Pender & Howe Executive Search welcomes new Board of Advisors

Ally Bharmal

Ally is a Partner and business lawyer at a leading international law firm, specializing in corporate finance, M&A, corporate/commercial and board governance. He advises clients across the business life cycle—from startup matters to complex M&A, venture capital and private equity transactions.  Ally has particular expertise in the technology and food and beverage industries. He has advised on many of Canada’s leading transactions, including Galvanize’s $1 billion sale to Diligent, SmartSweets’ majority exit to TPG Growth and Daiya Foods’ $405 million sale to Otsuka.

He holds an ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors and currently serves as Corporate Secretary for Unbounce Marketing Solutions and Daiya Foods, and as a Board Advisor for DeeBee’s Organics. He has also served on various non-profit boards.  Ally’s awards include Lexpert’s Leading Lawyers under 40, and he is recognized by Chambers Canada, Lexpert, and IFLR1000 as a leading lawyer in Startups and Emerging Companies, Corporate/Commercial Law, M&A and Corporate Finance.

Trinh Tham

Trinh is a seasoned retail and consumer brands executive with a passion for creating value for customers and delivering impactful business results. She is the Founder of Straatt Business Reimagined, a strategy and business consulting practice. She is an accomplished business strategist who has proven expertise in strategic planning, P&L management, brand building, retail growth, digital innovation, e-Commerce, CRM & Loyalty, operational excellence, and breakthrough content & creative.

Trinh thrives at the intersection of culture and business and has held executive leadership positions growing some of Canada’s favourite brands including Harry Rosen, Loblaw Companies Limited, Sobeys Inc., Tim Hortons, and Bell Media.

Trinh is honoured to serve on the boards of Chatters Limited Partnership (an operating company of ONCAP), Canadian Women in Sport and Herzing College. 

Didier Leconte

Didier is a highly experienced investor and esteemed figure in the Canadian life sciences sector. Didier has played a pivotal role in collaborating with entrepreneurs and funds to drive the life science sector forward as Vice-President, Life Science & Technology for Investissement Quebec and Vice-President Life Sciences and Funds-of-Funds at Fonds de solidarité FTQ.

Prior to that, he was actively involved in technology transfer and managed a seed investment fund affiliated with renowned universities. 

Didier holds a MBA, Technology Management & Innovation from the Université du Québec à Montréal, a certification in governance from Université Laval and an engineering degree in Material sciences from École d’ingénieurs Sup Galilée, Institut Galilée, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord.

He sits on the Board of Directors of Congruence Therapeutics, DalCor Pharmaceutical, Morphocell Technologies, and the Institut de Recherche Clinique de Montréal. He also helps several clients in the life sciences and investment sector as an advisor and strategist.

Sachi Kittur

Sachi is a strategic human capital advisor with over 20 years of experience driving talent and growth strategies across technology and telecom companies. Known for her progressive, people-centered approach, Sachi has led People and HR functions at companies like Sigma Systems, Yahoo Canada, Terago Networks, Mercatus Technologies, and StickerYou.com, where she played a key role in supporting 5-10x growth. Today, she leverages this expertise as a mentor and advisor to CEOs and founders in PE, VC, and tech incubators. 

As an entrepreneur, Sachi founded Sachili, a premium CPG brand, and later pivoted to create goCPG.ai, a tech platform providing data-driven insights for emerging CPG brands. goCPG draws on her deep tech startup roots to empower founders with smarter, more profitable decision-making.

Sachi is also an active speaker and panelist across Tech/HR and CPG events and communities. She is an active volunteer with Habitat for Humanity and recently served on the board of PTP (Pathway to Possibilities), supporting literacy and job skills training across the GTA.

Louis Kelemen

Louis brings over 35 years of executive experience helping early-stage and high-growth SMEs scale profitably through innovation, strategic planning, and change management. As President and CEO of Stratagos Group C-Suite Strategy Solutions, Louis serves in interim or contract C-level roles, including CEO, President, COO, and CRO, where he focuses on operational improvements, client relationships, financing, and contract negotiation.

With a background spanning SaaS, manufacturing, healthcare, construction, and engineering, Louis has successfully led growth and turnaround initiatives across multiple industries. He is also a member of the Virtual Advisory Board, where he provides advisory services supported by his extensive industry network.

Louis is an active member of the Young Presidents’ Organization and World Presidents’ Organization, holding various leadership roles since 2002. He holds a BSc and BE in Mechanical Engineering with an Economics Minor from the University of Calgary.