The New Titans

Changes aplenty in Alberta’s executive suites in 2009 introduced new faces to the province’s boardrooms. But how do companies know they have the right person for the job?

Sep 1, 2010

by Stephanie Sparks

The 2009 financial statements collected for this year’s Venture 100 list revealed radical changes in the boardrooms of Alberta’s top companies. It’s no wonder, considering 2009 was a radical year for anyone trying to make a profit in a recession. Some boards reshuffled their management teams, while others brought in people from outside the organization in hopes that a first-rate CEO would emerge from the special quality that attracted them.

“[Boards] are looking for somebody who has focus. CEOs have to have a lot of energy. These days, they also have to have integrity,” says Eva Klein, professor and executive-in-residence at the University of Calgary’s Haskayne School of Business. “They don’t necessarily have to be charismatic, but they have to want to lead and have a vision for the company.”

	Paul Douglas V100 13 PCL Construction Holdings Ltd. Slipping into the big shoes left by PCL’s former CEO and now executive chairman Ross Grieve will be a difficult task, but Paul Douglas may be just the man for the job. After an 18-month transition period, Douglas took on the role in November 2009. Employed with PCL since 1985, he has worked his way across Canada and up through the Edmonton-based company’s ranks.
	Tim Granger V100 99 Compton Petroleum Corp. When Taqa bought Prime-West Energy Trust in January 2008, PrimeWest’s Tim Granger opted to stay on as managing director of Taqa’s North American operations. “I stayed there for about six months to help them through their transition, but then decided at that time it wasn’t the role for me and I decided to move on.” Granger was discovered by a headhunter for Compton in Calgary; its board was changing out its CEO, and Granger proved to be just the person the company needed. He joined Compton in January 2009.
	Paul Kelly V100 132 First Calgary Credit Union After 16 years in the financial services industry, Paul Kelly took on the role of vice-president of finance with First Calgary Savings in 1995. He was made chief operating officer in May 2008 followed by an appointment to president and CEO in October 2009 after Dave Gregory retired from the position.
	Jack Moffatt V100 190 Afexa Life Sciences When Edmonton’s Afexa was faced with accounting problems, Jack Moffatt was brought on as advisor to management and the board in mid-2007. “My background for the last few years at least has been advising companies in crisis, in public and private, helping in turnaround activities and restructuring businesses.” He joined the board and served as executive chair before formally becoming Afexa’s permanent CEO and chairman in December 2009. “With everything now behind us and with the core Canadian business very healthy, we are very busy formulating a long-term, much broader strategic plan.”
	Robert Tasker TR Labs Before taking control of Edmonton-based TR Labs in June 2009, Robert Tasker had risen through the ranks to senior vice-president at Telus. He started his career 23 years ago in Ottawa at Bell Northern Research, which eventually became TR Labs. He was hired on, despite a background in the private sector (the company is a not-for-profit, government-funded, university-affiliated organization). “What I bring to the table is my entire career was spent in the private sector and doing product development, taking technology to market and understanding how the process works.”