Our Team

Meet Our Accomplished Team

Get to know the people who help students become exam conquers.

Hi, we're some of the faces behind our small team of entrepreneurial, driven and curious financial services industry exam prep superstars. We don't just love what we do, we're also incredibly devoted to providing continuous value and making a real difference.

Chartered Financial
Analyst

The gold standard designation in the
financial services industry.

CFP & QAFP Learning
Resources

Study Notes Learning Examples
Practice Questions

Chartered Investment
Manager

Provide discretionary investment
management services for your clients.

Canadian Securities
Course

Advance your career in the financial
services industry

Brian Gordon, CFA, CFP, CIM, MBA, FCSI

Brian is Exam Success' Founder and Director of Learning.

Prof. Brian Gordon is a gifted prep program designer, curriculum content writer and instructor who has earned numerous teaching accolades and an international reputation for presenting the absolute best in Financial Services Industry Exam Preparation.

After graduating with a degree in Economics from the University of Toronto, Brian started his career in Investments at Nesbitt Burns. He went on to work at Scotiabank until he decided to follow his passion for teaching. While pursuing his academic calling in 1999 as a Professor of Finance, Brian branched off to create Exam Success and Canadian Academics which he built into Canada's leading CFAĀ® Exam Review Course before it was acquired in 2006 by the global CFA Program exam prep and education giant Kaplan Schweser.

Over the years, Brian has taught, motivated and inspired 1000s of CFA Program candidates, MBAs, Financial Industry professionals and aspirants at Exam Success and at many firms, banks, brokerages and higher-learning institutions including Waterloo, Concordia and Wilfrid Laurier Universities ā€” to name only a few. He has been a featured instructor at the Study Seminar for Financial Analysts at the University of Windsor (now known as the CFA Program Windsor Week offered by Kaplan Schweser) and has authored and been quoted in numerous industry publications. He also holds an on-going record for being amoung the top 1% most-viewed Linkedin profiles. One of his many notable accomplishments is the development of the Queen's University Certificate in Financial Analysis CFA Program and the signature Prof. Gordon Approachā„¢, the methodology behind his distinguished and proven learning system.

In his role as Director of Learning at Exam Success, Brian oversees all Corporate Training and CFA Program, CIM, CFP, CSC content development and instruction and most enjoys figuring out what makes students tick and then creating a study environment thatā€™s instantly conducive to learning.

Brian believes strongly in the wisdom put forth by Benjamin Franklin: "Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn." Itā€™s a quote that has helped frame Brian's no-nonsense learning-by-doing teaching style.

Family, Hockey Coaching and Travel take up the little spare time Brian has when he's not teaching or writing.

Get to know the expert behind Exam Success better.

Toronto is home

Even though we offer CFA, CFP, CIM, CSC exam prep to candidates across Canada, the USA and all over the world, our home base is Toronto. Just steps from the University of Toronto downtown campus, in our comfy urban office space, we plan courses, record videos, write code, innovate products, answer student questions, and much much more...

Vikram Iyer, CFA, MS Finance

Vikram is a CFA Program Instructor with Exam Success.

Vikram is a top-rated University Professor and exam-prep trainer with more than a decade of CFA Program Prep teaching experience under his belt. His areas of teaching expertise include Corporate Finance, Statistics, Economics, Accounting, Portfolio Management and Derivatives. Vikram's knowledge and willingness to customize advice in a range of topic areas bring Exam Success students up to speed and at a pace necessary to pass the exam.

Vikram also participates with CFA Instituteā€™s mentoring programs and was selected as one of the designated mentors in Toronto.

Vikram is a Sr. Analyst, Structured Credit and Risk Management at HOOP (Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan). His previous corporate roles were in Structured Products (Derivatives) at RBC Capital Markets, Investment Banking at Citigroup and Equity Research at Morgan Stanley.

Vikram earned the CFA Charter in 2009 and a Masters in Finance in 2007. His interests include playing cricket, writing poetry, teaching and mentoring.

David Del Burgo (Passed all 3 CFA Levels), MBA, B.Eng

David is a CFA Program Tutor and Content Developer with Exam Success.

With more than a decade of expertise, David has no shortage of teaching chops. David finds inspiration the moment a student ā€œgets itā€ā€” when all the hard work pays off and a concept that started out as a major challenge becomes easy. He is known for his enthusiastic delivery and ability to clearly explain complex material, that keep students engaged and motivated to learn.

David's expertise in the classroom allows him to serve as a ā€œtrainerā€ of tutors aspiring to teach and he also helps instructors develop both a critical eye to their own teaching and a sense of how to make classes and learning materials more effective and interesting. David also has a strong knack for content development and has authored a variety of exam-prep Statistics, Fixed Income and Derivatives math-skills guides. At Exam Success David gets to wear lots of hats but he continues to find teaching the most fun and fulfilling.

David holds a Bachelor of Computer Engineering from McGill University and an MBA from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto.

David has passed all 3 exam Levels and was a CFA Charterholder in 2017, (but he no longer maintains active status).

Gerry Ramos, CFA, MBA, CFP, CIM, LLM

Gerry is a Training Specialist with Exam Success.

Gerry adds over two decades of financial industry leadership and academic experience. He has held various senior Financial Services Industry positions in Training, Asset management, Financial planning, Operations and Compliance and has been developing and teaching financial education and exam preparatory courses for more than ten years.

