Traction on Demand’s Greg Malpass presented with award at BASS Banquet

Beedie School of Business BBA alumnus and founder of Traction on Demand, Greg Malpass was one of three winners of Impact Awards at the 16^th annual BASS Banquet.

Malpass joined BBA alumnus Manny Grewal and current BBA student Enoch Weng as winners of this year’s Impact Awards, which honour winners in Corporate, Alumni and Student categories for their contributions to advancing the Beedie School of Business community.

The BASS (Business Administration Student Society) Banquet, held this year on February 7 at the Coast Coal Harbour Hotel in Vancouver, is an annual celebration of Beedie students’ achievements, as well as the signature undergraduate networking event in the Beedie calendar.

Organized entirely by members of BASS, each year the event brings together members of the Beedie community and leading figures from Vancouver’s business world to celebrate the success of individuals that have contributed to the growth of the School and its students.

Malpass was presented with the Corporate Impact Award, which recognizes a Canadian business leader who not only excels in their area of expertise, but also shows extraordinary commitment to their community.

Malpass is the CEO of Traction on Demand, a Burnaby-based cloud technology consultancy and software development firm, which he founded in 2006. It is now ranked as one of North America’s fastest growing technology companies. Greg’s commitment to workplace culture and community has earned Traction on Demand recognition as one of Canada’s top ten best employers by Great Place to Work Canada for the past three years, and in 2016 Business in Vancouver magazine presented Malpass with a BC CEO Award in the Small Firms category.

“It is an incredible honour to be recognized by the students within Beedie for this award. In fact, I was absolutely blown away,” says Malpass. “After the dust settled I have begun to think of what I carried forward from my experience at SFU, what shaped me most, what do I still today, lean on continuously. In truth, there are two things: 1. My involvement in extra curricular activities, Enactus, BASS, SMA forced me to think beyond myself, and taught me to not be an individual contributor, rather part of a team; 2. I learnt how to ask the right questions leading me to focus on problems not symptoms. It was the high levels of engagement from the faculty and their intrigue in creative problem solving that allowed me to build the confidence to ask and not just take what is there as the way things are. I hope that my gratitude to SFU was felt by every person in that room. I also hope that they also saw how achievable and within reach opportunity truly is.”

The Alumni Impact Award recognizes a Beedie undergraduate alumnus for their exceptional contributions that inspire and benefit both Beedie students and alumni and this year the award was presented to Maney Grewal. Grewal graduated with a BBA in Finance and Accounting in 2008, having been an active participant the Beedie community, including competing at the 2007 JDC West case competition, where Beedie took home the Academic School of the Year award.

Since graduating, he has balanced growing a successful career, including four years working at KPMG, starting his own investment company and preparing to launch a new tech venture, with giving back to the Beedie community. He has continued to volunteer his time as a coach for Beedie’s JDC West teams, taking on the role of co-head coach in 2013 and 2014, as well as mentoring undergraduates and helping them prepare for leadership roles in business.

The Student Impact Award is given annually to a student who continues to inspire the Beedie community through their dedication in academics, school involvement, and humanitarian work. This year’s winner was Enoch Weng, who has achieved an extraordinary amount during his time as a Beedie undergraduate. Weng was recognized for his tireless dedication to the Beedie and SFU communities over the past five years, during which time he has served as President of the Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS), President of the SFU Recital Society, VP Finance for AIESEC SFU, and Student Senator for SFU Senate. He is also a four time BASS FROSH leader and mentor in the Mentorship Program, as well as having participated in numerous other student clubs and organizations.

For more information on the BASS Banquet, visit banquet.beediebass.com/