A Healthy Dose of Perspective from Dick Haskayne

It's 1981 in downtown Calgary. The recession is kicking in.

With interest rates hovering around 20 per cent and the National Energy Program’s impact being felt across the city, Hudson’s Bay Oil and Gas Company President Richard (Dick) Haskayne has a visitor in his office from a large Swiss bank.

As one of the few companies at the time with a AA credit rating, it wasn’t uncommon for bankers from around the world to visit his office looking to do business. This visitor is the bank’s chief economist and wears a rumpled suit, has bushy hair, and looks the part of an academic out of place in downtown Calgary. He asks Mr. Haskayne a simple question: ‘How’s it going?’

“I said, ‘Do you really want to know?’” recounts Mr. Haskayne so many years later with a laugh. “’Well, first of all we have 18 per cent interest rates. We have new social plans we can’t afford. Quebec wants to separate. We have the National Energy Program, which is absolutely killing us. We have the Foreign Investment Review Act, which is terrible for business.’ And I mentioned a few other things and said, ‘what else do you want to know?’”

“He said, ‘it’s funny how you see it, because I look at Canada quite differently than how you described it.’”

The economist then proceeds to describe his outsider’s perspective on Canada: World’s second largest country. Neighbour to its largest trading partner. No national security problems. Developed capital markets. A solid governance system and strong legal and education systems. And, the economist concludes, Canada has enormous natural resources and lists them one by one.

“He finally got to the end and said to me, ‘Mr. Haskayne, sir, I suggest you’re a country in search of a problem.’”

“Here I was, the leader of an AA credit-rated company, one of the best in the country, and all my comments were accurate, but they were all negative. As Canadians, you just think of the resources we have, and we need to sometimes stop and think about it. When you compare us to any other country, even today, you will have a hell of a time finding a country that’s better.”

In 2017, as he thinks back to that story, which he says is still relevant to this day, Mr. Haskayne says a healthy dose of perspective is important, even during challenging times. Those that know him will attest to Mr. Haskayne being a big picture thinker and a problem solver who values others’ perspectives. He is a long-time supporter of education and is committed to improving his hometown and will put his money — and name — to what he believes in.

At the age of 82, Mr. Haskayne is still a frequent visitor to the school that has borne his name since 2002. His gift of $16 million renamed the Faculty of Management to the Haskayne School of Business and the legacy of his gift continues to this day. The endowment has grown to $34 million — among the very largest at the university — and generates income for the school in perpetuity. The transformational endowment supports the school’s highest priorities and advances its vision of becoming a top tier business school. This past year the endowment allocation supported seven professorships and two fellowships to attract and retain leading scholars at the school.

Mr. Haskayne’s philanthropic contributions are as well-known as his legendary career atop several of Calgary’s largest companies, including TransCanada, Enbridge and TransAlta. He has been inducted into the Calgary Business Hall of Fame and has been honoured with the Order of Canada, Alberta Order of Excellence and the Woodrow Wilson Award for Corporate Citizenship.

He says he was motivated to make the gift 15 years ago to help differentiate the university and its business school. When he was chair of the university’s board of governors, it was difficult to raise money and build the profile of the university. The Faculty of Management was not a name that was widely known, especially outside of Western Canada, he says. Now that the school is identified by a name, he says it is easier to build profile and support for the school. That so many people proudly carry his name is “obviously gratifying, but in fairness you could have called it any other name because a name changes the complexion of it. “The whole university now has a much higher profile than it had then.”

Haskayne alumni from throughout the years benefit from this boost to the school’s profile, and the increased reputation that comes with the Haskayne School of Business name in the community.

Mr. Haskayne is proud of the philanthropic support the school has received since his gift and takes it as a strong show of support that so many Calgary business leaders have stepped up to support business education in Calgary. Not only do they give financial resources, but the number of CEOs and other business leaders who speak with students is also remarkable, he says.

“Not many people get to visit these people, and yet here they volunteer their time. When I was going to university in the 1950s, you never got to meet business leaders. I think we’ve done a pretty good job.”

As the school is getting ready to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2017, Mr. Haskayne says he is often struck by how much Calgary has grown.

“The Calgary business community is totally different than it was even 20 years ago — just the sheer size. I don’t think we realize how far we’ve come,” he says.

The number of head offices in the downtown is now so much greater than during his day. It wasn't long ago that much of the legal work that supported the energy industry was sent to Toronto. That, too, is no longer the case.

“Any measure you want to take, the growth has been very dramatic,” he says.

Much has changed — at the university, in Calgary and beyond — but Mr. Haskayne is careful to add an important caveat. As he wraps up the story of the Swiss economist, Mr. Haskayne says this generation of students and young alumni have a challenge in front of them. Canada may be among the very best places to live and Calgary among the best of the best, but that perspective should not be read as a time to be complacent.“

Particularly for the younger generation, we have to try to make things better and maintain what we have and not just relax. We have to make it better.”