Former Rogers Chief Legal Officer continues Ted Rogers’ legacy at TRSM

While a lot of people know the name Ted Rogers, founder of the Canadian telecom and media giant and namesake of the Ted Rogers School of Management, David Miller had the unique opportunity to work closely with him and learn a lot of valuable lessons – one of which was giving back.

As the Chief Legal and Corporate Affairs Officer at Rogers Communications for over 30 years, Miller worked for Ted Rogers for over two decades. “Ted believed in giving back to the community,” Miller explains.  “He said to start early, even if you can only afford a small amount, but give something back.”

Rogers Communications established a scholarship in David Miller’s name to honour his retirement in December 2018 and “to celebrate his leadership, passion and all his accomplishments over his 31 years with the company,” says Peter King, Rogers Communications’ Senior Director of Corporate Social Responsibility.

“The Rogers family and the company have supported education for a number of years,” King points out.  “The special relationship with Ryerson was established in 2007 with the gift from Ted and Loretta in naming the University Business Faculty, and creating a scholarship in David’s name at TRSM was a natural fit.”

Following Ted Rogers’s example of giving back, Miller is personally contributing to the David Miller Award in Law and Business.  Starting this Fall, two awards of $2,500 each will be given out annually to students in third year or higher, who have a CPGA of 3.0 or greater and demonstrate a financial need.

Miller understands the importance of financial aid from his own experience.  “My father died when I was a teenager and I had no way to pay for college without student loans, scholarships and a part-time job all the way through school.  The pressures of balancing study with part-time work is a real challenge,” he explains.  “We want to make sure we don’t lose future business leaders, or leaders in any area, because they don’t have the financial means.” 

“My wish is that the people who get these awards go on to have successful and meaningful careers,” adds Miller. “I also hope that if people look at an award, it would say that this is something for me to aspire to.  Maybe it’s not just the money – if there’s a name associated with it and a bit of history, hopefully it will be an inspiration as well as an opportunity.”

In addition to supporting an award at TRSM, Miller has also become very engaged at the school.  He is currently on the Law and Business Advisory Council and was recently appointed a TRSM Distinguished Visiting Professor by TRSM’s Dean Daphne Taras.  He also participated as a speaker at the student-led Ted Rogers Management Conference in 2017.

Miller wanted to become involved at TRSM because of his connection to Ted Rogers.  “I worked for Ted for 22 years, and for me, it’s a way of continuing his legacy knowing how much he valued education,” he says.  “I’m also hoping to be a bit of a bridge to talk about Ted so people can hear more about him as a person, where they wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity.”

“Ted was the hardest worker in the company,” Miller notes.  “He taught me that if you want to succeed, you’ve got to keep on going.  If you can learn to be resilient and face adversity head on, and combine this with hard work, something will eventually pay off,” he explains.  “It may not be right away, but if you stay in the game long enough, and take a shot, something will work out.”