Three HEC Montréal Master’s programs stand out in the latest rankings by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) of Britain. The Master’s in Management (MSc) – Finance ranked 52^nd out of the top 131 Master’s in Finance programs in the world, and the Master’s in Management (MSc) – International Business came in at 70^th out of 121.

The HEC Montréal MBA turned in a particularly good performance against other Canadian programs, as it ranked 6^th in the country. On the international scene, it stood 94^th out of the 232 programs selected.

Reputation and influence

The two MSc programs received good marks for their reputation and influence in research. This criterion reflects the proportion of citations from papers by HEC Montréal professors, the number of professors with a doctoral degree and the School’s reputation as evaluated by professors from other universities.

Value for money

The relatively low cost of attending HEC Montréal, as compared with other universities around the world, combined with the average salary earned by its graduates, also boosted the School’s three programs in these rankings. This was particularly true for the Master’s in Finance program, which was above the global and Canadian averages in this respect.

Graduate employability and success

When it comes to the employability and success of its graduates, the HEC Montréal MBA also outperformed the average of the other schools in the ranking. This shows that the program has a very good reputation among employers, that a significant number of its graduates hold decision-making positions in the world’s leading companies, or that they have had success as entrepreneurs.

Full Professor Isabelle Le Breton-Miller (Management) and Tenured Researcher Danny Miller have been named among the world’s most influential scientific minds in economics and business. Only 93 individuals around the world are ranked in the “Highly Cited” list in this category, and only 4 others in Canada.

This distinction was awarded by Web of Science, an online university information service founded by the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) and now maintained by Clarivate Analytics.

Researchers on this “Highly Cited” list have distinguished themselves by publishing a high number of papers ranked in the top 1% of the most cited in their respective fields between 2005 and 2015, in journals indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection. This means that the work of these influential researchers has been repeatedly judged by their peers to be of notable significance and utility.

About the winners

Isabelle Le Breton-Miller and Danny Miller have co-authored numerous books and papers on family businesses, in particular Managing for the Long Run: Lessons in Competitive Advantage from Great Family Businesses, which has been translated into 6 languages and is recognized as a classic on this subject.

Holder of the Chair of Succession and Family Enterprise, Isabelle Le Breton-Miller (BAA and MSc, HEC Montréal) has a PhD in Management from the Imperial College London (University of London). She is Associate Editor of the Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, and in 2016 was elected to the College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists of the Royal Society of Canada.

She has won many other awards and distinctions, including the 2017 Barbara Hollander Award from the Family Firm Institute (FFI), in recognition of her career contributions to research and teaching in family business. Professor Le Breton-Miller has over 50 publications to her credit, ranging from scientific and professional papers to communications, books, educational cases and research reports.

Danny Miller, Director of the HEC Montréal Centre for Research on Organizations, Strategy and Governance, holds a PhD in Management Policy from McGill University. He has written close to 200 papers and 7 books and has been frequently recognized for his work, in particular with numerous Best Paper awards from leading scientific journals in management and strategy.

In 2000, the Academy of Management inducted him into its Hall of Fame, and then awarded him the title of Fellow, in 2012, and gave him its Distinguished Scholarly Contributions to Management Award, in 2015. In that same year he was also named a Fellow of the Strategic Management Society (SMS) and the Family Firm Institute (FFI).

Raymond Langlois, Mary Célyne Traversy and Michel Patry.

HEC Montréal is proud to announce that alumnus Raymond Langlois, today Vice-President and Portfolio Manager with Groupe Langlois, RBC Wealth Management, RBC Dominion Securities, has made a bequest of $5 million to the School—the largest that HEC Montréal has ever received. Mr. Langlois has also pledged an outright gift of $250,000 over five years.

This donation will allow the School to create a program to support the viability and growth of social enterprises. In this way, Mr. Langlois hopes to support entrepreneurs who see economic efficiency as a way of serving the public interest. “The people who run these businesses make their companies’ survival and profitability a tool for social development and a way of improving their communities’ standard of living,” he says.

