Management Team

Pascal Pilon

President and CEO

Mr. Pilon has served as a director and CEO of Averna since its inception in 1999. A veteran in real-time computerized systems, Mr. Pilon co-founded Averna after holding executive positions at Mindready Solutions and ATS Aerospace. He won the 2005 ARISTA Entrepreneur of the Year Award, the 2009 SGF – CEO of the Year Award, the 2009 Prix Tremplin Entrepreneurship, an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year® 2009 Quebec Award together with Richard Maltais, and was named to the prestigious Canada's Top 40 Under 40™ that same year.

Mr. Pilon holds a bachelor's degree in computer engineering from École Polytechnique de Montréal and an MBA from HEC Montréal. He is an active director of Société d'Investissement Jeunesse, a non-profit organization that supports young entrepreneurs in their quest for startup funding.

Richard Maltais

Executive Vice President
General Manager, Systems and Services

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. He won an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year® 2009 Quebec Award together with Pascal Pilon.

Mr. Maltais holds a bachelor's degree in computer engineering from the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi. He is an active board member of the Quebec Technology Association (AQT), the largest group of technology firms in Quebec, where he shares his expertise in business development best practices and inspires the IT frontrunners of tomorrow.

Sebastien Zuchowski

Vice President of Sales, Systems and Services

Sébastien Zuchowski's career has spanned twelve years in the telecommunications, aerospace and defense, and transportation industries. Mr. Zuchowski was previously the 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 outstanding leadership. He has previously held the positions of vice president of sales at Integrys Limited and strategic account manager at Kontron America.

Yves Gosselin

Vice President of Operations, Systems and Services

Yves Gosselin has acquired fifteen years of experience in helping renowned aerospace and defense companies gain efficiency in their control, simulation, and test applications. In his roles as project engineer, test manager, and operations and engineering executive at companies as diverse as CAE, ATS Aerospace, Adacel and Mechtronix, Mr. Gosselin oversaw functional and system testing, real-time software, production, manufacturing, and engineering activities. During his tenure as an executive in these fast-growing simulation companies, Mr. Gosselin successfully re-oriented them from a project to a product approach, and managed the largest government contract ever awarded in the air traffic control simulation industry, earning a high performance rating from the US Air Force.

Mr. Gosselin has a degree in electrical engineering from the Royal Military College of Canada, and is a former Canadian Air Force pilot.

Lori Seidman

Chief Legal Officer

Lori Seidman has acquired a decade of legal experience in corporate matters. She started her legal career in 1998 at Fasken Martineau, an international law firm, where she advised public and private companies. Prior to joining Averna, she held the position of Chief Legal Officer for a financial services company. She has been awarded the R.T. Honourable Brian Dickson Prize and the Carswell Book Prize for academic proficiency in common law, among other honors.