Erik Ryan appointed Chairman of the board of directors of the Board of Trade
of Metropolitan Montreal for 2009-2010

MONTREAL , Nov. 4 /CNW Telbec/ - At the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal's annual assembly, which was held today, members elected their board of directors for 2009-2010. Mr. Erik Ryan , Senior Vice-President, Communications and External Relations, of Rio Tinto Alcan, was appointed Chairman of the board of directors for a one-year term. He succeeds Rémi Racine, President and CEO of A2M, who became the Retiring Chairman.

"Our role at the Board of Trade is to ensure that Montréal has the best conditions for business. In the current environment, we will do everything we can to enable the greater metropolitan region to fully benefit from the economic recovery that is already visible on the horizon. We are working non-stop so that Montréal can enjoy a true surge of prosperity," stated Erik Ryan , new Chairman of the board of directors of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal .

Erik Ryan holds a B. Eng. in Mechanical Engineering from McGill University (1987) and an MBA from the Harvard Business School (1995).

Mr. Ryan joins Alcan Inc. in September 2002 as Director, Strategic Management Support. He is part of the Pechiney acquisition team, and is later co-leader of the Alcan-Pechiney Integration Leadership Team in Paris . In the fall of 2004, he becomes Vice-President, Strategy and Business Development, for Alcan Packaging Global Beauty sector. In January 2005 , Mr. Ryan is appointed Vice-President, Corporate Affairs and Communications, for Alcan Primary Metal Group. In 2007, Regional Industrial Diversification and an aerospace and nuclear alloys casting plant are added to his responsibilities, as he becomes Vice-President, Stakeholder Relations and Communications.

Erik Ryan first became involved with the Board of Trade in 2002 through the strategic analysis committee on economic development before joining the board of directors and then, its executive committee.

Prior to joining Rio Tinto Alcan, Mr. Ryan was Secretary General of the Sommet de Montréal 2002, in charge of designing and conducting this foundational event created to identify the strategic priorities and initiatives critical to the new City of Montréal.

Between 1995 and 2001, following his studies in Boston , Mr. Ryan worked as a consultant for Monitor Company, a Boston consultancy. Between 1995 and 1997, he headed its Paris office. Between 1989 and 1993, he was political advisor to Gérald Tremblay, then Minister of Industry, Trade, and Technology. At that time, Mr. Ryan contributed to the design and deployment of the industrial cluster strategy, and to negotiating the social contract.

As Chairman of the board of directors of the Board of Trade, Erik Ryan will be involved in the Board of Trade's activities during the current year, and also as Retiring Chairman the following year. Over this entire period, Mr. Ryan will sit on the Board of Trade's executive committee.

The 2009-2010 board of directors is composed of the following members:

    
    Chairman of the board:
    Erik Ryan*
    Senior Vice-President, Communications and External Relations
    Rio Tinto Alcan

    Retiring Chairman of the board:
    Rémi Racine*
    President and CEO
    A2M

    First Vice-President of the board:
    Joseph Iannicelli*
    President and Chief Executive Officer
    The Standard Life Assurance Company of Canada

    Treasurer:
    Luc Martin*
    Manufacturing Practice Leader-Canada
    Deloitte & Touche

    Dimitri Antonopoulos
    Vice-President, Marketing, Hotel and Restaurant Development
    The Antonopoulos Group

    Christiane Bergevin
    Executive Vice-President, Strategic Partnerships, Office of the President
    Desjardins Group

    Marc-André Blanchard*
    Managing Partner, Quebec Region
    McCarthy Tétrault

    Stéphane Boisvert
    President, Bell Business Markets
    Bell Canada

    Hubert Bolduc
    Vice-President, Communications and Public Affairs
    Cascades Inc.

    Manon Brouillette
    Executive Vice-President, Strategy and Market Development
    Videotron Ltd.

    Charles-Mathieu Brunelle
    Executive Director
    Montréal's Nature Museums

    Isabelle Courville*
    President
    Hydro-Québec TransÉnergie

    Robert Desbiens
    Executive Vice-President, Corporate Strategies
    R3D Consulting Inc.

    François Giroux
    President and CEO
    Allianz Madvac Inc.

    Michael Goodman
    President and Founder
    Michael Goodman Executive Search

    Michel Leblanc
    President and CEO
    Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal

    Jean-Marc Léger
    President
    Leger Marketing

    Caroline Ménard
    President
    Jeune Chambre de commerce de Montréal

    Heather Munroe-Blum
    Principal and Vice-Chancellor
    McGill University

    Michel Patry
    Director
    HEC Montréal

    Daniel Peritz
    Senior Vice-President, Montréal
    Canderel Management Inc.

    Lorraine Pintal*
    Artistic and General Director
    Théâtre du Nouveau Monde

    Luc Sabbatini
    President
    Astral Media Outdoors

    Javier San Juan
    President and Chief Executive Officer
    L'Oréal Canada

    Sylvain Vincent*
    Managing Partner, Eastern Canada and Member of Canadian Executive
    Committee
    Ernst & Young LLP
    

* Member of the executive committee

Biographies and photos of the members of the board of directors can be found on the Board of Trade's Website (http://www.btmm.qc.ca/09_BD).

The Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal has some 7,000 members. Its primary mission is to represent the interests of the business community of Greater Montréal and to provide individuals, merchants, and local businesses of all sizes with a variety of specialized services to help them achieve their full potential in terms of innovation, productivity and competitiveness. The Board of Trade is Quebec's leading private economic development organization.

For further information: Sylvie Paquette, Coordinator, Media relations, Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal, [phone], ext. 4015, [email protected]