The University of Ottawa honoured eight renowned individuals with Honorary Doctorates at this year’s spring convocation ceremonies.
Rob Ashe (BCom 1982), alumnus of the Telfer School of Management was among the recipients.
About Rob Ashe
Rob Ashe earned a Bachelor’s of Commerce degree from the University of Ottawa’s Telfer School of Management in 1982.
He received the Trudeau Medal in 2000. Established in honour of Reverend Father Roland Trudeau, OMI, former director of the University's Commerce department from 1950 to 1965, the Trudeau Medal is the highest honour given by the Telfer School of Management to its alumni. It recognizes leadership, initiative and contributions to the business world, the community and their alma mater.
Rob has actively supported the Dean and the Telfer School with advice on strategic direction and key relationships as a member of the advisory board since 2004.
A veteran of the business intelligence and performance management industries, Rob Ashe has spent most of the past twenty-five years working with Global 3500 enterprises to help enable effective decision-making and drive higher performance in their organizations.
Mr. Ashe is responsible for the strategic vision, direction and day-to-day operations of the Business Intelligence and Performance Management segment within the Information Management division of IBM’s software group. He is a principal architect and evangelist of the company’s vision for performance management, and is a driving force behind the implementation of a performance management strategy at IBM.
Mr. Ashe joined Cognos, which was acquired by IBM in January of 2008, in 1984. During his tenure he served in numerous senior executive positions, including chief executive officer, chief operating officer, chief corporate officer, chief financial officer, senior vice president of research and development, and senior vice president of global customer services.
His senior leadership contributed to the growth of Cognos revenue by more than 355% and the transformation of Cognos from a specialized tools provider into a world-leading business intelligence and performance management company. This leadership continues at IBM as he directs the BI and Performance Management segment in delivering solutions that let corporations improve and manage business performance by enabling better decision-making across all of the key steps in the management cycle – from planning and budgeting, to measuring and monitoring, to reporting and analysis of performance.
Click here to see the complete list of Honorary Doctorate Recipients [This link is no longer available]
On Wednesday, May 26, 2010, the Telfer School of Management MBA Students’ Association held a networking event featuring some of Ottawa's not-for-profit organizations and businesses who are focused on social responsibility.
This event raised the profile of local businesses and organizations who strive to make this world a better place and want future MBA graduates to be implicated in their success.
Many Telfer MBA students and the following six organizations participated in the event: Stratos, the Canada Economic Development Agency for Quebec Regions, the Diamond Development Initiative of Canada, Save the Children, the Canada Post CSR Department and the University of Ottawa's Sustainable Development Department.
With delicious food provided by the community oriented caterer Dépanneur Sylvestre, students and representatives discussed issues involving social and environmental responsibility, sustainability, and ethics.
As future business leaders, MBA students need to understand the ethical implications of all of their decisions. Thanks to this event and its participants, Telfer MBA students were given an opportunity to see how social and environmental responsibility directly affects their community in a positive way.
This was, hopefully, the first of a number of similar future events.
Congratulations to Mari Teitlebaum (MHA program), who was awarded the Robert Wood Johnson award. The award was established in 1956 by Johnson & Johnson and it is presented on a yearly basis to six students. One student from each of the six Canadian universities that offer graduate programs in health services administration, they are nominated for the valuable contribution that will make in the area of health management.
We are pleased to announce the creation of the John de la Mothe MBA/MSc Admission Scholarship. The purpose of this scholarship is to honour the memory of Dr. John de la Mothe through a scholarship for a deserving student pursuing a MBA or MSc. degree at the Telfer School of Management, who exemplifies academic excellence, has a passion for learning, and is interested in science, technology and innovation in the world of business.
Criteria:
• Be admitted as a full-time student in the MBA program or first year of the MSc. program • Demonstrate academic excellence (an average of at least B+); and • Demonstrate his/her interest in the field of innovation, science and/or technology.
For more information, or if you would like to contribute to this fund, please contact Laura Evans, Development Manager This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 613-562-5800 ext. 2934.
If someone had told us at the beginning of our Executive MBA program that in two years we’d be touring a brand new motorcycle manufacturing facility in Chongqing China, we would have looked askance at them and kept on studying…too far-fetched. Quite a far cry from our careers in Ottawa Canada. However in April 2010, there we were, being escorted by a mix of company executives through a very clean and energy efficient Chinese motorcycle factory.
Our final team EMBA consulting project was for a multinational engineering firm seeking a market assessment of energy efficiency consulting opportunities in Chongqing. We began by energetically researching the energy efficiency and consulting environments to determine where the opportunities lay. The magnitude of available information was overwhelming; however, after two years of study, we had become quite proficient in sifting through layers of data. Our journey to Chongqing capped off five months of intense work which prepared us to meet with local industry and government officials. Interestingly, in China, they are often one and the same.
The visit to the Jianshe Motorcycle Company Ltd, a State-owned enterprise, dispelled many of the images we'd held about Chinese manufacturing. As we wound our way around production lines for gleaming silver chassis and newly painted gas tanks, we were struck by the efficiency of the operations. Take for example the water used to wash tailings, it was captured and reused in another part of the plant, and finally completed its journey as a decorative courtyard fountain. Nothing is wasted. Even the architecture reflects a functional approach. What we took to be an interesting design arch connecting the two large main buildings actually contained an overhead system to transport motorcycle parts across the production chain...reminiscent of the robots in I, Robot. Brilliant.
As part of the municipal campaign to move heavy industry out of the city of Chongqing, instead of being retrofitted, aging factories are being relocated to new facilities beyond the city limits. This provides an opportunity to maximize building structures and incorporate the latest in energy efficient designs. Jianshe Motorcycle had successfully done that and it was obvious that the company representatives were extremely proud of what they had accomplished.
After our visit we understood better that China is determined to transform in order to become a world leader; not just in what they create but also how.
In a nutshell, this represented the essence of our EMBA program - the importance of global business defined by the pace and reach of innovation.
Our team’s visit to Southwest Hospital of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) 3rd Military Medical University stands out as a highlight of our week in Chongqing. This is likely due to the fact that in this one morning, we had the opportunity to experience a number of aspects of doing business in China that had, until this visit, remained theoretical. These included: guanxi, generous hospitality, face, gifts, and our own preconceived notions.
Guanxi. Left to our own devices, the likelihood of our team arranging a meeting with a top-tier hospital in a city half-way around the world was near-zero. As students, we were hoping to engage with a culture that thrives on hierarchy. As foreigners, we were seeking to cold-call on a culture that transacts on old friendships. Without the established network of Peter Liao, Trade Commissioner, Canadian Consulate in Chongqing, we would not have secured a meeting with Southwest Hospital, let alone a meeting with its President who, as Lieutenant General, also happens to be a very senior-ranking officer in the Chinese military. That is the power of guanxi – the complex network of established friendships uniquely characterized by reciprocity and obligation.
Generous Hospitality. When we were greeted upon arrival at Southwest Hospital by a large electronic billboard displaying the words “Warmly Welcome EMBA Delegation,” we knew that this would be no ordinary meeting. Surrounding us were military medical personnel – some hooked up with wireless mics – and a media crew. After initial introductions and a lot of photographs, our military hosts guided us on a 45-minute tour during which we received nothing less than VIP treatment.
Face. Our meetings in Chongqing were typically arranged for only our team members and our interpreter. However, out of respect for the President’s status as Lieutenant General in the Chinese military, our attendance was augmented by Peter Liao, Trade Commissioner, Canadian Consulate in Chongqing; Ryan Baerg, Consul and Senior Trade Commissioner, Canadian Consulate in Chongqing; and Dr. Terrence Kulka, Director, Telfer EMBA Program.
Gifts. Quite content to be offered a simple cup of tea, we were astonished to each receive our own engraved plaque commemorating our visit to the hospital. We were instantly grateful to Peter Liao who had advised that we be prepared to present the Lieutenant General with a bottle of Canadian ice wine. Being the first item on the agenda following introductions, this exchange of gifts was a significant part of our meeting, aptly accompanied by more photographs.
Preconceived Notions. During our research, we believed that Chinese private hospitals were most likely to serve the market segment that could afford our client’s liver cancer therapy. This initial assumption was based on our North American understanding of the term “private hospital” whereby the well-to-do pay for the privilege of receiving private healthcare. In our meeting at Southwest Hospital, and subsequently confirmed during our next meeting with a private hospital in Chongqing, we learned that the military hospital – and not the private hospital – is the ideal portal for accessing our client’s target customers. Treating 2.8 million outpatients annually, Southwest Hospital has patient volumes such that our client would have little need to find many other hospitals, if any, to capture the desired market share for its product. Furthermore, the military hospital is extremely well-funded, the results of which are observable in quality attributes that range from innovative digital workflows to leading-edge sustainable building designs to staff that includes some of the country’s most renowned medical doctors and researchers. These conditions make the military hospital the preferred destination for affluent residents seeking unique treatments that improve their quality of life, both of which characterize our client’s product.
The depth of real, practical experience relevant to our client’s needs acquired from planning and executing this project will forever affect our own perspectives on international business. With an increased level of sensitivity and respect for engaging in a new global economy, we graduate from the Telfer EMBA Program stimulated for international growth.
Those were the words family, friends, and colleagues would say when I told them that our final Telfer School of Management project trip would take us to Chongqing, China. Their quizzical look would be followed by surprise after learning that the municipality’s population is over 32 million, approximately matched to Canada’s entire population.
Chongqing is a mountain city, with a rolling and expansive metropolitan area flanked by two of China’s largest rivers, the Yangtze and Jialing. Ottawa is also known for its waterways, both natural and man-made, but with a mere 3% of Chongqing’s entire population it is compact and quaint by comparison.
The city is also known as a gateway to Western China. On a map it appears to be smack-dab in the middle of the vastness of China, and without knowledge of the river system to be land-locked, and completely separated from the coasts. And in many cases it is still removed. It’s less metropolitan than the better-known cities of Shanghai, Beijing, and Hong Kong, and an evident respect for traditional Chinese processes is apparent. But Chongqing is growing faster than other cities in China – not only in population but it’s economy as well.
