Leadership

As Vendasta’s CFO, and in conjunction with other senior executives, Brian is responsible for the financial oversight, financial planning and analysis of the company. He joined the company in 2023 to lead the company’s finance function.

Prior to joining Vendasta, Shelton was the CFO at a US-based technology company. Prior to that, he spent eight years at a leading global provider of software and data analytics to the real estate industry in the Dallas, Texas area. Shelton brings more than 25 years of financial experience to Vendasta, including broad exposure to mergers and acquisitions, treasury management, and raising capital, financial planning and analysis, and accounting.

Prior to Vendasta, Dale founded a software consulting company that specialized in digital video diagnostics and processing. Customers included Time Warner Cable and his previous employer Vecima Networks. Dale earned a bachelor degree in Engineering Physics from the University of Saskatchewan in 2005 with a dual degree in Computer Science.

Bryan Larson is Vendasta’s Vice President of Strategy, reporting to CEO, Brendan King. Bryan has been instrumental in the formulation, facilitation, and communication of the organization’s strategic initiatives and future goals. His contributions to product vision, and ability to align and mobilize teams has made a considerable impact on the company’s ongoing success. In addition to his role at Vendasta, Bryan provides consultation and mentorship to startups, is a guest lecturer at numerous post-secondary institutions, and an active public speaker in the tech community. Bryan joined Vendasta in 2013 to instate a scalable, world-class design team, set and govern experience standards, and enhance the corporate brand.

Prior to Vendasta, Bryan held positions with Yardi Canada and Point2 Technologies in the area of brand and design. He earned a B. Ed. degree from the University of Saskatchewan and holds certifications in scrum and UX management.

John Vars leads Vendasta’s global product organization, overseeing strategy, innovation, and execution for the company’s AI-powered customer acquisition and engagement platform. With more than 20 years of experience, he’s helped scale products at companies like TaskRabbit, Varo Money, and Qonto, and co-founded Dogster. John is known for turning complexity into simplicity—building tools that serve small businesses and the partners who support them. At Vendasta, he brings a steady, strategic presence to product leadership. Outside of work, he shares lessons on leadership and product development with a focus on clarity, collaboration, and purpose.

Sanjay’s career is marked by his ability to build and scale high-performing teams, launch successful products, and shape new market categories. At Microsoft, he played a pivotal role in the global success of Office 365, driving product marketing for enterprise and mid-market sectors. His entrepreneurial spirit and passion for solving business problems have also led him to co-found a Silicon Valley startup, further enriching his perspective on innovation and growth.

She also plays a pivotal role in guiding Vendasta’s product-led growth strategy, which is driven by cross-functional teams focused on scaling revenue through innovative solutions and platform offerings. Since joining Vendasta in late 2013, Jacqueline has been instrumental in developing the company’s early partnership strategies and scaling its go-to-market approach.

An alumnus of NEXT Canada, the country’s premier entrepreneurial leadership initiative, Jacqueline co-founded and served as CEO of Triumf Mobile Rewards, a tablet and smartphone-based platform for small and medium-sized businesses to customize their loyalty rewards programs. She has been a speaker at TEDx UofS and WE DAY 2015, and represented Canada at the 2010 G8 and G20 Summits, the 2010 APEC Summit in Japan, and the 2011 G20 Young Entrepreneur Summit in France.

Jean is an alumna at the University of Saskatchewan with a degree in Psychology. She spent 20 years growing retail brands in Canada such as Zara, Esprit and Target before moving into technology. With over 500 employees, Jean leverages her education in psychology and expertise in leading effective teams to ensure employees do not come to Vendasta just to work but are able to be their best and live out their passions.
Jean is involved with the SaskTech Board and has been a speaker at Edwards School of Business, the University of Saskatchewan, Co. Labs and various Technology events.

During her volunteer hours, she serves on the board of SODS (a settlement agency for new immigrants), and also supports the emerging local tech community in Saskatchewan by working as a Tech Start-up Mentor for the provincial tech incubator Co.Labs. Shakya is intensely customer-focused with an intuition for consumer patterns and trends. She connects people across divisions and ideologies to drive innovation throughout Vendasta, and brings a contagious brightness to each project.