Careers Under Construction

Ace Burpee was writing radio commercials at CJOB when his boss stopped him in the hall and asked, “Is this how you talk all the time?” This is how a kid from Cooks Creek, a town with two churches and no stores, became one of Winnipeg’s best-known voices. Ace hosts mornings on 103.1 Virgin Radio, creates the annual Top 100 Fascinating Manitobans list and is a member of the Order of Manitoba. In thi...

Stan Higgins was working in executive search when he saw an ad on Kijiji for a helical pile dealership. He had no background in construction. He bought the dealership anyway and started VersaPile in 2011. In this episode of Careers Under Construction , Stan talks about: Why his mom started her own search firm out of her house in 1999 How he tested the competition before buying in Why he handed his...

After 14 years in government, Sandra Hodzic realized she couldn’t do it anymore and it was time to go. Today, she runs Sorella Strategies, a government relations firm that helps organizations understand government decisions and policies and prepare for what’s ahead. In this episode, Sandra talks about: Why she left government twice and what finally made it stick How she translates government jargo...

Ryan Behie had just come off his best year yet. Then, on a Tuesday morning right after the August long weekend, the phone rang: 60 days’ notice. No cause. No explanation. He’d been with the company 11 years. He opened their Winnipeg office himself — first and only person there on day one. At home: a wife, a mortgage and a first-born who wasn’t a year old yet. He told his team himself. Then he call...

Early in his career, Cole Akerstream was working in commercial real estate on 100% commission, waiting months for deals to close. Today, Cole is Vice President of Facilities and Store Development at The North West Company, a 360+ year old Canadian company with roughly 230 stores across northern Canada, Alaska, the Caribbean and the South Pacific. In this episode of Careers Under Construction, Cole...

Some of the hardest conversations Jamie Wilson has walked into have started with people yelling at him. His approach? Listen, understand where people are coming from, and find common ground. He started his career as a teacher before becoming a U.S. Army Ranger, Treaty Commissioner, Deputy Minister, and eventually the first Indigenous Chair of the Manitoba Hydro board. Today, he serves as VP of Ind...

Three days after David Asper started practising criminal defence in Winnipeg, he was pulled into his boss’s office. Joyce Milgaard was sitting there. Her son David had already spent 17 years in prison for a murder he said he didn’t commit. A six-year fight followed, culminating in an April 1992 Supreme Court of Canada decision. Later DNA testing confirmed another man was responsible. After helping...

Krystyn MacKinnon started her career in banking at 19 and became an assistant branch manager a year later. She went on to help launch a title insurance startup across Western Canada, lead 100% commission sales teams, and is now Principal at Colliers Project Leaders—with no technical background in engineering or project management. In this episode of Careers Under Construction , Krystyn shares: The...

Catch Fire Group helps mid-sized business owners sell the companies they’ve spent a lifetime building. Gary Brownstone’s job is to help owners see their business the way a buyer does. Sellers look back at the sacrifices, risks and legacy they’ve built. Buyers look at cash flow, growth and what happens when the founder leaves. In this episode of Careers Under Construction, Gary shares: Why he never...

Those little paint colour cards you flip through at the hardware store? There's a good chance they were made by one family right here in Winnipeg. The Duha Family. Rick's first job in the family business was screwing posts into paint fan decks. Now, a robot does it. Rick isn't buying robots to replace his team. He's buying them to replace the repetitive tasks. That's where peop...

Kyle Romaniuk is a serial entrepreneur who started selling T-shirts on consignment at just 10 years old before launching his own design agency straight out of Red River College. That agency grew into Cocoon Branding, where he worked with brands like Red Bull and GoodLife Fitness. When COVID wiped out 80% of his agency's revenue, Kyle changed direction and launched FRAKXION. In this episode of Care...

In 2018, 20-year-old Hailey Dugay was sitting in the back seat of her boyfriend's truck, heading home with friends. Earlier that night, Jesse Paluk had been involved in an altercation at a bar near Fraserwood. Later, when three vehicles approached on a gravel road, Paluk stood in the road holding a rifle and told William Comber to have his back. What no one inside the truck could see was Combe...

Dale Weise was cut multiple times during junior hockey before going on to play 513 regular-season NHL games. Today, he buys and grows established businesses in Winnipeg. In this episode of Careers Under Construction, Dale shares: How getting cut built his determination The time he thought he made the Rangers, only to be cut two days before opening night How he recorded the fastest Gordie Howe hat...

