When John Proctor left Kanata’s Martello Technologies in late 2023 after six years as CEO, he did something the head of a fast-growing software company doesn’t usually have the luxury of even contemplating: he relaxed a bit. “It was time for a break,” says Proctor, 57, who guided the wireless network troubleshooting firm through a […]
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When John Proctor left Kanata’s Martello Technologies in late 2023 after six years as CEO, he did something the head of a fast-growing software company doesn’t usually have the luxury of even contemplating: he relaxed a bit.
“It was time for a break,” says Proctor, 57, who guided the wireless network troubleshooting firm through a series of dramatic events that included an initial public offering on the TSX Venture Exchange in 2018, the COVID-19 pandemic and a major round of cost-cutting in 2022.
Jobless for the first time in decades, the former Canadian and British Armed Forces veteran took a breath and tapped into his “usual network” of friends in the tech community for a little advice on what to do next.
The best nugget of wisdom came from Jim Roche, the president and CEO of management consulting firm Stratford Group, who asked Proctor if he could remember the last time he went an entire summer without working.
“I said, ‘Probably when I was 17,’” Proctor says with a chuckle. “(He said), ‘Well, take the summer off and then figure out what you want to do.’”
A civil engineer by profession, Proctor left the military in 2010 after serving more than two decades as an intelligence officer. He soon carved out a niche as an expert in the fast-rising field of cybersecurity, spending six years as the head of IT consulting firm CGI Canada’s global cyber practice before joining Martello.
So it’s probably no surprise that after kicking the tires on a few opportunities, he’s back helping clients figure out how to one-up the bad guys in cyberspace.
Last month, Proctor joined professional services firm PricewaterhouseCoopers Canada as a partner in its Ottawa office, where he’ll play a leading role in expanding PwC’s 20-person local cyber, privacy and financial crimes practice.
After years of heading a relatively small organization like Martello – which employed fewer than 100 people when he left, as opposed to PwC’s current head count of more than 7,500 in Canada alone – Proctor says he’s glad to be back with a “big company.”
“I want the team. I still play soccer here in town, and I like team sports. That kind of got me going.”
