Vanguard Magazine

game ChanGER 40 FEBRUARY/MARCH 2018 www.vanguardcanada.com See the full interview online Q What is your role in your organi- zation today? Today I serve as the CEO of CCPV. I jokingly tell folks that CEO stands for "chief everything officer." As a lean organization, that means we all wear a dozen hats. My hats span the full spec- trum from janitor and window washer to government liaison and strategic rela- tionship development. I'm a huge fan of servant-based leadership, so I'm just as comfortable rolling up my sleeves on the shop floor as I am donning a tie in the boardroom. Working side by side with members of my team solving complex testing issues for products that may still be years from use in the field is incred- ibly exciting and rewarding. Q What was your most challenging moment? CCPV had some pretty tight timelines to bring the project to life. With a tar- get of getting the facility constructed, kitted, commissioned and fully opera- tional in one year, working through not one, but two, labour strikes (one by the City, one from a trade union) during con- struction was a challenge. The construc- tion advanced well, due to a great team of contractors and project managers, and even with those disruptions, we managed to open the doors in just under one year. Q What was your aha moment or epiphany that you think will resonate most with our reader, tell us that story? Every day is an aha moment at CCPV. We are working with next-gen innova- tions that may be years before they be- come commercial products. Helping businesses, large and small, discover the performance limits of those innovations, helping businesses design, build and cer- tify safer more robust products is a rush I look forward to every time I step into the office. Q What is the one thing that has you most fired up today? The ISO 17025 requirements changed this year. With a risk management focus to the new standard (the standard for test lab quality management and client support), it will completely change the way most facilities operate. As we have followed a risk-management framework since we opened, it is nothing new for us, but within the sector, this is a huge shift. Q What is the best advice you received? Norm Grierson was my first mentor, and he told me one thing that I will never forget. He said, "You will have ideas oth- ers may not yet be able to see. For that, you will get knocked down. Get up, dust off, keep going. It's not important that you got knocked down – what's impor- tant is that you got up again." Q What people or organizations do you believe best embody the innova- tion mindset? Sir Richard Branson of Virgin Group UK. He lives and breathes innovation, not just in his businesses, but in his ap- proach to life. He has been quoted as saying, "If you are given a great oppor- tunity – take it. Figure out how to do it later." Between saying "yes" to that great opportunity and having to deliver on it, work like crazy, think creatively, build your solution, because you never, ever lose sight of the goal. Q What are some of the biggest impediments to innovation in your industry sector? Innovative products are truly unique. Something so different likely does not have a test standard against which to test the product because such a product has never existed before. Many labs will simply not test something that doesn't fit nicely into an existing test standard. That's where we thrive. We help design new test standards to meet client needs while using the guidelines of the MIL- STDs as our foundation. Q How has innovation become engrained in your organization's culture, and how is it being optimized? Every idea to solve a testing challenge is fair game – it doesn't matter where the idea comes from. Those ideas could come from your hobby, previous career or even a sci-fi movie. When faced with a chal- lenge, we bring the entire team together, drop all rank in the room so all voices have equal weight, and we put everything on the table. When people have a safe, re- spectful place from which to share ideas without judgement, they unleash their creativity. Q What is your parting piece of advice? Innovation does not happen by accident. It is not just about being at the right place at the right time with the right idea to meet a market need. It is not just about inspiration, disruption or being ground- breaking. Innovation is deliberate. It is fu- ture-focused, open-ended, inquisitive and insightful. To build the business-supports for innovators and entrepreneurs to thrive in the 21st-century economy, we must pivot to the untried, the unique and the unconventional – because that is where in- novation exists. Dr. Ben CeCil Chief exeCutive OffiCer The Canadian CenTre for ProduCT ValidaTion aT fanshawe College

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