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Curtis Howe - Industry Person Of The Year, KIRA Awards 2006

The Industry Person of the Year is recognizing an individual who has gone above and beyond in the leadership and direction of IT in New Brunswick - someone who has given time and energy to make a difference to the industry in building its presence in the IT world. The industry cannot be successful without these special people.

» KIRA Awards website


Saint John, NB - May 4, 2006 - This year's recipient is Curtis Howe, President, Mariner Partners, Inc.

As President of Mariner Partners, Inc., Curtis brings a wealth of knowledge in business and technology strategy, business change management, information systems, network systems, product development, and network operations from his 20 years in telecom with NBTel and Aliant Telecom. Having held a range of senior positions, including General Manager - Marketing at NBTel, and most recently, CIO and CTO of Aliant Telecom from 1999 to 2002, Curtis has extensive and unique experience in developing and delivering advanced technology product offerings to both consumer and business markets.

With 10 years of senior management level experience in networking technology, software development and technology operations, Curtis has managed numerous advanced technology investments, including the development of award - winning IPTV technologies, contact center systems and industry leading OSS. He has also led the design and implementation of high performance product development practices at NBTel and Aliant Telecom, and with Mariner Partner's clients in the United States and Canada.

National Recognition and Awards:

Curtis is the Chairman of the Board of t he New Brunswick Electricity Systems Operator. He is a past director of iMagicTV, Connectivity Inc., ISM-Datacor Atlantic, Stentor Canadian Network Management and the Micro-Electronics Technology Center. Curtis holds a Bachelor of Science (Electrical Engineering) degree from the University of New Brunswick.

Activities that support the nomination:

In addition to his role of building a new Company - Mariner Partners Inc, Curtis was the catalyst behind the recent resurgence of the ICT industry in Saint John. As Chairman of propelsj, Curtis and his team of volunteers have established a detailed business plan that has at its heart entrepreneurship and sustained development of the Saint John and Provincial ICT industry.

Propelsj is a private sector, non profit organization based in Saint John. It is dedicated to the growth of entrepreneurship, innovation and the expansion of the ICT sector in the Saint John region. Propelsj's mission is to energize and bring private sector leadership in the Community's effort to develop and grow the ICT sector. Propelsj is a catalyst for growth and sustainability that propels Saint John and New Brunswick to a new level of leadership to the ICT sector.

» propelsj website

Under Curtis's leadership Propelsj has launched an aggressive growth strategy of establishing 32 new ICT companies in 36 months. This initiative was branded LAUNCH 32 and is the foundation of Propelsj's entrepreneurship accelerator and incubation program. To date 8 companies have been launched with 4 ready to launch.

To meet this goal, Propelsj is establishing a Virtual ICT Business Incubator. Enterprises that graduate from incubators historically have an 80% success rate versus 40% otherwise, doubling the probability that the company will survive 5 years or longer.

The incubator will offer shared resources, access to mentors and educational activities designed to assist the entrepreneurs with their business practices and to provide a valuable expertise in export strategies. Clients will come from within the University of New Brunswick and outreach to other universities, the NB Community College, from within industry, and through recruiting efforts throughout the region and across Canada and the United States.

Financially the project will require up-front funding in its initial stages. It is anticipated to be self-financing by 2008. A conservative evaluation forecasts that 48 businesses will be sponsored by 2009, 38 of which will survive providing a net gain of over 450 direct jobs with above average income levels.

Curtis has also been instrumental in establishing a business relationship with UNBSJ. This relationship has blossomed into a partnership whereby the University is taking an active role in the ICT community and structuring its MBA program around PropelSJ's cornerstones of entrepreneurship and innovation.

In addition, from 1997 to 2002, Curtis sat on the Board of Directors of the Saint John Board of Trade.

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