As a class, our first meeting of the week was with the Canadian Consulate in Chongqing, and a presentation by Ryan Baerg, Consul and Senior Trade Commissioner. He outlined how Chongqing’s growth is greater than many other Chinese cities with a Foreign Direct Investment increase of over 150% from 2007 – 2008, and a GDP of 14.3% in 2008, above Shanghai’s 10.1%. As well, the costs of doing business in Chongqing are much less, with yearly salaries approximately 30% less than Beijing, and office space at a third of Shanghai prices.
And as the Telfer School of Management class’ focus was on environmental technologies, Chongqing was well suited. As swift urbanization and heavy industrialization is changing the landscape of the city, modern energy and environmental control systems and solutions are being sought.
Our team, Gabriel Hajal, Sharaf Sharafeldin, Francine Lortie, and myself were working with Eco Power Solutions (www.ecopowersolutions.com), which provides energy recovery and emissions control systems for large-scale industrial and utility facilities. The company’s COMPLY 2000 solution removes 98% of nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide pollutants, as well as up to 25% of carbon dioxide pollutants, while converting waste heat from exhaust into energy. As recent Chinese and Chongqing emission control and energy efficiency policies and guidelines favor aggressive reforms, this was a position sign for our client and our team’s work in Chongqing.
Our objective was to further extend months of in-Canada fact finding with on-the-ground research in China. We were to assess China, and specifically Chongqing, for market entry potential and to recommend a strategy for entry. Our team was lucky to be the only Telfer team to be joined throughout the entire week by their client. Accompanying us from Eco Power Solutions (EPS) were Tom Thompson (EPS’ CEO), and Wayne Littleford (EPS President and the inventor of the COMPLY 2000).
Over the course of five days, we had ten meetings. We met with key government officials in environment and economic development, affiliated environmental-control and industrial agencies, potential in-market partners and prospective future customers for Eco Power Solutions, and IP experts on China.
And the five-day whirlwind was well worth the months of preparation. As students, we experienced an unforgettable and invaluable real business case and provided our client with an actionable end product. We were consultants working on an international market entry project – working hard to adapt to a different style of doing business, interacting with and contracting interpreters and other service providers in a foreign market, and dealing with the demands and enjoying the benefits of direct client involvement.
But the main lesson came from working hard, being as prepared as possible before our trip, and not being afraid of adapting while in Chongqing. A critical component of our success was the team review after a long day of meetings. Over drinks in the hotel lounge, we’d type in our notes from that day’s interviews and review with each other potential questions or details that could be incorporated into the next day’s meetings. We knew that prior research while in Canada could only deliver us so far. We did not let uncertainty stop us, and by adapting to new information while in Chongqing our project delivered more than what we could have initially anticipated.
We now have an answer to the question ‘Chongqing? Where’s that?’ posed by our friends, family, and colleagues.
Chongqing, China. That’s where we learned to be global business leaders.
On behalf of my team, I’d like to thank those who made the trip possible from the Telfer School of Management, including professors, advisors, and personnel. A special thank you goes to Eco Power Solutions and in particular Tom Thompson and Wayne Littleford.
Photo: Back row from left: Tom Thompson (EPS), Sharaf Sharafeldin (Telfer), Wayne Littleford (EPS), Gabriel Hajal (Telfer)
Front row from left: Francine Lortie (Telfer), Karen Kavanagh (Telfer)
The International Consulting Project is the final project of the EMBA program, and is also widely regarded as the highlight of the program. It gives the candidates practical international business experience and allows them to put into practice the theory learned over the twenty month program… As expected, the trip to Chongqing, China did not disappoint.
Our team represented a company that provides a high efficiency wastewater treatment system as well as technical expertise in distributed wastewater treatment. Our objectives for this trip included: researching and analyzing the Chongqing wastewater market; identifying areas of the market most in need of their product and expertise; as well as identifying potential business partners.
We spent three-and-a-half months preparing for this trip. We conducted market research from Ottawa, using the internet, our contacts at the Canadian consulate in Chongqing, a literature review, etc. We also attended many briefings, presentations and conferences in Ottawa that discussed doing business in China such as the business climate, business culture, Chinese culture etc. These preparations were invaluable to our success. While we focused primarily on high-level topics such as Chinese business culture, we were reminded often by presenters with firsthand Chinese experience not to forget about the details of international business trips. For example, we arranged for interpreters and drivers prior to our arrival in Chongqing. This was a key success factor for our trip.
Our week in Chongqing was very successful. We met with several design firms, which are responsible for the design of urban communities and light industrial parks. These companies, like most other companies in China, are extremely interested in clean-tech products that will help them reach China’s ambitious environmental protection goals. Surprisingly, many companies wanted more than just a supplier-customer relationship. Most wanted long-term partnerships that could help the Chongqing companies expand internationally, beyond Canada We also had the opportunity to witness firsthand the incredible expansion rate of Chongqing during our visit to the city’s second largest wastewater treatment plant. Our host explained that just ten years ago, there was no wastewater treatment in Chongqing at all. However, between 2000 and 2010, more than 90% of all produced wastewater in the city center, where almost six million inhabitants live, is now cleaned and purified before it’s returned in the environment. The other 10% is expected to be treated within the next two to three years.
Our trip was not all business. We did find some time to get off the beaten path and explore areas of the city not too accustomed to tourists. We very pleasantly surprised by the openness, friendliness and curiosity of the Chinese people. In one memorable evening, several members of our team were treated to a riverboat meal hosted by the officials from one of our meetings. The trip took them up and down the mighty Yangtze River and they enjoyed Chinese hospitality the entire evening.
Overall, our trip was very reflective of our entire EMBA experience: a lot of work with a little time for fun which resulted in a huge success.
When I enrolled in the EMBA program, I did not envision being in Chongqing, China for a week on behalf of an Ottawa-based start-up biotech company in meetings with internationally renowned medical research teams and medical device companies. China had never been in my vista as a potential country to “conquer” from a business consulting point of view. Chongqing would never have been on my list of beachhead cities in China. And biotech was far off from my career moorings in wealth management.
Yet, there we were on a trip one would typically only take as the CEO or by invitation on an exclusive trade mission. We, a team of five different individuals with various professional backgrounds, were in tandem for the pinnacle experience of the Telfer EMBA: an international consulting trip.
Our professor’s message was to prove that doing business in other countries was really no different than doing business at home. We began with an objective, learned the business, conducted market research, analysed strategic alternatives, evaluated the appropriate go-to-market strategy, identified target customers, developed a plan and, then, we were expected to hit the ground running, conduct our business and craft a report for our client with our strategic recommendations.
The program’s focus on experiential learning propelled us into real issues. To begin, we did not know anyone in Chongqing nor did any of us speak the language or know much about China’s high-context culture. We would be expected to conduct meetings with jetlag in a city of 25 million about a topic that was as foreign as the place we would visit. Going through the experience proved that any challenge is surmountable and every problem has a solution. Some challenges and problems simply take more time, planning, know-how, patience, teamwork, discipline, analytical tools, focus and creativity to work through.
We had six meetings in five days. We were advised by one of Canada’s trade commissioners in Chongqing—an extremely helpful, devoted local staff by the name of Peter Liao-- to hire a translator and we found ourselves in the company of intelligent, delightful hosts who ensured we found our way to each meeting, whether by foot, by taxi, by metro or by a high-speed Bombardier train. At each meeting we were met with a warm welcome and jasmine tea. The Chinese people were quite open to students, to Canada, to opportunities to further their research or even to partner with and take on European competitors in the same field.
We had the opportunity to explore Chongqing, the original capital of Sichuan province, a city on growth steroids determined to catch up to and surpass Beijing. Skyscrapers, cranes, construction 24/7. And a Starbucks right beside a KFC—two brands you would never see adjacent to each other in western countries—around the corner from the famous snack street where it is customary to eat rice noodles (or a McDonald’s frozen cone) and even have your picture taken by a local for whom westerners are still novelties. We also travelled to Chengdu, a smaller city of 7 million. Standing at the very crowded train station, we were witness to the so-called “miracle of China”: migrant workers moving in droves to find factory jobs in Gangzhou. We watched in amazement and shock as the throng of penniless hopefuls, some with their belongings packed on their back, began their long journey away from their families and homes to find work in a factory without the rights we take for granted to produce goods that we consume in abandon. And, in turn, they watched us, stared at us, foreigners, strangers, who were also far from home, sampling the sounds, tastes and odours of a country that would become part of an unforgettable experience.
Lynda is a graduate of the 2008-2010 EMBA class with her own consulting firm at www.ltwbranding.com [link no longer available].
All Telfer School of Management students who have graduated or will graduate in 2010 are invited to attend the Graduates' Reception hosted by the Telfer Alumni Association. All Telfer School of Management alumni are welcome.
The Telfer School of Management would like to congratulate EMBA Alumna Linda Eagen who received the RGA award for Executive of the Year – Parapublic sector. Mrs. Eagen was honoured at the RGA Gala of Excellence which was held at the Hilton Lac Leamy on April 17, 2010.
Linda Eagen, President & CEO Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation
Linda Eagen has a proven track record as a relationship builder and change facilitator in our community. Linda is a recognized leader in the not-for-profit sector with close to 20 years experience as a fundraising professional. She has directed several campaigns and developed a variety of revenue generation programs raising over $70 million in support of health, education, arts and culture, community and social welfare organizations.
Prior to her role as President and CEO with the Cancer Foundation Linda was the Manager of Development, at the University of Ottawa's School of Management, where she played a pivotal role in the School's renewed focus as a leader in business education and innovative research. Linda had previously worked with the University of Ottawa as the Development Officer from 1989 - 1993 at which time she was promoted to Director of Development. From 1993-1996 Linda directed and coordinated fundraising programs generating more than $10 million towards the University's capital campaign goal of $34 million. Linda's career in Fundraising has been accelerated by her successfully obtaining her Executive MBA from the University of Ottawa.
