From East Toronto to Management in Venture Administration
Once you meet Jerry Kafieh, you sense immediately that he’s somebody who’s constructed his profession on each construction and coronary heart. Born at Toronto East Normal Hospital (now Michael Garron Hospital) to immigrant mother and father, he grew up in a modest east Toronto neighborhood surrounded by household, religion, and the worth of arduous work. “I used to be the youngest of 4 boys,” Jerry recollects. “We weren’t wealthy, however we had sturdy values—serving to others, staying grounded, and displaying up when it counts.”
His early years had been stuffed with exercise: Cub Scouts, altar service, baseball, hockey, and Air Cadets. Later, he joined the Canadian Armed Forces Reserves, the place he says he realized self-discipline, teamwork, and the way to keep calm beneath strain—abilities that will form his complete skilled life.
Training and Early Ambition
Jerry’s path took him via Catholic colleges earlier than he earned his Honours Bachelor of Science from the College of Waterloo. “College was a turning level,” he says. “It wasn’t nearly teachers. I obtained concerned in scholar politics and realized how organizations actually work.”
He held elected and appointed roles, together with scholar consultant to the college’s Board of Governors and Senate. These early management experiences planted the seeds for what would change into a 25-year profession in venture and other people administration.
From Pharma Gross sales to Venture Management
Jerry started his profession in pharmaceutical gross sales within the Nineteen Nineties. “It was my first deep publicity to the company world,” he says. “You study rapidly the way to talk, the way to pay attention, and the way to join with individuals who have completely different priorities.”
By 1998, he shifted gears towards venture administration—a transfer that blended his love of construction together with his curiosity about individuals and techniques. Over the subsequent 20 years, he constructed a fame as a gentle, considerate chief who might translate technique into motion.
“I’ve labored on all the things from small departmental tasks to enterprise-wide portfolios,” Jerry explains. “Each taught me one thing new about how organizations perform—and the way individuals adapt to alter.”
He led venture and program efforts in finance, know-how, and training, together with for one in every of Canada’s high 5 monetary establishments, the place he helped construct and function a number of Venture and Program Administration Places of work. “At that degree, it’s not nearly managing tasks,” he says. “It’s about enabling different leaders to see how their work (investments) connects to the massive image technique (portfolio).”
Instructing What He Practices
Alongside his consulting work, Jerry has spent over 20 years educating at a wide range of organizations. For many of that point one such group was the Toronto Metropolitan College’s Chang College of Persevering with Training. His college students vary from aspiring venture managers to executives seeking to strengthen their management abilities.
“I like educating,” he says. “It retains me sharp. It forces me to elucidate issues merely, and it jogs my memory that management isn’t about titles—it’s about service.”
College students have rated him extremely for his readability and enthusiasm. Lots of them return years later to thank him for shaping their careers. “These moments imply probably the most,” Jerry provides. “When somebody says, ‘You helped me see what I’m able to,’ that’s the reward.”
A Humanitarian at Coronary heart
Jerry’s influence extends far past the workplace or classroom. Since 2021, he’s served on the Board of Administrators for the Richmond Hill Group Meals Financial institution, the place he additionally acts as Compliance Officer. “It’s not simply governance work—it’s private,” he says. “You see households come via who simply want a bit of assist. It reminds you of what actually issues.”
From 2020 to 2024, he additionally volunteered with the Canadian Pink Cross Society, the place he managed emergency response websites. His deployments included the COVID-19 response in Kashechewan First Nation, post-hurricane assist in Prince Edward Island, and humanitarian help for Ukrainian arrivals in Toronto.
“I take into account myself a humanitarian,” Jerry says. “That’s not a title—it’s a mindset. Whether or not it’s a meals financial institution or a company venture, it’s about serving to individuals via difficult instances.”
Classes in Management and Agility
When requested what makes an excellent chief, Jerry pauses earlier than answering. “It’s about listening—actually listening,” he says. “Individuals wish to be heard. They wish to perceive how their work suits into one thing larger.”
He emphasizes the significance of agility, particularly in at this time’s fast-moving enterprise surroundings. “Organizations don’t fail due to dangerous technique,” he explains. “They fail as a result of they will’t adapt their execution. My job is to assist them construct that adaptability into their tradition.”
His areas of experience—portfolio governance, functionality growth, and organizational agility—mirror that mindset. However Jerry’s method at all times comes again to individuals. “You possibly can have the most effective frameworks and instruments,” he says, “however should you don’t develop the individuals utilizing them, you’ll by no means see actual change.”
Past Work: Stability and Reflection
Outdoors of his skilled life, Jerry enjoys motorcycling—each off-road and touring—and gardening. “These are my meditative areas,” he laughs. “On the bike or within the backyard, you’re absolutely current. It’s the place I recharge.”
His balanced lifestyle mirrors his management philosophy. “Venture administration isn’t nearly deadlines,” he says. “It’s about understanding time—the way to handle it, respect it, and nonetheless make room for what issues.”
The Legacy of Quiet Confidence
After greater than 25 years in management, Jerry continues to show, seek the advice of, and provides again to his neighborhood. His story isn’t about titles or awards—it’s about consistency, curiosity, and compassion.
“I’ve at all times believed that management is a privilege,” he says. “You don’t earn it as soon as and preserve it perpetually. You earn it day by day by the way you present up for others.”
In a world that strikes quick, Jerry Kafieh stands out as a gentle hand—somebody who is aware of that true progress occurs when individuals, tasks, and goal align.
