Craig Thompson

Project Management | Operation Management | Sales Management | General Management Leading effective change through focused and engaged teams.

Oakville, Ontario, Canada

About

I've spent 30+ years operating at the intersection of strategy and execution — whether that's running multiple manufacturing and service locations for a global manufacturer, delivering a cross-border production facility migration in 3 months, or managing complex multi-stakeholder projects from pre-construction through to commissioning. My career advanced from Sales and Finance into a 16-year General Manager tenure at Hoerbiger (Canada) Ltd., where I owned the full P&L, led the company's first CRM rollout (later adopted enterprise-wide), spearheaded our SAP ERP implementation, and built a team that held best-in-class retention rates in North America — year after year. Since 2021, I've been delivering AV integration projects across the education, healthcare, financial services, and public sector markets — managing concurrent portfolios from $10K to $5.6M, coordinating multi-party stakeholder environments, and keeping projects on timeline and budget through the full lifecycle. What I do consistently well: • Build and lead high-performing teams that outperform — from shop floor to sales to project delivery • Translate strategy into operational plans with clear KPIs, accountability structures, and measurable outcomes • Own complex, multi-stakeholder projects without losing sight of the budget or the deadline • Find the process gaps and close them — through Lean methodology, better systems, or cleaner structure Outside of work, I serve as Commodore of the Oakville Yacht Squadron — a 500+ member organization where I chair a board responsible for governance, strategic direction, and club operations. It keeps my leadership instincts sharp in a completely different environment. I'm currently exploring roles in Project Management, Operations Management, and General Management in the Greater Toronto Area. If you're looking for someone who has genuinely done it — built operations, delivered projects, led people, and owned the numbers — let's connect.

Experience

  • Project Manager at Global Unified Solution Services Inc.
    Dec 2021 - Jun 2026 · 4 yrs 7 mos

    Led end-to-end delivery of audio-visual integration projects across education, healthcare, financial services, and public sector clients in the GTA. Managed a concurrent portfolio of projects ranging from $10K to $5.6M across all lifecycle stages — from scope definition and design through to commissioning and client handover.   •       Coordinated internal resources, trades, consultants, architects, and general contractors across complex multi-stakeholder environments to maintain schedule and budget control. •       Built MS Project schedules for mid- to large-scale deployments, enabling predictable resource deployment and proactive risk identification. •       Served as primary client point of contact throughout execution — managing stakeholder expectations, product ETAs, design issues, and site progress across the full project lifecycle. •       Defined project goals, milestones, deliverables, and risk assessments at initiation, maintaining client engagement and accountability throughout.

  • Owner Operator at ViVE Security Solutions Inc.
    Jul 2016 - Dec 2019 · 3 yrs 6 mos

    Founded and operated an Ontario-based commercial and residential security systems company. Accountable for all aspects of operations — business development, project delivery, financial management, and regulatory compliance.   •       Designed and launched a turn-key surveillance product offering for commercial and residential clients. overseeing installation and programming of wired and wireless security systems •       Built a referral network of builders and architects to generate sustainable relationship-based revenue and reduce dependence on transactional sales •       Established service delivery standards and managed customer and vendor contracts to meet time sensitive market expectations

  • Hoerbiger (Canada) Ltd ()
    • General Manager
      Jan 1999 - Apr 2015 · 16 yrs 4 mos

      Led all Canadian operations for a global compression technology company across two North American locations — overseeing field service, financial reporting, staffing, H&S, engineering, sales, and customer management. Managed a 60-person workforce, produced annual capital and operating budgets, and reported P&L to global leadership.   •       Delivered a cross-border production facility migration from Ontario to Oklahoma City in 3 months managing equipment, shop floor design, routing, and process deployment with ongoing performance oversight post-migration. •       Spearheaded the local SAP ERP implementation — managed migration, testing, and staff training across all functions before enterprise-wide rollout. •       Pioneered the company's first CRM database (pre-Salesforce era) — built with performance analytics and subsequently adopted enterprise-wide. •       Managed a project portfolio from $3K to $800K; sustained top-ranked employee retention in North America over 16 years through performance-based leadership and genuine staff investment. •       Served on the Canadian leadership team through two company acquisitions, organizational restructuring, and an enterprise inventory management overhaul.

    • Financial Reporting Manager
      Jul 1997 - Dec 1999 · 2 yrs 6 mos

      Led budget development, asset management and consolidated financial reporting for the Canadian operations. Managed bookkeeping team and external auditor relationships.

    • Sales Representative
      Oct 1991 - Jun 1997 · 5 yrs 9 mos