About the RGA Awards:
(available in french only)
La soirée du Gala de l'excellence du RGA (Regroupement des gens d’affaires de la Capitale nationale) a eu lieu le 17 avril 2010 au Hilton Lac-Leamy. Le Gala rend hommage à des gens d'affaires et à des entreprises d'ici qui se sont le plus distingué(e)s sous divers aspects : leadership, apport à la communauté, esprit d'innovation, engagement face à l'évolution de leur entreprise, de leurs services ou de leur champ d'activités.
This morning, we got to walk to our first destination which is Adobe Systems. Their main building is located only two blocks from our hotel. We are greeted by Donna Morris, a senior VP in HR and formerly with Jetform in Ottawa. She presented us with an overview of the company and gave us information about the lifestyle of Silicon Valley. She freely admitted that many of her friends here were also Canadians and does not feel too homesick. Also speaking were Paul Weiskopf, a company strategist, as well as Mike Savage from investor relations.
It’s 7:30am and we are all on the bus, some with coffee in hand and others sharing sections of today’s paper, we are ready for the day’s adventure. Our busy day starts with a debrief on our experience so far in the Valley. We are asked to discuss our recent exposure to Silicon Valley Ecosystem and compare this new knowledge with our own client companies and their reality. This conversation is lead by Professor Pierre Sabourin and Director Dr. Terry Kulka. What is it about a company that makes it great? Oh, let me rephrase that, “What is it about a company that makes it great in Silicon Valley?” As we have been discovering, it seems to be about finding the intersection between science and humanity, about making business decisions that are based on your customers while building a meaningful relationship with them. This might look simple because when you notice greatness, it already “is”; however, we are learning that it is hard to work to get there. So how do we get there? How can we support our client companies to “achieve greatness”? We are learning that it is by transforming imagination into innovation; all the while creating a customer experience that is memorable.
The City of San Jose created that memorable experience for me today. Our bus driver Philip chose the beautiful San Jose Rose Garden to have our box lunch. The garden was filled with fresh sent of bloomed roses and the sun was shining bright. We found a stone bench near a large fountain right in the centre of the garden, completely surrounded by roses or all possible colours. A little girl came by selling chocolate bars for a fundraising initiative at her school. She was shy, but had great big smile and the perfect treat of chocolate and almonds for sale. The only problem is that I did not have my wallet with me, I had to kindly decline. I thought to myself, “Will I see the day when I will not need to carry a wallet to transfer funds to her school to purchase that chocolate bar?” My intuitive response is “yes absolutely and it will probably be possible due to a start-up company in Silicon Valley comprised of a small energetic team of content experts with big imaginations!” After our beautiful lunch stop, we headed out to eBay – PayPal. We were greeted by Matthew Mengerink- VP Core Technologies PayPal. As we know, eBay currently connects buyers to sellers to auction. What Matthew explained is that the sale of digital goods and of mobile commerce is growing at mind blowing rates. Mobile commerce for example blossomed from $50 million to half a billion dollars in one year via PayPal. This is changing the auction model to a data company, tapping into monetisation capabilities and helping connect buyers and sellers with a safe proposal (PayPal), durable over time. Mr Mengerink explained the value proposition in having the ability of taking friction out of transactions and creating platforms for customers that offer a safe and reliable exchange of goods and a positive experience for the customer.
After our presentation from Matthew, we had the opportunity to get behind the scenes of the eBay monitoring systems. In a boardroom with a glass wall on looking to a room of computers and projector screens, Operations Manager Larry Cassidy introduced us to the “Nerve Centre” a place where everything on eBay is monitored. Bids, registrations and listings are all showing in graph form while on another projection screen we see a web server monitor sending a test connection every second. Of course they have backup systems and other locations (Denver for example) to ensure contingency planning. This information was running “real time”. They are operating 24/7 and this internationally, the sheer magnitude of the load that is handled through these systems is most impressive.
We are living in a time where the digital world is shaping who we work, live and play and it is moving faster than we are able to conceptualize. I am very excited to be living today, in a time of change and endless possibilities. Who knows, with a little imagination turned into innovation, maybe the next time I am sitting on that stone bench in the San Jose Rose Garden, I will be able to purchase a chocolate bar without having my wallet on me.
Imagine a place where biotechnology businesses incubate and small start ups have a chance to conduct research and thrive. This is the San Jose BioCenter, a non profit organization that is a leader in accelerating new life enhancing technologies to the public, and was our first stop of the day. Erika Kula, Director, Business Development, explained this unique model of commercializing innovation with flexible lab space and access to state of the art equipment 24/7. It provides business support and scale advantages, allowing companies to direct money at research rather than equipment. Success stories such as BrighTex Bio-Photonics and Edison Pharmaceuticals were hatched here and the San Jose BioCenter is a true economic development initiative.
We heard from two companies currently residing at the BioCenter. Laxminarayan Bhat, PhD, President and CEO of Reviva Pharmaceuticals, explained that they are in Silicon Valley because of the highly qualified people that can be hired as consultants rather than employees and the ability to leverage the BioCenter facilities, allowing 70% of its funds to be directed at product development and 30% at infrastructure (opposite of their norm). Richard Jorgensen, Vice President, Business Development of Single Cell Technology Inc. is in Silicon Valley for its “smarts and innovation” and hopes to be acquired by a pharmaceutical company. Both guest speakers raised funds through angel investors; this is the recommended vehicle for raising capital in the biotechnology industry.
Our next stop was the IBM Almaden Research Center located in the hills of the Almaden Valley. This was a secluded paradise that sat on 691 acres. The guest speakers were impressive and spoke of education, analytics and simulation of the brain. Carolyn Wallace, Client Relationship Management, talked about the eight research labs around the world and the highly diverse employees representing over 50 countries.
Dr. Jim Spohrer, Director, Global University Programs, spoke of IBM’s Global Universities relation program and “the employee of the future” who should know business, technology, social science and public policy – a T-shaped professional who can communicate with everyone at all levels, but has a deep knowledge in one area. The philosophy is that “you should hire someone better than you.” Another large marketing plan is “Instrumented, Interconnected, Intelligent – Let’s Build a Smarter Planet” where intelligent systems are constructed to reduce waste, expand capabilities and create sustainable innovation.
Dr. Ying Chen introduced patent analytics technology and the concept of explore, understand and analyze. The possibilities using SIMPLE and COBRA for leveraging text and data mining capabilities seem endless.
The IBM values of:
Dedicate to every client’s success;
Innovation that matters for our customers and the world;
Trust and personal responsibility in all relationships;
were actually created from jam sessions involving thousands of IBM employees and using IBM analytics.
John Arthur, Research Scientist, discussed Cognitive Computing and the synapse project where they’re trying to create human behavior by working in virtual environments. Using the BlueGene, in May 2009, they had created the cat scale brain (a tool) and the pure optimism that behavior will be replicated in the next five years was, in itself, inspiring. This level of optimism has been so prevalent in Silicon Valley and the “can do” attitude is contagious.
The final destination was the Sheraton Palo Alto for an Alumni Reception which was hosted by Alain Doucet, Assistant Dean External Relations, Telfer School of Management. There were Alumni from the Telfer School of Management who now work in Silicon Valley, and other distinguished guests. The alumni espoused the pace of SV, the level of collaboration and quick decisions, as key success factors, and part of the draw, to the Valley. Our guest speaker was Chris Albinson, Managing Director, Panorma Capital – a Kingston native who has been in Silicon Valley for a decade. He spoke of failure as “something never to fear, but rather to embrace.” His most important point was that of transparency – the theme that has been developing throughout this trip.
Passion, a high level of curiosity, pride, taking risks and learning from failures, have been direct attributes we’ve seen in working with our entrepreneur in SV and these have also been mirrored in the companies we have had the fortune of being exposed to.
The Executive MBA class of 2011 has officially been re-introduced to Silicon Valley (SV). For the “grand opening” of this trip, the class headed to paradise, a vineyard called Savannah-Chanelle. Sitting in the middle of Santa Cruz Mountains, this place was incredibly inspiring. As we walked across this site, we felt calmness, an overwhelming feeling of simplicity and a way of life that we could only imagine wanting to live. This first experience was just the beginning of what we were about to experience in “the Valley”. Since our arrival on Saturday, this vision has expanded, we can truly feel the cultural differences of SV and it is really starting to sink in. Interestingly enough, it seems that an impressive number of people from the Valley have extended their careers and their lives to their 80s and even 90s, by thriving to experience more of this greatness, year after year after year.
A student from a previous year came back from the SV trip and once said, if the entire Executive MBA program would have to be limited to this week, it was worth the entire program investment. I will attest to that and raise it by saying, this is Monday, and we already feel like the value of this week is priceless.
The best word to describe the Valley; Innovation. Few words to describe how they do it; Openness, Trust, Collaboration, Networking, Questioning, Risk-taking and Patience. How to do business in Silicon Valley is very different than the traditional hierarchical models that most of us live in our current work environments. Innovation cannot be made possible by following our traditional ways of doing business. Silicon Valley has been a laboratory for developing a business culture that strives to share information and knowledge. The following message became clear to us: “failure is an experience of unplanned outcomes”. In order to assimilate this, you probably have to experience what our class is experiencing this week, or perhaps you already have.
A “bottom-up” approach that “rewards risk-taking and tolerates failure”, as Mr. William Miller, Professor at Stanford University quoted today.
Issues, problems, failures, are open discussion topics here in SV, people are not afraid to say these words, they are actually very comfortable in talking about it, they believe that innovation is impossible without collaborating in this way, and should you ever feel threatened by sharing ideas and solutions fearlessly, you probably don’t belong here.
Regis McKenna, a marketing guru, a pioneer of the Valley, spoke to us today and I wish we could have spent an extra twenty hours with him as the information he conveyed to us within one hour was truly overwhelming. This published author grew up with companies like Intel and Microsoft as they made their first steps as start-ups and as they pulled off breakthrough events in ridiculously short timeframes, realizing the future of these companies as we know them today.
