On March 29, KEV recognized the winners of our first annual KEVite Awards. The ceremony honoured KEV employees who emulate the positive energy, dedication, and passion of the company’s founders.  

KEV Chairman and CEO, Bram Belzberg, noted during in his opening address that the event was an important opportunity to take a step beyond talking about KEV’s values, to “recognize KEV employees who live our values”.  

We‘re proud to announce this year’s winners: Brenda den Hartog, Ian Matheson, Sridhar Sharma, and Asad Zaman.  

From left to right: Kim Vivian-Downs, Sridhar Sharma, Asad Zaman, Ian Matheson, Evelyn Eagle, Bram Belzberg. Absent: Brenda den Hartog.

Nominated by fellow employees, these KEVite Award winners embody our core values —entrepreneurial spirit, client centricity, collaboration, tenacity, and integrity. 
 

Brenda, Ian, Sridhar, and Asad will receive: 

• An all-expenses paid trip for two to a resort of their choice 
• An additional week of paid time off for the trip 
• Stock options 
• A spot on the Wall of Fame at our Head Office 
   

Here’s a profile of each award winner’s career path, how they’ve supported our customers and fellow KEVites, and their contributions to the company’s growth and success. You can also view photos from the live event on Facebook.

Brenda den Hartog 
Role: Technical Support Team Lead 
Hire Date: September 1999 

Brenda has a story like no other at KEV, which actually begins at Southwood Secondary School in Cambridge, ON, Canada where Brenda first worked with Kim Vivian-Downs, Co-Founder of KEV Group. Impressed by Brenda’s work ethic, positive attitude, and attention to detail in her role as a Library Secretary, Kim approached Brenda about an opportunity to join a start-up adventure that – 26 years later - would evolve into the KEV we know today.  
 

Excited by the possibilities, Brenda accepted the job to assist with clerical, training, and conference organization. Since then, Brenda has been promoted to Technical Support Team Lead, focusing on responding to tickets, building relationships with clients. 

Ian Matheson 
Role: Senior Developer 
Hire Date: September 2008  

After taking a Computer Programmer Analyst course at Conestoga College, Ian was keen on getting experience through the College’s co-op program. During his second co-op, Ian worked at KEV and quickly excelled – so much so that he was invited to join the team as a full-time employee.  
 

Inspired by the programming work KEV has offered over the years, Ian has risen to every challenge. In fact, he has touched nearly every code of software written, most notably SchoolCash Online, which he played a significant role in developing. Even after 14 years, Ian has never felt bored and is still inspired by the company’s plans to enhance and expand the SchoolCash platform. 

Sridhar Sharma 
Role: Technical Implementation Analyst 
Hire Date: December 2020 

After earning his Computer Science Engineering Degree, and accruing three years of experience working in India, Sridhar elected to pursue a career in Project Management to help bridge a gap between technical and project management skills that he believed was common in many software companies. 
 

In 2018, Sridhar moved to Canada and pursued a MBA at the University of Victoria, eventually joining KEV as a member of the Professional Services Team. Initially responsible for technical execution, he soon added process improvement to his duties, which meant he helped onboard every school that adopted SchoolCash in 2021. With such a high volume of successful implementations now under his belt in a short period of time, Sridhar acknowledges the support his team and KEV colleagues have extended to help make him successful in his role.  

Asad Zaman 
Role: Senior Manager, Customer Success 
Hire Date: July 2018 

From an early age, Asad was surrounded by a passion for business and relationship building thanks to his entrepreneurial father. This inspired Asad to pursue a career focused on building customer relationships. Raised in Pakistan, Asad earned a degree in Computer Science and began his career in customer service working with a SaaS solutions provider. While he enjoyed his experience with the company, he wanted to provide more opportunities for his family; this prompted him to move to Canada and secure an opportunity with KEV Group. In his initial role with the Sales team Asad flourished but his passion for nurturing and growing relationships with existing customers prompted him to join KEV’s Customer Success team. As a Customer Success Manager, he demonstrated a dedication to helping KEV customers maximize their investment in SchoolCash; this ultimately led to his recent promotion to a Senior Manager role. 

Opening remarks from Bram Belzberg (left), Evelyn Eagle, Co-Founder, KEV Group (center), Kim Vivian-Downs, Co-Founder & Business Development, KEV Group (right)