Our team

RECO’s management team and staff are led by a Chief Executive Officer and organized into three divisions: regulatory, operations, and administrative. They support the delivery of programs and services for consumers and registrants. The day-to-day management is in accordance with policies and budget established by the Board of Directors. The powers and duties imposed under the Trust in Real Estate Services Act, 2002 (TRESA) are carried out by the Registrar.

Senior Management Group

Brenda Buchanan
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

Brenda Buchanan is the chief executive officer of the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO). She is an accomplished and collaborative leader who brings to the CEO role deep experience, strong support for team and stakeholder engagement, and an unwavering commitment to consumer protection.

Prior to assuming the CEO role in 2025, Brenda was Chief Operations Officer and a member of RECO’s senior management team beginning in 2019, where she led the strategic and business planning process alongside accountability for core functions including stakeholder relations, finance and accounting, information technology, human resources, facilities, client services, and discipline and appeals hearings. She was appointed Interim CEO in February 2025. 

Before joining RECO, Brenda served over 12 years with an Ontario-based industry regulator in various executive roles. She was an executive with the Canada Lands Company, a federal crown corporation, as well as other progressively senior positions in both public and private sector organizations spanning the consulting and construction management sectors. 

A former board member of the Starlight Children’s Foundation and a frequent community volunteer, she has also been an advisory committee member for the human resources program at George Brown College. Brenda is a graduate of the University of Guelph.  

Joseph Richer
Registrar

Joseph Richer is RECO’s Registrar and a member of its senior management group. He oversees the enforcement and administration of the Trust in Real Estate Services Act, 2002 (TRESA), which governs agents (salespersons and brokers) and brokerages in Ontario. 

Joseph’s areas of direct responsibility include education (both pre-registration and continuing education), enforcement (complaints, audits, inspections, investigations), and regulatory policy. 

In fulfilling his role, Joseph leverages more than 25 years of extensive consumer protection and regulatory leadership, including his 12 years as RECO’s Registrar, where he focuses on the education and enforcement of the law with RECO’s more than 112,000 registrants.

Prior to joining RECO in 2012, Joseph spent 20 years with the Board of Funeral Services, including 14 as its Registrar. In that role, he successfully advocated for the introduction of service standards for complaints and supported substantive legislative reforms for the funeral and cemetery sectors.

Joseph holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Carrie Bois
Interim Chief Operations Officer (COO)

Bio and photo to come

Management Group

George Drametu, Director, Litigation
Adam Freyseng, Director, Client Services
Ruth Garrett, Director, Insurance
Lisa Key, Deputy Registrar, Compliance
Sylvia Mauti, Director, Human Resources
Gail McGuire, Deputy Registrar, Education
Kym Robertson, Director, Stakeholder Relations
Glen Thomas, Director, Complaints
Angela Volpe, Director, Registration
Bill Whyte, Director, Information Technology
Arshad Zaver, Director, Finance and Accounting

Robert Ciriello, Manager, Regulatory Action
Glen Furlong, Manager, Investigations
Sandra Gibney, Manager, Regulatory Policy
Paul Lush, Manager, Education Programs
Heather MacDonald-Santiago, Manager, Stakeholder Relations
Vasko Markovski, Manager, Application Development, Information Technology
Martin McKenzie, Manager, Finance and Accounting
Rosary Perez, Manager, Education Vision
Michelle Plucas, Manager, Audit and Inspection
Raquel Smith, Manager, Discipline and Appeals Hearings
Lisa Wall, Manager, Education Operations