Marlin Hovrisko

Founder & President

Marlin Hovrisko is the founder and President of Black Gold Emergency Planners and BGGoPlan®. With more than 20 years of experience in emergency preparedness, oil and gas project management and business operations, Marlin has helped grow the company from a loft to a continent.

As Black Gold president, Marlin oversees the consulting business, while at the same time driving innovation and growth across all markets. Prior to founding Black Gold, Marlin built a leading edge, technology-based consulting service.

Marlin has a BSc. from the University of Calgary. He is proud of the Black Gold family-like office atmosphere and attributes the company’s success to his committed, experienced, long-term project managers.

Jason Swan

VP Operations

Jason is a passionate leader who ensures operational excellence in the company. He understands that preparedness and safety are integral elements of any successful business. His main motivation is to design meaningful programs to help people communicate and respond effectively in emergency situations.

Jason joined Black Gold Emergency Planners and BGGoPlan® in 2006 and manages employees, develops business goals and assists in the development of effective emergency response plans for a diverse group of clients.

Prior to joining Black Gold, Jason was the Environmental, Safety and Regulatory Manager at Samson Canada. He holds a BSc. from the University of Calgary, diploma in Chemical Engineering from Southern Alberta Institute of Technology and is a Canadian Registered Safety Professional (CRSP).

Curtis Herron

Emergency Response Manager

As Emergency Response Manager, Curtis Herron focuses on quality assurance and quality control in Emergency Response Planning. With a decade of experience in emergency response, he is well known in the industry as a skilled problem solver. His role with Black Gold Emergency Planners and BGGoPlan® includes being Project Manager, Senior Client Advisor and overseeing emergency response training programs.

In his previous position as a Senior Emergency Response Advisor with a major producer, he oversaw a multi-level emergency response process that helped protect people, the environment, corporate assets and reputation.

He has an Applied Degree in Criminal Justice from Lethbridge Community College.

Chantale Reitenbach

Operations Manager

A natural leader and strategist, Chantale Reitenbach is instrumental in developing and maintaining Emergency Response Plans for a wide range of clients. With over a decade of experience in the field, Chantale focuses on building practical programs that meet clients’ needs.

Chantale brings enthusiasm and resourcefulness to each of her projects in a continued effort to deliver value and improve efficiencies.

Prior to joining Black Gold Emergency Planners and BGGoPlan®, Chantale completed her BA in Psychology, followed by her BComm in Finance.

Shona Belvoir

Technology Manager

Shona Belvoir joined the BGGoPlan team in 2017, taking on the role of Technology Manager. She brings enthusiasm, positivity and passion to our application development team along with over 17 years of training and education experience.

Before BGGoPlan, Shona worked for an engineering firm where she focused on marketing and business development. She has worked in a variety of industries, each with a different realm of clientele which has provided her a well-rounded business outlook.

Within the BGGoPlan ERP mobile APP department, Shona conducts training and demo sessions for clients in addition to ensuring the installation and administration of the application technology. Her focus for the APP is technological development and improvement, and to ensure clients understand its functionality.

Shona attended the University of Calgary and earned her Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Communications and Marketing.

Outside of work, Shona is very family focused, you can find her escorting her two children to their various sporting activities, volunteering and spending as much time with her kids as possible. She is very active, and enjoys walking her dog, running, skiing, playing tennis, swimming, and riding motorcycles.

Derek Megyesi

Technical Product Manager

Derek Megyesi is a new addition to BGGoPlan (joining in Feb 2019), taking on the role of Technical Product Manager. Derek’s role encompasses managing the app development team, solution architecture, maintenance of the development eco-system, client support, and the overall product evolution of the BGGoPlan mobile product. He is passionate about new technology and is driven to leverage innovative technology into new product features and enhancements that customers value.

Derek feels that to be an effective product manager, a person needs exposure to a multitude of different industries, environments, and customers. Before BGGoPlan, Derek worked for in the Telecommunications industry (Nortel, and Telus) for 8 years, eventually leaving the industry to work in the transportation industry (CP Rail) for 3 years. Derek’s last role was in at Paysafe in the payments (Fintech) industry.

He has a computer science degree from the University of Saskatchewan, a MBA from the University of Fredericton, and his PMP (Project Management Professional) designation. Derek has over 15 years of IT experience as a QA Engineer, Business Analyst, and Project Manager.

Outside of work, Derek regularly attends local Calgary meetup events including the Calgary Product Managers, and Calgary Artificial Intelligence (AI) groups. He is also very active and enjoys running, golfing, volunteering, travelling, and working out. He also loves to salsa and ballroom dancing; taking classes and participating in dance events both in Calgary and when travelling abroad.

Bob Wyonzek

Business Development Coordinator

Bob joined the Black Gold team in 2019 as the Business Development Coordinator. In this role, he will be strengthening Black Gold’s prior relationships and looking to diversify its current client base.

Before working at Black Gold, Bob was a Surface Land Agent for 20 years in the oil and gas sector. With his years of experience, he brings knowledge of the industry and a passion for communication to the position.

Bob has completed the Dale Carnegie training to better his skills as a Business Developer.

When Bob is not at the office, you can find him outdoors. He is an avid fisherman, mountain biker, skier, and loves snowshoeing—jack-of-all-trades! He also enjoys spending time in Fernie with his wife.