Jim Estill

In recognition of his philanthropic efforts, Estill received the Order of Ontario in June 2017. and was named to the Order of Canada in June 2018.

However, things soon improved and 47 families had relocated by the end of 2016. By that point, the total number of families Estill committed to help had also grown to 58 and totaled more than 200 people.

While continuing on in this capacity, Estill came out of semi-retirement to assume the post of CEO at Guelph, Ontario-based Danby Products in 2015,. In 2017, Estill purchased Danby Products and its subsidiaries from John Wood and his family. Under his guidance, the company resumed manufacturing some of its products in Canada for the first time in a number of years.

In 2015, Estill grew distressed by the humanitarian crisis in Syria. Frustrated by the Canadian government's slow response, Estill decided in November 2015 to sponsor the immigration of 50 Syrian families to Guelph, Ontario. This worked out to a personal cost of about $1.5 million Canadian. He rallied church groups and 800 volunteers across the city and worked closely with the Islamic community. Estill has now sponsored 87 families for resettlement.

Although it was hoped that the Syrian families would begin arriving by the end of 2015, this stalled by February 2016 when the Canadian government met its announced quota of bringing 25,000 Syrian refugees into the country. This led to problems storing donated items as the spaces would soon become unavailable. By the end of June, only 13 of the 50 planned families had settled in Guelph.

In late 2014, Estill founded DDE Media, a Guelph, Ontario-based digital multimedia company. DDE merged two years later with TrafficSoda, a digital marketing firm, founded in 2013 by Jessica Chalk. Estill serves as chairman of the combined organization, with Chalk as President and CEO.

Estill spoke about his success in the business world for a TEDx Talk called "Zero to $2 Billion" in New York City in April 2013.

In 2010, Estill published his first book, Time Leadership - Lessons from a CEO and followed that publication three years later with Zero to $2 Billion: The Marketing and Branding Story Behind the Growth. Estill also serves on the advisory board of OMERS Ventures, one of Canada's largest pension funds, which began operations in 2011.

In 2008, Estill was granted patent number 8244567 for gamification in ERP systems.

Estill entered the world of blogging in the spring of 2005 with CEO Blog—Time Leadership, which documents his philosophies on leadership and time management, and which he continues to update with new posts on a regular basis.

In June 2004, Synnex Canada purchased EMJ Data Systems for $56 million. As part of the deal, Estill took over as CEO of Synnex's Canadian division. During the five years that he ran Synnex from 2004–2009, sales for the company grew from $800 million to $2 billion.

In 2003, EMJ purchased the Canadian operations of DaisyTek Canada, doubling their distribution size to more than $350 million in consolidated revenue. At its height, EMJ had 350 employees and $350 million in annual sales.

Estill served as a founding board member of Research in Motion/BlackBerry in 1997, before the company went public. He subsequently stayed with that organization until 2010. 1997 also found him acting as one of the founding members of Communitech., an organization devoted to helping tech companies grow and find their place in the market.

His accomplishments at such a young age were recognized in 1996 when Estill was added to the ranks of Canada's Top 40 under 40, the second person to receive this honor. That same year, Estill joined the Young Presidents' Organization (YPO) and remains a member of the CNBC-YPO Chief Executive Network.

Estill studied engineering at the University of Waterloo, graduating in 1980 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Systems Design Engineering. He received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Guelph in 2018.

James Andrew Estill, CM OOnt (born April 8, 1957) is a Canadian technology entrepreneur, executive, and philanthropist who has been serving as President and CEO of home appliance manufacturer Danby Products Ltd since 2015. During the course of his career, Estill has invested in 150 start-up companies and received international attention in 2015 for offering to sponsor the resettling of 50 Syrian refugee families in Canada. In recognition of his philanthropic efforts, Estill received the Order of Ontario in June 2017 and was named to the Order of Canada in July 2018. He also received an Everyday Heroes Award from the Global Hope Coalition in 2017.