Mike J. Duff
President and CEO

Founder, President and CEO, Mike has led Design Group Staffing Inc for the past three decades. Named one of Canada's 50 Best Managed companies for the last 14 years, Mike attributes the firm's success to our ability to deliver superior value to our customers along with the caliber of our staff. We carefully select, train and support our staff creating an environment that recruitment professionals aspire to, leading to an enviable retention rate - a key asset for both the company and its customers.

Mike graduated with a diploma in Electrical Engineering from Sydney, Australia and came to Canada on a working holiday in the early '70s making Edmonton his home. Alberta was booming and it was an exciting place to be. After his first contract, Mike began working with a large worldwide engineering, construction and consulting firm. It was there that he saw the need for a staffing firm specializing in engineers for the construction industry. He also understood the dynamics of matching people to opportunity. Continue reading about Our Story.

Mike graduated from Harvard Business School's Owners and Presidents Management Program in 1998 and received a Frazer Milner Pinnacle award for Entrepreneurial achievement. In 2006 he was awarded the Prairie Region Entrepreneur of the year in the Professional Services category. He is a past Co-chair of Edmonton Economic Development Corporation's Architectural, Engineering and Construction Cluster group, a member of Rotary and TEC and is involved in numerous charitable organizations including the Youth Emergency Shelter Society, Stars Foundation, NorQuest College and the University Hospital Foundation.

Today, under Mike's leadership, Design Group Staffing Inc has grown to include seven specialty divisions and approximately 300 employees working out of 25 locations across Canada.

Damen Ng, CA
CFO & Vice President

Damen joined Design Group Staffing Inc in 1991. He brings over 30 years of experience in both the private and public sectors. As a member of the Executive Leadership team, Damen oversees finance, accounting, IT support, project implementation, quality and safety. He is also involved in the development of corporate and strategic planning, risk management, financial sustainability and corporate planning.

Damen is a Chartered Accountant and holds a bachelor of commerce degree from the University of Alberta.

Shelley Trenouth
Chief Talent Officer

Shelley joined Design Group Staffing in January of 1995 as Branch Manager of Executrade Personnel, the only non-DG branch in the Company at that time and the forerunner to Placement Group. Over the years, Shelley's role has increased in scope to include Regional Manager of Placement Group, VP HR, Chief Talent Officer for the corporate entity, and President of The Placement Group division.

With over 34 years' industry experience, Shelley has significant expertise in both temporary and permanent staffing across all business sectors for positions from receptionist to engineer to CFO. This full range of experience has been at the core of Shelley's ability to relate to and understand the nuances of each of our operating lines of business. Alternating with ease between her operational demands and her human resources responsibilities, Shelley is known to the staff as a readily accessible resource with tremendous breadth of knowledge who has a natural talent to creatively solve problems and bridge gaps. Her driving need to teach, train and share knowledge is evident through the continuing success of the Boot Camp training program, client seminar program and ad hoc 'learning moments' that inevitably occur around her. As a champion for the value our industry brings to the business community, Shelley's passion is infectious and her pride in our Company and staff is clearly evident.

Prior to joining our industry, Shelley was the first Director of Tourism for Kingston, Ontario and was the owner/publisher of several magazines. When she is not thinking about the staffing industry, Shelley's attention is devoted to her grandson and dogs, and sometimes not in that order!

Dianne King
President, Strategic Growth

Dianne is a valuable member of our Executive Leadership team. She is a visionary leader who provides direction and strategic support to our Design Group Staffing Branch Managers. Hands-on and creative, she is the master of figuring out new things. Colleagues and business partners turn to her to help solve complex situations, from human resources to business operations and recruitment campaigns. Dianne's experience spans over 30 years and includes the opening and growing of sales operations into highly profitable, service-oriented businesses. She is a seasoned speaker and engaging presenter who is active in the development and mentoring of staff, and the education of industry leaders on important issues in staffing. 

Matthew Williams
President, Design Group Staffing Division

Matthew is President of the Design Group Staffing Divsion and is a member of the Executive Leadership team of Design Group Staffing Inc. With 25 years' experience in the staffing industry and as an active member of the community, Matthew has orchestrated highly innovative and successful recruitment campaigns to meet the explosive staffing demand in the Calgary market. As a Certified Executive Coach, he has developed extraordinary client relationships and created unique infrastructures that has resulted in his leading one of the largest and fastest growing branches within the company.

Stephen Mill
President, Inteqna

Stephen plays an instrumental role on the Executive Leadership team of Design Group Staffing Inc. As the new president of Inteqna, Stephen is responsible for the continued growth and profitability of Inteqna's business across Canada. His focus is, and has always been, on consistency and quality of service, delivering results across a variety of industries, picking up a broad range of knowledge in the process that will surely be instrumental in driving success at Inteqna.

Stephen has held executive positions at national recruiting companies including Futurestep and Robert Half International, where he built a reputation based on award winning individual and team achievement. He has also pursued forward-looking educational opportunities throughout his career, attending courses at Harvard School of Business, Richard Ivey Business School, and a selection of industry-specific practical training courses.

Craig Brown
President, Talentcor

As President of Talentcor, Craig brings a dynamic leadership style and over 16 years of experience in the staffing and retail industries. Craig is well-known for his ability to build solid teams that deliver outstanding results, as well as his in-depth knowledge of both permanent and contingent staffing markets, Recruitment Process Outsourcing and Managed Service Programs. Craig is an articulate communicator with a combination of strategic and creative talent for integrating existing business lines and executing strategic vision.

Craig holds an MBA in Strategy and Marketing from the University of Calgary and a B.Sc. from the University of British Columbia.

Having lived in four provinces, Craig considers himself as Canadian as they come. In his spare time, Craig plays competitive tennis and basketball and sits on the board of various youth sports organizations.

Susan Wright-Boucher
Vice President, Talentcor

Often labeled a ’workaholic’, Susan prefers the term ‘business athlete’. Her take-charge attitude and constant desire for knowledge keep Susan’s business skills sharp, and her passion for the staffing industry stronger. Over the last 15 years, Susan has managed contingent and permanent staffing operations and national accounts in every major city in Canada.

Susan’s thirst for knowledge and all-encompassing love for social media have made her an active contributor and early adopter on the social networking scene. She is an active member of LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and countless other sites as they emerge. Susan’s love of social media extends from the belief that we have an unprecedented opportunity to connect and learn from each other. She is always available for speaking engagements on employer branding, social media, recruitment and workforce trends.

Susan lives in Vancouver with her husband, and can usually be found reading business and social media books as fast as they come off the press.