Jim Hanlon

Jim is a 40-year veteran of the ocean technology industry, having worked in engineering, marketing, and management for companies in Atlantic Canada, Ontario and New England. His career has spanned the aerospace and defense sectors as well as the marine environmental monitoring field. Jim has worked in senior management positions with several large publicly traded multinationals. He has also been a business owner in two separate tech companies that have successfully grown and been purchased by large multinationals. 

Jim was the founding CEO of COVE - the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship. COVE is a 70+ tenant ocean technology hub in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He currently serves on a number of advisory boards and councils, including the Ocean Tracking Network and the National Research Council of Canada's Ocean, Coastal and River Engineering Research Centre. In 2013 he served on the Expert Panel of the Canadian Council of Academics studying the future of ocean science in Canada. 

Jim is a graduate of Dalhousie University's Faculty of Engineering with a degree in electrical engineering. He also has an BMA in marketing from Saint Mary's University in Halifax and is a registered professional engineer in Nova Scotia. Jim was elected a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering in 2020. In 2022, Jim was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Laws by Dalhousie University for his contributions to global ocean technology.

Indicate one or two key goals that you would hope to accomplish in this position over the next 3 years:

I believe the biggest challenge for MTS over the next three years is adapting to rapid growth while remaining relevant to members. My background in industry gives me a particular perspective on this and I will continue to bring a "business first" focus on my role, while still working collaboratively with others on the board whose backgrounds are in government and academia. I believe that over the past three years the MTS Board has developed a strong collegial culture and it is important to me that we preserve and strengthen that culture. 

Specifically, I would like to complete a strategic review of the technical committees of MTS with the objective of consolidating volunteer and staff efforts around current and future technologies that have most relevance to members and the public at large. I feel that a smaller number of strong active committees with renewed scopes and mandates is preferable to a large number of committees with few activities or members. 

I also feel strongly that the OCEANS Conference remains an important part of the MTS brand and value to members. Over the course of the next three year I hope to engage board colleagues and MTS partners in a renewal process for the OCEANS Conference. As a Halifax resident, I am already active in the local planning for OCEANS 2024 and I hope to use that conference as a test case that will broaden the attendee base beyond the strong current core of engineers and scientists. 

Discuss the qualities and experience you posses that make you a strong candidate for the position for which you are running:

My early career revolved around design of radio, sonar, and sensing equipment for a variety of ocean applications. Later I shifted to technical marketing and management in a number of ocean firms and was the co-owner of two ocean-focused companies - Seimac Limited and MISL - both of which became part of multinational corporations where I served in a variety of regional management roles. 

I am most proud of my part in the establishment of COVE which now has become a globally significant hub for ocean technology.

I continue to focus on mentoring young companies entering the ocean technology field; as a mentor through organizations like CDL Oceans, through direct investment in some of those companies and through advisory services on a consulting base.

At the end of the day, when someone asks me what I do, I still always answer that I am an engineer. I still believe that solid science and technology are the core ingredients for a vibrant ocean economy and so I feel that MTS has an important role to play in bringing the technology perspective to a variety of important global issues.