Gerry is an adjunct Professor in the combined MBA/ CFA program at Concordia University's Goodman Institute of Investment Management. He is also a lecturer at Wilfrid Laurier, The University of Ontario and a mentor with the Toronto CFA Society assisting with the CFA Research Challenge and Universities Relations Committee.Ā 

George Ganas, CFA, CIM, FSCI, EMBA

George is a CFA Program Instructor with Exam Success.

Prior to teaching at Exam Success, George taught Passing the CFA and CSC exam prep courses and assisted with CFA curriculum development for 5 years at The University of Toronto's School of Continuing Studies. Apart from academia, George has more than 25 years of experience working with a number of Canadaā€™s largest investment firms, and is known for his portfolio management expertise.

Currently Mr. Ganas is SVP, Global Retail Distribution at Timbercreek Asset Management and is an Investment Committee Board Member at the Aisling Discoveries Child and Family Centre.

Before entering the financial services industry, Ganas played professional football with the Toronto Argonauts and earned a bronze medal in team handball at the 1984 Pan American Games.

Vijay Bandlamudi, MFin, MBA, CFA, CFP

Vijay is a CSC, IFIC, CFP, CFA Program Training Specialist and Tutor with Exam Success.

He has a keen interest in teaching RiskĀ  Management, Estates, Retirement & Taxation Planning, Investments & Accounting and is a patient and supportive mentor who has a solid track record of helping students maximize their exam results using targeted revision and exam focused learning techniques.

In addition to his more than a decade of experience in academia, Vijay has several years of management experience in the Banking and Financial Services Industry and has held positions in Financial Planning, Wealth Management and Training at the Royal Bank of Scotland, and the Standard Chartered Bank.

Vijay is a member of the CFA Institute, CFA Society Toronto and the Financial Planning Standards Council and currently works at AI Private Wealth in Toronto as an Investment Analyst and Associate.

In his leisure time Vijay enjoys reading, playing tennis, running and nature walking, and he has a special interest in animal welfare.



Michael W. Shekter, MBA

Michael is a Content Contributor with Exam Success.

Michael is a full-time Business Professor at George Brown College and a frequent contributor to marketing and business innovation conferences and publications.

Mr. Shekter's wealth of professional teaching experience spans more than two decades and encompasses instructor roles at Rotman School of Management, Schulich School of Business, Humber College and Ted Rogers School of Management.

His business leadership experience includes senior management and consultancy roles at well-known packaged goods and financial services organizations including Procter & Gamble, Aim/Trimark and Microsoft.

Michael holds an MBA in Marketing from York University's Schulich School of Business, and an undergraduate degree in Political Science from McGill University.

Jordan M. Atin, LL.B, STEP

A remarkable estate and trust planning resource, Jordan serves as an Exam Success Subject-Matter Expert.

Jordan is an Adjunct Professor at Osgoode Hall Law School, and an award winning author who publishes extensively in both academic and professional journals and appears on TV as an expert on estate matters. He is also the founder of IWEE (Institute for Wills and Estate Education: www.iwee.ca).

Mr. Atin is a senior Associate Counsel to Hull & Hull LLP. He was appointed as one of Ontario's first Certified Specialists in Estates and Trusts Law by the Law Society of Upper Canada, and is full member of the Society of Trusts and Estate Practitioners (STEP) and is a past Chair of the Ontario Bar Association Trust and Estates Section. Jordan was called to the Bar in 1993 and has an LL.B. from Osgoode Hall Law School. He was chosen by LawDay as one of the top 60 leading lawyers in Canada in the practice area of Estates and Trusts for the year 2009.

Kismet Goodbaum, BA (Hons), CIM

As Director of Student Services at Exam Success, Kismet provides collaborative leadership for a variety of activities and resources related to the effective delivery and continuing enhancement of instructional programs and services to Exam Success students.

Kismet manages everything from student enrolments and advising, to sponsorship and external partner outreach opportunities and is also an integral marketing resource.

Before Exam Success, Kismet worked in Financial Services Marketing at Russel Canada where she was responsible for the development and production of sales tools and client marketing materials.

Kismet received her undergraduate education at York University and completed her CSC, CPH courses and the CIM designation prior to attending the Schulich MBA program at York University in Toronto.

Tanya Fremont, MBA

In her role as Director of Sales and Marketing, Tanya is dedicated to the development and execution of Exam Success' sales and marketing strategy and the cultivation of new programming and external relationships.

Prior to joining Exam Success, Tanya held Senior Marketing and Account Management positions at Walt Disney Home Entertainment Canada, LoyaltyOne Co. (AIR MILES) and Signature Vacations (Sunwing Travel Group).

Tanya earned a degree in Spanish from the University of Western Ontario, attended business school at ITESM in Monterey Mexico and holds anĀ International MBA from York University's Schulich School of Business in Toronto.

CFA Program Prep

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Level I, II & III

Free

Teach with us!

Exam Success is always looking for great CFA Program exam prep experts. If you are a CFA Charterholder and a CFA Program exam prep subject matter expert, have a passion for teaching and a facility to communicate in an engaging and clear way in the classroom (with students at every learning level), we want to hear from you.

Email: info@examsuccess.ca
Phone: 416.843.4357, 1.800.558.9796