Jenna was studying to become a dentist when she watched an episode of Cake Boss and decided to make a cake just for fun. She made it in the tiny apartment she shared with her twin sister Ashley. She was hooked right away. Then a competitor called the city on her. That push forced her to turn a hobby into a real business. Today Jenna and Ashley run Jenna Rae Cakes: 4 locations and around 40 employe...

Jaime Mann believes one thing above all else: connection isn't soft, it's strategic. As a keynote speaker, leadership coach and partner in a construction company, she blends psychology, leadership and a little sass to help people lead with more clarity, courage and confidence. In this episode of Careers Under Construction , Jaime shares: Why connection is one of the most overlooked leaders...

In 2019, Jason Tyler McLean put a brand new gun in his mouth and pulled the trigger. It jammed. The odds of that happening are one in millions. He woke up the next day, wrote himself a letter and made a promise he has kept ever since. Long before he became a coach, Jason was just trying to make it through each day. Drugs at 13. The streets of Winnipeg at 15. Gangs. A sales career that brought fina...

When Todd Burns took over his dad’s company in 2011, it was a one-man operation running out of a basement. Today, Cypher Environmental sells green infrastructure products in more than 50 countries and Todd is on a mission to replace toxic road salts with better alternatives. In this episode of Careers Under Construction, Todd shares: Why he refused to compete on price and focused on building bette...

Amanda Fiebelkorn didn't know what she wanted to do after high school, so she flew to Tahiti. After six months of nannying and teaching English, she came home with a new mindset and a new direction. Today, Amanda is the founder of The Social Manor, working with brands like Canon, Popeye's Supplements, Melted, Don's Photo and other local favourites. In this episode, Amanda shares: Why s...

Three weeks after Nicole Dubé left CTV Morning Live, the role she had just left was eliminated. She didn't know it was coming. She just knew it was time. After 20 years in broadcast journalism, Nicole bet on herself and launched DUBÉ MEDIA, where she helps leaders communicate with clarity, whether it's on stage, on camera or in the conversations that matter most. In this episode, Nicole sh...

Rob Tetrault spent over a decade chasing one number: $1 billion in assets under management. When he finally hit it, he sat at his desk and felt nothing. No confetti. Just the realization that the goal he'd sacrificed so much for didn't change much. Today, Rob is the founder of Tetrault Wealth Advisory Group, overseeing more than $1.2 billion in assets with a team of 16. But the story he sh...

It started with a beer ad during a Jets game. Taiv co-founder & CEO Noah Palansky was at a bar when he noticed the TV was advertising a competitor’s cheaper pint. He realized restaurants had zero control over the screens on their own walls — and built a solution to fix it. A few years later, Taiv is in over 5,000 locations across North America, with around 100 employees and more than $20 milli...

Sandy Shindleman started with nothing and built one of Manitoba's largest privately-held real estate companies. Today, Shindico Realty manages close to 200 properties and $3 billion in assets across Canada and the United States. In this episode of Careers Under Construction, Sandy shares: The roles he played in the early days vs now Why he looks at how much he can lose, not how much he can make Th...

Most people don't bet their career on a city. Jim Ludlow did. As President of True North Real Estate Development, Jim has helped shape downtown Winnipeg — the MTS Centre, the return of the NHL, True North Square, and now the $1 billion redevelopment of Portage Place and the Bay. In this episode of Careers Under Construction, Jim shares: What it really meant to be "the first hire" at...

Élise Page and Teri-Lynn Friesen met teaching at a local dance studio. One random conversation changed everything. Now they run Fête Ice Cream & Coffee, one of Winnipeg's most loved scratch-made ice cream shops. In this episode of Careers Under Construction, Élise and Teri-Lynn share: What Covid did to their numbers and their biggest lessons learned Getting into retail stores like VitaHeal...

He started a landscaping company in his early 20s. One year later, he was diagnosed with stage three melanoma. Matt Bell is the founder of Gellers — a luxury design-build landscaping company in Winnipeg — and co-owner of Shelmerdine Garden Centre. In this episode, Matt opens up about: Going from mowing lawns to running a 200-person company Being diagnosed with cancer at 25 Beating stage four melan...