TORONTO — BCE shared the news Friday former BCE and Bell Canada chair Thomas Charles O’Neill died recently. A renowned and well-liked leader in corporate Canada, O’Neill was Bell’s chair from 2009 to 2016.
“The loss of Tom O’Neill will be felt across the Canadian business community and particularly here at Bell where he played such an important role as our preceding chair,” said Gordon Nixon, current chair of BCE and Bell Canada, in the news release. “Tom’s insight in the boardroom was matched by his dedication to the community, and he will be very much missed as a leader of outstanding personal and professional calibre.”
“Tom successfully guided Bell through a time of unprecedented change and opportunity, and we thank him for his wisdom, integrity and passion for doing business right,” added Mirko Bibic, CEO and president of BCE and Bell Canada. “On behalf of everyone at Bell, I offer Tom’s family and many, many friends our most sincere sympathy.”
“Tom’s steadfast commitment to good governance and corporate responsibility combined with his warm and affable personality made him stand out as a Bay Street leader who was both astute and approachable,” said George Cope, who retired as Bell’s president and CEO in January. “Tom was a mentor and inspiration to me and to countless others, and I extend my deepest condolences to his family and to all those fortunate enough to have known him.”
O’Neill retired from BCE’s board in April 2016 after serving as a director from 2003 and as chair from 2009. Widely esteemed for his corporate governance leadership, O’Neill formerly served as CEO and chair of PricewaterhouseCoopers Consulting and retired as chair of Scotiabank in 2019.
In a separate news release, Scotiabank president and CEO Brian Porter said: “Tom’s legacy extends beyond his own family, and our bank. It’s greater than his integrity, generosity and tremendous business acumen. Tom’s legacy is every person he mentored, coached, and encouraged. Tom was a father figure to many of us at the bank. He will be sorely missed by those who were fortunate to know him. He was a remarkable man.”
Key to the launch of the Bell Let’s Talk mental health initiative in 2010, O’Neill also received special recognition from Catalyst Canada for his role in advancing the careers of women leaders in Canadian business. He was a former chair of St. Michael’s Hospital, a member of the advisory board of Queen’s University School of Business and a fellow of the Institute of Corporate Directors. O’Neill received the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario (ICAO) Award of Outstanding Merit and a range of other corporate governance honours in his time as BCE chair.
