Howard Armitage

Email: howard@uwaterloo.ca

Phone: 519-888-4567 x47165

Location: E7 2436
              

Howard Armitage, PhD, MBA, BSc, is the Founder of the Conrad School of Entrepreneurship and Business. In his previous roles, he was the Director of the School of Accounting and Finance at the University of Waterloo and the Special Advisor to the President for Entrepreneurship. Howard earned his PhD at Michigan State University and his MBA from the University of Alberta. 

Expertise:

• Role of accounting tools and procedures in supporting SME’s
• Change management
• Performance metric systems for saas-based organizations 

Education

• PhD, Michigan State University
• MBA, University of Alberta
• BSc (Agriculture), McGill University

Academic positions

• Founding Director, Conrad School of Entrepreneurship and Business, 2004 - present
• Special Advisor to the President on Entrepreneurship, September 2013 - August 2015

• Director, Emirates Centre for Entrepreneurship – Abu Dhabi Higher Colleges of Technology, 2006 - 2007

• Gordon H. Cowperthwaite Professor of Accounting.
• Director, School of Accounting and Finance, 1990 - 1991, and 1996 - 1997

Research interests and grants

Author of over 100 articles and monographs with primary interest in:

• Role of accounting tools and procedures in supporting SME’s
• Change management
• Performance metric systems for saas-based organizations 

Recent Grants

• US $1.6 million - Principal investigator, Virtual Incubation Program
• $120,000 - MasterCard Foundation Grant
• $12,000 - CPA Ontario Centre for Performance Management Research and Education

Industry experience

Professor Armitage is a widely sought-after corporate speaker and consultant. He speaks regularly on the catalytic role of entrepreneurship and innovation in driving organizational and community growth and specializes in strategy implementation and performance-based systems for profit and non-for-profit organizations.  

He has worked in Australia, New Zealand, USA, France, Indonesia, Jordan, Malaysia, Kenya, Cuba, Nepal, Guatemala, Taiwan, Egypt and United Arab Emirates with universities, corporations and institutions such as the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.

Selected presentations and publications

• Armitage, H.M. D. Lane and A. Webb, “Budget Development and Use in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: A Field Investigation”, accepted for publication, Accounting Perspectives, May, 2020

• Armitage, H.M., S. Campos and G. Pooley, “Performance Metrics in an Increasingly SaaS-based World” White Paper, CPA Ontario, March, 2020

• Armitage, H.M., "The Waterloo Story", keynote presentation to business, government, and academic leaders, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand, May 10, 2018.

• Armitage, H.M. A. Webb and D. Pooley, “Budgeting for Rapid Growth: The Axonify Story”, Ivey Case Series, Spring, 2018.

• ​Armitage, H.M., C. Bischoff, K. Schmidlan and D. Sparkes, “Jamii: A Virtual Incubation Platform for Entrepreneurs”, Journal of International Business and Marketing, Vol 3, No 2, January, 2018.

• Armitage, H.M, C. Bischoff, K. Schmidlin and D. Sparkes, “Jamii: A Virtual Incubation Platform for Entrepreneurs”, Proceedings of the 2017 CCSBE/CCPME Conference, Quebec City, May 12, 2017

• Armitage, H.M. and Alan Webb, “The Use of Management Accounting Techniques by Small and Medium Sized Enterprises: A Field Study of Canadian and Australian Practice,” Accounting Perspective, April 2016. 
• Armitage, H.M. and Donna Ellis, “Assessing Innovation”, presented at STLHE Annual Conference, Sydney, Nova Scotia, June 21, 2013.
• Armitage, H.M. “From Thought to Thing – Commercializing your Idea”, keynote speech given to the Australian Institute for Innovative Materials (AIIMS), Feb 22, 2013.  
• Armitage, H.M. “Teaching, Incubation and Innovation Strategy Suggestions for Illawarra” invited presentation to Regional Council and Business Leaders, Illawarra Region, sponsored by the Sydney Business School, held at Novotel, Wollongong, AU, Feb 12, 2013.
• Armitage, H.M. “Entrepreneurial & Experiential Learning: A Waterloo Perspective”, presentation to Innovative Change in Ontario’s College System Symposium, Toronto, ON, July 23, 2012
• Armitage, H.M. “The Canadian Entrepreneurship Scorecard”, one of four invited speakers to address to address Industry Canada’s Small Business and Entrepreneurship Task Force, Toronto, ON, Nov 21, 2011.
• Armitage, H.M. “Innovations in Entrepreneurial Education”, keynote speech given to Ministers, Vice Chancellors, Deans and Corporate Leaders, Nairobi, Kenya, May 23, 2011.
• R. McNaughton and H.M. Armitage, “Developing Entrepreneurs through Experiential Learning: the Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology Program at the University of Waterloo, Canada”, International Review of Entrepreneurship, Volume 8, Issue 1, p1-32, 2010
• Armitage, H.M. “Educating Entrepreneurs: Lessons for Technology-based Academic Institutions” keynote address given to Cuernavaca campus of ITESM, Cuernava, Mexico, Sept 22, 2009. 
• Armitage, H.M., P. Doherty and R. McNaughton, “Providing Business Education to Entrepreneurs” in University-Based Entrepreneurship Centres in Canada: Strategies and Best Practices. – Chapter 22, Editor: Menzies T. Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario, 2009. 
• Armitage, H.M.,and C. Scholey, Using Strategy Maps to Guide Performance, Management Accounting Guideline, Society of Management Accountants of Canada, January 2007
• Armitage, H.M., and R.B. McNaughton, “Breaking the MBA Mould: Business Education for a High Technology World, in New Visions of Graduate Management Education  a book in the series Research In Management Education and Development), December 2006

Selected awards and honours