TELUS’ Darren Entwistle recognized as CEO Achiever, Champion of the Year by CEO World Awards

On his 20th anniversary as CEO, Darren Entwistle celebrated for global leadership in supporting Canada’s most vulnerable citizens during the COVID-19 pandemic

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Sept. 09, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, TELUS proudly announced that its CEO, Darren Entwistle, has been named the Gold Winner of the CEO Achiever - Champion of the Year Award in the Eighth Annual 2020 CEO World Awards. The award recognizes Darren’s leadership in leveraging TELUS’ technology and social purpose to support Canadians, particularly our most vulnerable citizens, as they grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Darren’s leadership during the public health crisis reflects his 20-year legacy of supporting his team, and the communities in which TELUS lives, works, and serves. As a global leader in social capitalism, TELUS believes that good business and doing good are mutually inclusive. That’s why the TELUS team has contributed $1.3 billion in value, time, and financial support to Canadian charities and grassroots organizations since 2000, including 736 million and 1.4 million days of volunteerism, making TELUS one of the most giving companies in the world.

Driven by Darren’s visionary and compassionate leadership, the TELUS team continues to leverage its global leading networks and technology to help Canadians work, learn, socialize, and stay healthy at home, enabling business customers to support their clients, as well as expanding access to TELUS’ virtual healthcare solutions, relieving pressure on crowded hospitals, helping preserve capacity for those with urgent healthcare needs, and keeping patients safely at home.

In support of healthcare workers on the frontlines, Darren also donated his salary for the second quarter of 2020 to fund initiatives aiding the fight against COVID-19 across the country. In addition, The Entwistle Family Foundation, established by Darren and his family in 2018, matched this donation to double the positive impact. 

Since March, TELUS has committed $150 million to support citizens in Canada and globally during the pandemic including $20 million to purchase medical technology and equipment, as well as support for food security, outreach to isolated seniors, virtual education programs and mental health initiatives. To date, this funding includes:

• Keeping Canada’s most vulnerable citizens connected, including seniors in long-term care homes. Through its Mobility for Good program, TELUS donated more than 14,000 free mobile devices and $0 rated mobility plans, valued at more than $8.75 million, to hundreds of organizations across the country.
• The TELUS Friendly Future Foundation committed to donating $10 million to strengthen the capacity of the public health care system. This includes a $500,000 donation to support world-leading research to develop antiviral treatments for COVID-19, a $250,000 donation to a number of community health care organizations to help them in their pandemic response for homeless and marginalized citizens across Canada, as well as $200,000 to support youth transitioning out of foster care into independence.
• Offering TELUS critter masks with all proceeds going to the TELUS Friendly Future Foundation. Since the initial launch in June, the TELUS critter masks have raised more than $200,000 for the TELUS Friendly Future Foundation’s COVID- 19 relief efforts.
• Partnering with school boards to offer high speed Internet at $9.95 per month to families and students in need.

The TELUS family’s exceptional contributions earned Darren and the team the first place ranking on the globally crowd-sourced “Heroes Leaderboard,” an impressive, unsolicited honour for a Canadian-based leader.