Geoff Smith (born August 26, 1955) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

businessman. He is the executive chairperson, and director of EllisDon Corporation, a construction services company founded by his father Don Smith in Ontario.

Early life

Smith is one of seven children born to Donald J. Smith and Joan MacDonald. His father Don, the original President and CEO of EllisDon Corporation, founded the company on

April Fool's Day April Fools' Day or April Fool's Day (rarely called All Fools' Day) is an annual custom on the 1st of April consisting of practical jokes, hoaxes, and pranks. Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting "April Fool " at the recipient. Mas ...

in 1951, with Geoff's uncle, David Ellis Smith. Smith's mother Joan, a

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

graduate with a degree in philosophy, began her career in public and charitable service before moving on to municipal and provincial politics. She was also the bookkeeper during the company's early years. Smith attended the University of Toronto and graduated with a Bachelor of Laws Degree in 1979. In 1981, he was admitted to the Ontario Bar.

Career

After a one-year stint at a law firm, Smith became involved in the family business and joined EllisDon in 1982. Smith worked in various sectors including project management, field operations, business development, and communications services. He also served as Vice President for Western Canada, and was eventually appointed

chief operations officer A chief operating officer (COO), also called chief operations officer, is an executive in charge of the daily operations of an organization (i.e. personnel, resources, and logistics). COOs are usually second-in-command immediately after the CEO, ...

(COO) in 1989. In 1996, Don Smith's position at EllisDon was bought out by his children, and he retired. Geoff took over as President and CEO of EllisDon, a position he held until June 2023, whereupon he took on the role executive chairman.https://canada.constructconnect.com/dcn/news/economic/2023/06/hawe-assumes-ceo-role-with-ellisdon

Other activities

Smith is a current member of both the Canadian Council of Chief Executives, and the Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships. Smith has also served as a Curriculum Development Advisor for

Toronto Metropolitan University Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU, or Toronto Met), formerly Ryerson University, is a Public university, public research university located in Toronto, Canada. The university's core campus is situated within the Garden District, Toronto, Gar ...

(formerly Ryerson University), and has previously chaired the Ontario Liberal Fund, as well as Technology in the City, a partnership campaign for

George Brown College The George Brown College of Applied Arts and Technology is a public, fully accredited college (Canada), college of applied arts and technology with three campuses in downtown Toronto (Ontario, Canada). Like many other colleges in Ontario, George ...

that raised over $15 million.

Awards

In October 2011, Smith received the ''Jock Tindale Memorial Award'' of the Ontario General Contractors Association. In October 2013, Smith was named Ernst & Young's ''EY Entrepreneur of the Year'' for the Ontario region. Within the same year, Smith was also named ''EY Canada's Entrepreneur of the Year''. EllisDon has also won awards during Smith's tenure as president.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Geoff 1955 births Businesspeople from London, Ontario Canadian business executives Living people