Averna's executive team is composed of a group of dynamic and growth-oriented leaders who intend to position the company as the leading test engineering provider in North America.

Below are brief career profiles of the executive team.

Pascal Pilon, B.Eng., MBA
President, CEO, and IC Division Leader

Mr. Pilon has served as a director of Averna since its inception in 1999. He is a veteran in real-time computerized systems. He co-founded Averna after holding executive positions at Informission Group and ATS Aerospace.

He won the Entrepreneur of the Year Arista Award in 2005, and was nominated for the Ernst & Young Technology Entrepreneur of the Year Award in both 2005 and 2006.

Mr. Pilon holds a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering from the École Polytechnique de Montreal and an MBA from HEC Montreal. He is an active director of the Société d’Investissement Jeunesse, a non-profit organization that supports young entrepreneurs in their quest for startup funding. He is also a member of the Technology Committee for the Chambre de Commerce de Montreal.

Richard Maltais, B.Eng.
Executive Vice-President and TMA Division Leader

Mr. Maltais has been one of Averna’s directors since it was founded in 1999. He is a seasoned expert in test engineering, and has nurtured longstanding relationships with leading instrument vendors. He co-founded Averna after serving as the Business Unit Manager of test and measurement solutions for the Informission Group. Prior to that, Mr. Maltais worked for Paramax, where he was involved in the development of military technology.

Mr. Maltais holds a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering from the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi.

Roger T. Duguay, MBA
Vice-President of Sales, Proligent

Mr. Duguay has garnered more than fifteen years of management and sales experience. Before joining Averna, he worked for ten years in a large U.S.-based management consulting firm where he headed business development for their Canadian Outsourcing division.

Mr. Duguay holds a bachelor’s degree in actuarial sciences, a minor in financial economics, and an MBA from HEC Montreal, where he is currently completing his Ph.D. and is a senior lecturer. Mr. Duguay is an active director of 4Dart, and a mentor for HEC Montreal MBA students and undergraduates.

Jean-Yves Allard, B.Eng.
Vice-President of Research & Development, Proligent

Mr. Allard's background is a testament to his passion for test engineering, a career that began at CAE in 1989. He became a test engineer for Nortel in 1992, where he created a best-practices task force to revamp the company's test processes. He managed Nortel's CIM group for a solid decade, and spearheaded development of the renowned Advanced Test Platform (ATP), technology that has made its mark in the test and telecom communities.

Sebastien Zuchowski
Vice-President of Sales, TMA and IC

Mr. Zuchowski’s career has spanned twelve years in the telecommunications, aerospace and defense, and transportation industries. Mr. Zuchowski has previously held the position of partner sales manager for the Quebec business unit of Novell, a company providing enterprise software solutions. In 2007, he won Novell’s prestigious Pole Position Award, recognition given for oustanding leadership. He has previously held the positions of vice president of sales at Integrys Limited and strategic account manager at Kontron America.