The atmosphere in SV is an Ecosystem of its own, it is “green”, it is “clean”, and it is truly hard for me to say this as a proud Canadian, but I am already convinced that this is the “Centre of the Universe” as people here believe it truly is. One would hope that not only this way of doing business but this way of life will influence the rest of the business world around us. SV is not only a laboratory for technology; it is also a lab for developing markets and abilities, enabling people to vision possibilities and opportunities.
I leave it to my colleagues to provide you with further insight in the next articles of this series, as we will be expanding our comparator of Silicon Valley versus the world we know. Stay tuned for more on our adventure in the Valley.
This is a week long blog series inspired by the University of Ottawa’s Telfer School of Management Executive MBA class trip to the Silicon Valley. The trip is part of the EMBA curriculum on “Innovation and Entrepreneurship”, which includes a consulting project and holding meetings with Valley firms on behalf of client organizations, as well as special events and discussions at key Valley innovation centres, such as the San Jose BioCenter, IBM Almaden Research Center, Apple, Cisco, Adobe, eBay and Stanford University.
Michelle Couturier, Tanya Hume, Natalie Kahalé and Marc Lamarre are EMBA participants and they will be writing daily updates for the Ottawa Business Journal, to share their experiences and lessons learned in the Silicon Valley.
The recipients of the 2010 Ottawa Business Journal’s Forty Under 40 award have been announced. The recipients of this award have been nominated by their peers and other members of the community. They are recognized for their leadership, entrepreneurship and community building. The Telfer School of Management would like to congratulate this year’s recipients, 7 of whom are Telfer School Alumni.
The Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa is pleased to announce the appointment of Brian Malcolmson, as an Executive-in-Residence for the MHA Program.
Brian Malcolmson brings to the Master of Health Administration Program more than 30 years of management experience in the health care field, most recently as Associate Vice-President of Academic Affairs at Hôpital Montfort.
His background also includes senior management in hospital administration (the former Riverside Hospital of Ottawa), private consulting in health and social service management (CGO Montréal), government health services administration (Ontario, Manitoba) and community health services planning (Orleans, Ottawa).
As President of the 1,000 member University of Ottawa MHA Alumni Association, Brian recently initiated a partnership with the Canadian College of Health Service Executives for their health leadership development program. As MHA Executive in Residence, he seeks to collaborate similarly with professors by enhancing their links to the health care sector, and with students by guiding them through their studies and career deliberations.
A University of Ottawa MHA graduate, Brian Malcolmson has maintained close linkages with the program for many years, as a preceptor for several students, as a former part-time professor and as a class presenter. He is bilingual and committed to creating French language education opportunities. Brian is delighted to return to his roots in the MHA Program and to help develop the human resources needed for the management of our health care system.
The Executives-in-Residence program at the Telfer School of Management exemplifies its Linked with Leadership brand. These individuals provide our students with access to valuable insight into current affairs and expose them to their real life business experiences in various fields of business including International Business, Health Care, Politics, High Tech, Finance, Entrepreneurship and Law.
Congratulations to Professor Gilles LeVasseur, who was named “Personality of the Week” by Le Droit and Radio Canada. Professor LeVasseur is actively involved in Ontario’s francophone community.
The Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa has named Sophie L’Hélias as Senior Fellow; she brings to the Telfer School a wealth of knowledge and experience in the area of governance.
A corporate governance expert, Sophie L’Hélias launched her career in France working with institutional investors seeking to improve corporate governance. From 1998 to 2000 she was managing director of a leading activist hedge fund in New York. In 2001, she founded L’Hélias LLC, a strategic governance and communications firm in the United States.
Sophie L’Hélias has written numerous articles on corporate governance and published a book comparing corporate governance practices in France, the UK and the United States (“Le Retour de l’Actionnaire” – Ed. Gualino 1996). She is currently a columnist for the US edition of Corporate Knights, focusing on green governance.
To promote better governance standards globally, Sophie L’Hélias co-founded the International Corporate Governance Network (www.icgn.org) in 1995. The ICGN is based in London and has an investor membership that exceeds 10 trillion dollars of assets under management. In 2010, she co-founded l’Organisation Mondiale de la Gouvernance Francophone in Ottawa.
The Healthcare Systems Management Research Seminar Series invite you to a seminar given by Dr.Vimla Patel, Director, Center for Cognitive Informatics and Decision Making, School of Health Information Sciences at the University of Texas at Houston
The Telfer School of Management would like to congratulate alumnus James Brooks who earned a place on the prestigious National Honour Roll - the listing of the top students in the Canada-wide CA Exam in December. James graduated from the Telfer School in 2008 with a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting (Summa Cum Laude).
James is currently a Staff Accountant at KPMG LLP Toronto. James is working in the Consumer Markets and Information Risk Management groups. He is primarily responsible for assisting in the completion of financial statement and controls audits for various public companies (primarily major national retailers and distributors).
James chose to study at the Telfer School as he was attracted by the international opportunities available. During his studies James completed an international exchange to Audencia Nantes and was a teaching assistant.
He was also a member of the Accounting Club Executive as well as a member of the 2008 Jeux du commerce delegation where his team won 1st place in the Accounting Case Competition.
The University of Ottawa would like to congratulate the delegation of 35 students from the Telfer School of Management that represented us at 2010 Happening Marketing competition. This event was hosted by Université de Sherbrooke from March 26-29, 2010. This is the third year in a row that the Telfer School has finished in the top 3.
The Telfer School won the following trophies:
1st place – Overall Standing
1st place – International Marketing (Myron Gomes, Leah Orvis, Vanessa Vaillant)
2nd place - Integrated Marketing Communications Case (Jennifer Butson, Lindley Graham, Alicia Kehoe)
2nd place – Business-to-Business (Jasmine Bennett, Marie-Pier Bertrand, Christopher Sisto)
2nd place – Strategic Marketing (Meghan Kelly, Edyta Kosior, Louis Racine)
2nd place– Sports (Léon Forest-Nault, Mylène Gauthier, Jessica Gillespie, Paul Leblanc, Isabelle Moo Sang, Micheal Sutcliffe, Craig Tai, Alisha Zhao)
Happening Marketing is an inter-university competition which gathers nearly 500 students from over 11 universities in Eastern Canada. This competition is also the second largest overseen by REFAEC, after the Jeux du commerce.
Since 1991, students have had the opportunity to meet at this gathering and test their knowledge, skills, creativity and school spirit. Participants measure up against their peers from other universities in academic cases, as well as sport and social activities.
A new Internship Program, developed by Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) and the University of Ottawa’s Telfer School of Management Career Centre will provide students with the opportunity to work in audit and evaluation for 3 four-month terms beginning in May 2010. These work terms are distributed throughout the student’s Bachelor of Commerce program.
The University of Ottawa Marketing Association and the Telfer School of Management held the 25th Michel Cloutier Marketing Competition on April 7, 2010 at the Desmarais Building.
Congratulations to the winning team, “Les créatifs” (Pascal Bouchard Phillips, Cynthia Coutu Ross, Jade St Laurent and Maxime Gauthier-Kwan), who presented the best marketing campaign as mandated by the University of Ottawa and event sponsor Newcap Radio. This year’s mandate was to develop a marketing strategy to attract undergraduate students to the University of Ottawa from the Ottawa-Gatineau region.
The winning team received a cash prize of $1,000 and the 2 finalist teams received $500. The Marc Roy Fund awarded $1,000 to the student with the best presentation, Jade St Laurent.
Finalists:
Yukon Cornelius Consultants: Nathan Ferguson, Lindley Graham, Meghan Kelly, Edyta Kosior and Patrick D. Suter.
Team Go Far: Brian Li, Eric de Gagné, Luke Heaslip, Fei Gong, Tiffany Leung and Quinn MacDonald
India – Managing the Infrastructure and Security Issues
The Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa, in partnership with the Indo-Canada Ottawa Business Chamber, hosted the Telfer-ICOBC India Forum on April 13, 2010. This half day event involving senior business and government leaders from Canada and India is designed to help Canadian companies better understand the key issues and risks in the market related to infrastructure and security.
Gaby St-Pierre is the new Director of the Co-operative Education Programs at the University of Ottawa. Mr. St-Pierre is a graduate of the Telfer School of Management (BCom 1995, MBA 2000) as well as a former employee of the Telfer School’s marketing office.
Mr. St-Pierre organised the very first Scholarship Golf Tournament at the Telfer School in 1995. In 2009, the Telfer School announced that the proceeds of the 2009 and 2010 golf tournaments would create a scholarship in his name. The scholarship fund will assist Telfer School students interested in completing international coop placements.
The Co-operative Education Program is also celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. For more information on activities that will take place throughout this 30th year please visit www.coop.uOttawa.ca
Micheál J. Kelly, Dean of the Telfer School of Management and Claude Laguë, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering cordially invite you to attend the Entrepreneurship Bridges Lecture with guest speaker, Dr. H. Douglas Barber, Founder and Former President and CEO of Gennum Corporation.
Please confirm your attendance before March 12, 2010 by e-mail to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by phone at (613) 562-5800 ext 2396
About the Speaker
H. Douglas Barber, O.C., Ph.D., D.Sc., FCAE, P.Eng., born on a Saskatchewan farm, attended the University of Saskatchewan obtaining his B.Sc. with Great Distinction, winning the Governor General's Gold Medal, and a M.Sc. in Electrical Engineering. As an Athlone Fellow and NATO Scholar he received his Ph.D. from Imperial College, University of London in 1965.
Dr. Barber began employment in 1965 in a new microelectronics initiative at Canadian Westinghouse, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. In 1973 he was one of the founders of Linear Technology Inc., now known as Gennum Corporation, which designs, manufactures and markets microcircuits. Gennum has grown profitably at 20% per year and now employs about 650 people. Dr. Barber was President and CEO when he retired in 2000. He retired as a Director in 2007.
