About Doug · Doug Cornell for Mayor

A note to my neighbours.

I've spent more than twenty years building things: organizations, leadership teams, and businesses from the ground up. I've coached entrepreneurs from a first idea through to a successful exit. I've mentored executives on the hard calls that define whether a team thrives or stalls. And through all of it, the thread that matters most to me has stayed the same: building things that work fairly, for everyone involved.

Residents have been clear: they want a Mayor who's accountable for results, not just intentions — someone who shows the work, not just the promises. That's the standard I'm running to meet. My career has been built on that same kind of trust, earned by delivering for founders, executives, and community leaders who needed real outcomes, not just good intentions. Pickering deserves the same: measurable results, delivered through a process people can actually see and trust.

Pickering is growing fast, and the decisions made over the next term will shape this city for a generation. I'm asking for the chance to bring the same discipline I've brought to every organization I've helped build, to the city I call home.

What Pickering asked for

Infrastructure that keeps pace. Leadership that's accountable.

Pickering deserves a Mayor who treats every major decision as something to be earned through process, not pushed through despite it.

My commitment

I work for you.

Every tool available to the Mayor's office exists to serve residents. I will use those tools, and I will always bring you along.

Profile

Twenty years building organizations, leaders, and communities.

I'm a seasoned entrepreneur, executive coach, mentor, and civic leader.

I've spent two decades founding and scaling organizations, developing diverse leaders, and advocating for the communities I'm part of: building inclusive cultures, championing workers' rights, coaching entrepreneurial ventures from concept to scale, and driving policy change at the municipal and provincial levels.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

A lifelong commitment to equity.

Teams & culture

Building inclusive organizations

I've built and led diverse, inclusive teams across national organizations, fostering cultures where people of all backgrounds are recruited, developed, and promoted.

Workers' rights

Standing up for fairness

I advocated for workers' rights as a CAW committee member, opposing trade policies that disproportionately harmed vulnerable and marginalized workers during the 1989 Free Trade Agreement.

Advocacy

A 100% track record

I represented workers at WCAT (Workers' Compensation Appeals Tribunal) hearings and appeals, achieving a 100% success rate, ensuring equitable access to benefits and justice for injured and disadvantaged workers.

Fiscal fairness

A platform built on tax fairness

I designed my Mayoral platform around tax fairness and fiscal transparency for all Pickering residents, with a particular focus on those bearing disproportionate municipal tax burdens.

Mentorship

Removing barriers to ownership

I've coached and mentored entrepreneurs and leaders from diverse communities, actively working to remove barriers to business ownership and leadership access.

Civic voice

Every voice in the room

I'm committed to ensuring community voices, across race, income, gender, and background, are represented in civic planning, budget decisions, and regional governance.

Coaching & mentorship expertise

What I bring to the table.

Core areas of focus across my coaching and mentoring engagements:

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Entrepreneurial coaching — guiding founders from idea validation through to scale and exit readiness.

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Executive mentorship — developing leadership capability, decision-making, and strategic thinking in diverse senior teams.

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Business model design — structuring scalable, resilient operating models for growth-stage companies.