Executives from EA, Ballard and Sierra Wireless among inductees to the BC Innovators Hall of Fame

The BC Tech Association is celebrating 30 years in existence with an all-star class

It doesn’t take long to be impressed while scrolling the BC Tech Association’s Hall of Fame list. Even if you don’t know the names by heart, you know (or should know) the companies. Today, the Association inducted another eight names to the Hall. Unsurprisingly, it’s another group of impressive trailblazers who have made a distinct impact on B.C.’s tech industry.

Here’s some background on each of the eight new inductees: 

• Judy Bishop: Co-founder of the BC Tech Association, Bishop had a hand in several local startups, like customer relations management firm Galeforce Solutions, where she served as president. Currently located in Kelowna, Bishop has served on many boards, including Vancouver’s 2010 Olympics bid.
• Kathy Butler: Managing director and head of B.C. capital markets at CIBC, where she has spent the last 27 years. Butler often works with clients in the tech sctor and has been a partner with Social Venture Partners since 2003.
• Andrew Harries: Harries co-founded Sierra Wireless in 1993 and grew it to more than US$200 million in annual revenues. He’s currently a professor at SFU’s Beedie School of Business.
• Don Mattrick: Co-founded Distinctive Software with Jeff Sember. It was eventually bought out by Electronic Arts in 1991 and Mattrick became president of EA Worldwide Studios.
• Firoz Rasul: Former CEO and chairman of Ballard Power Systems, Rasul was president of Aga Khan University until 2021 when he stepped down after growing the footpring of the school to six countries.
• Shannon Rogers Roy (1969-2023): Rogers Roy was the president and general counsel of Global Relay, scaling the cloud communications company to 1,300 employees and $200 million in annual revenue. She was named to the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada list three times.
• Geordie Rose: Rose founded D-Wave Systems (which produced the first-ever commercially viable quantum computer, Kindred (a robotics and AI company that makes intelligent robots to enchance the industrial workforce) and Sanctuary AI, which makes humanoid general purpose robots. He currently serves as CEO of the latter. He’s also an accomplished wrestler.
• William (Bill) H. Thompson (1922-1986): Thompson owned the largest electronic parts distribution company in Western Canada in the 1960s and ‘70s. He founded Eldevco to invest in early-stage B.C. tech companies when the province’s tech industry was less than a shadow of what it is now. 

“BC’s technology and innovation ecosystem was built company by company, leader by leader, and these eight leaders leave a rich legacy,” said BC Tech Association CEO Jill Tipping in a release. “We were thrilled to partner with the B.C. government to establish the BC Innovators Hall of Fame and thank Minister Bailey for her leadership in highlighting innovation as key to a thriving BC economy.”