Greater Toronto Marketing Alliance Names New President and Chief Operating Officer

The Greater Toronto Marketing Alliance (GTMA) has named economic development executive George Hanus as its new President and Chief Operating Officer.  The City of Brampton is a Partner in the GTMA and Mayor Susan Fennell is a member of its Board.

Hanus, who has extensive Canadian and international experience, will assume the post on January 18, 2010.

“We are delighted that George has agreed to take on the challenge of solidifying GTMA’s role as the Greater Toronto Area’s lead international marketing arm,” said GTMA Chairman and CEO Lou Milrad. “His economic development experience and international contacts in a number of our key target industry sectors will be not only a tremendous asset to our organization over the long term, but will enable him to hit the ground running in his new leadership role.”

Hanus comes to the GTMA from a 2½ year posting as Director, ICT and Advanced Manufacturing in Investment Attraction at TRRA-Toronto Region Research Alliance. He previously spent over 25 years in economic development and investment attraction for Ontario's Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, including postings in Munich and Frankfort, Germany. His experience encompasses the advanced manufacturing, plastics, ICT, energy, green-tech, automotive and life sciences sectors.

Over the years, Hanus has helped hundreds of foreign companies learn about the advantages of Ontario and the GTA as investment locations. In collaboration with numerous partner organizations, his efforts have brought tens of millions of dollars in investments and hundreds of new jobs to Ontario. Hanus, who speaks five languages, holds an MBA in international business and marketing and a B.Eng. (Mechanical) from McGill University.

“We had tremendous interest in this position from a large group of very qualified candidates.” said Don Macintosh, a partner at Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP and Chair of the GTMA’s search committee. “George stood out for his experience, extensive network of international connections, and collaborative leadership style. We are confident that we have the right person for the job.”

Hanus will assume control over the GTMA’s day-to-day operations with a special emphasis on partner relations and investment attraction. These duties were held for the past two years by GTMA Chair Milrad while the organization established new organizational priorities and undertook the search process.

For more information about the Greater Toronto Marketing Alliance visit www.greatertoronto.org.