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Missy Stewart

Senior Product Manager for Small Business Digital Innovation

CV Points

• Patent pending on an AI tool that prompts small business users to act based on trends forecasted from their business' performance • Launched the TD Small Business Dashboard pilot, enabling small business customers to sync their accounting software into TD Online Banking or the TD Bank App for automated cash-flow forecasting, insights, and more • Currently integrating a TD Bank colleague-facing dashboard into a customer relationship management platform that will help enable small business sales teams to gather real-time insight into customer performance • Prior to joining TD, she developed and led the digital adoption of an AI loan assistance program

Goran Ilkhanizadeh

AVP, Enterprise Innovation

CV Points

• Launched the TD Amazon Shop with Points program • Launched the TD Starbucks relationship • Launched the TD Uber relationship • Led the development of the Bank’s Virtual Reality Immersive Learning pilot in branches • Plays a lead role in understanding and implementing generative AI use cases for TD

Saba Zuberi

AVP of Applied Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

CV Points

• 29 patents filed • Won “Invention of the Year” and “Visionary of the Year” at the 2022 TD Patent Inventor Celebration • Publication of novel AI research in areas such as improving AI models for personalized recommendations and generating better explanations for the behavior of AI models • Supported AI/ML use cases at TD, delivered across a broad range of areas including Marketing, TD Digital and Small Business Banking • Contributed to the development and integration of novel AI explainability techniques to support business decisions • Advancing the Applied AI R&D agenda to develop cutting-edge AI capabilities applicable to TD

Tarundeep Dhot

Interim Head, Canadian Fraud Management

Bio

Tarundeep Dhot currently leads Canadian Fraud Management at TD. In his role, Dhot helps drive the Bank's fraud mandate to safeguard financial assets, while leading a diverse team of highly skilled colleagues who are enabling this vision. He has more than 14 years' experience in leadership roles spanning the banking, management consulting, and research sectors and has worked for global organizations...

CV Points

• Helped develop a patented early warning fraud system at TD • Developed a “Customer 360 Engine” -- a tool that analyzes customer behaviour and drivers of customer loyalty to help personalize service in banking for a financial institution • Helped develop an always-on “voice of customer” program that analyzes customer feedback to improve banking services for a financial institution • Developed a series of advanced image processing algorithms to classify objects in images as part of his research at a Canadian university

including IBM, Capco, and other financial institutions. Dhot is an industry thought leader who sits on multiple advisory councils, including Harvard Business Review, and the Data Science and Analytics program at York University. He holds a master’s degree in computer science specializing in artificial intelligence and has executive training from Columbia Business School.

Interview

What's your favourite thing about being an innovator at the Bank? “I love solving problems, especially those that make a difference to everyday life. The more complex the problem, the more opportunity to learn and discover new interests. If there is one area where innovation never ends, it is fraud. As we work to respond to emerging threats, it's amazing to see so many bright minds in the organization come together to make a difference. There is nothing more satisfying than seeing an idea you implemented to help protect against financial crime. And in the process, you enable others to realize their true potential. Our customers look to us to help support their financial wellbeing. Preserving their trust in us is paramount. That is my favourite thing about being an innovator at the Bank.”

Bio

Missy Stewart is responsible for the Small Business Marketplace strategy at TD Bank, America’s Most Convenient Bank. This strategy focuses on how TD Bank can enhance and differentiate the small business experience through customer-centric innovation. By engaging with small business customers, sales colleagues, and fintechs, Stewart helps TD Bank stay up to date on industry trends and launch new digital capabilities...

Stewart has held multiple positions in her decade-long career in banking, including underwriting, pricing strategy, and digital strategy roles. Before her time at TD, she led the development of an end-to-end experience for commercial customers to digitally request, onboard, service, and monitor loans.

Interview

Tarun Q&A

As an innovator, how do you focus on the humans who will be impacted by the technologies and solutions TD develops? Why is that important to you? “Our customers choose to bank with us, and we should always value the opportunity they have given us to play a role in their financial wellbeing. That’s why our innovation approach always needs to be centered around our customers. We also incorporate aspects of the colleague experience as part of the design, i.e., how do we ensure we maximize their talent and elevate their work experience by pushing technological boundaries. Our mindset is to take a human-centered design approach for the communities we innovate for.”

What was it about the Bank’s innovation culture that attracted you to the organization? “I had the opportunity to work with the TD fraud team in the past in a consulting capacity. I was able to experience the TD culture firsthand and witness how the organization supports colleagues to develop innovative solutions. TD is also one of the few banks that has an established patents program – all colleagues, regardless of their role at the Bank, can participate in the program and potentially be a named inventor on a granted patent. This brings their ideas to life and recognizes the value of their work.

