Burgeoning tech executives, up-and-coming real estate moguls and a slew of community-minded young achievers: They’re all represented in the 2019 Forty Under 40 awards, a joint initiative of the Ottawa Board of Trade and the Ottawa Business Journal recognizing accomplished and rising business leaders under the age of 40 in the National Capital Region.
More than 160 applications were submitted, and this year’s recipients come from varied backgrounds ranging from craft brewing to technology to music production, representing the diverse nature of the local business landscape.
“The talent in this Forty Under 40 class represents the present and future for Ottawa’s business community,” said Ian Faris, president and CEO of the Ottawa Board of Trade, in a statement. “These young business leaders represent the pioneering and visionary thinking that will generate tremendous economic growth in our community, and puts the region on track as the centre of talent attraction and innovation in Canada.”
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There are 23 men and 17 women on this year’s list, with an average age of 36. Recipients were assessed on business accomplishments, professional expertise and community involvement.
“More than 20 years after Forty Under 40 was established, I’m still impressed with the calibre of business leaders that put their names forward for this award,” said OBJ publisher Michael Curran. “It’s hard to quantify this, but I believe the general quality of the nominations continues to improve, making the selection process difficult.
“I can personally attest that there are more factors than ever to consider. In the past, above and beyond notable business achievements, it was often community service that was the deciding factor. Today, I think the judges have an even harder time as we weigh factors such as gender and diversity in terms of business sector.”
The independent judging panel included past recipients Iwona Albrecht of Soloway Wright, Donna Baker of Keynote Group, Jason Daley of Axia Strategists and Patrick Dion of Patrick Dion Consulting as well as Curran, Faris and Robert Rheaume of BDO Canada.
In late May the recipients will meet at the Telfer Executive MBA facility for an afternoon of introductions and sharing their stories, and the group will be celebrated at a gala at the Hilton Lac-Leamy on June 21.
The Forty Under 40 awards are presented by the Ottawa Board of Trade and the Ottawa Business Journal. This year’s recipients will be featured in the June issue of the Ottawa Business Journal.
Social media users are encouraged to use #OTT40 to congratulate the 2019 recipients.
2019 Forty Under 40 Recipients:
- Stephanie Appotive, Howard Fine Jewellers
- Alexis Ashworth, Habitat for Humanity
- Ian Bingeman, Youth Ottawa
- Katie Black, Caza Saikaley LLP
- Chantal Boyer-Casey, 4té
- Krystal Cameron, Assent Compliance
- Joseph Carpinone, Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton
- James Ciesielski, Rewind
- Francois de Bellefeuille, Spiria Digital
- Heather Desjardins, The Open Door Educational Services
- Alex Dorward, Simple Story
- Jana Dybinski, Rebel.com
- Kelly Elliott, Dentons LLP
- Kara Eusebio, Invest Ottawa
- Mostafa Farrokhabadi, BluWave-ai
- Erin Fenn, 1VALET
- Amy Friesen, Tea & Toast
- Josh Garellek, Arctic Leaf
- Sacha Gera, Ribbon Communications
- Elliott Gillespie, Gold Bar Whiskey
- Sender Gordon, Regional Group
- Chantal Hackett, Sing House Studios
- Joanne Kudakiewicz, Yorkville Asset Management
- Steve Lavigne, Opin Software
- Cindy MacKay, Orléans-Cumberland Community Resource Centre
- Brandon Malleck, Bentall Kennedy
- Matt McEvoy, MaxBounty
- Ron McLester, Algonquin College
- Aliasgar Morbi, Brash Inc.
- Alex Patrick, Take the Shot Productions
- Jacob Shabinsky, Glenview Homes
- Ali Shafaee, DNA Presents
- Candace Sutcliffe, C.A. Paradis
- Liam Swords, Plum Realty
- Elias Theodossiou, EVOO Greek Kitchen
- Christopher Thompson, Whitewater Brewing Co.
- Danya Vered, StrategyCorp
- Hamed Zadeh, SINIX Media Group
- Joelle Zagury, Merivale Vision Care
- John Zinati, Zinati Realty