John Cleghorn

John Edward Cleghorn, O.C. (born July 7, 1941) is a Canadian businessman and former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Royal Bank of Canada from 1994 until 2001. He is currently Chairman of the Board of Canadian Pacific Railway.

Born in Montreal, Quebec, he graduated from Westmount High School and received a B.Com from McGill University in 1962. While at McGill, he was a defensive lineman for the McGill Redmen football team that won the national championship. In 1964, he became a Chartered Accountant and subsequently a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario and Quebec.

He joined the Royal Bank in 1974, becoming President in 1986, Chief Operating Officer in 1990, Chief Executive Officer in 1994, and Chairman in 1995. A champion of corporate restraint, he sold off the corporate jet, closed the executive dining rooms, and ended the use of the executive limousines. He frequently rode the subway or flew economy class in order to interact with customers [http://www.mcgill.ca/reporter/37/04/cleghorn/] . He also took part in merger talks with Matthew Barrett, Chairman and CEO of the Bank of Montreal, though Finance Minister Paul Martin later blocked the proposed arrangement. He retired as Chairman and CEO in 2001, and was succeeded by Gordon Nixon.

He has been a Chairman of the Board of SNC-Lavalin and was a Director of Finning International and Nortel Networks. He played an influential role in the board meeting that forced CEO Frank Dunn and two other senior executives to resign in April 2004 after financial results were misrepresented.

From 1996 to 2003, he was chancellor of Wilfrid Laurier University. He has also been a member of McGill University's Board of Governors for many years. He holds honorary degrees from Acadia, Bishop's, McGill and Wilfrid Laurier Universities.

In 2001, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada, and was inducted into the Canadian Business Hall of Fame in 2008.