Rocco Rossi

Rocco Rossi
Rossi in 2013
Born	(1962-02-06) February 6, 1962 Toronto, Ontario
Occupation(s)	President & CEO of Ontario Chamber of Commerce, Lobbyist

Rocco Rossi (born February 6, 1962) is a Canadian businessman currently serving as president and chief executive officer of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, and was formerly the president and CEO of Prostate Cancer Canada, a national foundation dedicated to the elimination of prostate cancer in men.

From 2004 to 2009 he was the CEO of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario. During 2009 he served as the national director of the Liberal Party of Canada. His political career included a bid for Toronto's mayor in the 2010 municipal election and a run with the Progressive Conservative Party (Eglinton—Lawrence) in the 2011 Ontario provincial election.

Background

Rossi attended schools in Canada and the United States. He won a scholarship to attend Upper Canada College (UCC), an independent elementary and secondary school in midtown Toronto. After graduating from UCC, Rossi studied at McGill University in Montreal, followed by studies at Princeton University in New Jersey, where he graduated with a master’s degree in politics.

Career

After graduating from Princeton, Rossi returned to Toronto to pursue a career in the private sector with roles at Advanced Material Resources (now NeoMaterials), the Boston Consulting Group, Torstar, Labatt/Interbrew and MGI Software. Rossi's role at Torstar included launching Toronto's local internet portal—toronto.com. He was recruited from Torstar by Interbew and became president of beer.com, which launched at the peak of the dot-com boom.

Rossi has sat on numerous private, public and charitable boards including the United Way of Greater Toronto, AMR, the Ivey Foundation, the Internet Advertising Bureau of Canada, Toronto’s 2008 Olympic Bid and the Empire Club of Canada. He is also a supporter of Rotary International, Presidents of Enterprising Organizations and the Young Presidents' Organization.

The sudden death of a colleague and close friend from overwork influenced Rossi to leave working in the private sector and pursue career opportunities in the not for profit sector, eventually leading him to join the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario in 2004 as CEO.

Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario

From November 2004 until January 2009, Rossi was chief executive officer of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario, one of the largest non-profit organizations in Canada. As CEO, Rossi was instrumental in raising funds for cardiovascular health and research, and for the purchase of automated heart defibrillators (AED’s) for placement in public spaces across Ontario. The defibrillator program has so far led to 30 lives saved and Rossi’s efforts have been honoured with his name appearing on plaques installed in various TTC stations around Toronto.

In addition to partaking in annual HSFO fundraising events such as the Ride for Heart, Rossi raised funds and awareness for heart and stroke research through the accomplishment of several athletic feats. He has kayaked 490 km solo from Toronto to Ottawa, cycled the entire 1,900 km length of Yonge Street from Rainy River, Ontario to Toronto and twice climbed Toronto’s seven tallest office towers over three days to equal the height of Mount Everest.

Under Rossi's leadership the Heart and Stroke Foundation built a $130-million reserve of tax-receipted funds. While some have criticized saving instead of spending, Rossi has remarked, "It's a criticism I will bear with honour... I'm proud that we built a healthy, long-term balance sheet".

Politics

Rossi was a national director of the federal Liberal Party of Canada, managed John Tory's campaign for Mayor of Toronto in the 2003 Toronto municipal election, ran for Mayor of Toronto in 2010 and was a candidate for the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario in the 2011 General Election.

In 2018, Rossi, acting as President of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, was one of several "business leaders" who lobbied Ontario Premier Doug Ford to repeal Bill 148, legislation implemented by the previous provincial government. Among other things, the legislation guaranteed workers paid sick days, equal pay for part time work, and a $1/hour raise to a minimum wage of $15/hour, to begin on January 1, 2019. Rossi publicly celebrated when Bill 148 was repealed, cancelling the planned increase of minimum wage. On December 31, 2018, the day before the cancelled minimum wage increase was to take place, Rossi tweeted a photo of champagne and pastries, with the statement "Celebrating New Year’s the 1-percenter way! Let them eat cake:-)." Rossi was roundly criticized by other Twitter users in the replies to his tweet, and has since deleted it and apologized, claiming the tweet was "satire."

Philanthropy

In 2012, Rossi was awarded the Queen's Jubilee Medal for his extensive community contributions and philanthropic work. Combined, Rossi has fundraised $600 million dollars during his career. The Toronto Sun called him "The Richard Branson of philanthropy" for his innovative fundraising adventures. Over a 4 year period from 2006-2009, Rossi, then-CEO of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario, took on a major personal fundraising initiative, raising a combined total of more than $2.6 million.

True Patriot Love, a foundation dedicated to honouring and supporting the brave members of Canada's military and their families, has also been a focus. Most recently in October 2012, Rossi co-chaired an expedition of 12 wounded Canadian veterans and a group of 10 corporate leaders on a challenging trek to Everest Base Camp and the Summit of Island Peak to raise much-needed funds and awareness for injured soldiers and their families. It is the subject of a CBC documentary entitled "March to the Top" which airs in February 2013.