Dean Kirkham
North Vancouver,Canada
Summary
Accomplished CEO with a proven track record of driving organizational success through strategic planning, operational excellence, and a people-centric approach. Passionate about fostering a collaborative and results-driven culture, I have excelled in translating corporate strategies into clear long-term goals and actionable objectives that permeate every level of the organization. Adept at creating clear, measurable goals, I ensure alignment across departments and drive accountability to achieve sustained growth and profitability. With a deep commitment to empowering individuals and teams and enhancing stakeholder value, I lead with integrity, innovation, and a relentless focus on achieving superior business outcomes. I believe that for a lending organization to achieve long-term sustainable success, a deeply rooted risk mindset needs to balance the entrepreneurial spirit.
Overview
28
28
years of professional experience
Work History
President of Lending
DLP Capital
Jacksonville, FL
03.2025 - Current
- Recruited from Canada to lead DLP’s lending business.
- Develop and implement the Lending Business strategy with leadership of origination, credit structuring, underwriting, servicing, asset management and special loans.
- Successfully implemented revamp of end-to-end origination, structuring and credit process aimed at improving efficiency, business volumes and risk oversight.
- First year in role, drove 20% increase in loan origination to $1.1Bn for the fiscal year 2025, and growth to over $2.0Bn in Lending Fund AUM.
President and Co Chief Executive Officer
Trez Capital
Vancouver, BC
03.2023 - 03.2025
- Lead the development and implementation of the firm’s strategy.
- Provide direct leadership to the Capital Raising, Compliance and Risk functions of the organisation.
- Create the firm’s long-term strategic priorities and drive accountability to leaders through the development of clear actionable goals.
- Responsible for driving the culture of the organization, nurturing a healthy, high-performing team that is fulfilled and engaged and aligned to the business objectives.
- Successfully navigated the last two years high inflationary rising interest rate environment.
- Continue to grow the capital base to over C$5B while providing investors with strong and stable returns despite tremendous market volatility and change.
- Achieved total origination commitments of C$2Bn in 2023 and on pace to achieve $2.5B in 2024.
President and Chief Operating Officer
Trez Capital
Vancouver, BC
02.2022 - 03.2023
- Promoted to provide leadership of the firm’s strategy.
- Migrated to increasingly external facing role as the face of the firm, actively engaged in speaking to retail and institutional investors, and panelist at conferences.
- Instrumental in driving new capital to the business, taking on important strategic relationships.
- Continued to lead the risk, compliance and operational functions of the organisation.
Chief Operating Officer
Trez Capital
Vancouver, BC
11.2020 - 02.2022
- Continued to lead the risk organisation, with an expanded focus on the leadership of operational teams and initiatives.
- Drove a culture of risk management and compliance while fostering efficiencies that enable the growth of the firm.
- Continued to “institutionalize the business” through stronger process, governance and data under the vision that we needed to remain nimble, but also have the transparency and behavior of a regulated entity.
Chief Credit Officer
Trez Capital
Vancouver, BC
03.2016 - 11.2020
- Led the risk management function of the firm while growing AUM from C$1.8B to over $4B.
- Set the capital deployment strategy, investment criteria and exposure limits, while structuring and adjudicating loan submissions.
- Credit Committee chair for all transactions undertaken by the firm.
- Sole responsibility for sign off on transactions following underwriting.
- Institutionalised the risk infrastructure of the organisation, in the first two years, completely revamped the firm’s credit process and governance structure.
- Provided oversight of the asset management and underwriting teams, establishing and implementing recruitment, training and development programs.
- Constant mentorship and coaching to the origination team.
- Direct oversight of the firms challenged loan portfolio.
- During the first year in role, improved the company’s early warning process and made significant changes to the process of ongoing management of the portfolio with the view to improving proactivity.
- Implemented firm wide loan management system.
- Used lean principles to make broad sweeping improvements to processes and systems with the view to improve overall portfolio monitoring and oversight and organizational efficiency.
