At Rhema, we have a team of dynamic and committed professionals who draw on a wealth of experience from a variety of disciplines to provide you with service that will meet or exceed your expectations.
Charles Redden
"Outgoing President, retiring August 13, 2010 after 15 years of service"
Alan Pinkney
Maintaining fiscal responsibility is Alan Pinkney, CFO & General Counsel. As General Counsel, Alan also serves as the officer responsible for quality and compliance. Alan began practicing law in 1987 and became a partner in Stikeman Elliott in 1995. He practiced exclusively as a corporate solicitor. He joined Rhema in 1996 as General Counsel and added the responsibilities of CFO in 1998.
George Simpson
With over 35 years in the industry, a key member of the Team is George Simpson, Executive Advisor (and Plant Manager Emeritus). George is a pharmacist by profession and is a member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain. He joined Rhema as Plant Manager in 1992 after holding senior positions with several multinational pharmaceutical companies. George also spent three years as GM & Director of Quality Control at Quest Vitamins and eight years as VP Plant Operations at Stanley Pharmaceuticals. In his role as Executive Advisor, George gives valuable direction to many Rhema departments. George also has an in-depth knowledge of regulatory affairs.
Lucy MacLoughlin
With nearly twenty-five years of experience in the natural products industry including 14 at Rhema, Lucy is a key member of the executive team. Having held positions from Retail Owner/Manager to Assistant General Manager of a major natural products manufacturer and wholesaler, and formerly our Vice President Sales & Marketing, Lucy's diverse experience is invaluable in her capacity as Special Projects Officer. With responsibilities in a broad range of areas including corporate organization and communication, vendor relations, human resources and key account relationships, Lucy's versatility and insight is constantly in demand. Lucy is also a classical homeopath.
Sales & Marketing Team
Your first contact with Rhema will be the Sales & Marketing team. Drawing on a wealth of knowledge from a variety of disciplines and a combined 30+ years experience in custom manufacturing, you know you have made the right choice when you come to Rhema for your Products and services needs.
Focusing on the strategic growth and development of our Canadian and international business is Carmine DiGiovanni, Director, Sales & Marketing. Carmine holds a B.Sc. (Biology). He has eighteen years experience in the pharmaceutical and natural products industry including being a Retail Manager, a Territory Sales Agent, and a National Sales Manager. He joined Rhema in 1998, was promoted to National Sales Manager in 2001 and Director, Sales & Marketing in 2007.
Clockwise from left: Laura Dick, Brent Kushnir, Eric Horie, Carmine DiGiovanni, Constance I. Elliott
Responsible for the management and growth of a high volume key customer and its related entities is Brent Kushnir, Account Executive. Brent joined Rhema in 1996 and has held various positions including Warehouse Manager and Sales Administrator prior to being promoted to Account Executive in 2005.
Working with prospects and a select group of established customers is Constance I. Elliott, Account Executive. Constance joined Rhema in 2007 and has held senior sales positions with GCI Nutrients, Strides and Stanley Pharmaceuticals.
Responsible for the management and growth of a high volume key customer, a select group of established customers and prospects is Angela Zavediuk, Account Executive. Angela joined Rhema in March 2009 and has held positions with True North Nutrition and Bakemark Canada.
Working with prospects and established customers is Henry Gallwitz, Account Executive. Henry joined Rhema in August 2009 and brings a wealth of knowledge to Rhema having held positions with SeaVan Laboratories, Tosuta International, Pangeo and Stanley Pharmaceuticals.
Responsible for the management and growth of a key customer, building a base of new customers and working on priority projects with the Director, Sales & Marketing is Jon O’Farrell, Senior Account Executive. Jon joined Rhema in May 2010 and has held positions with Puresource and managed key brands such as Tropicana, Planter’s Peanuts and Silk Soy beverages.Laura Dick, Sales & Marketing Administrator joined Rhema in 2005. Laura spent the last 18 years with The Source group (formerly Radio Shack) of retail outlets as a Service Manager. She ensures that customers' expectations are met through exceptional customer service and sales support.
Marty Ogilvie, Sales & Marketing Administrator joined Rhema in June 2009 and is responsible for the administration of a high volume key customer in addition to providing overall support for all Rhema customers. Marty has held positions with several progressive companies including Business Objects and Club Intrawest.
Penny Sorensen, Sales & Marketing Administrator joined Rhema in December 2009. Penny spent the last nine years as an executive assistant with Whistler Accomodations and the Canadian Home Builders' Association of BC. She will be working closely with two of our account executives to provide sales support and value-added service.Rhema Innovations Limited and Product Development Team
Heading up Rhema Innovations Limited and our Product Development Team
is Frank Wong, Director, Technical Services & Product Development.
