Our core values deliver customer value.

About Us

Genoa Design International has been providing production design and 3D modeling services to shipbuilding and offshore industries from here in Newfoundland and Labrador since 1995. In that time, we’ve become one of the most sought-after production design firms in the North American shipbuilding market with a commitment to quality as a recent ISO 9001:2015 certified organization.

With collaboration as the cornerstone of our work, we approach every day with a focus on our core values: Put People First, Create Lasting Relationships, Make a Difference, Own It, Live Well, and Never Stand Still. Our customers tell us that our employees’ everyday demonstration of our values sets Genoa apart from competitors.

With a team of almost 200 designers, engineers, naval architects, administrators and technical support staff dispersed between our three locations in Mount Pearl, NL; Vancouver, BC; Halifax, NS; and New Orleans, US, Genoa provides expertise and dedicated support throughout the shipbuilding process. Currently, Genoa is active in major government initiatives such as Canada’s National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS) and in commercial contracts in shipyards throughout North America.

Genoa’s focus on innovation is closely aligned with its approach to collaboration. Our 3D model serves as a collaborative tool across project teams and stages, supporting partners over the long term, from initial design to decommission. These full-scale service offerings allow users to verify changes, optimize systems, and shorten engineering cycles throughout the whole life cycle of a project. Second only to our people, are the tools we deploy to succeed. With innovation, collaboration, and efficiency fundamental to what we do, our R&D lab is pushing our company forward with industry-leading technologies.

A balanced team of new and seasoned professionals provides a range of expertise, while an on-the-ground presence in North America’s key shipbuilding hubs ensures smooth sailing on each and every project.

Board of Directors

Genoa Design International is a company governed by a Board of Directors and led by a management team of experienced professionals.

Kevin Dumaresque

Chair of Board
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Kevin is President of KDD Consulting Inc., which provides governance, strategic, risk, financial planning, stewardship and reporting insights and advisory services to clients, drawing upon his experience as Chief Financial Officer of Irving Oil, a family-owned energy refining and marketing company, and as a senior partner with a Deloitte.

He has over 30 years of experience in finance, primarily in business advisory, financial reporting, acquisitions, and capital market transaction services across a wide range of entities, including local and multi-national engagements in the energy and resources, aerospace, real estate, mining, and communication industries, in both the public and private sectors.

Kevin currently serves as Chair of Genoa, Chair of the Advisory Board of a local family-owned private company and Chair of the Battle Harbour Historic Trust. He is also a board member of Provident10, the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation, and the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council,  where he serves as Chair of the Finance, Risk and Audit Committee. He has also served as President of the New Brunswick Institute of Chartered Accountants and as a Board member of the Newfoundland Institute of Chartered Accountants.

A Fellow of the Institute Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (FCPA), Kevin holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) degree from Memorial University. He also holds an ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors.


Gina Pecore

Chief Executive Officer
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Gina Pecore is CEO of Genoa Design International. Gina began her career with the Royal Canadian Navy and in the decades since, has built a career as an entrepreneur and business leader. Her strengths lie in strategic growth management, governance and team leadership. She received a communications degree from Mount Saint Vincent University in 1991, and has completed executive education at Harvard, Case Western and Simon Fraser universities. Gina serves as a Board Member on a Canadian utility and an offshore industrial firm and is also an active community leader, currently supporting Business & Arts NL and the SPCA.


Leonard Pecore

Founder & Director
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Leonard is the Founder and a Director on the Board of Genoa Design International Ltd. Leonard currently sits on the Marine Institute of Memorial University’s Industry Advisory Board, the Institute of Corporate Directors Newfoundland Chapter Executive Committee, the LearnSphere Board, the Atlantic Canada Aerospace & Defence Association Board of Directors, the MusicNL Board of Directors and the East Coast Music Association Board of Directors.

Leonard graduated from Acadia University in 1986 with a Bachelor of Arts and joined the Canadian Military as a Naval Officer in 1987, where he completed ten years of service. He possesses a Diploma of Technology in Naval Architecture and a Master’s Certificate in Project Management and is an ICD.D Certified Director.


Glenn Janes

Director
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Glenn has spent a career developing and implementing strategies to finance and successfully commercialize technology.  Most recently he was the founding CEO of the Research & Development Corporation (RDC).  Before returning to Canada to launch RDC, Glenn worked with Imperial Innovations Group plc, a leading technology commercialization company, in London, England.  He also has extensive experience working with young and growing companies to develop new products, target and penetrate markets and grow sales.   

