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Ian Sinclair, the former Canadian Pacific Ltd. president and chief executive officer who led the company’s diversification in the 1970s, died April 7. He was 92.

After joining Canadian Pacific as an assistant solicitor in 1942, Sinclair moved up the corporate ladder to vice president and general counsel by 1960. He was named president and CEO in 1969, and chairman in 1972. Sinclair served as president and CEO until 1981, and later was appointed to the Canadian Senate in 1983. He served as Canadian Pacific chairman until 1984.

During his 12-year stint as top executive, Sinclair split the company into a two-tiered operation comprising Canadian Pacific Railway and investment division Canadian Pacific Enterprises, which controlled the corporation’s other interests, such as telecommunications, real estate, hotels and an airline.

“[Sinclair] transformed the company from its historic roots as a railway into one of the largest and most diverse corporations in Canada [and] was at the helm at a time of tremendous change in the political and business landscape in Canada,” said Canadian Pacific Railway CEO Rob Ritchie in a prepared statement. “He was a man with immense vision and he was a great Canadian business leader. He was a good friend of the railway who will be deeply missed.”

A member of the Canadian Business Hall of Fame, Sinclair also served on the boards for Royal Bank of Canada and Sun Life Assurance. He is survived by four children, 11 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.