About - D by denise

Denise Zaporzan, FCPA, FCMA, BSP

Denise is President of Denise Zaporzan and Associates, a strategy practice based in Manitoba. As a trusted advisor, Denise demonstrates her passion, energy, and knowledge of strategy and leadership through work with public and private clients.

Prior to founding her practice in 2002, Denise was Chief Financial Officer of a privately held and publicly traded environment, where she successfully enjoyed over 20 years of executive leadership; formulating, implementing and evaluating financial and strategic planning, mergers and acquisitions and change management.

Denise is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA), and received the prestigious Fellowship CPA (FCPA) designation in 2010, the profession’s highest recognition of significant career achievements and contributions to community. She received her Balanced Scorecard Professional (BSP) certification through George Washington University, and furthered her studies with Harvard authors Kaplan and Norton in spring 2014. She has been a moderator for the Chartered Professional Accountants of Manitoba (CPA Manitoba, formerly Certified Management Accountants of Manitoba) Strategic Leadership Program, as well as the I.H. Asper School of Business Executive Education program. Denise speaks regularly at conferences across North America on the subject of strategy and leadership, as well as personal and professional development.

Denise currently serves as a Board member for The Associates at the University of Manitoba, the Winnipeg Art Gallery, a startup pharmaceutical company and an International Women's Fund.

In 2017, Denise developed and launched her newest initiative, D by denise, a Canadian lifestyle blog, brand, and e-commerce platform. D by denise publishes content celebrating the modern middle-aged professional woman, and collaborates with local (Canadian) brands and media to celebrate the authentic voice of the modern, middle-aged female audience. Find out why here >>

Denise enjoys sharing conversation and laughs over a great cup of coffee or glass of red wine and she never ends the day without a bubble bath. Her favourite place to be is at the family cottage with her husband, Michael, children Paige and Joshua and their adopted furry doodle, Chloe! Denise best sums up her energy and love for life with her motto (as her close friends know) - “Open up your sunroof and let your hair fly!"

Featured Collaborations & Speaking Engagements

Lennard Taylor: Style guide contributor, model, guest blogger
The Fine Line: Contributor
Birchwood Automotive Group: Featured speaker (Women In Automotive Leadership Summit)
MPG Sport: Sponsored influencer and model
Hilary Druxman: Content and product design collaborator
Cornelia Bean: Product design collaborator
Stu Clark Centre For Entrepreneurship: Manitoba New Venture Competition Championship Round Judge

Thrive Global: Contributor
Fempower: Podcast guest
Charleston and Harlow: Product design collaborator
Poppy Barley: Content collaborator
SHE Day: Featured speaker
Asper School MBA Program: Speaker and mentor
Athena Leadership: Featured mentor
Royal Bank of Canada- Women Business Owners: Featured Speaker - Winnipeg event
Asper School of Business, BASC (University of Manitoba): Keynote Speaker, Business Case Competition

Let's Collaborate!

The D by denise Team

Lindy Norris

Co-Founder + Coach

Lindy has over 15 years of brand, marketing, PR and public affairs experience, and was named to Marketing Magazine's 30 Under 30. As an advisor, Lindy brings her unique perspective to all aspects of D by denise. When not running in heels between boarding gates, Lindy can be found giving back to the community, spending time with loved ones or deciding between a glass of wine or spin class.

Lindsay Creedon

Digital Design + Web Development

Lindsay has worked for the last 2 decades in graphic design, web design, marketing, and branding. Lindsay handles all things web in her role with the D by denise team. Lindsay spends her free(ish) time relaxing with friends and family over good food and wine, volunteering with various organizations and promising her dog they'll go for a walk as soon as she finishes "this one last thing."

Ashley-Anne Schmidt

Content Management + Brand Outreach

The newest member to the D by denise team, Ashley, specializes in social media and experiential marketing. She has a (not very) secret love for fashion and has been a dancer for 17 years. When she's not hard at work on content management and brand outreach, she can be found contributing to the community, hanging out with loved ones or indulging her ice cream obsession.