Jason Parker – The lifelong learner

A skilled expert and a very present parent

Jason didn’t take a direct route into finance. However, after studying geography and international business, his first job was with a securities brokerage firm. To succeed in this role, he had to complete specialized training in the field and, later in his career, he trained to become a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).

“It was a lot of work, but I love reading, writing and analyzing, so it was also exciting. Combined with my training in the social sciences, the CFA title gave me a great deal of credibility in the financial world. ”

In 1997, he was hired by BMO Group, where he took on increasingly senior leadership roles until the restructuring of the research group he headed in 2019.

Jason saw this change of situation as an excellent opportunity to spend time with his children and his nephew before they all started university. “Even though they’re at school outside Toronto, they come back on weekends so we can spend time together. We cook meals for the week ahead, and I juggle the stove, oven and barbecue all at once! Then we test out the dishes while we’re watching a hockey game, or something.”

A thousand and one ways to strengthen your brain

As you may have guessed, Jason likes to take on several projects at once. He has three master’s degrees and is currently pursuing a doctorate in behavioral finance. In the long term, he would also like to do another doctorate in developmental psychology and education.

He is also passionate about quantum physics. Jason has to deal with multiple aspects of neurodiversity and is particularly sensitive to noise. He wants to learn more about quantum acoustics to use sound waves to treat certain neurological medical conditions.

Inspired by the resilience of his father, whose physical disability never prevented him from achieving his goals, Jason is making the most of his situation. His auditory particularity led him naturally to playing music, and he has several guitars in an impressive music room where he plays with his sons.

In fact, it was another of iA’s famous guitarists who recruited him to join the company in 2021!

“I met Dominic Siciliano in business meetings when I was at BMO. He suggested I join iA, even before I was actively looking for a new job. Knowing that I could work there from Toronto and stay close to my children, I jumped at this wonderful opportunity!”

Since then, Jason has been very happy with his choice. Jason appreciates his new colleagues’ great teamwork and respect, as well as their high level of intelligence.

“It’s important for me to be surrounded by brilliant people, and at iA, whatever the sector, there really are people with exceptional intellectual qualities!”

Multiplying knowledge through openness and inclusion

Jason also loves to share his knowledge with others. As a volunteer mentor for the CFA Society of Toronto’s mentoring program, he explores various topics, including artificial intelligence.

Jason also actively participates in a number of industry panels, which positively contributes to iAGAM’s reputation. Finally, in our Toronto offices, he also organizes meetings called LC Speaks. In this leadership community, people from iA and beyond can practise their public speaking skills for free.

“This forum strengthens the neural connections in people’s brains that ‘tame’ stage fright. This makes the financial field less intimidating, especially for women and the many participants for whom English is not their first language.”

In short, Jason firmly believes that it is through openness to diversity and to everyone’s ideas that we can enrich the world in a sustainable way.

This attitude is echoed in iA Financial Group’s commitment to being a learning organization. And Jason, through his personal example and community involvement, is naturally an excellent ambassador!