Raymond Langlois earned his Bachelor’s in Business Administration (BBA) from HEC Montréal in 1975, specializing in Professional Accounting. He has spent his entire career in the financial and banking industry, and has donated regularly to the School since 1986.

Mr. Langlois and his partner, Mary Céline Traversy, say they want to leave “a legacy that will let HEC Montréal support new local entrepreneurs so that their businesses can endure and flourish”.

His outright gift will go to creating the Programme d’accompagnement Traversy-Langlois. This program will initially support HEC Montréal, Polytechnique Montréal and Université de Montréal students who are starting up or have founded social enterprises. It will later be broadened to cover existing businesses not necessarily connected to the three university institutions.

The program will be directed by the IDEOS Hub, whose mission is to improve the management and corporate governance of social organizations. A resource person has been working since September to co-ordinate the support activities to be offered through the program and liaise with existing resources in the Entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurial Acquisition and Business Families Hub.

“Mr. Langlois’ gift creates a bridge between the complementary activities of the IDEOS Hub and the Entrepreneurship hub,” says HEC Montréal Director Michel Patry. “It will allow HEC Montréal to expand its role as a driver of innovation and social development. The School is fortunate to be able to count on generous donors like Mr. Langlois to help it continue pursuing its mission.”

The bequest portion of the gift will also go to supporting social entrepreneurs. Assistance may take the form of scholarships or loans on trust, specific training or any other initiative aimed at encouraging the long-term survival and growth of social entrepreneurship.

(Seated at the table) Robert Gagné, Director of Research and Knowledge Transfer, HEC Montréal, and Johanne Gélinas, along with Pierre Olivier Pineau (standing in back on the left) and Minister Pierre Moreau.

Quebeckers are using more and more energy, in particular gasoline and diesel fuel, cancelling out the energy efficiency gains they have made elsewhere. This is one of the findings of the 4^th edition of État de l’énergie au Québec, an annual overview published by the HEC Montréal Chair in Energy Sector Management, summarizing the latest energy sector data.

The report notes that it will be impossible to meet the government’s targets to cut petroleum product consumption by 40% and greenhouse gas emissions by 37.5% by 2030 if current trends continue. The authors say that more efforts must be made to change our transportation habits and develop alternatives to solo driving.

“Quebeckers may believe that they have started the energy transition, but the data show that they are far from achieving their ambitions in terms of reducing energy use and greenhouse gas emissions,” explains report co-author and Chairholder Professor Pierre-Olivier Pineau. “While we’re talking about a transition, sales of gasoline, for instance, rose by 8% from 2015 to 2016, and we’re setting new records for truck sales. The data clearly point to the disconnect between our energy use habits and the targets we have set.”

État de l’énergie au Québec 2018 was launched in Montréal on December 13, at the head office of BMO Bank of Montreal. BMO Capital Markets was the main partner for the event.

The Minister of Energy and Natural Resources and Minister responsible for the Plan Nord, Pierre Moreau, and the President and CEO of Transition énergétique Québec (TEQ), Johanne Gélinas, were on hand for the occasion. The Minister took the opportunity to announce that Transition énergétique Québec will be donating $1 million over 5 years to the HEC Montréal Chair in Energy Sector Management to contribute to its research work.

This funding is in addition to the financial support from 10 other Chair partners: BMO, Boralex, Brookfield Renewable, Enbridge, ENERCON, Énergir, MERN, McCarthy Tétrault, PwC and Valero.

Abderezzak Amimer, Mathieu Potvin, Victoria-Mei Zummo and Nicolas Richard.

A team of four students in the B.A.A. program was named the winner of the Economics Inter-University Student Tournament, an international industrial economics tournament held online from October 24 to December 2.

The team representing the School was made up of Abderezzak Amimer, Mathieu Potvin, Nicolas Richard and Victoria-Mei Zummo. They beat out 30 teams from 14 countries, including runner-up, the Toulouse School of Economics, widely recognized as the birthplace of industrial economics.

The winners are all part of the AGIR cohort, a course of study offered to a limited number of B.A.A. students, based on an integrative approach emphasizing practice and promoting autonomy.

