Nova Steel Award to benefit outstanding MBA students
Scott Jones, MBA’91, headed the rebirth and expansion of his father’s steel manufacturing company after the company went bankrupt under different owners in 2009. He credits his time at McGill Desautels with equipping him to manage every aspect of the corporation, from marketing and sales to accounting and organizational change.
New Sujata Madan Award recognizes community-minded students
Eleven Desautels alumni have banded together to establish a new student award in honor of Professor of Practice Sujata Madan. Rather than being based on academic merit, the scholarship will be awarded to students who demonstrate outstanding collaboration, empathy, kindness, and respect toward their peers and wider communities.
The gift of service
Soon after the earthquake that devastated Haiti in 2010, Laura Parny Germain (BEng’15, MBA’21) moved from Port-au-Prince to Montreal with a deep resolve to use her education for the benefit of others. With engineering and MBA degrees from McGill under her belt, she looks forward to working toward socially and environmentally sustainable solutions to the challenges her hometown faces.
Transforming Eastside LA
Guy Vidal (BA’87, MBA’92) is the co-founder of Vidal Design Collaborative, an interior and landscape design company dedicated to bringing style and hospitality to Eastside Los Angeles. He credits his time at Desautels with teaching him the language of business and preparing him to take risks as an entrepreneur.
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Explore a McGill Desautels graduate business degree
Whether you are looking to begin an MBA or delve deeper into the world of finance, retail or analytics, when considering a graduate degree there are four main things to look at: what you learn, who you learn it from, who you learn it with, and who else has learned it. In other words, the curriculum, the faculty, your classmates, and the alumni.
McGill Desautels Faculty of Management MBA ranked #4 in Canada by Bloomberg Businessweek
Bloomberg Businessweek has released their 2021-2022 MBA rankings, with McGill Desautels jumping three spots to #4 in Canada. The rankings were based on four major factors: compensation, learning, networking and entrepreneurship. McGill Desautels’ MBA ranked #2 in Canada in compensation and networking.
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No substitute for face-to-face interaction
In an overview of MBA learning environments throughout the pandemic, La Presse surveys MBA directors and faculty members about their ingredients for success. While he doesn’t discount the value of online learning, John-Paul Ferguson, Academic Director of the MBA program at Desautels, maintains that the most impactful learning happens face-to-face, on-the-job.
McGill MBA performing amongst top 26% globally according to QS Rankings
The McGill Master of Business Administration (MBA) has been named the number four program in Canada and secured a top-75 spot in the QS Global MBA Rankings 2022, performing amongst the top 26% globally out of 286 programs.
Supporting Desautels student leadership aspirations
While leading a pharmaceutical company, Samira Sakhia (BCom’90, DPA’94, MBA’01) is also volunteering her expertise in the broader McGill community and supporting students in realizing their leadership potential through the Samira Sakhia MBA Leadership Award.
MBA alumnus steps up to serve victims of domestic violence
Kamran Shojaei (MBA’13) spends his weekends volunteering with Transit Secours, a Montreal-based organization that provides moving and storage services for women and children fleeing domestic violence. In addition to providing logistical support in high-risk, time-sensitive contexts, Shojaei and his fellow volunteers work to build trust with clients by providing a safe space for them to share their stories.
From professional soccer player to management consultant
After a career-ending injury left Gabriel Gervais, MBA’09, unable to continue playing professional soccer, his McGill MBA landed him a permanent role at Deloitte. Since 2009, he has leveraged his expertise to help companies improve their supply chain management and manufacturing operations. The former defender, who had his sights set on playing in the World Cup, still makes time to follow the sport and maintain friendships with former teammates.
Graduate spotlight: Kelly Gonzalez, MBA ’21
Poets&Quants recently featured Kelly Gonzalez (MBA’21) on its “2021 MBAs to Watch” list. In one of the highlights of her Desautels tenure, Gonzalez served as the president of Marketing Club. In this capacity, she teamed up with the Desautels Graduate LBGTQ+ Association to launch the first edition of the Desautels Business Challenge, a case competition focused on improving equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI).
Graduate spotlight: Ugo Umeano, MBA ’21
Ugo Umeano (MBA’21) is one of Poets&Quants’ “2021 MBAs to Watch” as he graduates from Desautels and launches his career as an associate in CIBC’s Technology Leadership Advancement Program.
With a vast array of experiences in business, music, athletics, technology, and community outreach, Umeano has amassed skills that he can transfer to any industry.
Desautels ranked among top 20 MBA programs in the world
The Desautels Faculty of Management ranks #20 among MBA programs around the world, according to AmĂ©ricaEconomĂa. Despite the economic slowdown from the pandemic, business schools continue to experience high student demand for their programs.
Read more in AmĂ©ricaEconomĂaEmbracing the journey
Samer Saab (BEng'93, MBA'96) fled a civil war in Lebanon to pursue a degree in engineering at McGill in 1990. He realized early in his career that he was best suited to launching his own company. Since returning to his alma mater for an MBA, he has leveraged his business school experience to launch what has become one of Canada’s most desirable employers.Â
