OUR TEAM
MANAGEMENT TEAM
President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Amol Karnick (M.Eng, BASc)
Amol is a seasoned executive in the medical device industry. His experience covers the whole spectrum; from start-ups (Ultrasonix, Sentinelle Medical, Ventripoint) to large OEMs (GE Healthcare). Entering into the profession with a Bachelors in Engineering from the University of Waterloo and a Masters in Electrical Engineering from McGill, Amol spent 20 years in the medical imaging space to become a leader of multidisciplinary teams (sales, engineering and operations). Amol is now poised to steer KA Imaging into a position of global leadership.
Chief Technology Officer (CTO)
KARIM S. KARIM
(PHD, PENG, MBA)
Karim has developed novel X-ray imaging devices and systems since 1998. He has supported two start-ups (Ignis Innovation and Ultrascan) and founded two companies (ActivPixel and KA Imaging) in the past two decades. He has raised more than $15M in research grant funding, trained over 40 PhD and MASc students, has co-authored 250+ publications and 50+ patents. Some of the X-ray circuit technology he developed is now used in ultrasonic fingerprint sensors in mobile phones and tablets.
Chief Medical Officer (CMO)
PHILIP TEMPLETON (MD, FACR)
A board certified radiologist, Dr. Templeton brings over 38 years of academic and entrepreneurial medicine experience to KA Imaging. Dr. Templeton is the former Professor and Chairman, University of Maryland Radiology.
Among his many career accomplishments, Dr. Templeton was a pioneer in the use of several groundbreaking technologies, including CT fluoroscopy, digital X-ray, PACS and teleradiology.
VP of Global Sales, Medical
charlie hicks
Growth oriented business executive with proven track record for bringing innovative solutions to the market. Prior to joining KA Imaging, he served as the General Manager for Micro-X, where he successfully led commercialization and launch strategies for imaging products.
Before his tenure at Micro-X, Charlie held the position of General Manager for the Digital Medical division at Carestream Health, overseeing a diverse range of products, including Mobile, Room, and Retrofit Digital Radiography (DR) solutions. He also gained valuable experience during his 15-year tenure with Eastman Kodak, where he held various leadership positions.
VP Sales, Europe
ROLF KAISER
Rolf Kaiser has 30 years of experience in medical imaging, especially in X-Ray. His career has been developed with a wealth of relevant experiences. For over 15 years, Rolf Kaiser worked at Philips Helthcare, where he held a variety of sales and management roles. He also led X-Alliance, a company specializing in X-ray components and sub-systems, for nearly ten years. He has also contributed to building distribution networks in EMEA for medical device manufacturers such as Skanray, Whale Imaging, and Virtonomy.
VP, NDT Sales and Business Development
Jim Harp (BSCHE)
Currently Vice President, NDT Sales & Business Development at KA Imaging, Jim Harp served as Vice President Global Sales at ICSPI Corporation and Vice President Business Development and International Sales for Nicoya Lifesciences. Jim Harp has
over 20 years of senior leadership experience in the scientific and analytical instrument industry, having served as Director of Global Sales and Strategic Marketing at PerkinElmer Optoelectronics for twelve years.
TED SLOAN
Ted Sloan is a culture-creating operations executive with proven success elevating performance and driving growth with high-stakes decisions, strategic acquisitions, and respected leadership. For over 30 years, Ted Sloan held several executive roles at Merry X-ray Corporation/MXR Imaging, leading the company as President from 2012 to 2021. During his tenure as President, Ted Sloan implemented several changes in the company growing its profitability by 35%. Ted Sloan’s business acumen is rooted in ground-up sales experience, technical training, and the ability to read people quickly.
Controller
RUBEN ROMERO (CPA, CMA)
Ruben has a strong background in finance, accounting, and strategic business operations from several years of work experience in various industries. Prior to joining KA Imaging’s team, Ruben gained valuable experience working for Canadian and global firms such as Class 1 Inc. and Bimbo Bakeries. Ruben has been a Chartered Professional Accountant and Certified Management Accountant for more than 10 years.
Marketing Manager
FERNANDA FRAGA (BA)
Fernanda has more than 10 years of experience in media and corporate communications, supported by a professional certificate in Healthcare Marketing and Communications, a postgraduate degree in Contemporary History and International Relations, a postgraduate degree in Corporate Communications, and a BA in Journalism. She has a combination of creative and technical skills developed through 6+ years of experience in a major TV network as an Editor, Anchor, Reporter and Producer. In addition, Fernanda has held various corporate communications roles at different companies. Fernanda has a proven record of creating multi-platform messages, and strengthening corporate brands.
