Josie Graham - Director, Projects and Studies

Josie joined the Canadian Innovation Centre in 2003 and since that time Josie has provided Business Planning and Market Entry strategies, along with Validation Assessments and Alignment studies. More recently she has been invited back for the third time to participate as a Business Advisor for CBC TV’s Dragons’ Den television show and now also on their spin off show, Fortune Hunters. In the past, she has conducted CSI surveys for JD Edwards’ automotive clients and managed a medium sized call centre specializing in lead generation for hi-tech companies where she successfully promoted a North American and European seminar series for one of them. Prior to the above, Josie managed operations and acted as the information gatekeeper for Business Development Consortium projects, being instrumental in taking a concept and then creating the plan and the tools needed to bring that concept successfully to market. 

Over her 25 years in business, she has worked at General Motors Diesel Division in Locomotive and LAV Sales, as well as in Finance. In the Business Development Department at Sparton Electronics, Josie played a key role as the company moved from a defense contractor to contract manufacturing.  She has launched a record company that produced 4 albums all of which were nominated for national music awards and marketed, using public relations and direct selling, the recordings of several Canadian artists to radio stations and music retailers.
Her experiences include building image and corporate identity, taking the lead on the market analysis for a major Canadian Medical office management software provider allowing them to retain their position as the largest medical office management provider in Ontario and helping client companies gain that edge for a strategic advantage.  She has developed winning sales teams and established sales channels for a Waterloo based mathematical software company in Europe, Latin America and the Asia Pacific regions.