Missy Q&A

What was it about the Bank’s innovation culture that attracted you to the organization? “TD colleagues test, learn, and listen to ways they can improve a customer's banking experience. That culture is what attracted me to the organization. Knowing there is an infrastructure in place that enables colleagues to develop innovative concepts,

What's your favorite thing about being an innovator at the Bank? “I thrive on taking on new projects – especially if I am entering an unknown territory – and developing a vision as to how to get it done. Innovation, to me, is just that. Pursuing the unknown and approaching the world and its problems in new, creative ways. My entire life has been like that. I was the first person in my family to go to college – I had no guidance on how to get there, where to get the money, what to do – but I did it. In banking, there are so many unknowns and plenty of opportunities, which makes it the perfect place to excel with an innovator mindset.”

As an innovator, how do you focus on the humans who will be impacted by the technologies and solutions TD develops? Why is that important to you? “Understanding the human need and impact helps shape the strategy and implementation behind new technologies and solutions TD delivers. Throughout product delivery, keeping lines of communication open with the customers, colleagues, and communities ensures we stay on track and don't create anything based on assumptions or implicit biases. What motivates me is knowing what we create drives meaningful impact, so maintaining focus on a human-centric design is personally imperative.”

Bio

Saba Zuberi is the AVP of Applied Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI/ML) in the AI/ML Center of Excellence and Layer 6 at TD. She leads a team of machine learning scientists to build AI solutions across the enterprise and drives applied AI research to support cutting-edge AI applications at TD.

Zuberi has 10 years industry experience in AI/ML, from startup to enterprise. Zuberi holds a PhD in theoretical particle physics from the University of Toronto and completed her post-doctoral research in particle physics at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California.

Interview

Saba Q&A

As an innovator, how do you focus on the humans who will be impacted by the technologies and solutions TD develops? Why is that important to you? “Whether we're building solutions to help customers manage their finances or provide them with the right products at the right time, considering the benefits and impact of AI/ML use cases on customers, colleagues, and communities is a central part of the entire AI/ML life cycle. From ideation to production and beyond, we work closely with business to ensure we are designing the right solutions for our customers with a strong focus on the trustworthy use of AI. Creating positive real-world impact from AI innovation has always been a key driver for me. As AI continues to disrupt and transform many aspects of our lives, innovating with purpose to create trustworthy systems with positive impact is even more important.”

How does the Bank’s culture enable you to explore your innovative side? “TD supports a strong culture of innovation in AI by cultivating deep AI expertise, supporting research at the frontier of AI, and bringing cutting-edge AI to TD. The culture at TD promotes an approach to innovation that keeps customers, colleagues, and communities at the center of everything we do, with a strong focus on the responsible use of AI.”

What was it about the Bank’s innovation culture that attracted you to the organization? “I was drawn to TD by its commitment and inclusive approach to innovation. TD has a deep talent bench and fosters a culture of collaboration and learning, creating an environment that supports development and growth; AI/ML has grown from 15 colleagues to more than 200.”

Bio

Goran Ilkhanizadeh brings future-focused ideas to life for TD customers, colleagues, and communities. He leads a team responsible for the execution of TD Invent, the Bank's approach to innovation, and shaping the Bank's North American Innovation Center of Excellence. From starting as a TD teller to championing the reimagination of tomorrow's customer experience, Ilkhanizadeh keeps the customer at the center of everything he does.

Interview

Goran Q&A

What was it about the Bank’s innovation culture that attracted you to the organization? “Starting out as a part-time teller, I never imagined I’d have the opportunity to rethink how we deliver for our customers and colleagues. The innovation-first culture is what’s kept me at the Bank for almost 15 years and continues to motivate me.”

As an innovator, how do you focus on the humans who will be impacted by the technologies and solutions TD develops? “Everything innovative that I’ve been a part of at TD has focused on humans, often both customers and colleagues. Having previous frontline experience as a teller and branch manager is central to how I think about end users – humans – and the impact the tech or initiative will have on them. Human-centered innovation is important because without people at the center of our work, we’d just be innovating in a vacuum.”

How does the Bank’s culture enable you to explore your innovative side? “The culture of customer- and colleague-first is real at TD, and that makes it easy to explore innovation. What’s been important for me is to keep the problem we’re trying to solve front of mind, which is often customer- or colleague-focused, and consistently coming back to that. It helps ensure that we’re still on track with our original mission.”

pilot them with lines of businesses, and scale innovations across the enterprise is impressive to me. The level of support built around innovation is not something I have come across before.”