Human Resources Consultant
Jill Zappitelli (CHRL)
An experienced and accredited Human Resource Professional and Program/Project Manager, Jill’s rich expertise and national and international experience in every facet of Human Resources affords her the distinction of being one of the most sought-after HR professionals in the region. As a member of the HRPA Board of Directors, her CHRL designation combined with a Business Administration Management Diploma from Conestoga College – Jill brings a genuine level of confidence to any organization that finds itself without some HR guidance. Creating and implementing authentic and effective HR solutions to solve an array of employee challenges have been Jill’s signature for several years with companies ranging from SunLife Financial to Blackberry, and non-profits such as Trellis Mental Health.
IN MEMORY OF
SINA GHANBARZADEH (MSC, PHD*)
Sina was the co-founder and design team lead at KA Imaging. Sina’s nine years’ detector design and characterization experience led to the creation of KA’s state-of-the-art imaging detector system.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Amol Karnick (M.Eng, BASc)
Amol is a seasoned executive in the medical device industry. His experience covers the whole spectrum; from start-ups (Ultrasonix, Sentinelle Medical, Ventripoint) to large OEMs (GE Healthcare). Entering into the profession with a Bachelors in Engineering from the University of Waterloo and a Masters in Electrical Engineering from McGill, Amol spent 20 years in the medical imaging space to become a leader of multidisciplinary teams (sales, engineering and operations). Amol is now poised to steer KA Imaging into a position of global leadership.
Karim S. Karim (PhD, PEng, MBA)
Karim has developed novel X-ray imaging devices and systems since 1998. He has supported two start-ups (Ignis Innovation and Ultrascan) and founded two companies (ActivPixel and KA Imaging) in the past two decades. He has raised more than $15M in research grant funding, trained over 40 PhD and MASc students, has co-authored 250+ publications and 50+ patents. Some of the X-ray circuit technology he developed is now used in ultrasonic fingerprint sensors in mobile phones and tablets.
Ako S. Williams (B.S, J.D)
Ako Williams is Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Ushio America, Inc., which is a U.S. subsidiary of Ushio Inc. in Tokyo, Japan. Ushio is a leading provider of light sources and solutions for a wide variety of applications, including medical imaging and illumination, scientific, semiconductor, entertainment, horticulture, and architectural applications. A seasoned global enterprise executive with a strategic problem-solving approach, Ako oversees Ushio America’s legal, regulatory compliance, risk management, and corporate governance matters. Previously, she was an Assistant General Counsel and Compliance Officer of Christie Digital Systems USA, Inc. (an Ushio group company) and an Assistant General Counsel of a leading home healthcare provider in the U.S. She holds a B.S. (highest distinction) from Northwestern University and a J.D. from Loyola University Chicago School of Law.
ADVISORS
Ian Cunningham (BSc, MSc, PhD)
Dr. Ian Cunningham is a professor and scientist at the Robarts Research Institute at The University of Western Ontario and a physicist at London Health Sciences Centre. He directs a research team of graduate students and post-doctoral fellows that are investigating new ways of acquiring and displaying medical images using digital radiography and computed tomography for improved health care.
Susan Horton
(BA, MA, PhD)
Working for the World Bank got Susan interested in health and economics. Dr. Horton then proceeded to work at the International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research in Bangladesh while writing her thesis. She has worked or taught in approximately 25 low and middle-income countries, on topics ranging from labour markets, women’s participation, benefits and costs of micronutrient interventions, and currently costs and benefits of breastfeeding, cost and cost-effectiveness of cancer interventions, and disease control priorities in low and middle–income countries. Currently, Dr.Horton is working on the Disease Control Priorities project and in the past, worked on research projects with the World Bank, FAO, WHO, UNICEF, Copenhagen Consensus, and others.
David Bell
(PhD)
David Bell is a clinical and public health physician with a PhD in population health and background in internal medicine, modelling and epidemiology of infectious disease. Previously, he was Director of the Global Health Technologies at Intellectual Ventures Global Good Fund in the USA, Programme Head for Malaria and Acute Febrile Disease at FIND in Geneva, and coordinating malaria diagnostics introduction and scale-up with the World Health Organization in Manila and Geneva. David specializes in point of care technology development and introduction in low–resource health systems.
Evan Lee (BA, MD, MBA)
Evan Lee is a Geneva-based global health consultant. He has a BA from Harvard, an MD from New York University, and an MBA from MIT. He has worked with Médecins Sans Frontières in Kenya and Uganda and for Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics and Management Sciences for Health. Most recently, he led Eli Lilly’s global health programs working on MDR-TB and NCDs, and founded Lilly’s 30×30 initiative to reach 30 million people by 2030.
BOB THOMPSON (BA)
Robert (Bob) Thompson was previous the President of Ultrasound for Siemens Healthineers Ultrasound. Thompson has more than 30 years’ experience in the ultrasound market and medical devices in a wide range of executive leadership positions in marketing, sales, and business development in large and small fast-growth healthcare companies. Thompson began his career as a Radiologic Technologist and Sonographer, and prior to joining Siemens Healthineers, he held several leadership positions at GE Healthcare.