Short Bio

Junaid, CPA, ACA, is a finance leader with global startup experience from Canada and the UK. As VP Finance at EnterpriseAlumni, he led an eight-figure Series B and delivered strong financial systems that scaled. Previously at LumiQ, he helped scale CPD across North America, supporting 10x revenue growth. His love for education led him to build Stock Shock, teaching students financial literacy through gameplay. He holds a BBA from Wilfrid Laurier University and writes about applied AI on his Substack, Human in the Looop. His deep startup expertise enables him to advise, invest and build ventures aligned with his values.

Detailed Bio

Career achievements:

I am a finance and operations leader with over a decade of experience across high-growth startups, international markets and digital innovation. I bring a unique blend of financial expertise, strategic foresight, and entrepreneurial drive that aligns with CPA Ontario’s 2025 Council priorities.

Currently serving as VP Finance at EnterpriseAlumni, a VC-backed B2B SaaS company with $5.8M in ARR, I’ve driven the company to its first cash flow break-even through a rigorous focus on cost optimization and operational efficiency. I partnered directly with the CEO on a $6M Series B fundraise and refinanced $4M in corporate debt, while also spearheading financial planning across global operations (Canada, UK, and the US). My work increased total contract value by 21% and gross margin by 16%, while delivering $1.3M in annual savings.

Previously, as Finance & Operations Manager at LumiQ, an Ed-Tech SaaS firm, I was among the first hires and played a key role in scaling revenue from $350K to $7M ARR. I helped close $4M in seed investments, managed investor reporting, and led US market expansion – generating $1.5M ARR and onboarding 10,000 users in just six months. I also built the company's financial and data infrastructure, saving over 150 hours/week and $9K/month in software spend. They recently sold to a private equity firm, with over $20M ARR.

My leadership style is rooted in collaboration, transparency and delivering measurable impact. Whether overseeing audits, leading strategic planning, or building high-performing teams, I strive to elevate those around me – aligning closely with CPA Ontario’s mission to advance the profession and protect the public.

I hope to bring this experience to Council and help CPA Ontario continue to lead with integrity, innovation, and inclusivity in the years ahead.

Other professional accomplishments:

A lifelong learner, I recently completed a Nanodegree in AI Product Management and Generative AI from Udacity. I’m passionate about equipping professionals with future-ready skills and have actively contributed to building systems that foster digital learning and team enablement. I believe it’s essential for CPAs to understand the rapidly evolving landscape of AI and automation, and I bring this perspective to every boardroom I enter.

In 2023, I co-founded Stock Shock, a nonprofit organization focused on democratizing financial literacy through gamified learning. We developed a financial education board game and a web-based simulation platform that teaches students in grades 6–10 how to invest in the stock market. Our game is aligned with educational curriculum outcomes, and is currently being used in public schools, homeschool programs, and youth-focused community initiatives across Ontario and beyond. To date, we've sold over 4,000 physical units and reached over 10,000 users online.

We’ve also partnered with educators to create training resources that empower classrooms to engage with complex investing topics in an interactive, inclusive way. Our goal is to "educate a million millionaires by 2040" by fostering economic empowerment and long-term thinking in the next generation through gaming.

This work has sharpened my skills in governance, public engagement and educational design. I regularly speak at schools and community events to advocate for financial inclusion and youth empowerment, and I’ve worked with school boards, curriculum designers, and private sector sponsors to expand our reach.

Other voluntary service and recognition:

Volunteered with Autism Ontario for over 6 years, assisting parents with their budgets and OAP Funding.

Candidate statement

Why are you interested in joining Council?

My keen interest to be involved with the profession on a larger scale to help strengthen it for the current challenges it faces is why I want to join the Council. As a CPA member for over 6 years, and an ACA (UK) member for over 2 years, I have immense respect for the accounting profession and am keen on ensuring the value of the CPA designation continues to be recognized across the globe with the best of them. This involves pushing forward with the four priorities set out for 2025 and converting current disruption (AI, talent shifts, trust pressures) into an agenda that will advance member relevance. My eclectic and diverse background scaling experience in venture-backed SaaS, Ed-Tech NPO and public practice across multiple geographies will allow me to be a strong candidate for the Council.

How do your experiences align with the following skills, attributes and experiences that have been prioritized for incoming members of Council?

• Strategic and Transformational Leadership
• Emerging Technologies
• Future of Learning and Work
• Business Acumen

Strategic Leadership & Financial Transformation

At EnterpriseAlumni, I reported directly to the CEO, guiding the company to its first cash-flow break even through cost optimization, structured revenue initiatives and building and executing on an automated AI engine that transformed the entire finance function. I directly supported a $9.2M Series B and refinancing of $4M in debt, engaging directly with investors and lenders. At LumiQ, which recently exited, I helped scale ARR 20x by implementing disciplined finance processes and executing a data driven U.S. go-to-market plan resulting in tripling revenue and users.

Emerging Technologies

Being passionate about the intersection of AI and accounting, I completed a Nanodegree in AI Product Management & Generative AI and applied it at EnterpriseAlumni by architecting and executing on the build of a unified finance data stack, eliminating 80% of the manual hours per week. Currently I’m applying it to my non-profit, Stock Shock, to build an AI agent (think tutor and competitor at the same time) for our online version that plays and teaches users about financial literacy in a way that gaming has never been able to do.

Future of Learning & Work

At LumiQ, we changed the way CPD was done through an innovative podcasting method equipped with quizzes and a tracker on app. I had assisted in product development and North American expansion. Through the NPO Stock Shock, our team has been able to reach more than 10,000 students across 15 countries. Our goal is to change the way we learn about financial literacy through gaming; we even partnered with CPA Ontario for an upcoming workshop in 2025! Regarding talent management, it’s typically the last thing teams think of, however the first experience, including training, is vital in employee retention. In the past, I systematized onboarding (handbook, workflows, FAQ, process maps) cutting ramp time by approximately 60% and typically all my hires have a tenure of 4 or more years, whilst the average is 2 years. Talent management is a strong suit that I’ve been able to develop across the multiple startups I’ve been at.

Business Acumen

Repeatedly I’ve driven tangible outcomes: raised $15M in funding collectively, delivered well-architected systems saving countless hours/dollars and living well beyond my tenure, and built an NPO in the Ed-Tech space with over 10,000 games played. Being in the startup space for many years has allowed me to develop well-rounded business acumen that serves me well beyond simply being an accountant. This is the future of the CPA.

What is the greatest opportunity and challenge facing the accounting profession and CPA Ontario?

The very obvious answer in front of us is AI and automation, which can be viewed as an opportunity and challenge at the same time. We, as a profession, can choose to allow it to replace certain roles within the next decade, as the Co-Founder of Anthropic states, “a white collar disruption”. There are already startups, such as Minerva from Y-Combinator, who have already built AI software to do so. However, the not-so-obvious insight is that CPAs have historically gone through transformational changes time and time again. Even with the changes, they were still able to stay on top as a very strong designation and remain valuable professionals in any organization across the world.

This moment in time is a great challenge if we allow it to be, or a fantastic opportunity to elevate the designation to a whole new type of profession that every business will need to adapt through the stages of survival, scale and sale. The important piece to recognize is that we need strong advocates who believe in the profession’s future and are courageous enough to make the change needed to prosper for the next decade.