Dr. Barber was a part-time Engineering Physics Professor at McMaster University from 1968 to 1994. In 2001 he was appointed Distinguished Professor-in-Residence. He is a past Chair of the Board of Governors and recently has been designated an Honorary Governor. Dr. Barber also presently serves on various research boards, task-forces and committees at the University.
Dr. Barber has received numerous awards including three honorary doctorates that honor his engineering and entrepreneurial achievements. The most recent honor an appointment as Officer of the Order of Canada, as well as recently receiving an Honorary Doctorate of Science from the University of Saskatchewan.
Dr. Barber has been involved in numerous advisory committees and corporate directorships. He was a director of DALSA Inc. from 2005 to 2008, NetAccess Systems Inc. since 1994 to 2009. He also is presently a director of Micralyne since 1997, AllerGen NCE Inc. since 2003, and The Institute of Quantum Computing since 2006. In 2009 Dr. Barber joined the Boards of the Centre for Probe Development and Commercialization, the Centre for Surgical Innovation and Invention and the IRAP Advisory Board.
Dr. Barber has authored 29 refereed papers and several patents. He speaks frequently on business, technology, learning, innovation and economic development. He and his wife, June, have raised a family of four whose families now include ten grandchildren. He is a man of faith with over 37 years of active involvement in their church.
The Telfer School of Management hosted the National Capital Leadership Challenge earlier this month and we are very pleased to honour all those who participated this year.
As a 1st and 2nd year Bachelor of Commerce Student you must be starting to think about your future career in business and what concentration you want to specialize in?
We feel that ACCOUNTING is an excellent field to pursue your studies in. Why not explore that option through a fun competitive environment on March 13, 2010?
The University of Ottawa Accounting Club is proud to announce the first annual Telfer Accounting Conference! This conference is a one day event that taking place on March 13, 2010 in the Desmarais Building.
This event is open to all first and second year Bachelor of Commerce Students. The goal of this event is for management students to meet accounting industry insiders through a series of workshops, competitive accounting-oriented cases, and a formal networking event. This is important in helping you choose an appropriate career path, and gain unique and valuable experience that will engage and inspire you towards a possible career in the field of accounting.
If you wish to register for this event please visit our website for our registration package and fill out the registration form and email it back to us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
You do not want to miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!
List of employers that will be in attendance for this event:
KPMG
Deloitte
Office of the Auditor General
Certified Management Accountants of Ontario
Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario
Logan Katz
Certified Internal Auditors
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Collins Barrow
Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton
For more information please contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Thank you in advance for your interest and we look forward in seeing you at this exciting new conference.
It is with great sorrow that we announce the passing of
Mr. Michel Lalonde, MHA (1971) Executive in Residence, Master of Health Administration Program Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa
Surrounded by his family, Michel passed away peacefully on February 19, 2010 at the Élizabeth Bruyère palliative care unit after a heroic battle with cancer.
After a rewarding and productive career in healthcare administration throughout the Ottawa and Hawkesbury areas, Michel joined the Master of Health Administration program at the Telfer School of Management as Executive-in-Residence (2000). He proved to be an invaluable contributor to the university community and to the students. Upon his arrival to the school he took on the role of helping his colleagues better understand the complexities of delivering health services. His function as mentor to students became a deep rooted passion, not only concerning academics but about life after university. His dedication, optimism and positive demeanor inspired all of us who worked with Michel and motivated our students to excel in the classroom and beyond. His wise advice, delivered always with a smile, touched the lives of many of us and we will carry it in our hearts. Through the Michel Lalonde MHA Scholarship we will make sure that Michel’s values endure within the MHA program and are passed on to future generations of students.
At the request of his family, donations in memory of Michel may be made to the Michel Lalonde MHA Scholarship at the University of Ottawa by contacting Mr. Daniel Brunette 613-562-5800 x 2610 or via email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
This past weekend, the Telfer Student Council proudly hosted the Strat24 Sustainability Competition. Strat24 is the University of Ottawa's first ever multidisciplinary 24-hour academic competition for Management and Engineering students.
The Telfer Student Council along with the Engineering Student Society teamed up pairs of management and engineering students to tackle a sustainability business challenge. Of the eight teams that participated, one stood out amongst the rest winning first place and a $4000 scholarship jointly donated by the Telfer School of Management and the Faculty of Engineering. Congratulations to Alexandre Walter, Chelsea Leighton, Yue Yang, and Georges El-Hage for their 1st place win.
The teams were lucky to have the opportunity to research a live case on Windmill Developments Group. Thanks to the support of Windmill’s CEO, Jonathan Westeinde, the live case was a tremendous learning experience for the 32 participants.
Jasmine Bennett the Director of Sustainability for the Telfer Student Council was the inspiration behind Strat24, facilitating the connection between management and engineering students. The following is a quote from Jasmine Bennett: “I feel privileged to have been given the opportunity to host such an event. The success of this terrific experience is a product of 32 brilliant participants working hard for 24+ hours, support from both faculties and student associations, and most of all, the dedication and perseverance of my organizing committee: Jen Butson, Sacha Lavigne and Danielle Morin.”
Photo caption: Danielle Morin, Jasmine Bennett, Alexandre Walter, Chelsea Leighton, Yue Yang, Georges El-Hage, Sacha Lavigne, Jen Butson.
The Telfer School of Management sent a delegation of 15 management students to compete in the Financial Open 2010 which was held at McGill University in Montreal from February 5-7, 2010. The Financial Open is an eastern Canada inter-university competition that challenges students in finance and accounting academic case resolution.
Trophies won:
1st place - Corporate Finance Case (Collette Leung, Christopher Sisto, Jason Yeung)
1st place - Financial News (Tarik Aeta, Myron Gomes, Jennifer Wu)
3rd place - Market Finance Case (Héloïse Marleau, Dan Sire, Eric Lafleur)
CATA-WIT “Ask the Expert” Series presents: Showcasing Women's Leadership: Strategies to Grow Canadian Technology Firms
Date: Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Time: 12:00 p.m.
Professor Barbara Orser interviewed by CATA-WIT
“Women in Tech: Entrepreneurship Best Practices”
Friday, January 22, 2010
Joanne Stanley, Co-founder and Executive Director of CATA Women in Technology Forum (CATAWIT) interviews Barbara Orser, Deloitte Chair in the Management of Growth Enterprises, Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa, on showcasing women leadership in the high tech sector.
Students honour Dean Micheál Kelly (centre) with his initials.
The University of Ottawa would like to congratulate the team of 90 Telfer School of Management students that represented us at the Jeux du commerce 2010 (JDC). This annual competition, featuring 13 universities from Eastern Canada, was hosted by the John Molson School of Business at Concordia University from January 8-10, 2010.
This year's delegation brought home 11 trophies, including the Academic Cup, which has been won by the Telfer School for the 3rd year in a row. This is also the fifth time that the Telfer School has finished in the top three positions overall.
3rd Place – Overall Standing
1st Place Trophies:
Entrepreneurship Case (Jasmina Charbonneau, Daniel Siré, Christopher Sisto)
Coach: Professor Barbara Orser
Business Ethics Case (Alicia Kehoe, Leah Orvis, Haochen Zhang)
Coach: Professor Laurent Mirabeau
Ultimate Frisbee (Stacy Lambden, Alisha Zhao, Anne Mercier, Léon Forest-Nault, Dylan Zajac, Craig Tai, Wilson Wong, Mike Sutcliffe, Christopher Beaudoin)
Team Sponsored by Red Alert First Aid
Coach: Fred Caron
2nd Place Trophies:
Debate (Jordan Demeo, Douglas Judson, Marielle Milot, Jade St-Laurent)
Team Sponsored by Roc St-George
Coach: Daniel Bunjevac
Finance Case (Kera James, Héloïse Marleau, Alexandre Walter)
Coach: Professor Alan Riding
MIS Case (Samuel Arseneau, Brad McLeod, Artem Padalko)
Team Sponsored by Maplesoft Consulting Group
Coach : Professor Craig Kuziemski
International Business Case (Myron Gomes, Amanda Grochowich, Mathieu Lagacé)
Coach: Professor Martine Spence
Dodgeball (Alexandra Brunette-D'Souza, Geneviève Bisson, Mark Iezzi, David Lazenby, Jacob Legault, Cal McDonald, Isabelle Moo Sang, Michael Weatherhead, Chris Weatherhead)
Team Sponsored by Dr. Sisto Corporation
Coach: Charles Leury
3rd Place - Commitee of the Year
Desjardins Cup (Sports)
Academic Cup
Thanks to our sponsors and partners:
Mitel, Desjardins, uOttawa, Telfer School of Management Student Council, Roc St-George, Maplesoft Consulting Group, Marcil Lavallée, Welch LLP, CMA, Red Alert First Aid, Ferme Mon Vully, Dr. Sisto Corporation and Coco Bella Spa
This year’s MBA Games took place from January 8 to 10 at Laval University, in Québec City. The national event brought together twenty universities from across Canada to compete in academics, sports and spirit.
Three students from the Telfer School delegation placed 2nd overall in the Strategic Management Case Competition.
Congratulations to Alejandra Jaramillo who has received an award of excellence for her work with the First Nations and Inuit Health Branch. This award was presented by Health Canada’s Office of Community Medicine.
Alejandra is currently completing her MSc in Health Systems at the Telfer School of Management.
A new Internship Program, developed by Xerox Canada and the University of Ottawa’s Telfer School of Management Career Centre will provide students with the opportunity to work in Sales and Marketing for 3 four-month terms beginning in May 2010. These work terms are distributed throughout the student’s Bachelor of Commerce program.
The ultimate goal is to provide the student, upon successful completion of the program, with full-time employment with Xerox in the area of sales and marketing.
“This type of program is extremely beneficial for both students and employers”, said Micheál J. Kelly, Dean at the Telfer School of Management. “Students have the opportunity to develop their leadership skills while gaining practical work experience in their field of interest. Xerox will benefit from having qualified students that understand the business and culture of the organization”.
Xerox has been a partner of the Telfer School’s Career Centre for the past few years, participating in career and networking conventions, the Sales and Marketing Breakfast and the MBA Consulting Projects.
