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By Nancy Dorrance
with photography by Bernard Clark
Ken Wong’s marketing education began at home, literally. Growing up in Montreal’s Chinatown during the 1950s, he listened each night to lively, sometimes heated “board meetings” around the family dinner table. But unlike the famously dysfunctional Roy clan from the television hit Succession, the Wongs always managed to resolve their differences and come to a consensus.
“They would debate fiercely, but once a decision was made, everyone closed ranks and supported it,” recalls Ken. “This had a huge effect on how I started to think about work, and what makes companies successful.”
Half a century later, Queen’s University’s renowned marketing guru relaxes in the spacious, open-concept living room of the west Kingston home he shares with his wife, Caroline, and reflects on his eclectic career as an educator, author, speaker and consultant. As warm spring sunshine awakens the foliage on their quiet street bordering the Cataraqui Golf Course, Ken casts his mind back to those dynamic dinnertime discussions that helped shape his future.
“I think in some ways, my family life reflects the Canadian immigrant’s dream,” he suggests, . . .
