Management

Dave Dinesen | President & CEO

Dave Dinesen founded BackCheck in 1997. Dave is a leader and innovator within the pre-employment screening industry. He also founded Checkwell’s Continuous Employee Feedback programme for Employee Engagement and Retention, and established BackCheck in the United Kingdom. Under Dave’s leadership, BackCheck has grown from a small business to a multi-site organization that serves thousands of employers. Previously, Dave co-founded and led a large investigation and due diligence firm.

Dave is a sought after speaker on the topic of employment screening. Featured in a number of trade and general media articles, Dave has sat on a panel at a recent Canadian HR Council, he has addressed the HRPAO conference, ASIS, the Atlantic HR Conference and the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police. He is a member of the Human Resources Management Association (HRMA) of B.C., and the National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS).

Dean Drysdale | Chairman of the Board & CFO

Dean holds an MBA from INSEAD and a PhD from Cass Business School at City University - London. He is a professor of business management at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. He has extensive work experience in government at the federal, provincial, and municipal levels including two years in the Canadian Prime Minister's office. He served as director of the Working Opportunity Fund for 9 years, which is the largest venture capital firm in British Columbia. He has ten years experience in corporate finance, specializing in raising funds for high growth companies. Dean has served as an officer in the Canadian Army Reserve for 25 years, and currently holds the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. Dean is a fellow of the Chartered Management Institute (UK).

Andy Kroen | Senior Vice President - Sales

Andy Kroen is responsible for managing BackCheck's Canadian sales force. He is an experienced HR professional and Certified Human Resources Professional (CHRP) designate with 25 years of Corporate HR experience, including extensive expertise in recruitment, compensation and benefits, training and development, change management and strategic planning. His background includes experience working for two major international high-tech organizations. Andy is a graduate of the University of Toronto and has chaired many HR Forums and Committees such as the International Technology Association of Canada. Andy speaks regularly at conferences across Canada on numerous HR-related topics.

Stephen Dinesen | Vice President - Marketing & Business Development

Stephen is an original member of the BackCheck team, having developed the client service delivery protocols, workflow systems, and the technology that facilitates online reporting. Stephen is an active member of the business development team, and aims to support, through technology, our goal of ever increasing quality, speed, and efficiency of service. Stephen has previously held the role of BackCheck General Manager and holds a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from the University of British Columbia.

Jeremy Hardern | Vice President of Operations

Jeremy currently oversees BackCheck’s operations in Canada, the UK and the Philippines.  Since joining BackCheck, Jeremy has concentrated on re-engineering core applications and building solutions for increased workflow efficiencies.  Prior to joining BackCheck Jeremy operated as a consultant in a number of business analysis, project management and system implementation roles on large change projects in banking, insurance and government.  Jeremy has a B.Sc. in Land Economics from the University of Paisley (now West of Scotland) and a Post Graduate Diploma in Software Engineering from Napier University.

Steven Leong | Vice President of Technology

Steven is responsible for technology strategy, systems development and infrastructure at Checkwell. He has broad industry experience in the delivery of large-scale technology initiatives, development methodologies, IT governance and product development. Steven has worked in technology, management consulting and product marketing roles throughout Canada, the United States and Europe. His background includes telecommunications with Ericsson in Stockholm, Sweden, and Motorola in Chicago and Zurich, Switzerland. Steven has a B.Sc. in Computer Science from Simon Fraser University, and an MBA from the University of British Columbia and the Rotterdam School of Management in the Netherlands. He is currently focusing on scaling up Checkwell's systems and technology core competencies to meet aggressive corporate objectives.

Randy Warkentin | Assistant Vice President - Client Care & Relationship Management

Randy Warkentin joined Checkwell in June 2005. He was quickly recognized for his excellence in client care and was promoted to our Implementation Department, where he helped develop processes and procedures for many of BackCheck’s clients. From there, Randy played a significant role in developing our Sales Support team and as this team continued to grow and evolve, Randy was promoted to BackCheck’s first Department Head of Pre-Sales. Here, he was able to build the department into a functional and integral department within BackCheck. Currently Randy oversees BackCheck’s Implementation, Sales Support, and Quality Assurance Departments. Randy holds a degree in Business from the University of the Fraser Valley.

Jennifer Lee | Assistant Vice President - Operations - Vancouver

Jennifer has been a member of the BackCheck team since June 2005, when she joined our client services team. Jennifer made her mark working on improving processes with some of BackCheck’s highly-specialized clients. Jennifer later transitioned into a role where she handled quality assurance reviews. As quality assurance expanded, Jennifer was promoted to Team Lead and soon to Department Head of Quality Assurance, where she was able to further develop our Quality Assurance Department. Jennifer currently oversees the daily functioning of the Vancouver Operations Center. Jennifer holds a Bachelor of Applied Arts in Psychology from Kwantlen University.

Brianna Swan | Assistant Vice President - Operations - Montreal

Brianna Swan joined BackCheck in July 2006 as an HR Interviewer. Brianna’s positive attitude, natural leadership skills, and high-calibre approach to business set her apart; and in 2007 she was selected to help set up BackCheck’s new office in the United Kingdom. Brianna was quickly promoted to Department Head of the Strategic Workflow Assistance Team, a role in which she was responsible for creating new processes for workload balancing within the office. Brianna showed her dedication to BackCheck once again when she moved to Manila, Philippines, as Department Head of Data Management. In 2009, Brianna was promoted to Assistant Vice President of Operations for the Montreal location. In all of her roles, Brianna has excelled as both a leader and a motivator.

Chris Hawkins

Chris Hawkins joined the BackCheck team in September 2004 as a Human Resources Interviewer. He has held positions such as Department Head for the Professional and Executive Department where he was responsible for workflow management. Chris oversees the UK Operations Centre. Chris is currently a CHRP candidate and a member of the HRMA. Chris holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Simon Fraser University.

Jonathan Lochbaum | Assistant Vice President - Operations - Manila

Jonathan Lochbaum has been part of the BackCheck team since May 2006, beginning as a Human Resources Interviewer. He held positions such as Project Management Coordinator and Implementation Coordinator, where he had the opportunity to work with numerous key BackCheck executives. As Assistant Vice President of Operations in Manila, Jonathan has contributed to the success of providing 24 hour support for BackCheck clients. Jonathan holds a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology from Simon Fraser University.