Simon Kennedy

Simon Kennedy is a Senior Advisor to Esplanade Ventures. Simon is a former senior federal public servant who held six deputy minister-level positions at the highest levels of the Government of Canada. As Deputy Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development from 2019 to 2024, he shaped national policy in digital technologies and data, life sciences, and biomanufacturing, and spearheaded landmark legislative reforms in the areas of investment, competition, and telecommunications. As Deputy Minister of Health from 2015 to 2019, he led Health Canada's regulatory mandate including for pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and emerging health technologies, and directed the federal response to the opioid crisis. Earlier roles included Deputy Minister of International Trade and G-20 Sherpa to the Prime Minister. Simon currently serves on the boards of Finchley Pharmaceuticals and Quantum Valley Ideas Lab, and holds a number of other board and advisory roles in the public and private sectors. He is a graduate of the Advanced Management Programme at INSEAD, holds an MSc from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University and a Bachelor of Public Relations with distinction from Mount Saint Vincent University, and holds the ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors.