Dominic D’Alessandro, president and CEO of Manulife Financial Corp. will receive this year’s Ivey business leader award at a gala dinner on October 8.

Created in 1991 by the Ivey Alumni Association/Toronto Chapter, the award honours individuals and organizations that have made a significant contribution to the advancement of business in Canada, and reflect the ideals of the Richard Ivey School of Business.

Since becoming CEO of Manulife in 1994, D’Alessandro has led the financial services company to its 14th consecutive year of record financial performance, resulting in Manulife being among the most profitable life insurance companies in North America. He also led the successful demutualization and conversion of Manulife to public company status in 1999.

Today’s award announcement drew particular attention to the 2004 acquisition of John Hancock Financial Services by Manulife, the largest cross-border transaction in Canadian history at the time.

“It gives me great pleasure to celebrate Dominic’s exceptional leadership with this award. His role in managing the successful completion of the merger with John Hancock Financial Services is exemplary of his cross-enterprise leadership,” says Carol Stephenson, Dean, Richard Ivey School of Business. “Dominic has been a strong voice in encouraging Canadian companies to take bold action such that they grow into global leaders in their fields.”