Biography

Gayelene Bonenfant, who currently holds an Executive MBA from Royal Roads University, is a self-made woman who ran her own oil and gas and cattle feed businesses from a very young age. She is also self-taught in accounting and finance and worked as the Chief Financial Officer for oil & gas companies for twenty years. In July of this year, she accepted the position of CFO of the tech start-up SenseConnect. Gayelene has always been courageous. At 19 years old she spied a burning vehicle and approached it. She saw a person inside and, without hesitation, she jumped into action and saved the man's life. This same courage propelled her entrepreneurial spirit and led her to own and operate her own oil & gas company and her cattle feed company - both industries heavily male dominated. She says she does not see obstacles or impediments but rather challenges and opportunities. This is what motivated her to take on her new role as the CFO of SenseConnect. Gayelene's keys to success are her constant work on personal development, her tenacity and her big picture thinking that looks past obstacles. She says that over the next 5-year period her goals are to "close the gap in her CFO designation and to do more strategic consultant. Gayelene currently gives her time serving as Treasurer on the Board of the MS Society of Alberta and NWT and sits on the national board.