A SAF alum who launched his first venture as a student, Khan has never stopped asking how opportunity can reach the people who need it most.
By Rachel Doherty
For Adnan Khan (MAcc '17), the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF) was never just a path to a credential. It was the beginning of a much longer question — one about access, opportunity and what it actually takes to change someone's trajectory.
Khan arrived at the University of Waterloo not knowing exactly where his path would lead. He earned a Bachelor of Accounting and Financial Management and a Master of Accounting and went on to a career at Deloitte Consulting's Strategy and Operations practice. But even as he progressed from business analyst to manager, something else was taking shape alongside it.
While still a student, Khan had travelled to Nicaragua as a volunteer and come face to face with a reality that stayed with him: students with a fierce desire to learn, and almost no means to do so. That experience seeded EduGate, a social venture aimed at improving access to education in under-resourced communities. It was his first answer to a question he has been asking ever since. "The classroom gave me the toolkit to assess situations, identify issues and structure solutions," he says. "It didn't give me the actual solutions. That requires thoughtful questions, attentive listening and deep collaboration."
EduGate was a beginning, not a destination. In 2020, Khan made the leap to Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Viva Talent alongside Fineas Tatar (BAFM '20), his former classmate and roommate and a fellow SAF alum. Viva connects high-growth companies with skilled remote talent in Latin America and South Africa, with a deliberate focus on creating meaningful career opportunities for women. The venture is trusted by companies including Notion, Groq and Lovable. The thread running through EduGate and Viva, Khan says, is simple: "Talent is equally distributed, but opportunity is not."
Viva operates in a space that is being rapidly reshaped by AI, and Khan thinks carefully about how and when to adopt it. New technology at Viva is guided by customer input, and leaders are expected to walk the talk. "I used to operate with a 'this could be good' mindset," he says. "My co-founder plays an exceptional role in keeping us focused."
When the conversation turns to SAF, Khan is quick to credit the people who shaped him. During his time as a student, he attended a conference where a speaker offered advice that has stayed with him ever since. "Be humble. Be hungry," he recalls. "It resonated with me back then and still resonates with me today." Khan’s mentors at SAF each gave him something distinct: a culture of sponsorship, a best-in-the-world mindset and the simple but powerful habit of asking "what do you think?"
Khan was himself a recipient of the SAF Fellowship and the President's Scholarship of Distinction — recognition that, he says, deepened his sense of responsibility to give back. He has carried all of it forward, returning to campus to mentor students, support the Fellowship program and give back in the same spirit he received. "SAF has a deep culture of mentorship," he says. "I learned that first-hand as a first-year student. I had many people supporting me solely because someone supported them."
That continuity matters to him. When he thinks about what he wants a current SAF student to take away from his story, the answer is not about credentials or career paths. "Build strong relationships starting today," he says. "Regardless of which path you take, relationships will take you farther — both personally and professionally."
SAF has a deep culture of mentorship, I learned that first-hand as a first-year student. I had many people supporting me solely because someone supported them.
Khan will receive his award at the SAF Alumni Excellence Gala on May 27, 2026, where he will be celebrated alongside 2025 Outstanding Alumni Achievement Award recipient Troy Maxwell.