Justin Leroux, a professor in the Department of Applied Economics, was responsible for assembling a team to represent the School in the tournament. “This tournament was geared to students at all levels, including graduate-level students, but I decided to give members of the AGIR cohort a chance, because it was consistent with the spirit of the course of study,” he explained.

The competition was organized by Economics Games, a gaming website designed to teach industrial economics, microeconomics and game theory.

During the simulation, participants were required to make decisions concerning quantities produced, prices and the choice of technology, for a company dealing with three competitors in a given market. In addition, the company had to comply with an environmental policy. The goal of the game was to maximize profits.

All in all, 228 students were awarded $810,000 in scholarships and bursaries at ceremonies on December 5, 12 and 14. The HEC Montréal Foundation offers its congratulations to these students who, through their grades, studies, involvement or ambition, so clearly embody excellence and achievement.

DONORS ARE THANKED FOR THEIR ENGAGEMENT

The recipients had the opportunity to thank donors in person and to explain the positive impact of their financial support. Many donor members of the Council of Governors, the Ambassadors Club and the Club des 100 de la Fondation HEC Montréal attended one or more of the ceremonies, and were lauded for their contribution to the success of the School and its students.

“HEC Montréal is working harder all the time to consolidate its achievements, distinguish itself through innovation and train future leaders who will make a valuable contribution to the growth of our businesses and our society,” said HEC Montréal Director Michel Patry. “Our success, here at home and abroad, depends largely on you. Your contribution helps to make a difference, to enhance students’ learning experience, and to attract and retain the top students. Thanks to your support, we are continuing to excel,” he concluded.

See the souvenir program from the scholarship ceremonies!

DOnors – fall 2017

HEC Montréal has just signed an agreement with Bocconi University in Milan, allowing students from the two institutions to earn a dual degree when they divide their studies between the two cities.

Students in the HEC Montréal Bachelor’s in Business Administration (BBA) program will also be able to earn a Master’s degree from Bocconi, by replacing their final year in Montréal with two successful years in Milan.

Montréal students will be able to earn one of five Master’s degrees from the Italian university:

• Management
• Economics and Management of Innovation and Technology
• Accounting Financial Management and Control
• Economics and Management of Government and International Organizations
• Economics and Social Sciences

The agreement also allows Bocconi students who start their Master’s studies in Milan to earn a Master of Science (MSc) from HEC Montréal, by completing their second year of studies in Montréal.

They will receive an MSc degree in one of two specializations:

• Global Supply Chain Management
• International Business

Starting in fall 2018, a pilot project will allow two students from each institution to benefit from the new agreement. The program will then be available every year to five students from each institution, for the following three years.

Bocconi is an important partner for HEC Montréal. The two institutions already collaborate on the joint Master of Management in International Arts Management (MMIAM) program, in partnership with Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas.

“We are pleased to be able to work even more closely with Bocconi, one of the top schools in Europe,” says Federico Pasin, Secretary General and Director of International Activities at HEC Montréal.

Note that the School has a similar agreement with the University of Melbourne, in Australia. HEC Montréal students in the Global Supply Chain Management specialization of the MSc program can complete their final year in Australia and earn a dual Master’s degree.

HEC Montréal finished second in the overall standings at the Jeux du commerce 2018, held at Concordia University’s John Molson School of Business in Montréal from January 4 to 7.

This marks the 25^th time that HEC Montréal has finished on the podium at this inter-university competition, which has been held for the past 30 years.

The HEC delegation was made up of 89 students registered in the Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) program. They were supported by a team of trainers that included René Gendreau, Anne Bourhis, Jean-François St-Pierre and Stéphanie Leverdier.

This year’s edition of the Jeux du commerce drew some 1,500 participants from 13 universities in Québec, Ontario and New Brunswick.

The competition is aimed at fostering relationships between tomorrow’s business people and companies. It is also intended to create lasting ties between participants, encourage healthy competition, and develop initiatives and excellence.

