Teneo hires former Air Canada CEO Calin Rovinescu
Teneo, a global management consulting firm, has hired ex-Air Canada CEO Calin Rovinescu as a non-executive senior advisor.
Rovinescu last month retired as president and CEO of Air Canada after serving in the role for 12 years. He is credited with steering the airline to sustained profitability following the 2008 financial crisis. When Rovinescu took the helm in 2009, Air Canada share prices had sunk to one dollar; under his tenure they reached a peak of $52 in January 2020 before tumbling in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
At Teneo, Rovinescu will provide advice and counsel to the firm’s Canadian leadership team and participate in thought leadership initiatives with other senior advisors globally. He will also support the consulting firm’s philanthropic activities and partnerships.
Rovinescu began his career as a lawyer, spending more than 20 years at Montreal firm Stikeman Elliott, where he eventually served as managing partner. During his years practicing law in corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions, he advised Air Canada on numerous occasions, including as lead external counsel on its privatization and public offering in 1988. He also helped Air Canada successfully fend off a hostile takeover bid from Onex Corp. in 1999.
He subsequently joined the airline in 2000 as EVP of corporate development and strategy, and then served as chief restructuring officer in 2003 and 2004 during the company’s bankruptcy and restructuring process. Between 2004 and his return to Air Canada as CEO in 2009, Rovinescu co-founded and served as principal of investment bank Genuity Capital Markets, which subsequently merged with Cannaccord Capital.
"We are delighted to welcome Calin Rovinescu to Teneo as a Senior Advisor," said Declan Kelly, chairman and CEO of Teneo. "He is a highly respected business leader and his insights and perspective will be of great benefit to our team and clients. We look forward to drawing on his tremendous breadth of experience and knowledge."
Rovinescu is also currently on the board of directors of BCE Inc. and Bank of Nova Scotia. He also this month joined Brookfield Asset Management as a senior advisor. Rovinescu will advise the private equity firm on potential opportunities in the pandemic-ravaged aerospace and aviation industries.
"Calin is one of the most respected leaders in corporate Canada. He will be an enormous asset as we continue growing our Canadian business," said James Crossland, chairman of Teneo Canada.
Headquartered in New York, Teneo provides services in strategic communications, financial and risk advisory, restructuring, digital, and talent advisory, among other areas. The company has approximately 850 employees across 21 offices in North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific.
Teneo has Canadian locations in Toronto and Montreal.
The firm recently launched its “Teneo Performance” business – which will help CEOs improve company performance through effective organizational change.