Alumna is appointed to lead provincial business team

Leslie Galway, B.Comm.'80; MBA'88, is the new deputy minister of the provincial Department of Business, effective Aug. 8, 2005. In making the announcement, Premier Danny Williams expressed unqualified confidence in her private sector experience in strategic planning and management and in her first-hand knowledge of the business sector which, he said "will allow us to move quickly in fulfilling the mandate of the department."

According to the government news release, Ms. Galway will report directly to the premier, and is expected to take a leading role in attracting business and investment to the province. She'll also advise government on strategic business opportunities, and work to ensure government has an effective relationship with business stakeholders within and outside of the province.

The appointment was welcome news to Dr. Axel Meisen, president and vice chancellor of Memorial University of Newfoundland. He said Ms. Galway has represented the university in a number of ways. She is a graduate of the faculty of business administration, she has served as a lecturer and assistant professor with that faculty, and she is a valued member of the university's governing body, the Board of Regents.

"Having had the opportunity to work closely with Ms. Galway I have respect for her leadership skills and business acumen. She will serve business and this province well in her new position. I wish her every success."

Dr. Meisen added that Memorial recognizes the petroleum industry as a key business sector for the province at this time.

"Ms. Galway's extensive experience in that sector will be an invaluable asset for the province and the university. We are excited about the opportunity of working with her to capitalize on opportunities in oil and gas research and development."

Ms. Galway has been president and CEO of the Newfoundland Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) since December 1999. She is NOIA's first full-time president and CEO, and has been responsible for providing a continuity of leadership and representation for the association's 450 members.

From 1990 to 1999, Ms. Galway held the positions of commissioner, vice-chairperson and acting chairperson and chief executive officer with the Board of Commissioners of Public Utilities. Prior to that she was a chartered accountant and management consultant with Clarkson Gordon / Woods Gordon (now Ernst & Young).

In addition to serving on Memorial's Board of Regents, Ms. Galway is an active member and co-chair of the Industrial Opportunities Working Committee of the Atlantic Energy Roundtable; co-chair of the National Trade Team Oil and Gas; Member of the Petroleum Industry Human Resource Committee; Member of the Advisory Board of the National Research Council Institute of Ocean Technology; and a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Newfoundland.