John Edward Cleghorn, , (born July 7, 1941) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) 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 ...

business executive and a former university leader. Cleghorn was former chairman and chief executive officer of

Royal Bank of Canada Royal Bank of Canada (RBC; french: Banque royale du Canada) is a Canadian multinational financial services company and the largest bank in Canada by market capitalization. The bank serves over 17 million clients and has more than 89,000& ...

from 1994 until 2001. He is a former chairman of the board of

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

Biography

Born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, he graduated from

Westmount High School Westmount High School (french: École secondaire Westmount) is a public co-educational anglophone secondary school located in Westmount, Quebec, Canada, located near Alexis Nihon Complex Shopping Mall. Westmount High is Quebec's first and o ...

and received a

B.Com. A Bachelor of Commerce (abbreviated BComm or BCom; also, ''baccalaureates commercii'') is an undergraduate degree in business, usually awarded in Canada, Australia, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Ireland, New Zealand, Ghana, South Africa, Myanma ...

from the

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

Desautels Faculty of Management The Desautels Faculty of Management is a faculty of McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The faculty offers a range of undergraduate and graduate-level business programs, including the Bachelor of Commerce, Master of Business Adminis ...

in 1962. While at McGill, he was a

defensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

for the

McGill Redmen The McGill Redbirds (formerly the McGill Redmen) and McGill Martlets are the varsity athletic teams that represent McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Team name According to Suzanne Morton, a professor of history at McGill, the name ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

team that won the national championship. He was also a brother in

Psi Upsilon Psi Upsilon (), commonly known as Psi U, is a North American fraternity,''Psi Upsilon Tablet'' founded at Union College on November 24, 1833. The fraternity reports 50 chapters at colleges and universities throughout North America, some of which ...

. In 1964, he became a Chartered Accountant whilst working for Clarkson Gordon and subsequently a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

and

. He joined Royal Bank in 1974, becoming president in 1986, chief operating officer in 1990, chief executive officer in 1994, and chairman in 1995. A champion of corporate restraint, he sold off the corporate jet, closed the executive dining rooms, and ended the use of the executive limousines. He frequently rode the subway or flew economy class in order to interact with customers. He also took part in talks with Matthew Barrett, chairman and CEO of the

Bank of Montreal The Bank of Montreal (BMO; french: Banque de Montréal, link=no) is a Canadian multinational investment bank and financial services company. The bank was founded in Montreal, Quebec, in 1817 as Montreal Bank; while its head office remains in ...

, to merge their respective institutions, however Finance Minister

Paul Martin Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006. The son o ...

later blocked the proposed arrangement. Cleghorn retired as chairman and CEO in 2001, and was succeeded as CEO by Gordon Nixon and as board chairman by Guy St. Pierre. He has been a chairman of the board of

SNC-Lavalin SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. is a Canadian company based in Montreal that provides engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) services to various industries, including mining and metallurgy, oil and gas, environment and water, infrastructure, a ...

and was a director of

Finning International Finning is a Canadian industrial equipment dealer specializing in Caterpillar Inc., Caterpillar products. It is responsible for selling, renting and providing parts and service for equipment and engines to customers in industries including mini ...

and

Nortel Networks Nortel Networks Corporation (Nortel), formerly Northern Telecom Limited, was a Canadian multinational telecommunications and data networking equipment manufacturer headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in Montreal, Quebec, ...

. He played an influential role in the Nortel board meeting that forced CEO Frank Dunn and two other senior executives to resign in April 2004 after financial results were misrepresented. From 1996 to 2003, he was chancellor of

Wilfrid Laurier University Wilfrid Laurier University (commonly referred to as WLU or simply Laurier) is a public university in Ontario, Canada, with campuses in Waterloo, Brantford and Milton. The newer Brantford and Milton campuses are not considered satellite campuses ...

. He has also been a member of

's board of governors for many years. He holds honorary degrees from

Acadia Acadia (french: link=no, Acadie) was a colony of New France in northeastern North America which included parts of what are now the Maritime provinces, the Gaspé Peninsula and Maine to the Kennebec River. During much of the 17th and early ...

, Bishop's, McGill and Wilfrid Laurier universities. In 2001, he was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

, and was inducted into the

Canadian Business Hall of Fame The Canadian Business Hall of Fame celebrates the outstanding achievements of Canada's most distinguished business leaders, past and present. Over 170 Order of the Business Hall of Fame Companions serve as inspiring examples for all young Canadians ...

in 2008. John is married to Pattie Cleghorn. They have three children; Charlie, Ian and Andrea. Charlie has one child; Henry Cleghorn (22). Ian has two; Erica (20) and Jamie Cleghorn (18). Andrea has three; KEIGHLEY MOORE (18), Brenna (17) and Fraser Moore (15).

References

* http://www.nndb.com/people/729/000168225/

* http://www.rbc.com/history/quicktofrontier/future.html

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cleghorn, John 1941 births Living people Canadian university and college chancellors Officers of the Order of Canada Businesspeople from Montreal Anglophone Quebec people Directors of Nortel Canadian chairpersons of corporations Canadian corporate directors Directors of Royal Bank of Canada McGill Redmen players Directors of SNC-Lavalin Canadian chief executives Canadian telecommunications industry businesspeople Royal Bank of Canada presidents Chief executives in the finance industry McGill University Faculty of Management alumni Psi Upsilon