From professional soccer player to management consultant
After a career-ending injury left Gabriel Gervais, MBA鈥�09, unable to continue playing professional soccer, his 麻豆传媒网站 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 鈥�21
Poets&Quants recently featured Kelly Gonzalez (MBA鈥�21) on its 鈥�2021 MBAs to Watch鈥� 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 鈥�21
Ugo Umeano (MBA鈥�21) is one of Poets&Quants鈥� 鈥�2021 MBAs to Watch鈥� as he graduates from Desautels and launches his career as an associate in CIBC鈥檚 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 Am茅ricaEconom铆a. Despite the economic slowdown from the pandemic, business schools continue to experience high student demand for their programs.
Read more in Am茅ricaEconom铆aEmbracing the journey
Samer Saab (BEng'93, MBA'96)聽fled聽a civil war in Lebanon to pursue a degree in engineering at 麻豆传媒网站 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鈥檚 most desirable employers.聽
Stand for Something聽
Inez聽Jabalpurwala聽(BA鈥�89, MA鈥�91, MBA鈥�01) credits her years at 麻豆传媒网站 with inspiring her to take a stand for the causes she supports. As a member of the 麻豆传媒网站 Debating Union, she learned to express herself clearly and persuasively, a skill that served her well as the Global Director of聽VineX聽and former CEO of Brain Canada.
Desautels alumna becomes President & CEO of Knight Therapeutics Inc.聽聽
Congratulations to Samira Sakhia (BCom鈥�90, DPA鈥�94, MBA鈥�01), who will take on a new challenge as President and Chief Executive Officer of Knight Therapeutics Inc., a Montreal-based company focused on acquiring or in-licensing and commercializing innovative pharmaceutical products for Canada and Latin America.
Leading the field in food production sustainability
Jaquelynn Mateluna (MBA鈥�21) is featured in Poets and Quants鈥� 2021 鈥楤est and Brightest鈥� list for her commitment to advancing sustainability in local food production. As Chief of Staff for Lufa Farms, an urban farm-to-table e-commerce platform based in Montreal, the British Columbia native has played an instrumental role in supplying fresh, responsibly-sourced food to more than 20,000 families during the pandemic.
MBA alumnus wins prestigious Prix Hommage
Congratulations to Claude Mongeau (MBA鈥�88), who received this year鈥檚 Prix Hommage Les As de la finance at an annual ceremony hosted by the Quebec Chapter of Financial Executives International (FEI) Canada. Mongeau joins nearly 100 other notable leaders in Quebec finance who have received an award since the event began in 2011. He has served as a Chief Financial Officer for 100 years and President and CEO for six years with CN.
Playing the odds
From Olympic figure skater to CEO of a multi-million-dollar company, Craig Buntin (MBA鈥�13) has never shied away from risk. As he and his team at Sportlogiq harness the power of AI to offer analytical insights to professional sports teams, Buntin points to the role of 麻豆传媒网站 and the surrounding community in providing a launching pad for success.
Global banking executive gives back to her alma mater
Alberta Cefis (BA鈥�75, MBA鈥�79) was one of only a dozen women in her MBA class at 麻豆传媒网站, but she never felt discriminated against because of her gender. The male-dominated banking industry, on the other hand, was a different story. Fortunately, Cefis was able to land a managerial role at the Royal Bank of Canada through a recommendation from a professor.
Transforming air travel for people with disabilities
An idea that arose from a nightmarish flight experience for Sandra Gualtieri, founder of Gualtieri Inventions, has blossomed into an innovative new product for people living with disabilities. Informed by her own experience in living with cerebral palsy, Gualtieri designed a prototype for the Universal Seating Apparatus, a portable device that allows people with disabilities to sit comfortably upright on airplanes.
MBA alumna shapes agenda at CN
Climbing the ladder from an MBA recruitment program to a top 200 leadership role as director of economics and strategic planning, Janet Drysdale (MBA鈥�96) forged her own path to success at CN. Over the course of 25 years, she successfully navigated heavily male-driven sales, marketing, and revenue planning teams to make an impression among her coworkers, ultimately being named a winner in the WXN CIBC Executive Leaders category.
MBA students place third at Wharton鈥檚 2021 People Analytics Case Competition
Congratulations聽to Desautels MBA students聽Beatriz Otero Russo Villaca,聽Christopher Bahen-Taitand and Melissa Palumbo聽for placing third at the Wharton鈥檚 People Analytics Case Competition. The team virtually showcased their findings to a panel of judges including representatives from Teach for America, academics and industry experts.
MBA students emphasize importance of women in business
Current MBA students Vivianne Yao and Emily Gogarty reflect on the importance of women in business, and their motivation for starting an advanced degree while at the top of their respective fields.