Podium finishes by our delegation

Academic Cases

Surprise Case – 2^nd place

Debating – 2^nd place

International Business – 1^st place

Entrepreneurship – 3^rd place

Accounting – 1^st place

Sustainable Development – 1^st place

Human Resources – 1^st place

Production and Operations Management – 2^nd place

Academic Cup – 2^nd place

 

Sports

Netball – 1^st place

Flag Football – 2^nd place

Sports Cup – 1^st place

 

Social Discipline

Engagement Cup – 3^rd place (combination of rankings in the Participation and Social categories)

 

Other awards

Coordinator of the Year – Alexandrine Pilon

Organizing Committee Volunteer of the Year – Flavie Sumu

Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the delegation – René Gendreau

A total of 31 Master’s students at HEC Montréal received research scholarships valued at more than $500,000 from federal and provincial granting agencies during the 2016–2017 academic year.

They were all selected by juries of research experts, based on the exceptional quality of their academic records and their research potential.

Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarships (SSHRC)

The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) awarded 10 scholarships of $17,500 each to HEC Montréal MSc students in the thesis track.

Alexander Graham Bell Canada Graduate Scholarships (NSERC)

Last year the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) awarded a $17,600 scholarship to an HEC Montréal MSc student in the thesis track.

B1 Master’s research scholarships (FRQSC)

Last year the Fonds de recherche du Québec société et culture (FRQSC) awarded scholarships worth $15,000 annually, renewable for up to 6 consecutive terms, to 2 HEC Montréal MSc students in the thesis track.

Mitacs Accelerate scholarships

Mitacs Accelerate is Canada’s most extensive research internship program. It allows graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and university professors to extend the scope of their research by teaming up with private companies.

Accelerate scholarships vary from $10,000 to $15,000 per internship (4 to 6 months).

Last year, 18 HEC Montréal students were awarded these scholarships.

PhD students at HEC Montréal and postdoctoral fellows were awarded scholarships totalling $1.4 million for the 2016–2017 academic year. The amount from granting agencies is one of the highest in recent years, and illustrates the excellent quality of the School’s candidates and their research this year.

In the fall 2016 competitions, 18 students enrolled in the PhD program and 3 postdoctoral fellows received one or more research scholarships.

They were all selected by different expert committees, based on the exceptional quality of their academic records and their research potential.

Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship

This scholarship of $50,000 per year for 3 years, awarded by the Government of Canada, recognizes the excellence of top PhD students enrolled at a Canadian institution. It is one of the most prestigious in Canada.

SSHRC Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarships (CGS D) and Doctoral Fellowships

This competition, by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), is open to all doctoral students in Canada and is among the most competitive. This year, the SSHRC awarded 3 scholarships and 2 fellowships to HEC Montréal students. CGS D scholarships are worth $35,000 per year, and are awarded for three years. Fellowships are for $20,000 per year, for up to 4 years.

SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship

The SSHRC also awards postdoctoral fellowships, of $40,500 per year for up to 2 years. One postdoctoral fellow at HEC Montréal received this honour in winter 2017.

NSERC Postgraduate Scholarship – Doctoral (PGS D)

Every year, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) awards scholarships to students in a PhD program whose research topic is related to the natural sciences or engineering. This year, a PGS D scholarship was awarded to an HEC Montréal student. This award is valued at $21,000 per year, for 2 or 3 years.

B2 postgraduate research scholarships (FRQSC)

The Fonds de recherche du Québec société et culture (FRQSC) B2 program awards scholarships of $20,000 per year to PhD students whose research topics meet FRQSC objectives. Seven HEC Montréal students were awarded these scholarships, which can extend for up to 3 years.

Doctoral research scholarship (FRQNT)

This Fonds de recherche du Québec nature et technologie (FRQNT) program awards scholarships of $20,000 per year to PhD students whose research topics relate to natural science or technology. The scholarships extend for up to 3 years.

Postgraduate research scholarships for international students (FRQSC (DS) and FRQNT (DE))

These FRQSC and FRQNT scholarship programs are intended for international students wishing to pursue doctoral studies at a Quebec institution. They are worth $20,000 per year, for up to 3 years.

