Gerry Pond, considered a leader in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector, has been appointed to the Order of Canada, according to Entrevestor.
Rideau Hall, the office of the Governor General, appointed Pond to the Order of Canada on Dec. 30 for his achievement and dedication to Canada.
Pond, who has more than 45 years of business experience, is best known in the startup community as the chairman of Saint John’s-based Mariner Partners, which invests in tech companies focused on big data applications. He is also the co-founder of East Valley Ventures, an accelerator for Atlantic Canadian startups. He’s co-founded a number of ICT startups in Atlantic Canada, including iMagic TV, Q1 Labs, and Cirrus9.
“As the CEO of NBTel and the president of its successor, Aliant Telecom, Gerry was at the helm during a period of significant deregulation in the Canadian industry,” read a statement on the Mariner Partners website announcing the appointment. “Under his leadership, NBTel embarked on a decade of innovation, and in the process transformed NBTel into an international ICT leader.”
Pond is also a co-founder of Propel ICT, a startup accelerator, and the Pond-Deshpande Centre, which encourages emerging entrepreneurs to accelerate the creation of sustainable and scalable enterprises.
Pond’s other recognitions include being named as the first-ever BDC entrepreneurship champion, being named the 2011 Canadian Angel of the Year by Techvibes and KPMG, and receiving the 2014 Wolf Blass Lifetime Achievement Award from Startup Canada.