Frank holds a B.Sc. (Food Science). He has over fifteen years experience in the
natural products and related industries and has held senior positions in
operations and quality control/quality assurance at the wholesale level. He
joined Rhema in 2000. He has extensive product development experience and an
in-depth knowledge of regulatory affairs.
Clockwise from Left: Fannie Lau, Patricia Sham, Frank Wong
Combining specialized industry knowledge, advanced expertise as flavour specialists and an enthusiastic approach to problem solving is our Product Development team.
Now expanded to include Rhema Innovations Limited, which offers cutting-edge, unique Rhema-developed formulas for license or sale under our customers’ own label, this team knows how to make a product that will meet your requirements.
Production Team
Heading the department is Manibhusan (Mani) Panda, Production
Manager. Mani holds a B.Pharm. He joined Rhema in 2004 bringing eleven years
of pharmaceutical production experience, including seven years as Production
Manager at Therapeutic Laboratories.
Clockwise from left: Parvinder Notta, Ayad Majid, Abdul Azzam, Manibhusan (Mani) Panda
Our Production Team is responsible for the smooth operation of three shifts, twenty four hours a day and over ninety production staff.
Each member plays a vital role in ensuring that products are manufactured to the agreed specifications in accordance with GMP.
Quality Control & Compliance
Our QC/QA team verifies that product integrity is maintained through the production process and products are tested to meet the agreed specification. They maintain strict control over our GMP compliance and hold an annual self-inspection.
Heading up our QC/QA department is Doug Robertson, Director, Quality
& Compliance. Doug holds a B.Sc. (Cellular and Microbiology). Formerly
at Stanley Pharmaceuticals, he has over twenty-five years experience in quality
control/quality assurance. He joined Rhema in 2001, and leads an eight person
team who oversee all phases of quality control and assurance.
Clockwise from left: Snezana Dabik, Dina Ledesma, Doug Robertson, Corrine So, Echel Narciso, Rubina Gomos, Dijana Gjokovic, Maha Najm
Dijana Gojkovic, QA Manager joined Rhema in 1999 as Assistant QA Manager and was promoted to QA Manager in 2006. Dijana holds a B.Pharm. (Europe) and achieved Canadian accreditation in 1997. She brings a wealth of experience to Rhema having spent fourteen years as a Plant Manager and two years as a Pharmacy Manager. She ensures that all finished goods meet agreed specifications prior to being released for shipment to our customers.
Purchasing Team
Heading up the department is Deborah Dodds, Director,
Purchasing. Deborah holds PMAC II accreditation and an ONC Business Degree,
and has over twenty-five years experience in purchasing. She joined Rhema in
1994 as Purchasing Agent, was promoted to Purchasing Manager in 1998 and
Director, Purchasing in 2007.
Clockwise from left: Melanie van Bynen, Kari Stewart, Deborah Dodds
To find the best ingredients that meet the agreed specification, develop synergistic relationships with our suppliers and to ensure required materials arrive when we need them is the ongoing objective of our Purchasing Team.
Accounting & Administration Team
Heading up our Accounting & Administration Team is John Tims,
Controller. John is a CGA and has over fifteen years experience in
accounting, including ten years with custom manufacturers. He joined Rhema in
2004.
Our Accounting and Administration team, among other things, provides estimates to our Sales Team, invoices to our customers, and maintains accurate inventory records.
Planning Team
The Planning Team coordinates product priorities with Sales and uses
advanced tools like our proprietary ERP to ensure that materials are available
to Production when required.
Monitoring the logistics of your sales order from start to finish is Ayman Abu Hannoud, Planning Manager. Ayman holds a B.Eng. (Electrical Engineering) and an MBA. He joined Rhema in 1997 and has held positions in production (as machine operator and administrator) and sales planning, and was promoted to Planning Manager in 2004. He is currently enrolled in the CPIM (Certified Production Inventory Management) program.
Warehouse Team and Maintenance & Safety Team
Heading
up both teams is Mahmoud (Mack) Mouhammad, Warehouse & Materials Manager
and Maintenance & Safety Manager. He joined Rhema in 1995 and has
held various positions in Production and Sales. In 1999, he became Operations
Manager in charge of Planning, Production and Warehouse before assuming his new
positions in 2004.
From left, Front: Rajesh Karan, Abdulrahman Abdulrahman, Reena Dhawan, Estelito Epondulan, Ba Van Nguyen,Ravinder Singh Sain
From left, Back: William Baas, Ashraf Al-Fakih, Ali Hussain Ali, Mahmoud (Mack) Mouhammad, Leonilo (Ron) Poblete, Joseph R. Tayo, Alex Chan
Our Warehouse Team makes sure all materials are received and ready for production and all finished product is ready to ship in accordance agreed specifications.
Our Maintenance & Safety Team has developed a preventative maintenance program for our equipment that ensures that we meet GMP requirements and optimize our operations.