“We are very pleased to be working with the Telfer School on this Internship Program and look forward to welcoming students”, said Trevor Hains/Patrick Tallon, TITLE at Xerox. The Internship Program is based in Ottawa and under the management of the General Manager of Xerox Global Services.
About Xerox Canada
With revenues of $1.1 billion, Xerox Canada is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Xerox Corporation. They supply document technologies, systems, solutions and services that aim to improve their customers’ work processes and business results.
Xerox Canada’s success rests on their ability to understand their customers’ needs and provide innovative document management solutions and services that deliver value. They deliver this value by leveraging their core competencies in technology, document knowledge, sales and service, value added solutions, and brand reputation.
The Telfer School of Management’s Student Services Centre would like to express our sympathy to those affected by the earthquake in Haiti. We are deeply saddened by the extent of the devastation and understand that this may be a very difficult time for those students who have family and friends in Haiti. The University has many services at your disposal that we invite you to consult if needed at http://web5.uottawa.ca/www2/mcs-smc/info-haiti/home.html
The last installment of the 2009-10 Alumni Breakfast Speaker Series took place on February 4, 2010 and welcomed as guest speaker Karen Kinsley, FCA, President and Chief Executive Officer, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
Ms. Kinsley took part in a leadership discussion that was led by Dean Micheál Kelly and Carole Morris, Principal for Knightsbridge in Ottawa. Last October, Ms. Kinsley was named the 2009 CEO of the year by the Ottawa Business Journal.
Karen Kinsley was reappointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) in April 2008. She was first appointed in June 2003.
Ms. Kinsley joined CMHC in 1987. She was appointed Vice-President, Finance in 1990 and Treasurer in June 1995. In November 1996, Ms. Kinsley became the Vice-President, Corporate Services and Chief Financial Officer, and in May 2000, was appointed Vice-President, Insurance and Securitization.
Prior to joining CMHC, Ms. Kinsley was Vice-President and Treasurer with two real estate development companies.
Ms. Kinsley received the Award of Excellence in 2004 from the Canadian Home Builders' Association in recognition of service to Canada's home building industry. In 2006, she was inducted into the Canadian Mortgage Hall of Fame by the Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals in recognition of her service to the Canadian mortgage industry. She also received a 2008 Women’s Executive NetworkTM Canada’s Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Award.
Karen Kinsley holds a bachelor of Commerce from the University of Ottawa and is a member of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants. She has also recently been elected a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario (FCA) and awarded the 2009 CEO of the Year by the Ottawa Business Journal.
“Celebrating entrepreneurship in today’s global economy”
The Entrepreneurs' Club hosted its 19th Annual “A Toast to Success” Business Dinner on February 2, 2010 at the Westin Hotel Ottawa. This year, the keynote speaker was Donald Ziraldo, Co-Founder, Inniskillin Wine.
Renowned as one of the Telfer School of Management’s most prestigious events, the Business Dinner brings together commerce students and various local business professionals as they celebrate entrepreneurial success in today's global economy. The event provides unique networking and mentoring opportunities while introducing professionals to some of Canada’s brightest and most ambitious business students.
For more information on the Business Dinner, and other events hosted by the Entrepreneurs’ Club, please visit their website www.tecde.ca
The Centre of Excellence for Public Sector Marketing (CEPSM) presented the annual CEPSM award for the best MBA Marketing Plan at the Telfer School of Management on December 3, 2009. Jim Mintz, Director of CEPSM, was in attendance to present the award which consists of a cash prize of $500 and a congratulatory letter from the head of CEPSM.
Congratulations to: Omid Jafarieh, Dimitri El Kodsi, Francis Lacroix, Hamidreza Mafi and Saleh Taebi
Students from CASCO, the Telfer School of Management Student Charity Organization, raised a total of $24,500 for the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) on November 30, 2009.
CASCO's 11th annual gala was held at the Crown Plaza Hotel. The evening, attended by close to 600 guests, consisted of a 3 course meal, silent and live auctions, and a high energy dance and fashion show.
On November 25, 2009, the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) awarded EQUIS accreditation to the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa.
Approximately only 40 business schools in the world have achieved the triple crown of accreditations. The Telfer School becomes the 3rd in Canada to realize this accomplishment.
“We’ve received accreditation by AACSB (2003) and AMBA (2005). With this third and final accreditation, we now earn ourselves a place among the top one percent of the world’s business schools” says Micheál J. Kelly, Dean of the Telfer School.
The triple-crown achievement coincides with the Telfer School of Management’s 40th anniversary as an independent faculty at the University of Ottawa. Over the last 40 years, the Telfer School has made countless moves to create a rich learning and research environment that prepares students to fulfil their personal and professional potential, and take full advantage of the possibilities of global business.
EQUIS is the leading international system of quality assessment, improvement and accreditation of higher education institutions in management and business administration. EQUIS is run by the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD) and its fundamental objective, linked to the mission of the EFMD, is to raise the standard of management education worldwide.
The Telfer School was officially awarded the accreditation in November 2009, along with 4 other international business schools. “We are delighted to welcome 5 more leading international schools into the EQUIS community. Whilst EQUIS was born as a European initiative for the benchmarking and accreditation of business schools, it is now the leading global accreditation system. We embrace the diversity the new schools bring to the network and believe this is what makes EQUIS the most sophisticated and innovative improvement and benchmarking tool available for management education," said Prof. Julio Urgel, Director of Quality Services at EFMD.
About EQUIS
EQUIS is European in its inspiration and global in its scope. Europeans have designed it and Europeans from a broad range of countries manage it. Its scope, however, is global in that it provides an excellent framework for assessing quality in highly diverse institutional and cultural contexts.
Institutions that are accredited by EQUIS must demonstrate not only high general quality in all dimensions of their activities, but also a high degree of internationalisation. With companies recruiting worldwide, with students choosing to get their education outside their home countries, and with schools building alliances across borders and continents, there is a rapidly growing need for them to be able to identify those institutions in other countries that deliver high quality education in international management.
EQUIS has established its prestige and recognition worldwide. As of November 2009, 122 business schools have been awarded EQUIS with 34 countries represented among the accredited schools: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Korea, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, South Africa, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States of America.
Congratulations to MBA alumnus and Professor Guy Laflamme, who was recognised for his contributions to the community by the United Way.
The United Way’s news release about the National Capital Region’s (NCR) Government of Canada Workplace Charitable Campaign (GCWCC) explains it this way:
“One individual was recognized with a surprise Community Builder Award for his commitment and contribution to the community. Guy Laflamme, Vice President of Marketing and Communications, National Capital Commission (NCC), pioneered a change in direction for the NCC campaign. Under his guidance, the department focused on putting a face to its campaign, showing those who have received help and the difference it has made in their lives. Guy inspired many people to get involved in important causes, share their experiences with others, and be leaders at work and elsewhere. Guy also demonstrates this leadership with his students at the University of Ottawa’s Telfer School of Management and their “Making Niger our Business” campaign. With his help, students raised money, organized events and increased awareness for West Africa’s severe food crisis. Since 2005, more than $40,000 in cash, $500,000 in medical equipment and 10,000 kg of textbooks for schools have been raised.”
Read the complete news release [link no longer available]
Congratulations to Professor David Large, who was recognized with two Research Awards at the International Academy of Business and Public Administration Disciplines (IABPAD) fall conference which was held in Memphis, Tennessee from October 22 – 24, 2009.
In addition to these awards, Professor Large has also been nominated to the CMO Council Advisory Board.
Professor Large began his professional career in 1975 as an engineer, working with Bell Northern Research in project engineering, E.W. Manufacturing in industrial engineering and product management, and Esso Resources Canada in project engineering and business analysis. At the Telfer School of Management, where he has been since 1991, Professor Large teaches, researches and consults in the fields of Marketing, Technology Marketing, Technology Commercialization and Technology Entrepreneurship; and his work has been published in journals such as the Journal of Product Innovation Management, the Journal of Technology Transfer, the Ivey Business Journal, in several textbooks and international conference proceedings. His most recent article is forthcoming in Venture Capital: an International Journal of Entrepreneurial Finance.
The second instalment of the 2009-10 Alumni Breakfast Speaker Series took place on November 25, 2009. The Biotech themed breakfast was entitled “From Bench to Box - a genetic testing biotech start-up journey”.
Guest speaker James Pelot discussed the evolution of genetic testing over the last ten years from the perspective of a biotech start up, and how the "firming up" of business models and the understanding of the value chain in that period has created sustainable business opportunities.
The next installment of the Alumni Breakfast Speaker series will be held on February 4, 2010 and will feature guest speaker Karen Kinsley, CEO of CMHC, who was also named CEO of the year by the Ottawa Business Journal in October 2009.
The 10th edition of the “Symposium GRH” was held on the weekend of November 21 and 22, 2009 at Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières.
This interuniversity competition reunited students from 10 universities in Eastern Canada.
The goal of this competition is to measure the expertise, the skills and the knowledge of students in human resource management. This also ensures the development of tomorrow’s leaders.
The Telfer School of Management won the following trophies:
1st Place Overall standing
1st Place Negotiation Case
Jen Butson, Christian Dicks, Arron Dobson
1st Place Social
Valérie Doucet, Amanda Yarrow
2nd Place Human Resource Management Case
Megan Barwell, Caroline Chaudier, Brad Conlin
4th Place HR Quiz
Marie-France Faucher, Audrey Lamarche, Amélie Talbot
Blitz in Ottawa-Gatineau to promote awareness of education for young girls in Niger
November 18, 2009 – Ottawa - Once again, students of the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa are dedicating their efforts to help Niger. According to the latest report from the United Nations on the human development index, Niger is classified last in the world. This is the reason why many students, with the help of their Professor, Guy Laflamme, have assembled their business minded spirits to launch this important fundraising campaign.
