Pouria Ghods, president, Giatec Scientific

Pouria Ghods
Pouria Ghods
Editor's Note

Each year, OBJ and the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce 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 OBJ’s coverage of the 2018 gala here.

Birthplace: Semnan, Iran

Company: Develops smart concrete-testing technologies for the construction industry.

Education: PhD in civil engineering, Carleton University (2010)

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Charitable involvement: Invest Ottawa and Carleton University

Biggest biz achievement: Establishing Giatec Scientific in 2010 and growing it to $5 million in annual sales.

Biggest biz obstacle: Old-school construction industry’s reluctance to adopt high-tech solutions.

Biggest influence: My former supervisor, Dr. Mehdi Ghalibafian, at the University of Tehran. He taught me how to be a great engineer and a successful entrepreneur with a high level of integrity.

Biggest lesson learned: To be persistent. No matter what happens to your business, giving up is not an option. I learned this by watching other successful businesses.

First job: Research assistant at university when I was 22 years old.

Advice I’d give the younger me: Work hard and never give up on your dreams!

What’s left to do: Create a global impact on the concrete industry to improve the quality of infrastructure and reduce carbon footprints.

Favourite pastime: Hot yoga

Favourite local pro sports team: Ottawa Senators

Favourite local summer event: Canada Day

Preferred social media platforms: Facebook, Linkedin

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