Waterloo Innovation Network

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Halloran lands CEO position

January 20, 2015 | James Jackson | Waterloo Chronicle | LINK

Waterloo’s former mayor has landed a new job as the chief executive officer of the Waterloo Innovation Network.

Brenda Halloran said the organization is aimed at promoting economic development in Waterloo and attracting top talent and top companies from around the world, and is the brainchild of financier and current Dragons’ Den investor Michael Wekerle.

Halloran expects to use connections she made both regionally and internationally during her eight years as mayor of Waterloo to help the initiative flourish.

As mayor, Halloran made headlines by travelling the globe in search of foreign investment, most notably in China, but also in Europe and South America.

“My role will be to work with Michael Wekerle on creating an innovation technology centre here, a hub,” said Halloran. “He’s looking at attracting entrepreneurs and families and he’s got some really great plans

for this whole area.”

Wekerle has purchased six of the former BlackBerry buildings along the Columbia Street and Phillip Street corridor and Halloran said she was approached by Wekerle about four months ago about the position.

“It’s a dream come true and it’s very similar to a lot of the work I was doing as mayor, looking for jobs and trying to create a really vibrant community,” Halloran said.

They are also looking to partner with other community builders and innovators in Waterloo, including Communitech, the chamber of commerce, Wilfrid Laurier University and University of Waterloo and other local tech companies.

“There’s going to be a lot of collaborative work going on together,” she said.

The Waterloo Innovation Network is currently working on a master plan to map out its priorities and goals for the area.

“(Wekerle) has a great vision, he loves this region,” Halloran said.

“Right now we’re building from the ground up as a team.”