Albert Jean de GrandpréCCQC (14 September 1921 – 31 July 2022) was a Canadian lawyer and businessman who served as the president and chief executive officer of Bell Canada Enterprises Inc.[1]
Life and career
Born in Montreal, Quebec, he was educated at Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf and received a Bachelor of Civil Law (BCL) from McGill University in 1943. He joined Bell Canada as a general counsel in 1966 and was made president in 1973.[1] He became chairman and CEO in 1976 and was the first chairman and CEO when the BCE holding company was created in 1983.[1] The advantage of this arrangement was that only the telecommunications subsidiary Bell Canada was subject to regulation by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), whereas the parent company with its other assets (such as the telecom manufacturer Northern Telecom, later Nortel) was not.[2]
He retired from the company in 1989. From 1984 until 1991, he was the fifteenth Chancellor of McGill University. Since 1996, he has been chairman of the board of Theratechnologies, a Canadian biopharmaceutical company.
Grandpré turned 100 in September 2021,[3] and died on 31 July 2022.[4]
Honours and awards
In 1981, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.[5] He was promoted to Companion in 1987.
