Jim Leech, the former president and CEO of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, has been awarded the Niagara Institutional Dialogue’s Lifetime Achievement Award for outstanding service to the Canadian pension industry.
Awarded annually by the Niagara Institutional Dialogue (NID), the 2014 award recognizes Leech’s significant contributions to the shaping of the Canadian pension industry.
“Mr. Leech’s prudent management of the largest pension in Canada during a critical financial period was vital to the fund’s continued success,” says NID co-chair, Tristram Lett. “It’s exactly these qualities that the Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes and celebrates.”
The organization recognized Leech for his initiative to co-author with Jacquie McNish The Third Rail: Confronting Our Pension Failures. His public determination to encourage politicians to address critical issues involving pension coverage and funding deficiencies was cited as an invaluable contribution to the retirement welfare of all Canadians.
“I am honoured to receive this recognition from the Niagara Institutional Dialogue, particularly given the contributions that the previous honourees have made to our industry over many years” said Leech. “Retirement financial security is on most Canadians’ minds today.”
Previous honourees have included Keith Ambachtsheer, Malcolm Hamilton and Paul Martin.
The NID is a symposium of senior Canadian pension officers supported by the global asset management community, which convenes annually in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. Along with academics and policy-makers, participants discuss and debate significant issues concerning the management of pension funds and endowments.
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