Hello fellow CASI members, 

My name is Alan Liu, and I’ve been a CASI instructor since 2006. I’ve been teaching with the North Toronto Ski Club for almost 20 years, and I’ve lead their Snowboard School since last season. 

I’m very proud to call myself a CASI member because of how welcoming the community is, and the excellence in snowboard instruction. Whether you are a Level 1 candidate or a retiree, you are welcomed to the table to have a beer and share about snowboarding and snowboard instructing. And throughout the last 20 years, I’ve appreciated the continuous improvements to the way we teach (remember when we waltzed our students down the slopes to teach them how to turn) and the way we we’ve adapted our program to the changing needs of our members, students, and the industry. Plus, all the passionate people I’ve met. These are the strengths of CASI. 

And these are the reasons why I’m interested in serving as the Eastern Representative on the CASI Board: to be able to lend my expertise to maintain our culture, to support our amazing membership, and to develop an organisation that is sustainable into the future. 

Challenging CASI to achieve our goals over the next few years will be: 

1) Changing Demographic: The interest in obtaining CASI certification and the demographic of our members and candidates (whether geographic, age, etc.) have been changing. While I believe our current Role, Mission, and Vision will continue to be valid, they will be challenged by these changes. As a Board, we need to listen to our members but also be judicious in understanding when we should change and when we should stay on course. 

2) Building a Resilient, Future-Proof Organisation: CASI has already been embarking on this, with the change in organisation structure that includes bringing on more full-time staff and adding a Member-At-Large position to the Board. Investing in programs such as our Health Insurance Plan also makes it easier for our fellow instructors to have a long career in snowboarding. The past few years have seen a boon in course deliveries that have bolstered our finances and supported these changes, but will this be sustainable in the long run? Deciding how we grow – if we should even grow – will be critical for the Board. 

3) Understanding the impact of climate change: We are a weather dependent sport and climate change has affected us. From changes to the length of the season (affecting our members’ income), to the lost of local hills (affecting who has access to the sport), to the increased price of lift tickets driven by reliance on snowmaking (affecting who can afford to be our students), these changes will affect the viability and demand for snowboard instructing. As a Board, we need to engage with our partners to understand their perspective on managing climate change and make sure CASI supports that. 

A little bit about myself. On the sports side, I am currently working towards my Level 3 certification and attempted the exam for the first time last season. I am also a Snowboard Canada CSCP Comp Intro Certified coach, something I undertook to expand my instructing toolset. Additionally, I’ve been practicing martials arts all my life and I currently teach Wing Chun. I’ve experienced systems that are achievement driven, competition driven, or intrinsically driven, and methodologies that are internationally organised, to ones that are more traditional and informal. Collectively, these experiences contribute to my perspective on instructing and managing sports organisations. We can see how some of these elements affect our programs today: how we balance the 

achievement vs career focus of our candidates, and how our Trainer Updates and Member Programs have re-energised our long-time instructors. This experience also guides how I run the NTSC Snowboard School: balancing the needs of our members with the needs of the individual instructors to build a diverse organisation that reflects Toronto. 

On the professional side, I’m an Electrical Engineer by training and my first career was in telecommunications. I left my position as the Director of Product Management for Bell Mobility’s Data and Messaging products to run the family business. In my current career, I’m a restaurateur with two restaurants in downtown Toronto, Salad King. Having worked in both large corporations and my own small business, I understand the strengths of each, how to work in and with them, and how to build effective organisations of varying sizes. I believe this experience will help us engage our partners in the snow sports industry and guide how we manage CASI. Whether it’s presenting to CEOs, managing staff, or fixing the plumbing, I’ve done it. 

On the board side, I’ve had over 20 years of experience on non-profit Boards. At Carefist, I served on the HR Committee, Ethics Committee, and also led the development of the Strategic Plan that preceded the launch of their Family Health Team and the construction of their One Stop Multi-Services Centre. The past twelve years, I have been the Treasurer of two Toronto Business Improvement Areas: the Downtown Yonge BIA, and the Queen Street West BIA. DYBIA (~$3.5m in annual levies) is a Governance Board, whereas QSWBIA (~$350k) is an Operational Board. As Treasurer, part of my role includes managing and recruiting Executive Directors and new Board members, representing the BIA in the media, and working with our elected officials. One of the changes I’ve led in the past few years is the integration of the long-term financials with the Strategic Plan. I’m also proud of the Governance culture we’ve built: our Board meetings are effective, Board members feel heard, there is a process for continuous Board improvement, and we have an incredible relationship with the staff. This is a discipline I hope to bring to CASI as a Board member to help the organisation and Board grow. 

