Rob Annan is President and CEO of Genome Canada.

Dr. Annan drives an overarching strategy that promotes the value and potential of genomics in Canada to Genome Canada’s major stakeholders, while raising the public profile of Genome Canada both nationally and internationally.

Dr. Annan is an accomplished and respected expert on research and innovation policy. A former Fellow of the Public Policy Forum, he has led projects and convened discussions around research and innovation strategy. 

During seven years at Mitacs – a non-profit, national research organization that manages and funds research and training programs for undergraduate, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in partnership with universities, industry and government – Dr. Annan helped build a Canadian success story in the development and delivery of policy-driven innovation programs. In his roles as Chief Research Officer and interim Chief Executive Officer, he was a key leader on Mitacs’ corporate strategy, stakeholder relations, research and evaluation, and policy analysis.

As an innovation strategist and a strong communicator, Dr. Annan consults with governments, organizations and institutions across Canada on research strategy and policy and speaks regularly with public and private audiences across Canada.

He has also been involved with science education organizations such as Let’s Talk Science, a national charity dedicated to increasing STEM literacy among K-12 students.

Dr. Annan has a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from McGill University and undergraduate degrees in English from Queen’s University and in Biology from the University of Victoria.