FRQNT postdoctoral fellowship

The FRQNT also awards postdoctoral fellowships. They are worth $35,000 per year, for up to 2 years.

Mitacs Accelerate program

Mitacs Accelerate is Canada’s most extensive research internship program. It allows graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and university professors to extend the scope of their research by teaming up with private companies. Accelerate scholarships are worth $10,000 to $15,000 per internship (4 to 6 months).

Twenty-two HEC Montréal students were among the 152 members of Carabins competitive teams honoured at the breakfast for “academic stars” held by the Université de Montréal sports excellence program, on January 23.

Students on this list of “academic stars” played elite sports in the 2016–2017 season, while maintaining an average of at least 80% in their studies.

Louis-Mathieu Normandin, BBA student, was named student athlete of the year at the 32nd Quebec University Sports Awards Gala.

An HEC Montréal student among these stars was also honoured at the 32^nd Quebec University Sports Awards Gala, in November. Receiver Louis-Mathieu Normandin, in the Bachelor’s of Business Administration (BBA) program, was named student athlete of the year for his excellent grades. He tied with swimmer Katerine Savard, a student in the preschool and elementary education program at the Université de Montréal.

Louis-Mathieu was also elected to represent Quebec in the U SPORTS “Top 8 Academic All-Canadians” as one of the country’s student athletes who best combines academics and sports.

In December, he and the other members of the Top 8 were congratulated in person by Her Excellency the Right Honourable Julie Payette, Governor General of Canada.

The Institut d’entrepreneuriat Banque Nationale – HEC Montréal (IEBN) signed a series of agreements with partners in China, during a Quebec economic mission to that country between January 20 and 27.

A number of Quebec representatives accompanied Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard, including IEBN Director Luis Cisneros and 12 entrepreneurs from the Institute’s support programs, the entrePrism incubator program and the Rémi-Marcoux entrepreneurial track.

The IEBN signed a bilateral co-operation agreement with the accelerator founded by HTC Vive, a world leader in virtual reality. The agreement will let Quebec startups receive support from this accelerator and give them access to the HTC Vive investment fund, to help them get a foothold in the Chinese virtual reality market. At the same time, Chinese entrepreneurs will be eligible for IEBN support to expand their market in Quebec.

Quebec startups in the clean-tech field will also be better placed to develop the Chinese market, thanks to a collaborative agreement between the IEBN and the Green Business Center incubator at Tongji University.

A framework agreement was also signed with the JC Group, a Chinese holding company active in a number of sectors, with one branch offering executive training.

The IEBN will provide training for entrepreneurs, executives and business leaders looking to operate in Quebec and China, including for the planned project to recreate the historic district of Old Quebec City in China. The tourism and residential project launched by JC Group is to be located in Qidong, a city across the river from Shanghai.

Lastly, the IEBN and Concordia University announced the opening of a space just for Quebec startups, on January 25, in Shanghai. The facility was inaugurated by Stéphane Billette, Minister for Small and Medium Enterprises, Regulatory Streamlining and Regional Economic Development.

The space, an IEBN initiative, is located in the Caohejing Hi-tech Park Innovation Center, in Shanghai, and gives entrepreneurs from the HEC Montréal and Concordia University programs direct access to the resources, infrastructure and networks of major companies in the Caohejing Hi-tech Park, as well as an on-site work space.

The Caohejing Hi-tech Park Innovation Center, in Shanghai.

Luis Cisneros, IEBN Director and He Hao, President, JC Group Academic Branch.

(First row) Alvin Wang Graylin, President, HTC Vive China, with Luis Cisneros, IEBN Director and Winston Chan, IEBN Principal Advisor. (Second row) John McCallum, Canadian Ambassador to China; Philippe Couillard, Premier of Quebec; Stéphane Billette, Minister for Small and Medium Enterprises, Regulatory Streamlining and Regional Economic Development; and Jean-Francois Lépine, Quebec’s representative in China.

