Chris Gain

Chris Gain is the current Chief Information Officer at Yorkville University. Prior to that, they served as Vice-President, Technology and Operations at McGregor Socks / American Essentials from January 2005 to December 2020.

Gain was responsible for the global strategy and execution of all technology investments, customer operations and outbound logistics at McGregor. Chris led a highly cohesive technology and operations team across Canada, US, UK, and Europe.

Under Gain's leadership, McGregor selected and deployed new cloud-based enterprise systems and processes to provide a single version of the truth for all product data, increased process efficiencies and better status visibility. Chris also added rigour, staffing, and discipline to previously ad hoc processes across IT, Operations and Project Management. Additionally, Gain directed data due diligence and operational hand-off during the company’s successful acquisition.

Gain was also able to reduce retail non-compliance costs by 40% each year over two years by building a cross-functional global team and focusing on root-cause analysis. Chris also structured corporate data for better utilization and initiated the transition to Microsoft Power BI for reporting. Furthermore, they drove a multi-vendor proof of concept for forecasting and planning systems resulting in the selection of SAP Integrated Business Planning. Lastly, they led the reorganization of global logistics which allowed for doubling of international revenue, increased service levels and 25% lower distribution costs.

Chris Gain has a MBA in Finance from the Schulich School of Business at York University and a BBA in Business Administration from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Some of their coworkers include Lydia Chris - Chief Marketing & Revenue Officer, Peter Hall - Campus Provost & Vice President Academic, New Brunswick, and Tristan Wright - Director of Admissions, British Columbia. Chris Gain reports to Julia Christensen Hughes, President.