Meet the Faculty

Karen Kavanagh, Coordinator/Professor, MBA

Karen KavanaghKaren Kavanagh has over 15 years experience working in the advertising and marketing industry in both Toronto and Ottawa. Her career has been primarily on the business side of advertising, working in both account planning and media planning roles. She has worked on B2B, B2C and non-profit accounts targeting local, national and international markets. However, she has extensive experience planning and executing campaigns internationally, including the US, UK, France, Germany, Japan, China and Australia. Karen specializes in digital marketing and has developed and led teams to execute online advertising plans, mobile campaigns, digital applications, websites, search engine campaigns, online direct marketing, and social media plans. Karen is a proud graduate of the College’s Advertising program, and also has a Psychology degree from the University of Ottawa and an Executive MBA from the Telfer School of Management.


Liz Babiak, Coordinator/Professor, MSc

Liz is a digital marketer and strategist with a penchant for social media marketing. Before finding her passion for teaching, she held various marketing positions at Algonquin College and in the not-for-profit, private, and public sectors. Liz has worked in both big and small teams to create digital content and advertising, drive revenue, organize events, and build digital communities. Some of her favourite social media initiatives include working with musician Jason Mraz for an Instagram photo contest and tweeting with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. She is a proud graduate of the Advertising program at Algonquin College and holds a Master of Science in Marketing from Heriot-Watt University in Scotland.


Laura Thorsell, Coordinator/Professor, MA

Laura began her career in advertising at Ogilvy in Toronto, in client services. This sparked a 20-year career in marketing, brand management, and sales. She won many corporate awards for her work in marketing strategy and in leadership, and then began marketing and management consulting mainly for not-for-profit organizations. Some career highlights include, creating an internal agency at GlaxoSmithKline, designing first-of-its kind business models for the 2010 Olympics (2010 LegaciesNow), and later leading North American marketing task forces as a Brand Manager at Mead Johnson Nutrition. Laura has a BA(H) in Communications from Queen’s University and a Master of Leadership from Royal Roads University. She’s enjoyed managing marketing and brand research and has published research on engagement. She recently became a peer reviewer for The Canadian Journal of Higher Education. She’s now a proud full-time Professor in the School of Media and Design.

 


Greg Wheeler, Professor

Greg Wheeler

Greg Wheeler is a Registered Graphic Designer and advertising art director with 15 years of experience in the design and advertising industries. He graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Alberta College of Art and Design, where he majored in Visual Communications. Greg first worked as a freelance designer and illustrator, then moved on to several publishing, design and advertising firms in various design and art direction roles, leading to his favorite period as Associate Creative Director at Mediaplus Advertising in Ottawa. At Mediaplus, he worked on teams helping to build brands in the travel and tourism, high-tech, retail, cultural and not-for-profit sectors.


Jake Volt, Professor

Jake Volt

Jake is a graduate of Centennial College’s Creative Advertising Program and has 30 years of experience in Toronto’s and Ottawa’s advertising industries. Jake has spent his entire career as a copywriter and creative director. He has extensive experience in all media and has worked for a diverse list of national and local clients in retail, packaged goods, government, tech, not-for-profit, associations, and business-to-business. Prior to joining Algonquin, Jake spent ten years as a Creative Director at Ottawa’s McMillan agency. Jake’s work has won awards from the Marketing Awards, International Radio Festival of New York, The Bessies, Communication Arts, Applied Arts, Graphic Designers of Canada, The Telly Awards, The Davey Awards, W3, numerous Ottawa Ad and Sales, and many Summit Awards.