Rob Wildeboer: Facing The Economic Challenges of the COVID-19 Pandemic
ELO hosted Rob Wildeboer for a Webinar and Q&A with Dr. Rick Goossen on May 20th, 2020. Rob Wildeboer is the Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of Martinrea International Inc., a global auto parts supplier, specializing in automotive fluid systems and metal forming products. Martinrea has over 17,000 employees at 38 divisions in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Europe and China and generates almost $4 billion in revenue.
Rob Wildeboer recently had to lay off 13,000 of his 17,000 employees at Martinrea. He is dealing with the unprecedented economic challenges of the current COVID-19 pandemic. He is wrestling with how to adjust resources and cash flow and how to survive until the light at the end of the tunnel. Rob will share his strategy for dealing with this crisis, how to assess information, who to rely on and how to plan as well as possible. He will talk about lessons he’s learning and how to handle challenges. He will talk about how Christian marketplace leaders can step out and be difference-makers.
Rob Wildeboer is the Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of Martinrea International Inc. (TSX: MRE) Vaughan, ON. Previously, Mr. Wildeboer was a partner of Wildeboer Dellelce LLP, a law firm that practices corporate, securities and tax law that he co-founded in 1993, and he remains Counsel to the firm. Before that, he was a lawyer with Stikeman, Elliott; an associate professor of law at Osgoode Hall Law School, where he taught corporate law and corporate finance; and a regulator with the Ontario Securities Commission. Mr. Wildeboer is Vice-Chairman of the Auto Parts Manufacturers Association (APMA); a director of the Canadian Automotive Partnership Council (CAPC); a member of the Ontario Manufacturing Council; a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Minister of Finance of Canada; and Chair of the CEO Manufacturing Advisory Council. He has been a director or adviser of numerous charitable organizations. He is Chair of Cardus, a faith-based think tank. He was Chair of the Macdonald-Laurier Institute for eight years and is now on their Advisory Board. He has been on the Ontario Advisory Board for Entrepreneurial Leaders Organization (ELO) for several years now. In 2012, he received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in recognition of his contributions to Canada. In 2018 he was presented with the “Entrepreneurial Leaders Award” at the ELO Forum in Toronto. Mr. Wildeboer holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Guelph, a law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School, an MBA from York University, and an LLM from Harvard University.
Dr. Richard (Rick) J. Goossen facilitated the Q&A and interaction with a live audience. The focus of each ELO Webinar is to ask the most pertinent questions for the particular guest and to encourage questions from our global audience. Dr. Goossen based the interview on a few pre-determined questions and integrated questions from the audience throughout the interview.
See below Rob Wildeboer’s recent publications with links:
The Hill Times: Lockdown-exit plans missing three key elements
Canadian Thought Leaders Urge Prime Minister Trudeau To Think Beyond The Lockdown
Facing the Human and Economic Costs of Fighting COVID-19
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