Since the start of his career with a major international firm, to his present position as President and Chief Executive Officer (and Founder) of Chesswood Group Limited, Mr. Shafran's expertise has been in strategic planning, and the design and implementation of growth strategy including mergers and acquisitions. He also has extensive experience in change management and raising capital, publically and privately. A Chartered Professional Accountant, Mr. Shafran also holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Commerce from the University of Toronto. Mr. Shafran founded Chesswood Group in 2006 through an IPO on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the acquisition of Pawnee Leasing, of Colorado. Chesswood provides small-ticket equipment financing to small businesses across the U.S and Canada and has more than 35,000 finance contracts with SME’s for gross receivables in excess of $1.0 billion.

Deborah Reuben, CLFP, is CEO & Founder of TomorrowZone, a technology strategy consulting firm specializing in advising leaders who want to make smarter decisions today and create a resilient and more profitable tomorrow.

These articles have been collaborated on by multiple members of the Monitor staff.

Rita E. Garwood is editor in chief of Monitor.