Thank you for your consideration, and I’m looking forward to the opportunity to serve my fellow snowboarders. 

Sincerely, 

Alan Liu 

I am originally from China, and I am a newcomer of Canada, I would apply for CASI Eastern Representative position. 

I worked for ten years at a leading global consulting firm, where I provided professional management consulting services to numerous Fortune 500 companies. My areas of expertise included strategic planning, risk assessment, process optimization, financial budgeting, and HR strategy. At the same time, I have also been working as a part-time snowboard instructor at a club in China. In 2023, I decided to resign from my consulting position to fully dedicate myself to developing a career in the ski industry, as I was eager to pursue my passion. In February 2025, I obtained my CASI Level 1 certification. I believe that my diverse, cross-industry experience equips me well to take on the challenges and opportunities within the CASI team. 

Next, I would like to give a more detailed self-introduction. 

Experience in Deloitte Consulting 

From 2014 to 2023, I worked at Deloitte Consulting China, one of the world’s leading professional services firms, where I specialized in Operations Transformation. Over the course of ten years, I advanced from an entry-level consultant to Senior Manager, and allowed me to become a trusted partner to senior executives. My main responsibilities at Deloitte included the following: 

During the projects, I led cross-functional teams to explore transformation strategies with clients, diagnose organizational challenges, and design pragmatic improvement plans backed by data-driven insights and clear logic. 

Beyond project delivery, I also played an active role in business development—presenting case studies, sharing industry best practices to our potential clients. I helped the firm win multiple million-dollar engagements. 

Internally, I served as a core member of the recruitment committee of our service line, collaborating closely with HR and Managing Partner to design and execute annual campus recruitment events as well as professional recruitment. I participated in Deloitte branding presentations, developed selection frameworks, trained interviewers, and participated directly in candidate evaluations. These experiences strengthened my leadership, coordination, and team management capabilities, while giving me valuable exposure to talent assessment and organizational development. 

At the same time, as an assistant to the team partner, I helped manage team resources dynamically. My responsibilities included assisting with annual budgeting and monthly forecasting, tracking the performance of managers and above on a weekly basis, identifying issues within the team and proposing solutions, as well as developing action plans to address upcoming challenges. 

Additionally, I led an international consulting project in Africa, where my team and I spent three months onsite supporting a multinational client. Operating in a complex cultural and economic environment, we conducted extensive local research to design strategies aligned with the region’s political and market context. 

Every day at Deloitte presented new challenges and opportunities for growth. In addition to mastering hard skills—such as Microsoft Office proficiency, presentation skills, strategic thinking, and problem-solving—I developed agility in learning, the ability to integrate resources quickly, to lead and motivate teams, and to communicate insights through compelling data storytelling. I received fast-track promotions and was the youngest Senior Managers within our service line. 

Experience in Snowboarding 

While consulting offered immense professional fulfillment, I gradually realized how all-consuming it had become. Another long-standing passion of mine—snowboarding—had been continuously set aside. 

For me, snowboarding is not just a sport but a mindset: a blend of focus, freedom, and discipline. Since 2018, I have played a part-time snowboard instructor role at a snowboard club in Beijing. Even with a busy job, I would spend winter weekends teaching snowboarding at the winter Olympic venues near Beijing. In October 2023, I made a pivotal decision—to leave my high-paying role and formally pursue snowboard instruction as my primary career. I began teaching at various ski resorts, connecting with enthusiasts, refining techniques, discussing equipment, and studying, resort operations and safety management. 

In February 2025, I earned my CASI Level 1 Snowboard Instructor Certification, which allowed me to deeply appreciate the rigorous and scientific approach of the CASI teaching system. Beyond the CASI certification, I have also earned the JSBA (Japan Snowboarding Association) Riding Certification and the China National Snowboard Instructor Certification. I am eager to explore different snowboard training systems to broaden my perspective and better understand the distinctive methods and philosophies behind each one. This also allows me to respond more professionally and confidently when students ask about various snowboarding style. In addition, learning across different snowboarding systems enables 

me to build connections across diverse snowboarding communities, which I believe will further support my continued growth in this industry. The above experiences strengthened my commitment to further advancing my professional credentials in snow sports education. 

Conclusion 

In May 2025, I officially moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada, as a newcomer. In the upcoming winter season, I plan to continue instructing at ski resorts in both China and Canada. I understand the role of CASI Board of Directors requires not only passion and experience in snow sports but also well-rounded capabilities in strategy, finance, risk management, marketing, and organizational leadership—areas that have defined my decade-long consulting career. I hope to combine my professional expertise with my enthusiasm for snowboarding to contribute to CASI’s growth and mission, helping more people experience the freedom and joy of snow sports safely and systematically.