Leadership
Chris
Fair
CEO
A futurist, facilitator and strategist, Chris holds a Masters degree in Studies of the Future and has married his tourism, economic development, real estate and and marketing expertise with futures methodologies to help a wide variety of clients envision and create development strategies, plans and brands that shape the future of places around the world. As President of Resonance Consultancy, Chris leads a team that has completed more than 100 visioning, strategy, planning, and branding projects for developers and destinations in more than 30 destinations.
He has been featured in Fast Company magazine and is a frequent commentator on lifestyle and leisure trends for leading publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, The Globe & Mail, Los Angeles Times, The Economist and Worth magazine. In 2013, Chris was recognized as the “Place Branding Thought Leader of the Year” at the World Sense of Place Summit. He designed the World’s Best Cities index, a ranking that analyzes and measures cities based on a unique benchmarking model that blends core statistics with millions of consumer ratings and reviews across 23 categories. The result is a measure of relative “place equity”—attractiveness for talent, investment and tourism—for cities around the world.
Richard
Cutting-Miller
Vice President
Richard has produced more than 50 Strategic Plans for tourism-focused economies (national, state and regional) ranging from China, Hong Kong and Macau to South Carolina, the Former Soviet Union, the Caribbean and Montenegro.
A 25-year travel industry veteran, Richard was Executive Vice President for the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and played a principal role in shaping and directing the organization, policy agenda, research program, communications and membership services for the organization.
During his 16-year tenure with WTTC, Richard traveled worldwide, consulting and speaking on the topic of travel and tourism economics, policy and advocacy, and produced more than 100 strategy and policy projects for regions such as the Caribbean, the Mercosur and APEC, and countries as diverse as China, Montenegro, Qatar, Indonesia, Australia, Thailand, Namibia and South Africa. In total, Richard has worked in 64 countries and more than 350 cities.
As Executive Vice-President at Resonance, he has led complex tourism consulting projects including master plans for Travel Portland, scenario planning and forecasting for Tourism Vancouver, destination assessments for the Bermuda Tourism Authority and organizational strategic planning with the Aruba Tourism Authority.
Dianna
Carr
Storytelling
For the past three decades, Dianna has honed her storytelling skills in print, television, radio, video and across social media as a journalist, advertising creative director, writer and consultant. Her keen curiosity and singular prose style has found its way into every medium.
Her storytelling career began in journalism in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Montréal, where she became editor-in-chief of the city magazine there, then founded MTL, a bilingual lifestyle publication. Her knowledge of and passion for the city landed her at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation—where she worked as a columnist, writing and performing weekly radio scripts on a wide range of cultural subjects—and on camera at CTV, a national television broadcaster.
As Vice President, Storytelling, of Resonance Consultancy, she has helped organizations and destinations tell the stories that define sense of place, aid economic development, articulate future scenarios in tourism, engage community, and market urban neighborhoods, luxury resorts, regions and developing countries. Her work on projects for tourism marketing organizations, complex urban developments and destinations helps humanize data, clarify positions and engage prospects.
Steven
Pedigo
Strategy
An expert in real estate and economic development research and strategy, marketing and place branding, Steven has advised cities, universities, real estate developers, nonprofit organizations, Fortune 500 companies, and major media outlets across the globe.
As Vice President, Strategy, at Resonance, Steven leads the economic development practice and works with real estate developers to build more inclusive, creative communities. He is also the director of the NYU Schack Institute of Real Estate Urban Lab, and a clinical professor at New York University.
Earlier in his career, Steven was a vice president and member of the senior management team for the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC), a national research organization founded by Harvard Business School professor Michael Porter to encourage private-sector investment into distressed urban areas in the U.S. He was also the founding vice president for business attraction and research for Greater Portland, Inc. (GPI), a regional economic development organization for the Portland – Vancouver metropolitan region.
Steven’s research has been featured in The New York Times, Boston Globe, Washington Post, The Atlantic’s CityLab, Governing, Dallas Morning News, and many others.
Tom
Gierasimczuk
Business Development
Tom is an award-winning journalist and marketer with a proven record of developing multi-platform, editorially driven marketing strategies that engage audiences and infuse brand communication with a sense of purpose and utility.
He leads Resonance Consultancy’s marketing, communications and thought-leadership content to drive new business, client retention, audience engagement, and brand influence.
Tom’s experience in the travel and tourism industry ranges from launching an adventure travel outfitter in South America with a global clientele, to leading WestJet Airlines’ inflight magazine and destination content, for which he received ‘Editor of the Year’ honors in 2010. At Rogers Media, Tom led the Marketing Group and Marketing Magazine, Canada’s largest advertising, PR and media resource. As Publisher and GM of Vancouver magazine and Western Living, Tom transitioned legacy brands struggling with online engagement and revenue into lean, daily audience-first resources focused on vital journalism, creative services and event activation.
His writing and insights about marketing, tourism and place branding have appeared in The New York Times, Entrepreneur, The Globe and Mail, and many other outlets.
Team
Tyler
Smith
Client Services
A project management expert with 12 years experience on urban and resort real estate projects, Tyler steers all Resonance residential / hospitality accounts. His relationships with clients are personal and his capacity to marshal writers, designers and production to create exceptional work is limitless.
