
Issy Vlaykova, Member, Membership Value Proposition & Marketing Committee
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Upon incorporating as a Not-for-Profit in August 2026, the following inaugural Board of Directors was established to govern the Society:
Serene Tellou, Chair of the Board
Mohsen Aghabegloo, Treasurer
Taran Kaur, Secretary
Diana Del Bel Belluz, Executive Director
In addition to establishing governance structures and policies, one of the first objectives of the Society’s Board of Directors is to establish an open, fair, transparent and efficient process to recruit board members going forward.
All members of SERMP’s inaugural Board of Directors are volunteers and also serve on at least one committee of the Society’s Leaders Council.
Our partners
The Society of ERM Professionals strives to provide a network for all leaders who have responsibility for managing risks to their organization.
We know that enterprise risk professionals come from various disciplinary backgrounds (e.g., strategic planning, finance, operations, engineering, audit, scenario planning, etc.) We also recognize that the role risk leaders hold in their organization can vary widely (e.g., Chief Executive Officer, Chief Risk Officer, Chief Financial Officer, General Counsel, etc.) and that these leaders are supported by professionals from across their organizations.
Therefore we seek to partner with other professional associations and organizations whose members may have an enterprise risk management role and would therefore benefit from the opportunity to learn from their ERM peers.
We are delighted to welcome the Schulich School of Business at York University as a partner. Schulich ExecEd offers a masters certificate program in ERM and Governance.
To learn more about partnership opportunities, please reach out to info@societyofERMprofessionals.com
Our HISTORY
January 2016: An informal cross-industry ERM networking forum is born
The group had its start in January 2016 at an informal pub night in Toronto. The aim was to bring together local ERM professionals from a wide range of industries and disciplinary backgrounds. Given that most organizations tend to have only 1- 2 people in an ERM role, the event participants appreciated the opportunity to compare notes with their peers in other sectors. The participants wanted to keep the networking going and the ‘Toronto ERM Community’ was born.
2016-2024: The network expands and evolves
The group quickly grew to over 175 ERM leaders and risk management practitioners. In the early years, the network held three to four meetings a year to enable ERM professionals to exchange ideas and experiences with their peers. Later, in response members’ requests for more opportunities to learn about how organizations are improving their ERM practices, speakers were added to the networking sessions. In 2020, online meetings were added to accommodate restrictions on gathering during the COVID-19 pandemic. This allowed the network to grow beyond the Greater Toronto Area.
2025: Proving the viability of an association for ERM professionals
From its inception, the network was supported by a small core of volunteers. This model limited the network’s ability to meet members’ needs. It became clear that establishing a formal not-for-profit structure could provide a stable basis to grow the network and enhance its ability to provide members high-quality peer-to-peer networking, professional development events, and other resources to support their development as ERM professionals.
Thus, in early 2025, an Advisory Board was established to explore the feasibility of transitioning from an informal network to a formal professional association - the Society of ERM Professionals (SERMP). The professionals who volunteered to serve on the Advisory Board collectively represented deep experience in ERM across a wide range of economic sectors. By the end of 2025, the Advisory Board defined the Society’s mission and objectives, established an online presence, hosted a highly successful inaugural event, and welcomed many ‘founding’ members. It became evident that the Society would be viable.
2026: Incorporation as a Not-for-Profit and building the core structures to strengthen and serve the ERM community
In early 2026, the Advisory Board reorganized itself into a set of committees that represent the core structures necessary to operate the Society as a not-for-profit professional association including:
Strategy, Governance & Incorporation
Membership Value Proposition & Marketing
Events Programming & Logistics
Sponsors & Partners
Operational Infrastructure
In late August, the Society was incorporated under the Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act. Upon incorporation, a founding Board of Directors was established to govern the Society. The Advisory Board was renamed Leaders Council to better reflect the hands-on role of its volunteer members in shaping and building the Society.
Our FUTURE
A call to ERM professionals to help build their new Society
Going forward, the success of SERMP will depend first and foremost on the support of the ERM community.
Therefor, the Society calls on ERM Professionals from across Canada to help put the Society on a strong footing in order to serve the ERM community this year and far into the future.
If you are an ERM Professional (or aspire to become one) , here are three concrete things you can do in 2026 to support & build your new Society:
JOIN the Society. Click to become a member today and begin enjoying the benefits of SERMP membership.
VOLUNTEER at this critical phase of development as an organization. Help shape the Society and deliver value to members. Members are encouraged to volunteer for one of the Leaders Council Committees (see ‘Volunteer Opportunities’ listed in the Members Portal).
ATTEND events of Society (either in-person or virtually). Members will be notified as new events are scheduled. It is in coming together that we establish the relationships that help us in our individual careers and nurture a strong professional community.