Leadership

Andrew McLeod

CEO & Co-Founder

Andrew McLeod is a Co-Founder and the CEO of Certn. Under his leadership, Certn has won multiple regional awards including 2nd in Deloitte’s Technology Fast 50™ (Canada) and 24th in North American Technology Fast 500™.

Andrew is no stranger to disrupting a variety of industries. As the Chief Strategic Officer of RentMoola, he altered the rent payments space.

During his free time, Andrew enjoys surfing off the coast of Vancouver Island with his family.

Sarah Miller Wright

President

With over 20 years of executive leadership experience, Sarah Miller Wright has a strong track record of delivering innovative customer experiences, strong growth metrics, and operational excellence in the financial services, technology, and telecommunications industries.

Sarah served as COO for Canada’s largest life insurance and group benefits company, Manulife Canada, and previously as Shaw Communications Inc.’s Senior Vice-President of Digital Technology, Product Development, & Service Delivery.

Owen Madrick

COO & Co-Founder

Owen Madrick is a Co-Founder and the COO of Certn. He’s a Chartered Professional Accountant in both Canada and the US, with experience raising capital (~$200M), acquiring businesses, working with banking partners, and obtaining government incentives.

With Certn, Owen is working to give consumers back ownership of their information through a decentralized digital credentialing tool that allows applicants to securely share their verified information to create new opportunities.

Michael Coombs

Chief Financial Officer

Michael’s journey from Software Architect at DWL to Wall Street banking at UBS and RBC, followed by strategic roles at GlobalFoundries and leadership in the startup world at Ripcord, has shaped him into the financial expert he is today.

Originally from Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia, Michael currently lives in Belmont, California with his family. He enjoys surfing in his free time.

Evan Dalton

Co-Founder

Evan Dalton is a Co-Founder of Certn. He has over a decade of entrepreneurial and corporate sales experience, with a wide breadth of successful ventures under his belt in property management, real estate, and payments.

Evan was previously at RentMoola as the Vice President, Business Development. Now, as an investor and advisor, Evan helps exciting new companies gain access to new markets. When not starting or helping tech companies, he’s traveling, playing squash, tennis, or running, or on a patio having a beer.

Shannon Davidson

General Counsel

Lives: Victoria, Canada

Key Work Experience: litigation background in labour and employment law

Proud to Be: tasked with building the Legal & Compliance team at Certn from scratch.

Fun Fact: played varsity hockey with Hayley Wickenheiser under Danielle Goyette (Go Dinos!).

Ed Hickey

VP, Product

Certn is fortunate to have Ed Hickey as its VP of Product, with 15 years of global leadership experience in the background screening industry alone. Ed is a growth-focused executive with experience in industries such as tech, telecoms, and the financial services sector and is proud to serve on the DabApps Board of Directors to help start-ups and scale-ups succeed through technology. He’s equally curious about travelling and trying as many local delicacies as possible along the way. Ed holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Earth Science.

Chris Palk

VP, Engineering

As Certn’s VP of Engineering, Chris manages a global team of engineers to produce the technical innovation needed to keep Certn at the forefront of the background screening industry. Prior to this, Chris held the position of Managing Director at DabApps, a company specializing in designing and building web and mobile applications. In fact, Chris has built nearly 100 mobile and web apps. With a  Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science and an MBA, Chris has also held various IT and financial roles, with experience managing remote teams in India, Hong Kong, Poland, and the United States.

Katie Kulp

VP, Operations

Katie has been a dynamic leader in the background screening industry since 2006, specializing in both operations and compliance. She has successfully driven operations across multiple organizations and oversees global operations at Certn. An active member of the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA), Katie has Co-Chaired the PBSA US Government Relations Committee and is serving her second term on the PBSA Board of Directors, contributing significantly to the industry’s growth and standards.

Chris Ellison

VP, Sales and Marketing

Chris is a seasoned executive with over 20 years of strategic and operational leadership experience across the telecommunications, media, and technology sectors. He specializes in driving digital product innovation, enhancing customer experiences, and cultivating high-performing teams. As the VP of Sales and Marketing at Certn, he’s obsessed with helping more customers experience the world’s easiest background checks.

Taylor Martin

VP, Customer

Taylor has held various leadership roles in customer experience and customer support. A serial entrepreneur at heart, he’s found a home focused on our customers and innovation within Certn. Since 2020, Taylor has obsessed over Certn’s clients to deliver a faster and easier screening experience. He’s not happy until you’re happy!

Originally from Toronto, Taylor and his family are based on Vancouver Island, enjoying the beaches and mountains in their spare time.

Donal Greene

Global Head of Background Screening

Donal is a global leader in the biometric technology sector, dedicated to advancing secure digital ecosystems. His expertise and passion for trust innovation have made significant impacts in the industry since 2015. In 2021, Donal founded Trustmatic, an identity verification service renowned for its cutting-edge solutions that enhance security without compromising user experience. Trustmatic’s success under his leadership led to its acquisition by Certn in 2023.

Before founding Trustmatic, Donal played a pivotal role at Innovatrics as the EMEA Sales Leader, and later Chief Experience Officer, driving the company’s revenue from €3 million to €20 million within four years. His strategic vision and leadership solidified his reputation as an expert in scaling technology solutions across diverse markets.