Regional President (Boarded Executive Vice President)
BMO Bank of Montreal
Vancouver, BC
10.2012 - 03.2016
- Senior Executive for the Bank’s commercial banking group, providing leadership to a team of over 200 commercial bankers; including back and middle office service and support, and sales organisation (transactions up to $25MM).
- Responsible for the development and execution of a sales plan to significantly expand the bank’s market share and revenue base from a diversified portfolio of over $7bn.
- Accountable for risk management, operations and the maintenance of internal control standards.
- Led the team to the top balance and revenue growth in the country with double-digit business growth in each of 2013, 2014 and 2015; no 1 in overall scorecard 2 of 3 years.
- Led the external peer group in market share growth and overtook RBC for leading market share in the Province in 2014.
- National Commercial Banking strategy team.
- Develop ongoing evolution of the Bank’s Commercial Banking business.
- Led the team through large-scale organizational re-design of policy, process, organization and systems during the period 2013-2015.
Vice President Risk Management (Boarded Executive Vice President)
BMO Bank of Montreal
Vancouver, BC
08.2010 - 10.2012
- Led a team of 40 credit professionals in the credit adjudication of all Commercial and Private Banking lending transactions in Western Canada.
- Provided risk oversight, governance, and portfolio management of a portfolio of approximately C$20bn (all transactions from $1MM - $300MM).
- Personal Risk Based Credit Approval limit of $175MM.
- Risk Lead in bank-wide transformational change initiative; complete redesign of the commercial organisation, procedures and systems.
- Integration Lead during the acquisition of a major acquisition in the US (M&I Bank in 2010); Led the integration and change management of risk processes, policies and culture in the US Southern region.
- Oversight of a US commercial portfolio of $5bn.
- Lead relationship role as Senior Risk Officer with the Canadian regulator of financial institutions (OSFI) and implementation of recommendations.
- Project lead on OSFI’s 2012 Commercial Real Estate review of the Bank’s Real Estate Portfolio.
- Led the re-development of Bank wide risk policies and procedures and lending guidelines for Real Estate.
Managing Director, Real Estate
BMO Bank of Montreal
Calgary, AB
09.2007 - 07.2010
- Lead a team of seasoned professionals who provide business development and portfolio management to Real Estate developers and operators throughout the Prairies (transactions $20MM-$100MM including syndicated transactions).
- Responsible for the development and execution of sales plans to expand the bank’s market share and revenue base through the acquisition and retention of profitable clients.
- Managed the team through the global recession with no loan losses experienced.
- Applied effective and professional consultative sales and business development principles, practices and techniques to ensure the identification, negotiation, structuring and provision of solutions for unique, complex business transactions.
- Demonstrated consistent risk management practises, by applying credit decisions and recommendations in accordance with sound credit-granting principles, ensuring compliance with internal and external requirements and regulations.
- Worked collaboratively and cross functionally within the Corporate Finance Division and across the BMO Financial Group to develop solutions for complementary opportunities.
Managing Director, Corporate Finance Division
BMO Bank of Montreal
Calgary, AB
07.2005 - 08.2007
- Business development lead responsible for selling broad range of commercial products including Senior and Subordinated Debt, Asset Based Lending, Financial Advisory Services, Cash Management and Treasury products.
- Transactions $20MM - $200MM (including syndicated transactions).
- Ranked within the top 10 nationally in sales in fiscal 2007 exceeding aggressive targets by nearly 50%.
- Relationship manager to a Senior Debt client portfolio of approx. C$800 million providing financial advice and solutions to company’s complex business and financial needs.
- Portfolio consisted of both publicly traded and large private companies with financing needs of $10 million to over $100 million, ranging from Manufacturing, Oil & Gas Services, Construction, Agri-Services, Transportation, Food Processing, Government, and other diversified industries.
Director, Corporate Finance Division
BMO Bank of Montreal
Calgary, AB
07.2004 - 06.2005
- Senior account manager to an upper-mid market commercial client base with a focus on active portfolio risk management and incremental business to an existing Sr. Debt portfolio of approx. C$1.5bn.
- Instrumental to team’s success, which more than doubled its revenue targets during fiscal 2005.
Assistant Vice President, Investment Banking
ABN AMRO Inc
New York, USA
07.2003 - 07.2004
- Offered transfer to New York to join North American Healthcare Investment Banking Relationship Group to act as liaison between European and North American teams and to lead cross-border strategic dialogue and M&A advisory business development to Life Science multinationals.
- Active client relationship management and business development of existing large-cap client base and prospects.
- Product offering included traditional Investment Banking suite of products with a focus on Debt Capital Markets.
Senior Associate, Investment Banking
ABN AMRO Bank NV
Amsterdam, the Netherlands
12.2000 - 06.2003
- Origination and execution of equity capital markets and cross border M&A within Europe and between Europe, North America, and Asia.
- Team ranked no. 2 in healthcare M&A in Europe in 2002 with over $2bn in transactions.
- Highly developed financial modeling skill set covering the development of business-plans, valuation, budgeting, forecasting, capital (re-) structuring, LBO and MBO analysis, and M&A contribution analysis.
Manager, Business Development & Strategy
Information Innovation BV
Amsterdam, the Netherlands
12.1999 - 12.2000
MBA Internship, Economics and Asset Management
Unibanco SA & Unibanco Asset Management SA
São Paolo, Brazil
07.1998 - 05.1999
Education
International MBA - Finance & Strategy
York University Schulich School of Business
Toronto, ON09.1999
MBA Exchange - classes in Portuguese
Fundacão Getulio Vargas
São Paolo, Brazil06.1999
Bachelor of Science -
The University of British Columbia
Vancouver, BC05.1996
Skills
- Strategic planning
- Risk management
- Capital raising
- Credit structuring
- Loan origination
- Investor relations
- Team building
- Operational leadership
- Business development
Community Service
Board Member and Finance & Audit Committee Member, BC Cancer Foundation
Additional Accomplishments Skills
Fluent in Portuguese with working knowledge of Dutch, French and other Latin languages, Rode in the 6 Ride to Conquer Cancer 2 day Gran Fondos
Leadership Development
- Advanced Leadership Program, Executive leadership development program developed and run by University of Toronto Rotman School of Business, 2010
- Managerial Leadership, Advanced skill training aimed at developing leadership competencies for on track Executives, 2008
Timeline
President of Lending
DLP Capital
03.2025 - Current
President and Co Chief Executive Officer
Trez Capital
03.2023 - 03.2025
President and Chief Operating Officer
Trez Capital
02.2022 - 03.2023
Chief Operating Officer
Trez Capital
11.2020 - 02.2022
Chief Credit Officer
Trez Capital
03.2016 - 11.2020
Regional President (Boarded Executive Vice President)
BMO Bank of Montreal
10.2012 - 03.2016
Vice President Risk Management (Boarded Executive Vice President)
BMO Bank of Montreal
08.2010 - 10.2012
Managing Director, Real Estate
BMO Bank of Montreal
09.2007 - 07.2010
Managing Director, Corporate Finance Division
BMO Bank of Montreal
07.2005 - 08.2007
Director, Corporate Finance Division
BMO Bank of Montreal
07.2004 - 06.2005
Assistant Vice President, Investment Banking
ABN AMRO Inc
07.2003 - 07.2004
Senior Associate, Investment Banking
ABN AMRO Bank NV
12.2000 - 06.2003
Manager, Business Development & Strategy
Information Innovation BV
12.1999 - 12.2000
MBA Internship, Economics and Asset Management
Unibanco SA & Unibanco Asset Management SA
07.1998 - 05.1999
International MBA - Finance & Strategy
York University Schulich School of Business
MBA Exchange - classes in Portuguese
Fundacão Getulio Vargas
Bachelor of Science -
The University of British Columbia