Since the beginning of this project in 2005, impressive results have been reached: more than $40 000 in financial contributions and more than $500 000 in medical equipment has been gathered, thousands of dollars worth of broadcasting materials has been distributed to the Niger journalism school and over 10 000 kg of management books have been given to the University of Niger. All of these elements were assembled to assist in finding sustainable development solutions for Niger.
Once more this year, “Making Niger our Business” is in need of the public’s collaboration to assure the success of this campaign. Several fundraising activities will take place between November 23–29, 2009, in the most popular areas of the National Capital region. Further to this, the students have organised a visual campaign. Giant images will be projected onto buildings in the downtown core to encourage the public’s awareness.
This year, “Making Niger our Business” focuses on a new problem: the education of young girls. The percentage of young Nigerian girls that have access to education is only 20%, an eye opening statistic that alarms U of O students. Professor Guy Laflamme and his students have established an ambitious social marketing program that aims to increase the enrolment rate of young Nigerian girls.
As a part of their course based on experiential learning, students have established an online blog to initiate a dialogue with students of the University of Niger. This interaction between Canadians and Nigerians will allow them to refine the action plan that will be implemented following the fundraising campaign. Members of the public are also encouraged to submit their thoughts on the blog.
A new feature to this campaign: donations can now be made online and anyone who makes a contribution to this project will receive an official tax receipt from the University of Ottawa. Please consult the web addresses below for more information.
Under the supervision of Guy Laflamme, more than 50 students in his consumer behavior class at the Telfer School of Management are working to ensure the success of the fifth phase of the "Making Niger our Business" project. In addition to the contribution to Niger, this project seeks to provoke a social conscience and a sense of ethics within students who are the future of the business world.
The actual situation of Niger in numbers:
Annual income per capital, just over $200 dollars.
Life expectancy is 48 years old, only 42 years old for women.
Coverage for sanitation is capped at 32%
Access to drinkable water at 52% of the population
Enrolment rate of 34%.
Last rank worldwide according to the human development index.
For more information:
Web site: sites.telfer.uOttawa.ca/niger/ [This link is no longer available]
Louis Sirois
Student of the University of Ottawa
Tel: (613) 889-7795 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Guy Laflamme
University of Ottawa
Tel: (613) 862-8499 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Telfer MBAs in Hunt for Tata Cup at Case Competition
Ottawa, November 18, 2009 – Five teams of MBA students from some of Canada’s most prestigious business schools square off this coming weekend in a bid to win the national Tata Cup Sustainability Case Competition.
This year’s competition takes place in the Nation’s Capital at the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa on November 21, 2009.
Teams of graduate students are given an identical complex business situation and have three hours to construct a detailed solution which they present to a team of industry experts. A team of Telfer MBA students won the 2008 competition, held at the Schulich School of Business.
This year’s teams are:
Schulich School of Business (York University)
John Molson School of Business (Concordia University)
University of Alberta School of Business
Queen’s School of Business (Queen’s University)
Telfer School of Management (University of Ottawa)
“This competition has become a popular national event among business schools. It is in many ways symbolic of the emphasis all Tata companies place on sustainable business, and of the company's values of leading change, respect for individuals, integrity, excellence, and learning” said Mukesh Gupta, executive director of Tata Cup and director of strategic relations for Tata Consultancy Services. "We hope that the Tata Cup continues to grow in scope and stature as it has done over the last five years."
About Tata Consultancy Services
Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, business solutions and outsourcing organisation that delivers real results to global businesses, ensuring a level of certainty no other firm can match. TCS offers a consulting-led, integrated portfolio of IT and IT-enabled services delivered through its unique Global Network Delivery Model, recognized as the benchmark of excellence in software development. A part of the Tata Group, India’s largest industrial conglomerate, TCS has over 140,000 of the world's best trained IT consultants in 42 countries. The company generated consolidated revenues of US $6 billion for fiscal year ended 31 March 2009 and is listed on the National Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange in India.
About the Tata Cup
The Tata Cup is an annual business case competition for graduate students at universities and business schools across Canada. The competition is based around a case drawn from recent news events, and places a strong emphasis on both Canadian content and corporate sustainability. Sponsored by Tata Consultancy Services, the Cup is now in its fifth year. Initially focused in the Greater Toronto Area, in recent years participants have included teams from business schools right across Canada. This year's host institution, the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa, is the current holder of the Tata Cup.
For Information:
Shaun Markey This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Douglas Long This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. www.tcs.com
Telfer Students Go Global in Case Competition Featuring Mitel Unified Communications Solution
It’s one thing to compete against business students on your own turf but quite another when you’re part of a mixed team with colleagues from Singapore, France, India and Ireland, and doing it online via the Internet.
Congratulations to the winning teams [This link is no longer available]
“Ottawa business students get hands-on high-tech experience in international competition” [This link is no longer available]
That’s what students from the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa face when they enter the unique IP-enabled Mitel Virtual International Case Competition.
This 2nd annual virtual global case competition aims to simulate collaboration between international management students based on real world business cases. The competition, organized by the Telfer School’s Managers Without Borders student association, takes place November 26 to 29, 2009 and includes students from North America, Europe and Asia working together on intercultural teams. The participating universities are:
University College Cork (Cork, Ireland)
Singapore Management University (Singapore)
Euromed École de management, (Marseille, France)
SMOT Management Academy (Chennai, India)
Telfer School of Management (Ottawa, Canada)
The students will use a virtual collaboration environment to work together across time zones to conduct their research, collaborate and reach consensus within a limited timeframe.
“Today business is global and technology enables competition like never before. That’s what this competition is about”, said Micheál J. Kelly, Dean of the Telfer School. “We wanted to give our students a taste of that reality.”
Mitel Unified Communicator® (UC) Advanced software provides the students with a single point of access to all the communications and collaboration tools they need to connect with their team members across the world. UC Advanced enables the students to collaborate via audio and web conferencing, desktop video conferencing, secure instant messaging, and by softphone. The UC Advanced solution is deployed in a VMware virtualized server environment allowing students to access it with just a personal computer and high-speed internet.
“Mitel technology is used by companies around the world to communicate and collaborate seamlessly with employees, suppliers and customers regardless of where they are. The students in this competition will be using exactly the same tools. It’s a valuable real-world competition and we’re excited to have our technology at the core of it. May the best team win,” said Mitel CEO Don Smith.
Shaun Markey
Markey Communications This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
613-728-9951
Danielle McNeil
Manager of Public Relations
Mitel This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
613-592-2122 x4643
Website :
sites.telfer.uOttawa.ca/vicc [This link is no longer available]
“The City of Ottawa's policy on densifying the national capital region is working, at least if price differentials are any indication of success: a new three-bedroom townhome on Centrepointe Drive (located inside the Greenbelt in what used to be Nepean) sold recently for around $401,000.”
Read the complete article on the Ottawa Business Journal Website [This link is no longer available]
On November 17, 2009, the Telfer School of Management welcomed Alex Beraskow, Partner, IT/Net Ottawa Inc., (P.Eng., MBA 1980, CMC) as a CEO in Residence. He spoke to a class of 2nd year BCom students on the subject of “The IT Profession”.
His presentation focused on information about the role of the CIO as an executive, IT as an important business function in modern organizationsand the importance of MIS as a specialty.
During his visit to the Telfer School, Mr. Beraskow was also the guest speaker at the first installation of this year’s MBA Professional Development Lecture Series on the topic of “7 Habits of Effective IT Management”.
Congratulations to Telfer School Alumna, Karen Kinsley, who was honoured as CEO of the year by the Ottawa Business Journal, at a luncheon held on October 30, 2009.
Read the complete article on the Ottawa Business Journal website [This link is no longer available]
About Karen Kinsley
Ms. Kinsley joined CMHC in 1987 and has steadily advanced through the ranks. Her positions have included chief financial officer, treasurer and a vice-president for both corporate services and mortgage insurance securitization. And then, in 2003, she was appointed president – the first female president in CMHC's history. Before joining the crown corporation, she worked at two real estate development companies.
She holds a bachelor of commerce from the University of Ottawa and is a member of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants. She has also recently been elected a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario.
Ms. Kinsley is the first CEO of the Year award recipient from a crown corporation. Previous recipients have hailed from the technology, real estate and entertainment sectors.
"Excellence of Leadership and Legacy in Entrepreneurship"
The 12th annual ELLE Wine and Cheese, supported by Enterprise Rent-A-Car, was held on Tuesday, November 10, 2009.
At this prestigious event, both students and professionals had the opportunity to network with one another, and more importantly, celebrated the achievements of Canadian women professionals and their journey to success. The keynote speaker this year was Christine Taylor-Broughton, the Assistant Vice President of Enterprise Holdings.
The Asia Pacific Foundation’s 25@25 Contest will run until December 31, 2009. The contest asks young Canadians (18-35) to share their vision for Canada’s Future with Asia. With a $5,000 grand prize, 25@25 sets out to identify the 25 most important issues for Canada-Asia relations.
The morning of October 21, 2009 marked this year’s launch of the Alumni Breakfast Speaker Series. The Breakfast was themed “Ottawa Senators Business of Sport: Local Commerce with a Global Perspective”.
The keynote speaker was Cyril Leeder, President of Ottawa Senators Sports and Entertainment. Mr. Leeder spoke to several topics including how the Ottawa Senators business is almost entirely dependant on the Ottawa-Gatineau community for suppliers, employees and revenue. However, the Senators must play on a world stage and manage a number of global issues such as: Canadian foreign exchange risk, player scouting and development around the world, antitrust and collective bargaining.
Canada's Oceans: Research, Management and the Human Dimension
October 21 to October 24, 2009
The OMRN 2009 National Conference , as for past OMRN conferences, focuses on the management of our coasts and oceans by integrating research and policy, social science and natural science, and the human dimension into natural resource management. OMRN conference delegates represent a diverse gathering of researchers, managers, policymakers, students, NGOs, industry, consultants and others with an interest in our oceans.
Events open to the public:
Friday, October 23, 2009 – 9:00 a.m.