Glenn currently serves on the Board of Genoa Design International Ltd., the Audit and Risk Committee for the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, and the Audit and Risk Committee for Small Federal Government Departments. He has recently served on the St. John’s Board of Trade, the Board of Canadian Adaptive Snowsports (CADS), and the Chapter Executive of the Institute for Corporate Directors Newfoundland and Labrador. In these capacities he has served on and chaired committees dealing with, among other things, strategy, human resources, finance, and organizational risk. He also served as Secretary of the Rhodes Trust for Newfoundland and Labrador for 10 years (2010-2020). 

Glenn is a Rhodes Scholar.  He holds Masters’ degrees in Business Administration, and Environmental Change and Management from Oxford University. He completed a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry at Yale University and holds the Chartered Director (C.Dir.) designation from The Directors College of Canada and the ICD.D from the Institute of Corporate Directors.  

Glenn has a personal interest in wine, has completed the first three levels of the Wine Spirits and Education Trust (WSET) international certification, and is currently working on the fourth, and final, level.  He enjoys working with Tumbler, the family Chocolate lab, and they have completed numerous agility courses together.  When time permits, he also enjoys playing drums, a pursuit of nearly 40 years!


Jim House

Director
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Jim is an Aerospace and Defence executive that has enjoyed a long career split between the public and private sectors. Jim spent the first half of his career as an aircrew on fixed and rotary wing aircraft in the Royal Canadian Airforce (RCAF), conducting overwater surveillance missions during the Cold War.

Retiring from the RCAF in 2000, Jim attended Royal Roads University to complete a Master’s of Business Administration. He joined Pratt and Whitney Canada as the Account Manager for Beechcraft in Wichita, KS and Piago Aircraft of Genoa, Italy. In 2003, he joined Honeywell’s Aerospace Division as the Director of Canadian Programs and, in 2005, became the Vice President of Government Relations and Business Development. In 2009, Jim returned to his home province of Newfoundland to become the Director of Business Strategy for the Government of Newfoundland’s Department of Business.

In 2013, Jim founded The Colonial Group, a consulting firm offering support on international business development. In 2016, he became the Provincial Director of the newly formed Atlantic Canada Aerospace and Défense Association until 2018.

Jim served as the Chair of the Association for Unmanned Vehicles International Canada and as a board member for the Aerospace Industry Association of Canada and the Aerospace and Defence Industry Association of Newfoundland and Labrador. Jim is heavily involved in recreational boating in Newfoundland.

Retired, Jim and his wife spend the majority of the year living aboard their boat, enjoying the southern latitudes, and doing boat repairs in exotic places.


Stephanie Champion

Director

Josée Tremblay

Director
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Josée Tremblay brings broad international experience leading large organizations and managing capital-intensive portfolios in heavy industrial settings. Her expertise is in articulating business opportunities through the lens of deep technical understanding, quality decisions, and strategic and commercial insights. She is a Principal at Strategic Decisions Group, a global firm specializing in helping companies discover innovative new opportunities and make the best possible strategic investments.

In her previous roles, she has worked both onshore and offshore in the energy industry and, most recently, on the production, development and exploration of Canada’s East Coast, where she was the Vice President for the region with Suncor Energy. During her tenure, she served over three years as the Chair of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP)-Offshore Policy Group. She retains close connections with Atlantic Canada and is currently the Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors at C-Core, an engineering R&D organization specializing in remote sensing, offshore wind and renewables, geotechnical, oceans and energy and a Director with TriplePoint Resources, a clean-energy venture.

With a career dedicated to fostering diversity in non-traditional fields and a passion for building an inclusive environment, Josee’s insight transforms and enables sustainable, outstanding performance.

Originally from Quebec, Josée is fluent in English and French and holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Calgary, a Strategic Decision and Risk Management certificate from Stanford School of Engineering and an Executive Education Certificate in Finance and Accounting from Rice University. She also recently attended the Harvard In-Residence Leadership program at the business school.

