Meet your lecturers

Vince Di Ruzza

HRM Program Director/Lecturer

Vince Di Ruzza was appointed Director for the Human Resources Management Program in 2011 and has lectured at Waterloo since 1999. He has played a key role in the development of the HRM program and continues to provide academic leadership and career counseling to students. Outside of the classroom, Vince collaborates with local industry in developing and directing initiatives related to the success of the HRM program.

With nearly 30 years of diverse business experience, Vince has solidified a track record of success in the areas of human capital management, leadership and organizational development, staff relations, staff development and quality client service improvements. Vince is also a leadership and career coach with a passion for setting people up for professional success.

A respected leader in his field, Vince has created, implemented, and facilitated award winning programs in leadership and career development (LIIC Life and Health Insurance Industry). His recent work involves a leadership and quality service model known as CAP (Culture, Attitude, Partnership).

Vince is a graduate of the University of Guelph and holds his Certified Human Resources Professional / Leader (CHRP/L) designation.

For organizations who would like to know more about our program and graduates, please contact Vince at vdiruzza@uwaterloo.ca.

Vince teaches HRM 301 (Strategic HR Planning), HRM 303 (Compensation), HRM 400 (Honours Seminar in HR), and PSYCH 465/467 (Applied and HR Apprenticeships).

Dean Bulloch

Lecturer

Dean Bulloch

Dean is a Chair in the School of Business at Conestoga College. As an academic leader, Dean is accountable for providing academic and administrative leadership, supervision and direction to the faculty, support staff and students in specific programs within the School of Business. The Chair is accountable for the planning, development, delivery and ongoing review of full- and part-time programs, ensuring that they are relevant to the needs of students and the community. Dean is functionally responsible for eight programs and several full- and part-time staff. Previously, Dean was a Professor of Human Resources Management and the Program Coordinator of the Human Resources Management graduate certificate program. He also served as the Program Coordinator for Occupational Health, Safety & Wellness program (2017/2018) and the Susatinable Business Management program (2016/2017).

Dean is also a Lecturer in the Department of Psychology at the University of Waterloo and teaches Strategic Human Resources Planning (HRM 301). Dean is a certified human resources executive (CHRE) and is pursuing a Doctorate in Business Administration (DBA).

Prior to joining Conestoga College, Dean was the S.V.P. and C.H.R.O. at Economical Insurance. At Economical, he was responsible for executing the company's strategic-level human resources management initiatives, including organizational effectiveness, talent identification and leadership formation. Dean also led the organization's focus on employee engagement and corporate social responsibility, and had oversight of corporate services, corporate marketing and corporate communications. Under his leadership, the company achieved the following awards: #2 ranking on the prestigious Top 125 ranking of companies that excel at human capital development, United Way Leadership Award, APEX Award for Pandemic Planning Excellence, and the Workplace Wellness by Who’s Who in Workplace Health.

Dean is active in the community as a volunteer with the United Way of K-W, and was previously a volunteer Director at the Sunbeam Residential Development Centre as well as President of the Heart and Stroke Foundation in Cambridge. Dean joined the H.R. Professional Editorial Advisory Board in September 2015.

Katrina Di Gravio

Lecturer Katrina Di Gravio

Katrina Di Gravio has been with the University of Waterloo for over 30 years. She is currently the Director of Organizational and Human Development and is well known and respected within the campus community. She has been the primary university resource for training and development for over 15 years. Katrina was a member of the Human Resources department since 1980 and was one of the senior Staff Relations Coordinators. She has a Master Trainer certification from Achieve Global and is a member of the Leadership for Results Training team. Katrina also designs, delivers, and develops training programs for students, staff, and faculty.

Katrina teaches HRM 200 (Basic Human Resources Management).

Mark Gernon

Lecturer

Mark Gernon has over 20 years experience working in management and human resources, with a focus on labour relations. Mark began his career working with Canadian Airlines and has worked in aviation security, construction, the Ontario Government and currently has his own consulting practice where he offers guidance and support in a number of Human Resource areas including training, recruiting, human rights, employment standards, workplace safety and insurance, union relations, labour grievances and arbitration.