Jean C. Monty and Jocelyne Monty

HEC Montréal is the honoured recipient of a donation from businessman Jean C. Monty. Mr. Monty is donating $600,000 in addition to the $400,000 he donated to the school in 2013 to create the Bourses en finance Jocelyne et Jean C. Monty, for a combined total of $1 million in donations to HEC Montréal.

Jean C. Monty had an outstanding career in telecommunications. He served as the President and CEO of various companies, including Bell Canada Enterprises, from which he retired in 2002. He currently sits on the board of several multinational corporations.

Committed to higher education

Mr. Monty says he wants to support young people going into business in Quebec, particularly those going into finance. His contribution will advance the program’s mission of offering scholarships of excellence to students enrolled in the Master of Science in Administration (MSc) program specializing in finance, applied financial economics or financial engineering. Each year, scholarships of $5,000 and $10,000 are awarded to students with excellent marks, for a total of up to $50,000.

In addition to providing scholarship funds to HEC Montréal, Jocelyne and Jean C. Monty are also supporting the creation of a scholarship for one deserving Canadian student admitted to the MBA program at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. This scholarship will be given in priority to a graduate of HEC Montréal. While the value of the scholarship will depend on the performance of the university's endowment fund, it will be in the order of US$45,000 for each year of the two-year MBA program.

Mr. Monty says that his actions are an expression of his deeply held convictions. "I have believed for many years that the future depends on education, and that the economic and social progress of our community depends on it," he said.

Choosing HEC Montréal

Jean C. Monty is a graduate of Collège Sainte-Marie in Montreal, of University of Western Ontario and of University of Chicago. Although he did not study at HEC Montréal, he nevertheless chose to support this major Quebec institution.

“The unshakable enthusiasm that many of my long-time friends have for HEC Montréal was a deciding factor in choosing to donate to this institution. It is a gesture of support for HEC Montréal students and, by the same token, for the model of excellence that the School represents.”

The HEC Montréal delegation took first place in the Overall Ranking category of the 2018 Financial Open. This 12^th edition of the Open took place from February 2 to 4 at the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi. The Financial Open is an interuniversity finance and accounting competition. This year, more than 300 students from 9 Quebec universities participated.

Here are the HEC Montréal delegation’s results by discipline:

Photo : Association Radio Vidéo

The delegation was composed of 34 students:

Management Accounting: Étienne Fournier, Chanelle Soucy and Camille Lavictoire-Boulianne
Financial Accounting: Sébastien Chung, François D’Anjou and Sonia Molleyres
CFA Ethics Challenge: Patrick Cimon, Kaileigh Hamilton-Browne and Bruno Letarte
Corporate Finance: Aurélie Desjardins-Michaud, Jordan Di Corpo and Mathieu Cloutier
Market Finance: Alexandre Minville, Jean-Sébastien Gagnier and Pierre-Hugues Forest-Le Sieur
Personal Financial Planning: Mabéty Conté-Desjardins, Stéphanie Rondeau and Thomas Lachance
Taxation: Marika Dupont, Alexia Audet and Tinhinane Ferrat
Stock Exchange Simulation: William Beaudry, Julien Desgagne, Adam El Ghazali and Philippe Vézina-Tardif
Financial News Quiz: Gabriel Arvisais, Marianne Gélinas and Norman Bloch
Delegation Volunteers: Camille Balducchi, Léah Sfez, Brigitte Parent and Samuel Ferreira-Silva
Delegation Coordinator: Cassandra Fikler
Ambassador (delegation sponsor): Philippe Bérubé

Their trainers were:

• Jean-Éric Laniel and Sammie Dubeau (Management Accounting)
• Jacques Lemay (Personal Financial Planning, Market Finance, Corporate Finance and the CFA Ethics Challenge)
• Alex Berthiaume and Mathieu Joubert (Taxation)
• Vanessa Tremblay, Maxime Laliberté and Laurianne Leduc (Financial Accounting)
• Antoine Gélinas (Financial News Quiz).

The delegation was accompanied by guest professor René Gendreau.