New Beginnings
Dear Friends, After almost 49 years in Place Ville Marie, I’ve decided to...
Sectoral Asset Management Announces New Partner
Sectoral Asset Management announces the appointment of Dr....
Summer Ramblings
Change is hard. It’s even harder for a person to consider a change when things are going well. But that’s when most executives change employers, because that is when ....
Indigo Books & Music appoints new EVP & CFO
Following the close of the quarter, Indigo appointed Mr. Hugues Simard as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the Corporation....
Air Liquide hires Frankfurt based EVP, Engineering
Through a global search involving offices in Europe and North America, Air Liquide succeeded in replacing retiring EVP, Engineering Pierre Dufour with David Maloney, ....
Global financial consulting firm Accuracy hires new Partner
Philippe Legris, CFA, FRM, has been hired by financial services consulting firm, Accuracy, with offices in North America, Europe and Asia....
New Look Vision Group Inc. Announces CFO Appointment
New Look Vision Group Inc. (TSX:BCI) ("New Look Vision"), today announces the appointment of Tania M. Clarke, CPA, CA,....
Montreal-based Pharmascience hires new CFO
Sonia Girolamo was recruited by Pharmascience as Vice President Finance and Chief Financial Officer in Montreal. Until recently, she had worked....
The Claudine and Stephen Bronfman Family Foundation appoints new Executive Director
The Claudine and Stephen Bronfman Family Foundation announces the appointment of Mr. ...
Caisse’s Ivanhoé partners with Bronfman family’s Claridge on Montreal real estate plan
Canadian pension fund giant Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and the Bronfman family’s private equity firm Claridge are partnering in a new real estate development effort in the Montreal region. Caisse property subsidiary Ivanhoé Cambridge and Claridge said Wednesday they’re setting up a business alliance with the goal of investing together with private property developers in mid-sized real estate projects in and around Quebec’s biggest city. The partnership will be managed by Claridge Real Estate ...
The Compartmentalized Career – A New Way Forward
With private sector companies in Canada becoming leaner and meaner to compete globally while ensuring they meet shareholder expectations, the creation of new executive positions is hardly a priority. The positions and Board seats that they do fill are instead what we call upgrades, usually at the behest of Boards or CEOs with the objective of narrowing skill and diversity gaps. As a result, the supply of executives in Canada exceeds the demand for their services. ...
Cogeco Inc. and Cogeco Communications Inc. name new members to their Board of Directors
Montreal, Quebec - Monday, April 11, 2016. Mr. Jan Peeters, Chairman of the Board of Directors for both Cogeco Inc. and Cogeco Communications Inc., is pleased to announce three Board appointments today. Ms. Mary-Ann Bell and Mr. James Cherry have joined the Board of Directors of Cogeco Inc., while Ms. Joanne Ferstman has joined the Board of Directors of Cogeco Communications Inc.
How To Hire An Executive And Make It Work
After almost 44 years of practicing the executive search profession and witnessing thousands of searches, I’ve been able I think to distill what differentiates a successful from an unsuccessful assignment into a few succinct points. “Successful” means that a candidate is hired and has a significantly positive impact on the company over a three year period at a minimum. We’ll use the female gender for purposes of simplicity: - Draw up a detailed Position and ...
Michael Tan “In The Books”
February 2015 - Indigo Books & Music announces the appointment of a new Executive Vice-President, Michael Tan. Mr. Tan will join the company and assume responsibility for Supply Chain Management, Global Sourcing, Process Engineering, Retail and E-commerce Fulfillment and Transportation. From 2009 and 2015, Mr. Tan worked at Hudson's Bay Company overseeing supply chain and logistics operations for the company's five banners including Hudson's Bay in Canada and Lord & Taylor and Saks Fifth Avenue ...
Eric Bouchard named Chief Financial Officer
MONTREAL, September 5, 2015 – Atrium Innovations Inc. (“Atrium” or the “Company”), a globally recognized leader in the development, manufacturing and commercialization of innovative, science-based natural health products, announced today that Eric Bouchard, former Vice-President, Finance at Bombardier Inc., has been named Chief Financial Officer of Atrium, effective at the end of the month. This follows a recent shift in the management team, which first saw the departure and subsequent hiring of a new Chief ...
The State of Corporate Governance in Canada
Merriam Webster defines “to govern” as “to control, direct or strongly control the actions and conduct of” and “to hold in check or restrain”. It is interesting that this definition of governing is so restrictive in nature, whereas we find that good corporate Boards play a large role in overseeing strategy development and helping grow the companies they govern. To us, the governance movement is as much about enabling as it is about restraining. We consider ...
International Alliance Member Hires Montreal-based Executive for U.K. CEO Role
J. Robert Swidler & Associates in affiliation with The Zygos Partnership in London, England is pleased to announce the appointment of Lindsley Ruth as Group Chief Executive of Electrocomponents plc who will join the group effective April 1, 2015. Lindsley will be based at the Group’s headquarters in Oxford, England. Lindsley has served until now as Executive Vice-President of the Future Electronics Group of companies, the fourth largest electronics distributor in the world with global turnover ...
Small is Beautiful
Bob Swidler and Jeff Rosin are delighted to announce the affiliation of their respective firms – J. Robert Swidler & Associates Inc. based in Montreal and Rosin Executive Search based in Toronto. In so doing, Jeff becomes a member of Bob’s international affiliation with members in the US and throughout Europe. Our two firms will remain independent of each other but will work together on mandates as required. It is worth highlighting that Bob and Jeff ...
McGill University Announces new member to Board of Governors
Montreal, Quebec - December 8th, 2014 McGill University's Board of Governors convened on Tuesday, December 2, 2014 for their second meeting of 2014-15. During the closed session, the Board approved a new appointment: Nathalie Bourque is the Board’s new member-at-large. Ms. Bourque is a Vice-President at CAE and brings to the Board her great expertise and experience in communications and community engagement.