Mark is a certified human resources professional / leader (CHRP/L), and is a First Aid Instructor.

Mark teaches HRM 307 (Labour Relations).

Neil McDermott

Lecturer

Neil McDermott is an Occupational Hygienist and Health and Safety Consultant at Public Services Health and Safety Association (PSHSA). Mr. McDermott has 18 years’ experience as a health and safety professional specializing in safety, occupational health and industrial hygiene. Neil has worked extensively over the years with organizations from various industries. At PSHSA, he works as part of the health care team so he has developed a particular interest and specialty in this industry. Neil joined the University of Waterloo as a part-time lecturer during the fall of 2016. He finds the experience of teaching students to be very enjoyable and a rewarding.

Neil McDermott has earned an Honours Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Queen's University and a Human Resources Management (HRM) Post Graduate Certificate from Sheridan College. Mr. McDermott has also completed an applied Masters in Science degree in Occupational Health Sciences through McGill University. Rounding off his experience and education, Mr. McDermott is a Canadian Registered Safety Professional (CRSP) and a Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH).

Neil teaches HRM 305 (Health and Safety).

William Peckham

Lecturer

William Peckham’s passion for HRM began when he himself attended the University of Waterloo many years ago. Currently, William is employed by the Waterloo Regional Police Service as the Manager of Organization and Culture Development. Previously, Will worked as an HR Operations Manager at Kiewit, which is a large, privately owned construction company with over 30,000 employees.

Will has worked in a variety of educational organizations including the Waterloo Catholic District School Board, Ryerson University, Conestoga College, and now the University of Waterloo. Will has taught various HR courses at Conestoga College and is now a Lecturer in the Department of Psychology at the University of Waterloo.

Will is a Certified Human Resources Leader (CHRL) with the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA) and holds a Bachelor of Arts with an HRM Option from the University of Waterloo as well as a Master's degree in Industrial Relations and Human Resources from the University of Toronto.

Will teaches HRM 200 (Basic Human Resources Management).

Amin Yazdani

Lecturer

Dr . Amin Yazdani is a Research Assistant Professor at University of Waterloo’s Department of Kinesiology, an Adjunct Assistant Professor at McMaster University, and Associate Faculty at Conestoga College. Dr. Yazdani received his Ph.D in Work and Health from University of Waterloo and has Ms.c and Bs.c in Occupational Health and Safety. He is a Certified Safety Professional (CSP). Dr. Yazdani uses a multidisciplinary strategy to develop innovative approaches to prevent workplace injuries and work disability in workplaces. His research interest is in standardization of ergonomics in design by developing best practices and development of technical standards. In addition, he has extensive experience in collaborating with small, medium, and large organization to implement organizational-wide approaches to prevent workplace injuries by improving health, safety, and wellbeing of workers. This can be achieved by understanding business’s structure and knowledge of tools and approaches used by managers, engineers and other stakeholders. Using applied and collaborative research, he investigates the integration of prevention activities into these tools and approaches and incorporate health and safety, ergonomics, and work disability prevention into design and business’s management structure. He is also interested in economic evaluation (cost-benefit and cost-effective analysis) of health and safety related policies and interventions. He is a vice-chair of a technical committee for development of a Canadian Standard on Carer-inclusive and Accommodating Organizations (CSA-B701) and a member of the technical committee for development of a Canadian standard on Office Ergonomic (CSA-Z412).

Currently, he is co-leading a multi-stakeholder project to Development of the New MSD Prevention Guide for Ontario. At the national level and in collaboration with several stakeholders, he is spearheading and co-leading several important initiatives including the development of three new Canadian Standards including:

Work Disability Prevention Management System;
Design and Use of Paramedic Emergency Response Vehicles and Equipment; and
Canadian Work Disability Prevention Management System Standard for Paramedics with PTSI.

Amin teaches HRM 305 (Health and Safety).