Reflections: Business Grad, Ian Ball, continually aims for a gold standard (June 16, 2006)
At 22 he graduated top of his university class, at 23 he became a vice-president of an international corporation, and he also works for one of Canada's most distinguished philanthropists, Rob McEwen. Business Administration graduate Ian Ball is no stranger to achievement.Currently Ball has a dream job working in investor relations, assessing the potential of companies in different fields, and building the success of those companies. He's also the vicepresident of corporate development at Lexam Explorations, which is 50 per cent owned by McEwen Capital.
A testament to Ball's professional achievements is the size of the numbers he describes as he talks about his job. Over a six-month period at McEwen Capital, he helped increase Lexam's market capitalization from $2.5 million to $25 million, and US Gold from US$8 million to US$410 million, a 5,025 per cent improvement. Also, they recently raised over US$75 million for US Gold.
An underlying message in everything he talks about is that there are no limits to what people can accomplish if they work hard. He describes himself as driven, working 70 to 80 hours a week and is regularly taking on sizeable challenges. For example, Ball played a role in the second largest gold takeover in history, valued at over $2.6 billion. And he's done all this before the age of 25.
"The most important thing I've learned during my time at McEwen Capital is that you can always do better than what you perceive to be your best. You need someone there who's going to force you to keep challenging the mould, and that conventional wisdom doesn't work," he says.
Ball graduated from Durham in 2002, and received his Honours Bachelor of Commerce degree from Ryerson University in 2004. At Ryerson, he graduated first in his class - a class of over 1,200 students. Shortly after graduation, he landed the job at McEwen Capital, one of the most successful investment companies in North America based on returnon invested capital.
Initially, Ball entered college just to fill time, with the understanding that he would go to work for his parents catering company after graduating. But after seeing his friend Keith Binns go the university route, he also decided he would put himself up for the challenge to prove he too could go the distance.
"I continued my education at university because it was a challenge. A good friend of mine went off to university during my second year, and even though going to university had never occurred to me, I thought if he could do it so could I. No one had ever thought I had the university potential," says Ball. Even though corporate life is treating him well, he says he enjoyed his time at the college, especially the people he met and the relationships he forged. Looking back, he just wishes he had the opportunity to do more presentations in class because he now understands that even though you might have great ideas for someone, it's a waste of effort if you don't know how to sell those ideas.
Looking ahead, Ball emphasizes the importance of giving back to the community sooner than later, noting it's necessary to recognize the people who put him where he is today. And his involvement at Durham proves that. Ball has established the Ian J. Ball Award to recognize dramatic improvements in students' academic performance. More than anything else, Ball says he will continue to push the envelope and strive to fulfill his potential in whatever he chooses to pursue.
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