Alex Dorward, chief operating officer, Simple Story; co-CEO and co-founder, AdmissionsConsulting.ca

Alex Dorward
Alex Dorward
Editor's Note

Each year, OBJ and the Ottawa Board of Trade choose 40 of the region’s top young entrepreneurs and business executives and recognize them for their professional achievements, expertise and community service.

 

In these profiles, OBJ highlights some of this year’s recipients – their impressive accomplishments, what drives them and how they like to spend their downtime away from the business world.
See the full list of recipient profiles here and be sure to check out photos of the 2019 gala here.

 

2019-06-21

Education: Bachelor of information systems, St. Francis Xavier University (2011)

Biggest business achievement: In 2011, I created a startup with a partner and ultimately sold it in 2016 at a 415 per cent return.

Biggest obstacle overcome: For much of my twenties, I struggled to maintain good mental health. For a long time, I was either completely unaware or in denial of the issues, which mainly stemmed from overworking and built-up stress. This typically resulted in flareups of my Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, which consequently resulted in weight loss and physical health issues. I eventually realized the situation and created a plan to tackle this.

OBJ360 (Sponsored)

Most important lesson I’ve learned in business: Open every door in front of you. Every success I have had has come through accepting or pursuing seemingly insignificant opportunities that led to larger and greater ones.

First job: Basketball referee at Goulbourn Basketball Association. 

Favourite pastime: Scuba diving, particularly shark diving and wreck penetration diving.

 

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