An outspoken champion of entrepreneurship, education and community service, Mr. McLean is a distinguished leader in the Canadian business and academic communities whose career has earned him four Honourary Doctorates of Law (Universities of Alberta and British Columbia, Simon Fraser University and Royal Roads University), an appointment to the Order of British Columbia and, more recently, his appointment as Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD Fellow, 2006).
In August of 1994, Mr. McLean was appointed by the Prime Minister of Canada to the Board of Directors of CN (Canadian National Railway Company). In December of 1994, he was elected Chairman of the Board of the company. He played an important leadership role in the privatization of the company, which was completed on November 28, 1995. It was, at that time, the largest I.P.O. in Canadian history.
Mr. McLean has been re-elected each year as Chairman of the Board for the past 19 years and will retire as Chairman in April 2014. Mr. McLean has served as Chairman of the Vancouver Board of Trade, Chairman of the 170,000 member Canadian Chamber of Commerce and was Chairman of the Board of Coastland Wood Industries. For many years he was the Chairman and a Director to Concord Pacific Group Inc., a public real estate company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, which was privatized in 2002. Additionally, Mr. McLean has served as a Director of De Havilland Aircraft of Canada, Northwestel Inc., Canac Consultants Limited and NuWest Group Inc.
With a lifelong interest in education, Mr. McLean has served as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the University of British Columbia and is currently a member of the Advisory Board of the Institute of Canadian Studies at the University of California at Berkley. Founding Chairman of the Centre of North American Business Studies at Simon Fraser University, he also co-chaired the University of Alberta’s capital campaign.
Mr. McLean's environmental, philanthropic and community interests include a commitment to preserving Canada’s wetlands (Ducks Unlimited Canada), and he is the only Canadian director of Wetlands America Trust, which is the foundation supporting Ducks Unlimited in the Unites States. He was also the Chairman of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award’s Charter for Business for many years.