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Board Members

We Lead By Example

Deborah Robinson

Chairman of the Board

Deborah Robinson

Chair of the Board

Deborah Robinson was appointed Chair of the Board in August 2022, and has been a director of PLC since June, 2018. Ms. Robinson is the founder and President of Bay Street HR, an outsourced human resources provider. Prior to founding Bay Street HR, Ms. Robinson was Executive Director at CIBC World Markets, where she oversaw human resources for Investment Banking, Merchant Banking and Loan Products. She also held senior HR positions at Fidelity Investments and American Express in Boston and New York City. Ms. Robinson is also a director and Chair of the Governance and Nominating Committee of Timbercreek Financial (TSX: TF) and Chairs the Governance and Compensation Committee of GlobalX Airlines (NEO: JET). From 2014-2017 she was a board director and committee member of the Human Resources and Compensation Committee, and the Governance, Risk, and Strategy Committee of VIA Rail Canada Inc. Ms. Robinson is a graduate of the Directors Education Program at the Institute of Corporate Directors and holds an ICD designation.

Paul G. Smith, ICD.D

Chairman of the Board

Paul G. Smith, ICD.D

Chairman of the Board

Paul G. Smith was appointed PLC’s Chairman of the Board in February 2020 and has been a director of PLC since May 2016. Over his career, Mr. Smith has held the positions of CFO, CEO, director and Chairman. He was Chair of VIA Rail Canada’s Board of Directors from 2010 to 2014 after having joined the board in September 2006 and was President and CEO of Equity Financial Holdings Inc. (TSX: EQI), a Canadian financial services firm he co-founded whose principal subsidiary is an OSFI-regulated deposit-taking institution. Mr. Smith is a director of several companies and, before joining the private sector, served as Executive Assistant to the Prime Minister of Canada. Mr. Smith holds a Master of Business Administration from INSEAD (France), a Master of Arts in Public Administration from Carleton University, and undergraduate degrees (Accounting, Political Science) from the University of Ottawa. Mr. Smith completed the Directors’ Education Program of the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD) and holds the ICD.D designation.

Marilyn Brophy

Director

Marilyn Brophy is a retired senior investment executive and former Managing Director, Head of Equity Research at CIBC Asset Management, where she served for eight years. Prior to joining CIBC, Ms. Brophy was the Director, Equity Research at UBS Global Asset Management (Canada) Co. for approximately seven years. Ms. Brophy is an accomplished business leader with substantial experience in multiple disciplines including investment management, equity capital markets, company strategic analysis, risk assessment and the development of organizational capability. Most recently, she acted as a builder and leader of one of Canada’s largest buy-side equity research teams. Alongside this role, she also co-managed approximately $5 billion of equity assets on behalf of institutional and retail investors. Ms. Brophy holds a Master of Business Administration from Queen’s University, Master of Arts – Economics from McMaster University, Bachelor of Arts – BA, Honours – Economics from Queen’s University, Chartered Director designation from The Directors College, and the Chartered Financial Analyst designation from the CFA Institute.

Marilyn Brophy

Director

Amy Freedman

Director

Amy Freedman

Director

Amy Freedman is the Partner and Head of Engagement Fund Investing at Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd., an independent Canadian boutique investment firm that manages equity and credit strategies with a focus on North American small-capitalization companies and high yield bonds.  Prior to joining Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd., Ms. Freedman was the Chief Executive Officer of Kingsdale Advisors, a shareholder services and advisory firm specializing in strategic and defensive advisory, governance advisory, proxy and voting analytics and investor communications. A seasoned capital markets professional, with over 15 years of experience in investment banking, Ms. Freedman began her career at Morgan Stanley in New York where she spent approximately four years executing lead managed equity transactions and client coverage. Thereafter, Ms. Freedman moved back to Toronto with National Bank Financial and most recently served as Managing Director, Equity Capital Markets for Stifel where she spent eight years with the organization and its predecessors. Ms. Freedman has extensive experience leading transaction management and positioning companies for success in the marketplace across a broad spectrum of industries. Ms. Freedman obtained her JD/MBA from the University of Toronto.

Deborah Robinson

Director

Deborah Robinson is the founder and President of Bay Street HR, an outsourced human resources service provider to small and mid-sized financial and professional service firms. Prior to founding Bay Street HR, Ms. Robinson was Executive Director at CIBC World Markets, where she oversaw human resources for global Investment Banking, Merchant Banking and Loan Products. She also held senior HR positions at Fidelity Investments and American Express in Boston and New York City. Ms. Robinson sits on the board and is the Chair of the Governance and Compensation Committee of Canada Jetlines Ltd. (TSX-V: JET). She previously sat on the board of Frontline Technologies Inc., a TSX-listed company, and was also a member of the Human Resources Committee, of which she was later named Chairperson. From 2014-2017 she was a board director and committee member of the Human Resources and Compensation Committee, and the Corporate Governance, Risk, and Strategy Committee of VIA Rail Canada Inc. Ms. Robinson holds a Bachelor’s Degree and is also a graduate of the Directors Education Program at the Institute of Corporate Directors and holds a ICD.D designation.

