As we adapt to meet the evolving needs of our members, we’re expanding our offering to include more events, programs, and opportunities to connect. With these substantial new additions, we are thrilled to introduce the newest member of the NPC team: Gail Rabbitts de Montbrun , our Chief Growth Officer. She’ll play a key role in helping us deliver the excellent customer service our community has come to expect, while ensuring our financial sustainability.
We sat down with Gail to hear her first impressions of NPC and our innovation community.
NPC: Welcome, Gail. I’m curious, now that you have a couple weeks under your belt, can you give us a word or two to describe what you see at NPC?
Gail: Sure. I’d say ‘productive’ and ‘passionate’. I’m so impressed by the level of output this team has. I honestly can’t believe how much NPC has accomplished with only 10 people. I look at the Game Changers Report that launched recently – it’s an incredible pipeline of vetted innovation that NPC has supported, and the impact is stunning. I think a lot of that is due to the passion. This group is beyond excited about the work they do, and the companies they get to work with. It’s really infectious.
NPC: What attracted you to this position?
Gail: It’s somewhat related to my first answer. When I saw the job post, it looked interesting, but when I spoke to Shelley (NPC’s CEO) during the interview, I could see she had built something really incredible here. Something that had the potential to do so much good for Canada and really, the whole planet. So for me, being able to bring my expertise and energy to such a vibrant organization felt like a really rewarding opportunity.
NPC: Give me some high points of your background.
Gail: My whole career has been helping organizations grow. Whether it was through sales and business development, or implementing process, efficiency and metrics, I’ve had a lot of experience in helping companies reach their full potential in both sales and operational outputs. I’ve been fortunate to generate some great results, like growing a sales funnel from 0 to over 12M in a 6-month time frame and 200% growth in new client acquisition.
NPC: How do you think you’ll help NPC reach its full potential?
Gail: I think NPC has such a strong foundation. The results are already so clear. But there’s so much more potential. The plans to expand the network and create more engagement with corporate, investor, and industry partners really opens up a lot of opportunities. The start-ups have such compelling innovations in so many diverse sectors that are looking for better alternatives. So I see tremendous potential to grow this network in a strategic and measured way that adds more value to all the members.
NPC: What are you most excited about?
Gail: We’ll be launching some interesting new offerings in the next few months that will build on the insights that NPC has gained over the last 8 years. I’m excited to introduce those new opportunities and see the impact they will bring to members. I’m also really looking forward to meeting more of the community – everyone I’ve engaged with so far has been extremely high quality. I can see why NPC has gained such a reputation for being the go-to resource in Canada. Their network is fantastic!
If you’d like to learn more about NPC and the opportunities to engage with its 4000+ network, please contact Gail.