Cogeco Inc. and Cogeco Cable Inc. Announce Appointment of Patrice Ouimet to the title of Senior VP and CFO
17.11.2014 - Montreal Cogeco Inc. and Cogeco Cable Inc. today announced the appointment of Mr. Patrice Ouimet as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, effective November 17, 2014. Mr. Ouimet has substantial operations and finance experience in global public and private corporations, notably in corporate strategy, treasury, risk management, internal audit and investor relations. Prior to joining Cogeco, he was Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Enerkem Inc. He also served as Vice President, Corporate ...
The World of Private Equity
The volume of private equity investments has exploded of late, with heavily capitalized pension funds joining the fray to seek the better returns afforded by this sector combined with an appropriate risk profile. This industry was really launched in Canada by ONEX in 1986. In Quebec, Novacap and Schroder Ventures were the first entrants, along with Caisse de dépôt, but newer PE firms abound. A current trend in candidate specifications, as bargain assets become harder ...
Birks Group Announces Appointment of new Chief Financial and Administrative Officer
Montreal - November 11, 2014 Birks Group Inc. (“Birks Group” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that Pat Di Lillo has been appointed Vice President, Chief Financial and Administrative Officer, effective early January 2015. Mr. Di Lillo is a Chartered Professional Accountant, CA and has over 30 years of experience in finance and accounting. Mr. Di Lillo is currently Senior Vice President, and Corporate Controller at one of the world’s largest engineering and construction ...
Goodfellow Announces the Appointment of Mr. Denis Fraser as President & CEO
DELSON, QUEBEC--(Marketwired - Nov. 10, 2014) - The Board of Directors of Goodfellow Inc. (TSX:GDL) is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Denis Fraser as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective December 1, 2014. Mr. Fraser has acquired extensive experience in the distribution and manufacturing sectors. Initial positions in manufacturing, marketing, strategic planning and corporate development have been supplemented by a number of senior general management roles. Over the last five years, he has led the ...
Montreal General Hospital Foundation announces new President & CEO
Montreal Gazette Thursday, October 23rd, 2014 David A. McAusland, Chairman, Montreal General Hospital Foundation, is pleased to announce the appointment of Jean-Guy Gourdeau as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation. Mr. Gourdeau, CA (CPA), CFA, comes from the financial industry and has extensive experience in the charitable sector as well. He was recently President, Solstice Financial and serves on the Board of Directors of both Fortem and GCS Medical, and is a Member of Anges Quebec. He previously ...
A Fruitful Summer To Say The Least
Since our last update to you in June, we have launched a number of exciting search mandates. Included in these are CFO of a large cap, publicly traded telecoms group, CFO of a publicly traded purveyor of luxury goods, EVP, Supply Chain of an important, publicly traded retailer, CEO of a well-known media group and Board members for the most distinguished public institution in its field. We don’t only launch searches, but also close them. Announcements that ...
Globe and Mail journalist Sophie Cousineau leaves for Caisse de Depot
The Globe and Mail’s chief Quebec correspondent Sophie Cousineau is leaving the newspaper to join Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec. She will become chief of staff to Caisse CEO Michael Sabia. Cousineau has worked as a journalist for more than two decades, according to her Globe bio. She was La Presse’s business columnist prior to joining the Globe in 2012 and her weekly columns appeared in the Globe’s Report on Business section.
Goodfellow Announces the Retirement of M. Richard Goodfellow on November 30, 2014
DELSON, QUEBEC - (June 13, 2014) - Goodfellow Inc. (TSX:GDL) announced today that Richard Goodfellow, President and Chief Executive Officer of Goodfellow Inc., has decided to retire on November 30, 2014. The Board of Directors of Goodfellow Inc. wish to thank Richard for his invaluable contribution to the development of the company over the last 40 years. Under his leadership as President and Chief Executive Officer since 1989, Goodfellow Inc has developed a presence across North ...
The “Hits” Just Keep on Coming
In just a few short months, we’ve made quite an impact in appointing Montreal-based executives to key positions. To name just a few – the CFO of the city’s leading parapublic transport group, a Board member of a large publicly traded capital markets services provider, the non-executive Chairman and additional Board member of a global nutraceuticals group, recently acquired by private equity interests, and the head of the CEO’s office for an important financial institution. ...
Jacques Bougie named Chairman of the Board of Directors
MONTREAL, June 5, 2014 – Atrium Innovations Inc. (“Atrium” or the “Company”), a globally recognized leader in the development, manufacturing and commercialization of innovative, science-based natural health products, announced today that Jacques Bougie, former President and CEO of Alcan Inc., will serve as Chairman of the Board of Directors and be based in Montreal, Québec. On behalf of Atrium’s owners – the Permira Funds, Fonds de solidarité FTQ and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec ...
J. Robert Swidler & Associates leads search for new Chairman
MONTREAL, April 8 2014 – Atrium Innovations Inc. (“Atrium” or the “Company”), a globally recognized leader in the development, manufacturing and commercialization of innovative, science-based natural health products, announced today that Pierre Fitzgibbon, President and CEO of Atrium, will step down from the Company in 2014, by mutual agreement with the Board of Directors. Mr. Fitzgibbon will remain President and CEO while the Board conducts a search for his replacement and will continue to be ...
Managing Your Career – The Cardinal Sin to Avoid
During my forty two years of service in my profession of executive search, I have watched executives consistently make the same fatal mistake when it comes to managing their careers. I will tell you what it is, but first, an aside. We don’t help executives manage their careers for our living – we help companies of all stripes find executives to fill key positions. However, as a byproduct of our work, we are regularly meeting confidentially ...