Deborah Robinson

Director

Steven R. Scott

Director

Steven R. Scott

Director

Steven R. Scott has been a director of PLC since April 2014. Mr. Scott is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of StorageVault Canada (TSXV: SVI) and an owner and Chief Executive Officer of The Access Group of Companies. He has over 20 years of experience in the ownership, acquisition, development and management of self storage, residential and commercial real estate in Canada. Mr. Scott serves as an Independent Director and Audit Committee Chair of both Timbercreek Financial Corporation (TSX: TF) and Park Lawn Corporation (TSX: PLC). Mr. Scott serves as Director and Treasurer of the Canadian Self Storage Association (CSSA). He holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree and the CPA and CA designations.

John Ward

Director

John Ward has been a director of PLC since August 2013. Mr. Ward is a fourth generation Funeral Director and co-owner at Ward Funeral Homes Limited, a highly respected independent funeral operator in the Greater Toronto Area, and is actively involved in the funeral industry in Ontario.

John Ward

Director

Elijio Serrano

Director

Elijio Serrano

Director

Elijio V. Serrano is the Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of TETRA Technologies Inc. (NYSE: TTI), a geographically diversified industrial and oil and gas services company headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas. Prior to joining TETRA Technologies Inc., Mr. Serrano served as Chief Financial Officer of UniversalPegasus International, a global project management, engineering and construction management company, from October 2009 through July 2012.

Prior to his time with UniversalPegasus, he held numerous leadership positions at Paradigm BV, EGL, and Schlumberger. Mr. Serrano also served as Director, Chairman of the Audit Committee, and as a member of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee of Tesco Corporation until its acquisition by Nabors in December 2017.

Mr. Serrano received his B.B.A. degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of Texas at El Paso. Mr. Serrano was a certified public accountant in the State of Texas from 1986 until March 2002.

John Nies

Director

John A. Nies is the Managing Partner at JMH Capital Partners, LLC, a private equity firm based in Boston, Massachusetts. Mr. Nies has been investing in private equity since 2000 and has spent his entire career helping companies grow and become more profitable in a variety of operating and advisory capacities.

Prior to joining JMH Capital, Mr. Nies was a Managing Director–Operations at Parthenon Capital where he was responsible for deal evaluation, due diligence, and the successful development of portfolio companies, including MedAssets and Kenexa. Following its IPO, Mr. Nies was a director of Kenexa (NYSE: KNXA), where he served as its Lead Independent Director, as well as a member of its audit and governance committees, prior to its acquisition by IBM in 2012.

Before joining Parthenon Capital, Mr. Nies was a founding member and Managing Director of The Parthenon Group, a management consulting firm founded in 1991, where he advised CEOs of Fortune 500 companies as well as smaller companies in over 30 industries. While in consulting, Mr. Nies’ area of expertise was competitive strategy development, including performance assessment, M&A, operations improvement, and acquisition integration.

Mr. Nies earned a Bachelor of Arts from Dartmouth College, summa cum laude, and a Masters of Business Administration, with distinction, from Harvard Business School.

John Nies

Director

Brad Green

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Brad Green

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER & DIRECTOR

J. Bradley Green was President of PLC from May of 2018 through March 31, 2020 wherein he was appointed the Interim Chief Executive Officer and officially appointed Chief Executive Officer effective June 22, 2020. Mr. Green has over 14 years of experience in the funeral and cemetery profession. Prior to joining PLC, Mr. Green served as a founder, owner and the Chief Executive Officer of Signature. Prior to founding Signature, he was the Executive Vice President and General Counsel of another publicly traded funeral and cemetery industry consolidator. During that time, he was responsible for many corporate functions, including acquisitions. In addition to his industry experience, Mr. Green is a licensed attorney with an extensive legal background, including work at two international law firms and serving as the General Counsel for a large, international transportation company.

Jay Dodds

President, CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER & DIRECTOR

Jay Dodds has over 39 years of experience in the funeral and cemetery profession. He holds a funeral directors and embalmers license in both Texas and New Mexico. In addition, he is a certified cremation operator. Jay served as founder, owner and President/COO of the Signature Group. Prior to founding Signature, he was the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of another U.S. publicly traded company where he served in a senior operations leadership role for 17 years. Over his career he has directly managed businesses in every region of the country. Jay is the immediate Past President of the International Cemetery Cremation and Funeral Association, Trustee Emeritus for the Funeral Service Foundation, Trustee of the ICCFA Educational Foundation and a board member of the Pierce Mortuary Colleges.

Jay Dodds

President & CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER