
Congratulations to our 2023 IMI Award winners!
Each year, the Institute for Management & Innovation honours its most innovative and collaborative IMI teams and team members. The IMI Awards provide us with a chance to honour our hardworking, innovative, and committed faculty & staff.
In 2021, we proudly announced new awards for our IMI graduate students and alumni.
In 2023, we proudly introduced two new awards, the IMI Emerging Technology & AI Award and the IMI Campus Partner Award.
Award nominations are reviewed by a panel that includes staff, faculty, students, and alumni from across UTM.
Winners are celebrated at our annual IMI Awards Reception.
Jump to an award:
Faculty | Research | Staff | Team Collaboration | Alumni | IMIvator | Social Leadership | Emerging Technology & AI Award | Campus Partner
Past Recipients
IMI Faculty Award
This faculty member will have significantly enhanced the overall support, learning and/or engagement of students and/or faculty within the Institute for Management & Innovation. This may be at an undergraduate or graduate level.
IMI Research Award
This faculty member will have been recognized for a significant research/scholarly contribution to their discipline. This contribution could be but is not limited to an original published work or key research contributions deemed innovative in nature.
IMI Staff Award
This staff member will have significantly enhanced the overall support, learning and/or engagement of students, staff and/or faculty within the Institute for Management & Innovation.
IMI Team Collaboration Award
This team of two or more members can include any balance of faculty and staff (up to four (4) members). They will have collaboratively introduced and implemented a new program, product, or initiative that has significantly enhanced the overall support, learning and/or engagement of students, staff and/or faculty within the Institute for Management & Innovation.
IMI Alumni Award
This award recognizes and celebrates the professional achievements made by IMI alumni. The panel will be looking for an alumna/alumnus who may have made a significant contribution to their field, acted as a prominent voice within their discipline, and/or demonstrated their commitment to making the world a better place through innovative ideas and solutions. They may also be a recent graduate with outstanding achievements in a short time who have shown themselves to be a trailblazer in their chosen field.
Eligibility:
- The nominated alumna/alumnus must have graduated at least two (2) years prior to the nomination.
- The nomination should be for achievements related to their field of study at IMI.
- Alumni are not eligible to nominate themselves for the award.
2023 Recipient: Anureet Kaur (MScSM Class of 2016)
IMIvator Award
This award is given to a current IMI graduate student (individual or group) who has used a multi-disciplinary approach in the conceptualization and/or creation of a new product, service, project, event, group or program that demonstrates innovative idea(s), enhances the student experience, and may have a long-lasting impact on students and/or community.
* Student(s) can be nominated for both the IMIvator and Social Leadership Awards.
2023 Recipient: The Energy Network (TEN)
IMI Social Leadership Award
This award is given to a current IMI graduate student (individual or group) who has led an initiative or conceptualized a product or service that focused directly on social responsibility, community well-being, and/or sustainable future. The contribution may focus on the well-being of IMI, UTM, the local community, or the broader community at large.
2023 Recipient: Hannah MacRae (MScSM Class of 2023)
IMI Emerging Technology & AI Award
This award is given to a current IMI graduate student (individual or group) who demonstrates exceptional creativity and innovation in leveraging an emerging technology or Artificial Intelligence (i.e., AI) algorithm in solving challenging real-world or simulated problems in their research or class projects. The award recognizes their potential and ability to leverage technology in novel, practical, and impactful ways.
2023 Recipient: HollyTM Team (Imran Rhemtulla, Crystal Valdez & Naina Jain)
IMI Campus Partner Award
This award recognizes a UTM campus partner for going above and beyond in partnership with IMI in order to significantly enhance, expand, or otherwise support IMI’s goals, mission, and purpose.
IMI Faculty Award Recipients

2023 - Soo Min Toh

2022 - Gabriel Eidelman

2021 - Gerhard Trippen

2020 - Kevin Yousie

2019 - Otto Yung

2018 - Laurel Besco

2017 - Louis Florence

2016 - Irene Wiecek
IMI Research Award Recipients

2023 - Yue Li

2022 - Tara Vinodrai

2021 - Ningyuan Chen

2019 - Nico Lacetera

2018 - Minlei Ye

2017 - Sonia Kang
IMI Staff Award Recipients

2023 - Natasha Walli

2022 - Nazeem Shamsuddin

2021 - Maria Andrade, Claire Westgate

2020 - Diana Aldaz

2019 - David Linden

2018 - Linnet Kocheril

2017 - Carol Solonenko, Debby Keown

2016 - Natasha Walli
IMI Team Collaboration Award Recipients

2023 - BIGDataAIHUB Communications Team: Ryan Cerrudo, Sarah Ogbiti, Abdullah Qaisar, Claire Westgate

2022 - IMI Connect Team: Alyssa Madrasto, Nazeem Shamsuddin, Martina Simmonds

2021 - MMPA Recruitment Team: Bianca Gaspini & Wesley Mack

2020 - Big Data & AI Case Competition: Rima Abu-Shakra, Ryan Cerrudo, & Carol Solonenko

2019 - Urban Leadership eXchange: Natasha Walli, Shauna Brail, Alyssa Madrasto, & Ryan Cerrudo

2018 - ICUBE: Ignacio Mongrell & Sam Dumcum

2017 - MMI: Beate Ensminger, Afrodite Cruz, & Alberto Galasso

2016 - MScSM: Rose Mary Craig, Shashi Kant, & Claire Westgate
IMI Alumni Award Recipients

2023 - Anureet Kaur

2022 - Daniel Tourangeau

2021 - David Harary, Shane Saltzman
IMIvator Award Recipients

2023 - The Energy Network (TEN)

2022 - Kaitlyn D’Lima

2022 - Lara Brooks, Angelica Chow, Alannah Hoops, Allan Huang, Elyse Muir, & Xi Shao

2021 - Gloria Ko
IMI Social Leadership Award Recipients

2023 - Hannah MacRae

2022 - Jananee Savuntharanathan

2021 - Raguram Bhaskar
IMI Emerging Technology & AI Award

2023 - Imran Rhemtulla, Crystal Valdez & Naina Jain
IMI Campus Partner Award

2023 - City of Mississauga, Economic Development Office; City of Mississauga, Strategic Communications & Initiatives