She is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors and an active member of the Schulich School of Engineering Dean’s Industry Advisory Council (SIAC).
Josée, along with her spouse’s and two children’s support, has a life-long interest in enabling access to learning and education. While living in Asia, she contributed to building libraries in Nepal and Vietnam. More recently, she built a sustainable bursary with the Engineering Faculty at the University of Alberta to increase access for students requiring financial assistance.


Jake Trainor

Director
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AS CEO of the PAL Group of Companies, Jake is responsible for strategic planning, coordination and successful operation of the enterprise. Jake joined PAL Aerospace in 2009 as Vice President of Aerospace Services before becoming Chief Operating Officer in 2014 and CEO in 2019. Before joining PAL Aerospace, Jake worked in private equity investment at C.A. Bancorp and as a management consultant with the Oliver Wyman Group’s Aviation & Operations Practice. Earlier in his career, Jake served as a helicopter pilot with the 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force. He holds a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering from the Royal Military College of Canada and a Master of Business Administration from the Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario.

Jake was recently awarded the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal on behalf of the Atlantic Canada Aerospace and Defence Association for his meaningful contribution to the community, reconciliation efforts with Indigenous peoples, and military service. Jake was also named 2023’s Defence Executive of the Year by Canadian Defence Review.

Jake resides in Ottawa with his wife, Natasha and their two children. Jake also serves on the Board of the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada, AirPro and PAL Aerospace Services Aircraft Maintenance LLC.


Mark Norman

Director
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Mark Norman retired from the Royal Canadian Navy with the rank of Vice-Admiral in August of 2019 after over 39 years of service.

Norman started his naval service as a reserve diesel mechanic in 1980 and rose through the ranks to be the Vice-Chief of Defence. His military career has seen him serve at sea domestically and internationally, command a warship, the Canadian Atlantic Fleet, and ultimately the Royal Canadian Navy. He also has extensive experience in a variety of appointments, training & educating sailors, leading operations, strategic planning and managing major procurement projects.

Since retirement, Norman has applied energy to a variety of pursuits, including as Champion for the Royal Canadian Benevolent Fund, Senior Defence Strategist at Samuel Associates, contributing to the important debate about security and defence issues in Canada as both a fellow with the Global Affairs Institute and as a member of the Conference of Defence Associations Board.

In his spare time, Mark loses golf balls, skis, and continues perfecting the art of safely crashing his mountain bike.


Rachelle Gagnon

Director
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Rachelle Gagnon is a seasoned executive with expertise in Human Resources. She is currently Vice-President, People and Culture for Champlain Seafood, one of the world’s largest processors of premium lobster and crab, with companies in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Massachusetts. Previously, she was Vice President of Group Insurance for Assumption Life in Moncton, NB. She has held the roles of VP of Administration and Client Experience, VP and Chief of HR, Organizational Development and Sales Compensation, having worked with the company for over 25 years.

She currently participates on various committees and boards; she is Chair of the Maritime Executive Committee for ICD (Institute of Corporate Directors), is Vice-Chair of Learnsphere, a national not-for-profit, and is a Board Director with Genoa Design International, a leader in production design and 3D modeling services to shipbuilding and offshore industries.

She has participated on many other boards: the former Chair of the Board of Directors of NB Liquor, Vice-Chair of Service New Brunswick, and President of the Human Resources Association of New Brunswick (HRANB). She also sat on the Board of Friends of the Moncton Hospital Foundation, The Greater Moncton Chamber of Commerce and is a former Board Member of the Canadian Council of Human Resources Associations.

She taught for many years several modules of the Human Resources Management Program at UNB, NBCC-Moncton and CCNB-Dieppe on job and org design, recruitment and retention.

She is a graduate of Université de Moncton and the University of New Brunswick (UNB) with degrees in psychology, public administration, and has an MBA. She completed the Director Program of the Institute of Corporate Directors and holds the designations of ICD.D and CPHR.

She enjoys having a retired husband, her family close by, summers at the beach in Bouctouche, NB and babysitting her two grand-puppies.


David Hood

Director
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David is a retired partner of Grant Thornton LLP and has been in public practice for 35+ years with a broad client base consisting primarily of private companies, not-for-profit organizations, professionals, and trusts and estates. His post-retirement practice mainly involves trust and estate planning, succession planning, strategic planning, and governance.

