Our Team
Our people come from diverse backgrounds — serving private businesses, governments, and not-for-profits — but they share a passion: finding innovative, long-term transportation solutions that make life better for our clients and those who depend on them.
Meet our experienced team:
Rob Beynon
Founder and President
Rob Beynon has 30 years of senior consulting experience in Canada, the US, and internationally. He founded OEI in 2014, having concentrated on the airport sector as a vice president at an international consultancy. His objectives for OEI are to assist clients of all sizes to make the best possible strategic decisions with data and timely information, and creating forward-looking plans.
Rob’s work includes infrastructure analysis, organizational planning, marketing, and development with a focus on ports and airports. He has an AAP designation from the International Association of Airport Executives Canada (IAAE), is a Chartered Member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport – North America (CILTNA-NA), and is a member of the BC Aviation Council’s Airports Committee. He has a BA and a MA from the University of British Columbia. His master’s thesis explored Japanese foreign direct investment in Canada following the Second World War.
Johanne Jayaratne, J.D., AvMP, CMILT, FRAeS
Senior Vice President
Johanne Jayaratne is an award-winning leader and a senior aviation professional. His 34 years of international experience and significant accomplishments span aviation, aerospace, biometrics, and tourism industries that bridge public, private, and entrepreneurial environments. He brings to OEI a profound understanding of strategy, culture, and business processes to help clients initiate transformational and innovative changes and drive business outcomes.
Johanne has guided all aspects of airports including management, operations, aeronautical and non-aeronautical revenue generation, and air navigation. His prior executive roles include Vice President/Executive at Large at Vancouver Airport Authority, Chairman of Sri Lanka Tourism Authority, CEO & Executive Director of Airport & Aviation Services, and several senior leadership positions in the aerospace and biometric industries in the US. Johanne is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, UK, and a Chartered Member of CILT. He holds a J.D. (UK), a BSc in Aerospace Engineering (USA), and patents in biometrics.
Marion Town
Senior Associate
OEI’s sustainability and environmental planning expert, Marion Town is a senior consultant with a focus on aviation and more than 35 years of experience. Marion has undertaken research, developed strategies, advanced policies, and built networks to assist governments and industry plan for change and shift behaviours towards increased sustainability.
Her nine years with the Vancouver Airport Authority included reducing YVR’s environmental footprint and establishing a detailed plan to be Net Zero carbon by 2030. Marion has shared her knowledge through Reaching Cruising Altitude, a national plan to scale up sustainable aviation fuel in Canada, and by serving on the Advisory Committee of the Canadian Council for Sustainable Fuels and the BC SMART Fuels Consortia. As Vice Chair of the Environmental Committee of Airports Council International, she helped the International Civil Aviation Organization establish a long-term goal to reduce global aviation emissions. She has Bachelors of Planning from the University of Waterloo.
Jon Spalding
Senior Associate
Jon Spalding brings more than 30 years of senior consulting and executive leadership experience in designing, leading, and implementing successful strategic business process change. He has experience in most segments of the North American transportation industry, with a focus on aerospace and maritime projects. Before joining OEI, he was Manager, Ports and Airports for a Canadian engineering firm. He has a Masters degree in environmental science from York University and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Victoria.
Zoe Beynon-MacKinnon
Associate
Zoe Beynon-MacKinnon has supported OEI with research and digital support for six years on a wide range of analytical and management projects regarding airports, economic development, and management. She is also the founder of Vancouver-based Movement is Medicine, a training group, and Lettuce Harvest, an urban agriculture not-for-profit organization. She has an MA from the University of British Columbia, and a BA from Dalhousie University. She received a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) to complete her master’s degree.
David Ferman
Communications Director
David Ferman has more than 25 years of experience in communications, marketing, research in the non-profit and corporate sectors, as well as in journalism. His corporate work includes lead marketing and communications writer for PwC’s client services, branding, and employee messaging in BC. His work with CEOs and managing partners has helped them to successfully navigate through rebranding, mergers, and other times of extreme change.