20 Years: Q & A with Chairman and CEO

Q & A with Chairman and CEO

An interview with Pierre Morrissette, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pelmorex Media Inc., reflecting on the past 20 years and looking ahead to the future.

What does it mean to you to be celebrating 20 years?
It’s an important milestone that allows us to reflect on all of our past accomplishments and achievements, which are true reflections of our team’s resourcefulness.

Our success is even more meaningful when we think back to the early days. When our services first launched, many Canadians didn’t believe there was a market for a 24-hour weather service. But weather has always been a hot topic in this country and today, The Weather Network/ MétéoMédia is the leading weather and weather-related information and content provider in Canada - and a routine part of the daily lives of Canadians whose activities are dependent on weather.

What do you think consumers would be most surprised to learn about the organization?
Many people are still not aware that we produce our own forecasts and update them more often than any other media source in Canada. We employ a team of over 40 meteorologists working around the clock and using some of the most advanced forecasting systems in the world. We are very proud of our in-house expertise and technology, which allows us to offer the best forecasts in Canada. What also sets us apart from other weather providers is that we own most of our content and this enables us to apply it and launch it whenever we want to.

When you reflect on the many successes over the past 20 years what are you most proud of?
I’m proud of the way we have empowered our almost 400 employees to best serve Canadians with the most advanced technologies available to create the most accurate and up-to-date weather and weather-related content and information. Not only does the information that we provide help Canadians plan their busy lives, but it also alerts people of active weather that could be potentially dangerous. We play a significant role in helping Canadians be safe by providing information that could help reduce property damage to protecting and saving the lives of Canadians –this is something I am truly proud of.

What do you see for The Weather Network over the next 20 years?
We will continue to develop the content and technologies our consumers are looking for. Twenty years ago, we only had our television networks to reach Canadians. Today, we have web, desktop and mobile applications. I expect the future will bring more exciting innovations that will help us maintain the leadership position we enjoy today.