David is currently on the board of Artistic Fraud of NL- Theatre Company, Bonavista Biennale Inc., and is an executive member of the board of Business and Arts NL. He recently retired as the governor for NL and vice chair of the National Trust for Canada (formerly Heritage Canada Foundation) and continues to sit on the finance and investment committee as an independent member. David was also a volunteer financial and governance advisor to the interim turnaround board of Music NL and was a long-standing member of the executive of the Institute of Corporate Directors – NL Chapter.

In 2022 David was honoured with the Duff-O’Dea Lifetime Achievement Southcott Award by the Newfoundland & Labrador Historic Trust. In addition, he was the 2019 recipient of the Patron of the Arts Award by the Newfoundland & Labrador Arts Council (Arts NL).

In the private company world, David is an investor and director in various commercial real estate investment companies and was a founding shareholder and long-time director of the successful software development company Celtx Inc., which an American media technology company recently acquired.
David and his wife Karen split their time between Avondale, NL and Montreal, QC.


Executive Team

Gina Pecore

Chief Executive Officer
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As CEO, Gina has spearheaded Genoa’s exponential growth strategy and propelled it into the globally recognized shipbuilding leader it has become.

Her career began on the ocean with the Royal Canadian Navy during a period of transformation that included the placement of women in seagoing combat roles for the first time. Her Navy experience, along with an innate entrepreneurial and communication prowess, underpinned Gina’s career progress over the next 30 years into a senior business leader, seasoned strategist, and a renowned challenger of the status quo.

Gina earned her communications degree from Mount Saint Vincent University. She completed advanced leadership training at Case Western, Simon Fraser and Harvard universities, further honing her expertise in team development, strategic growth management, financial oversight, and governance.

A passionate and empathetic leader focused on driving concrete business impact and social change, Gina is a respected pillar in the business community. She is a member of several Canadian governance bodies including a provincial utility, an industrial service group of companies, and an arts-based non-profit. In 2019, Gina was named to Atlantic Canada’s Top 50 CEO list. On her off time, you’ll likely find Gina hiking Newfoundland’s rugged coastline. If she can convince a daughter or two to come, the world is perfect.


Laurie Balan

Executive Vice-President of Design and Consulting
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As Genoa’s first-ever CPO, Laurie has been instrumental in driving Genoa’s growth to new levels. With a singular vision on future success, she is continuously identifying, planning, and then delivering high-impact products and services at the front line of the industry.

Laurie brings deep business acumen and vast industry expertise to the role. With over 15 years of experience in the marine engineering sector, she has worked on some of Canada’s largest defence contracts, including in her previous role as Director of Engineering for Fleetway Inc. Laurie has an uncanny ability to get to the heart of a client’s issue in an instant, to present it with clarity, and to inspire new ideas and approaches in the team around her.

Laurie holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) from Memorial University. She is a designated professional engineer, a Project Management Professional (PMP), a member of the Association of Professional Engineers of Newfoundland and Labrador (PEGNL), and an associate member of the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME).

When she’s not helping to blaze a bright path forward for Genoa, you’ll find Laurie spending family time and making memories at the cottage in rural Newfoundland.


Norm Williams

Chief Financial Officer
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Norm brings with him a wealth of experience, having most recently served as CFO at Atlantic Cultivation Limited, where he was responsible for all aspects of financial management and worked closely with the Company’s CEO and Board of Directors to support corporate strategy and growth initiatives. He has a Bachelor of Commerce from Memorial University and a Chartered Accountancy Designation (CPA) from the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants.

Before his role at Atlantic Cultivation, Norm was CEO at Rambler Metals and Mining PLC, a publicly listed junior mining company on the London Alternative Investment Market (AIM). Norm’s ability to quickly learn and adapt to new industries was evident in his rapid ascent up the corporate ladder. He was promoted from controller to CFO within two years and then to President and CEO four years later. During his tenure at Rambler, Norm honed his skills in corporate financing, financial leadership, business networking, and marketing. He spearheaded numerous corporate financing initiatives, including a $35 million private equity financing that was instrumental in extending the Company’s mine life.

Norm has served on the Board of Directors for several esteemed organizations, such as Cabot Habitat for Humanity, Mining NL, and, most recently, the Newfoundland & Labrador Employers Council.

In addition to his professional accomplishments, he is an avid outdoor enthusiast and handyman. He can often be found at his cabin, exercising his family dogs or pursuing his hobbies, which include salmon fishing, snowmobiling, and winter hot tenting.