OUR STORY

MEET OUR TEAM

Our Journey

Phil Gerard, a fundraiser who began his nonprofit career in the social service and education sectors, started Gerard Consulting in 2012 part-time while working as a Director of Development for Simon Fraser University. He noticed early on that the talent pool in the nonprofit sector is limited and that more awareness of the profession is needed to attract a more diverse community of talent, who will consider fundraising as a profession. He created the TalentMatch recruitment service, a light version of an executive search that focusses on collaboration with the clients’ HR teams to keep costs down. With his approach, Phil created a proactive recruitment service that is affordable for even small organizations.

Phil feels strongly about building long-term relationships and has nurtured a large and diverse network of over 4,000 talented candidates of all backgrounds, ages, races, colours, religions, neurodiversities, disabilities, national origins, gender identities, and sexual orientations.

Phil has also been proud to serve a broad client community of organizations ranging from the arts, education, social justice, environment, community services, and healthcare sectors.

Our Values

At Gerard Search our mission is to provide a wide and broad range of career opportunities to our diverse network of candidates and find our clients the best talent for the right opportunity at the right time.

We believe that our sector needs a diverse community of talent, therefore we consider traditional nonprofit skills as well as relevant transferrable skills, gained locally and internationally. We believe that barriers for entry into the nonprofit sector need to be challenged. We challenge position requirements that are exclusionary, such as stringent education requirements, local market experience, inflexible workplace formats, as well as requirements such as having a driver’s license or access to a vehicle. We encourage our hiring clients to welcome the unique contributions that individuals can bring to their teams in terms of education, opinions, culture, ethnicity, race, sex, gender identity and expression, nation of origin, age, languages spoken, colour, religion, disability, sexual orientation and beliefs.

Gerard Search Today

Since 2018 we are Gerard Search, a team of Talent Managers, Search Consultants and Administrators. We celebrate that we are different and bring the power of diversity to our team. Some of us have deep roots in the nonprofit sector including fundraising. Others bring a strong background from HR and career consulting and coaching and others again bring a strong business acumen. All of us are committed to cultivating and preserving a culture of inclusion and connectedness. The collective sum of the individual differences, life experiences, knowledge, innovation, self-expression, and talent that our team invest in our work represents not only part of our culture, but our reputation.

OUR TEAM

Wenjing Zhu, MPA

Search Consultant, Operations

Wenjing has more than five years of fundraising and donor relations experience in a development organization and three years marketing and branding experience in agencies. She was responsible for fundraising, donor engagement, cultivation, stewardship activities/events, as well as marketing strategy development. She holds a BA in International Politics from Fudan University and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Georgia.

Preeti Pasupulati

Search Consultant

Preeti is a communications and fundraising professional with over three years of experience working in the non-profit and post-secondary sectors. Her responsibilities have included grant writing, event planning, and social media. Preeti holds a BA in Media & Public Interest from Western University and an MA in Communication & Culture from York & Ryerson University.

Phil Gérard, MBA

President & CEO

Phil was a fundraiser for over a decade before becoming a recruiter. His experience as a fundraiser is a strong advantage for Gerard Search and for you. We understand the nonprofit sector as insiders. We do not only know it we are part the community. Phil raised close to $20 million in his career. He understands fundraising best practices, speaks the language, and knows the challenges that professionals in the field face and what they are looking for in a rewarding career. Phil is currently a board director with the Association of Fundraising Professionals Greater Vancouver.

Chris Arnet

Talent Manager, Canada West

For over two decades Chris was a senior fundraising professional for Simon Fraser University. For 17 years she was the Executive Director, Advancement, leading the faculty based fundraising team. Chris was personally responsible for raising over $30 million for the university’s School for the Contemporary Arts at Woodward’s capital campaign, as well as leading the major gifts fundraising and eventually Leadership and Gift and Estate Planning teams of over 20 professionals who successfully raised $275 million for the university’s 50th anniversary fundraising campaign. As a consultant, she has acted as Interim Executive Director of the Centre for Child Development in Surrey, BC, and as Campaign Director for the Canadian Cancer Society’s Centre for Cancer Prevention and Support in Vancouver.

Noah Morantz, CFRE

Talent Manager, Canada West

Noah has spent his 23-year career in the non-profit sector leading teams, building organizational capacity, and coaching staff & volunteers. Noah has worked in executive positions on a variety of projects, campaigns, and events, raising tens of millions of dollars for health and social service organizations across Canada.

His most recent experience includes Vice-President of Development & Operations at Canadian Men’s Health Foundation, Senior Consultant for KCI (Ketchum Canada), and Canucks Autism Network as Vice-President of Development & External Relations. Earlier in Noah’s career he held senior roles at BC Children’s Hospital Foundation as Associate Director of Development, and Associate Director of the Louis Brier Foundation.

Noah’s experience and comprehensive understanding of the non-profit sector ensures that he relates to the needs of both the organization and the candidate.

Anna Gordon

Talent Manager, Canada Prairies

Anna is a Career Strategist and Speaker with an amazing ability to help individuals and organizations see their value and share their gifts. For over two decades she has worked in the field of career development, spending most of her time within or supporting the nonprofit sector. She also brings with her close to a decade of experience as a recruitment advisor for the sector, helping hundreds of charities and nonprofits connect with dynamic talent to help them extend their reach and impact. Anna's combination of experiences, and her belief in the win-win scenario, gives her a unique perspective on the needs of both candidates and employers. As a member of the Manitoba Association of Career Development and the Career Professionals of Canada, she stays connected to a large network of professionals that are actively working with job seekers.

Emilia Stypulkowska

Talent Manager, Canada East

Emilia is a recruiter, career coach, and social profit sector veteran. After almost 15 years working as a fundraiser, she launched her business, Sunny Side Up Coaching to help people find a career path that feels motivating, meaningful, and helps them make the impact they desire. At Gerard Search Emilia is responsible for our Eastern region and excited about finding the right fit - for both our candidates and client organizations.

Ligia Peña, CFRE

Talent Manager, Québec

Ligia is an international legacy expert, consultant and speaker with over 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector, having served small, medium and large international organizations. As an AFP Master Trainer, she’s trained countless fundraisers around the globe. She's a sought-after and seasoned international presenter who enjoys sharing her knowledge and empowering nonprofit professionals to think about gifts in wills differently by daring to be creative and innovative. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Ligia calls Montréal, Canada home or any place with wifi. She fluently speaks Spanish, French and English (and manages in Portuguese and Italian).

Karen Valderrama

Office Administrator – Sponsored Job Promotions

Karen, an ambitious and driven aspiring entrepreneur, brings over 10 years of extensive administrative experience spanning across diverse industries. Originally hailing from Chile, she has now made Canada her cherished home. Passionate about forging meaningful connections, Karen thrives on socializing and engaging with others. With an insatiable thirst for knowledge and personal development, she actively seeks out opportunities to learn, grow, and continuously expand her skill set.

OUR FRIENDS

Special Anniversary Offer: New Gerard Search TalentMatch and TalentMatch Optimum clients receive up to $500 credits towards courses at the NSOF! (Some restrictions apply)