Brandon
Thomas
Director
Brandon honed his craft over nine years at DDB Canada, where his passion for identity design and photography led to award-winning work for Nordstrom, Rocky Mountaineer, Destination Canada and many others. At Resonance, he leads a team seeking the visual language to brand some of the world’s most desirable destinations.
Bill
Ellis
Director
Bill has two decades of experience in the digital field. His work includes interactive and dynamic animation design, front-end development and progressive web apps, and bridges web and OS apps. A skilled graphic and web designer, Bill also works in print as well as interactive, exhibition, and industrial design projects.
Tim
Hasid
Placemaking
Tim brings a mapmaker’s rigor and a placemaker’s passion to Resonance’s proprietary research, contributing to tourism planning, urban development, and placemaking projects. A Master of Science in Urban Planning and Sustainable Development at University of Bordeaux, Tim also has a BSc in Civil & Environmental Engineering from the University of Cardiff.
Zachary
Shultz
Director
Originally from Colorado and based in New York City, Zack has a decade of experience working in business development and project management, and a track record of executing brand activations and complex marketing programs. Prior to joining Resonance, he worked on Marriott’s EDITION brand team to open the first hotels in New York City and China. He also successfully launched and scaled the new media franchise Worth Cities, a ranking of the 15 most dynamic cities in America, which included a now-annual magazine, as well as events and other programming to promote each destination. He has a BS in Business Administration from Bryant University.
Rhiannon
Morris
Manager
Rhiannon has spent nearly a decade in client services in the retail, events, publishing and health and wellness industries. She has a Bachelor of Technology in Graphic Communications Management from Ryerson University and works with Resonance staff to ensure daily efficiency, coordination, quality and good humor in the creative studio.
Dean
Tsatouhas
Manager
Dean joins Resonance from DDB Canada, where he managed complex, multi-platform campaigns for clients including Rocky Mountaineer, TELUS and CrimeStoppers. A passionate world traveler, Dean approaches every project by asking the right strategic questions and bringing razor sharp attention to detail.
Celeste
Moure
Manager
Originally from Buenos Aires, Celeste has lived in 10 cities across four continents, and written, photographed and produced digital content for Condé Nast Traveler, Wallpaper, National Geographic Traveler, Robb Report, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Vogue and many others. At Resonance, her expertise in social media and luxury culture becomes compelling storytelling for all our clients.
Smita
Subramanian
Copywriter
Smita has been been in the communications industry for almost two decades, with extensive experience at agencies based in Mumbai and Dubai. In her most recent role, she worked with renowned hospitality, luxury and destination brands, including Kempinski, Fairmont, Viceroy Hotels, Atlantis The Palm, and Dubai Tourism to help craft thought-provoking narratives and concepts rooted in insight and reflecting the true sense of a destination. A recent transplant to Vancouver, she brings a wide spectrum of experiences and insights to her role at Resonance.
Lia
McMillan
Designer
A graduate of Capilano University’s esteemed IDEA Program, Lia has six years of graphic design experience and brings a sure eye for type, photography and color to Resonance. She designs projects ranging from brochures and full magazines to presentations and packaging, and contributes to everything from logo brainstorms to printing prep.
Sheri
Poetker
Designer
This graduate of Emily Carr University of Art and Design has worked at DDB Canada, Seven25 and Cossette, and has experience as a studio designer in advertising and for the social sector. A visual problem solver and collaborator, Sheri brings brand development, typography and information design expertise to Resonance.
Shannon
Leung
Designer
A graduate of Capilano University’s IDEA program, Shannon has worked as a production artist and graphic designer for various boutique design studios in Vancouver. As detail-oriented, technical and meticulous as she is creative, Shannon loves the collaborative and client-centered approach that distinguishes the Resonance process.
Omneya
Fahmy
Analyst
Prior to joining Resonance, Omneya worked as a Statistician for the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, where she was responsible for collecting, processing, analyzing and disseminating education and learning outcomes data. She has a Masters in Economics from Concordia University in Montreal and a Bachelors from the American University in Cairo. She brings to Resonance a decade of analytical and data visualization experience.
Davor
Katinic
Artist
A skilled collaborator, multitasker and problem solver, Davor joins Resonance after working as a Design Production Coordinator at Rennie Group, where he developed ongoing collateral to support marketing promotions for real estate development clients. A graduate from Simon Fraser University with a Bachelors in Communications, Davor has more than a decade of experience as a graphic designer.
Vicki
Fair
Accounts Receivable
Vicki held key roles in agency marketing and account direction for 15 years, controlling budgets on large-scale resort real estate projects, and writing sales and marketing strategies. Also trained as a teacher, Vicki brings patience and precision to work overseeing billing and books for Resonance in New York and Vancouver.
Amelia
Kim
Administrator
A recent graduate from the University of British Columbia where she double-majored in Mathematics and Economics, Amelia brings a vibrant personality and enthusiasm for mastering new skills. Prior to joining Resonance, she worked in the customer service industry and was a Sales Consultant for Golds Gym, where she was responsible for membership sales and administration.