Carol Stephenson inducted into CIPA Hall of Fame

Helped lead Canada’s telecommunications industry into modern competitive era

	For More Information: Contact: norm.kirkpatrick@cipa.com (905) 952 0778

TORONTO, October 27, 2005 – Carol Stephenson, a champion of innovation who helped build a competitive telecommunications industry in Canada, is being honoured by induction into the Hall of Fame of the Canadian Information Productivity Awards (CIPA).

Stephenson, Dean of the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario, had a 30-year career in the telecommunications industry and was a leading figure in its transformation from a regulated and monopolistic environment to one of the most competitive and technologically advanced national industries in the world.

“Carol Stephenson personifies the kind of innovative, energetically competitive and courageous leader that Canada needs to strengthen its globally competitive economy,” John Kelly, Chairman of NexInnovations Inc. and Chair of the 2005 CIPA Hall of Fame Selection Panel, said today in announcing the honour.

Stephenson will be inducted November 1 during the 13th annual CIPA Gala Banquet, the largest celebration of IT-based innovation in Canada. The CIPA Hall of Fame resides on the CIPA Web site at www.cipa.com.

Stephenson began her career at Bell Canada in 1973, advancing to become Vice-President of Bell Canada in 1988. From 1995 to 1998, as President and CEO of Stentor Resource Centre Inc, she played a key role in the telecom industry’s smooth transition to a fully competitive marketplace. She was subsequently President and COO (The Americas) of BCE Media Inc.

Then as President and CEO of Lucent Technologies Canada from 1999 to 2003, she spearheaded the team that succeeded in tripling Lucent’s market share in Canada despite an industry downturn. She was appointed Dean of the Richard Ivey School of Business in July 2003, and in September 2005 announced a revolutionary revamping of its curriculum to better prepare executives for a business world of constant innovation.

“Ms. Stephenson has pursued excellence throughout her career, and has been a mentor and role model for an entire generation of executives,” said Serge Godin, a Hall of Fame member and Chair of CIPA’s Managing Sponsor, CGI Group Inc.

Stephenson has earned significant recognition for her community work and industry involvement. The Canadian Women in Communications association named her Woman of the Year in 1995, and in 2001 she received the Woman of Distinction designation from the YWCA. In 2000, she was awarded an honorary doctorate in engineering from Ryerson University.

A past chair of the Information Technology Association of Canada (1997-98), Stephenson sits on the board of the Government of Canada’s Advisory Committee on Senior Level Retention and Compensation, and recently served on an Ontario government external task force on the management of large-scale I & IT projects.

The CIPA Hall of Fame was established in 1995 as a permanent tribute to Canadian pioneers and builders of the Information Age. CIPA is Canada’s oldest and largest awards program in the field of information technology and the premier show- case for Canadian IT and innovation. It is supported by its Managing Sponsor, CGI Group Inc., and other leading industry sponsors as well as allied technology associations. The mission of the awards is to celebrate visionary organizations that have developed innovative results-based technology solutions.