The Conference Board of Canada is adopting a new name, reflective of the shift in its core activities since the 1980s. The not-for-profit, non-partisan research organization, specializing in economic and sociopolitical studies and resources for business leadership, will become known as Signal49 Research.

“While our name is changing, our purpose, leadership and team remain the same,” says Dr. Susan Black, president and chief executive officer of the Conference Board of Canada. “It marks a turning point for our ability to grow, diversify and lead in addressing Canada’s most pressing challenges.”

The current name, licensed from the non-affiliated, global business think tank, The Conference Board, dates back to an era when the Canadian organization hosted more than 50 conferences per year. Today, it produces more than 500 reports annually in collaboration with economists and a diverse range of policy experts.

Operation as Signal49 Research will officially commence on Jan. 26, 2026. The new moniker alludes to both the 49th parallel, the demarcation of much of the land border between Canada and the United States, and Signal Hill, the Newfoundland-based reception point for the first transatlantic wireless message in 1901.