Presentation by Dr. Ron O’Dor
Canadian Geographic 2009 Environmental Scientist of the Year will deliver the 2009 Canada Ocean Lecture “The Transparent Ocean”
In his presentation he will talk about new technologies, demonstrated by the Census of Marine Life projects that have transformed the ocean from dark and mysterious to transparent and understandable.
The Eugène Tassé Entrepreneurial Culture Challenge is a competition during which Telfer School of Management students develop an action plan with the intention of attaining their personal and professional goals, as well as financial freedom. From the numerous interested students, 16 were chosen to participate in the 2008-2009 Challenge, the final were held on September 17th.
In the photo, we recognize Eugène Tassé (centre), sponsor of this Challenge, as well as the competition winners (from left to right), Émilie Paiement (1st place – $7500), Sam Uytterhaeghe (3rd place – $2000), Emmanuelle Villeneuve (2nd place – $3000) and Yanie Durocher (4th place). After one year of workshops, mentoring, presentations and serious effort, these four students were able to integrate entrepreneurial culture into their daily lives.
The Career Centre wishes to thank all the participating students as well as the mentors, workshop facilitators, judges, and Eugène Tassé for his generosity.
Managers Without Boarders and Telfer School of Management is proud to present the second annual 2009 Mitel Virtual International Case Competition (VICC).
VICC is an Inter-University case competition that incorporates universities from North America, Europe, Asia and Australia; and provides competitors with a strong sense of undertaking, pride, and accomplishment.
Each team consists of 6 students, 2 from the Telfer School of Management and 4 from universities around the globe. Apart from the Telfer School students, there is only one student per university per team permitted. The VICC will simulate an important international business meeting between people from around the world.
The students around the virtual table have a limited time to reach a decision and need to work together - across time zones - in order to submit a written case analysis and a final oral presentation; all interactions are made possible through electronic means with "soft phones", chats and emails.
As one of the only event of its kind, VICC aims to attract the best and brightest business students from around the world. Hosted by the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa, VICC received strong support from leading Canadian corporations.
VICC will be taking place this year from November 26, 2009 to November 29, 2009.
If you are interested in competing in this competition please submit your resume to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. by November 1, 2009.
For more information please visit our website at: vicc.telfer.uOttawa.ca [This link is no longer available]
The Telfer School would like to congratulate undergraduate student Meghan Kelly who has been selected to receive the Futures Fund Scholarship for Outstanding Leadership.
Meghan is a 4th year students who is actively involved in many academic and social initiatives at the Telfer School. Meghan was the president of CASCO in 2008 and is a current member of the Marketing Case Competition team that will be competing at the 2010 Jeux du commerce. As well, Meghan is a peer mentor and a Teaching Assistant. In 2008, Meghan was awarded the Canadian Millennium Foundation Excellence Award in recognition of the positive contribution that she has made to the betterment of her community as well as for her demonstrated leadership.
About the Futures Fund Scholarship:
Canada's Outstanding CEO of the Year™ established the Futures Fund Scholarship for Outstanding Leadership to honour and mentor ten young Canadian university business students each year who have demonstrated exemplary leadership in their academic and extra-curricular initiatives.
The award program provides ten exceptional and deserving students with $5,000 grants to further their educational ambitions. In addition, recipients will travel to the Awards Gala in November to be presented with their scholarship.
Ten new schools are chosen each summer to receive the scholarships. Recipients are selected by their school's Dean's office based on their achievements and demonstrated leadership initiatives in their academic and extracurricular activities. Full-time graduate and undergraduate students in business degree programs are eligible.
Ottawa, ON: James Bowen co-founded a technology company when he was 21 years of age. He had little guidance or mentorship to draw upon. In those days technology companies were a relatively new phenomenon and advice for start-ups wasn't readily available.
Years later, now the owner of a successful software services firm and an adjunct Professor at the Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa, Dr. Bowen has drawn on those early experiences and authored a book to help entrepreneurs.
Dr. Bowen’s book, The Entrepreneurial Effect, is a collection of articles by prominent Ottawa area technology entrepreneurs. With a Forward contributed by Terry Matthews, the list of contributors reads like a who’s who of the industry. Topics include “Getting the Financing Right", "Leading in Different Environments" and "Launching products into the US market"
This book is an attempt to capture the thoughts on different aspects of entrepreneurship of some of Ottawa’s brightest entrepreneurs and make them available to individuals contemplating a technology start up. There was nothing like this available when I started out. I am hoping to fill that void, at least partially”, Dr. Bowen said.
The Entrepreneurial Effect can be ordered on line from http://www.commonerspublishing.com/ Proceeds from the sale of the book will go to support student technology entrepreneurship.
About the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa
The Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa is uniquely positioned to link with and learn from Canada’s leaders.
With some 3,600 students, 200 full- and part-time faculty and 20,000 alumni, the Telfer School of Management is a diverse and vibrant environment in which students, faculty, researchers and alumni can forge rewarding lifelong relationships. The Telfer School of Management is located in the new Desmarais Building—an impressive 12-storey structure that features a variety of cutting-edge facilities.
Our distinctive programs include: Bachelor of Commerce, MBA, MHA, Executive MBA and MSc programs. The Telfer School of Management is accredited by AACSB and AMBA, ranking us among the best business schools worldwide.
Located in the heart of Canada’s capital and offering a broad range of outstanding research and teaching programs in both of our country’s official languages, the University of Ottawa is Canada’s university.
For Information:
James Bowen This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
613-837-0952
Giving to the United Way? Did you know you can designate your United Way donation to support your alma mater?
Dear Alumni,
Many of you will soon be approached as part of workplace-driven United Way Campaigns. This well respected and long established community support initiative is applauded and supported by the Telfer School of Management. If you would like to participate and know that your gift will impact the quality of life of students, simply designate “University of Ottawa-Telfer School of Management Scholarships” as your selection and reference our Charitable Registration Number
11927 8877 RR0001. If you would like to donate directly to the School, and avoid the United Way’s administration fee, please click on the following link
*Please note that should you donate through the United Way, an administration fee will apply and that the University will not be notified of donor names.
Thanks for supporting much needed scholarships at the Telfer School!
Canada's Outstanding CEO of the Year™ established the Futures Fund Scholarship for Outstanding Leadership to honour and mentor ten young Canadian university business students each year who have demonstrated exemplary leadership in their academic and extra-curricular initiatives.
This year, we are delighted that the Telfer School of Management has been chosen to select a student to receive a scholarship grant of 5,000 dollars. The recipient must be a Canadian citizen and must be registered on a full-time basis as an undergraduate or graduate student in a business degree program who has demonstrated exemplary leadership in both academic pursuits and extracurricular initiatives.
Interested students should apply directly to the Student Services Center by sending by email their résumé and a letter explaining why they feel they deserve this grant and what their leadership qualities and initiatives are to Mrs. Sylvie Séguin-Jak, Associate Director, Student Services Centre (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) before 4:00 PM on Monday, September 28, 2009.
The recipient will receive:
$5,000 in scholarship funds;
An invitation to Canada’s Outstanding CEO of the Year Award Gala Dinner in November –Location to be confirmed (out of town students will have transportation provided). Last year, the Gala was held in Calgary.
Recognition in the National Post and on their website.
Only students who are interested in attending the Gala in November should apply.
The Research Office is thrilled to inform you that all four MSc students who applied to the Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarships Program administered by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) received their awards!
The SSHRC Master’s awards consist on $17,500 and are intended to provide special recognition and support to students who are pursuing graduate studies in a social sciences and humanities-related field in Canada.
One million trained contractors needed to retrofit existing housing units in Canada for energy efficiency – report.
September 3, 2009, Ottawa, ON: A report released today on environmental sustainability in Canada defines a new leadership role for the Federal Government. By paying closer attention to the environmental impact of its own operations, the report says the federal government is in the best position to demonstrate the leadership required to begin the transition to environmental sustainability on a broader social front.
On Aug 4, 2009, eHealth Ontario's board of directors announced the appointment of Robert Devitt as the new interim President and Chief Executive Officer.
Mr. Devitt has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Toronto East General Hospital since January 2004 and will continue in this role one day per week. Previously, Mr. Devitt has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Peterborough Regional Health Centre and the Queensway-Carleton Hospital in Nepean, Ontario.
In 2006, the Telfer School of Management, in collaboration with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), created an internship program for second year students to help them gain work experience in the fields of program auditing and evaluation while completing their Bachelor of Commerce degree.
Successful candidates not only have the chance to gain valuable experience, but also may have the opportunity to begin a full-time career with the DFO in the Audit and Evaluation Directorate once they have completed the program.
Over the last three years, interns have been invited to attend an educational field trip organised by Mr. Robert Hamilton, Chief Audit Executive, and his team, aiming to further familiarize students with the DFO and its activities. This year, five interns had the opportunity to travel to the Central and Arctic Region. They visited the Freshwater Institute’s scientific laboratory in Winnipeg and were able to learn more about the numerous DFO programs such as the aquaculture, aquatic species, and ecosystem programs, as well as other various research projects currently in the works. Moreover, they toured the Red River aboard the Vakta, a Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) boat, where they observed work being done in Fish Habitat Management and learned more about the role played by the CCG. Students also visited two ports, one in Lockport and the other in Gimli, both located on Lake Winnipeg.
This three-day trip was certainly a very valuable experience and gave students the opportunity to get to know the various roles and mandates of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
Four remarkable alumni were recognized for their outstanding contributions to the world of business, the community and their alma mater at the 2009 Telfer School of Management Alumni Association Gala of Excellence. The gala was held at the Ottawa Marriot Hotel on September 26, 2009, during the University of Ottawa’s Homecoming celebrations.
The Trudeau Medal
Established in 1989 in honour of Reverend Father Roland Trudeau, OMI, former director of the University's Commerce department from 1950 to 1965, the Trudeau Medal is the highest honour given by the Telfer School of Management to its alumni.
The 2009 recipients are:
Mark Cullen, BAdm 1963
Director, British Columbia Ferry Services Inc.
Jean Desgagné, BCom 1986
Senior Vice President, Trading Risk Services, TD Bank Financial Group.
Young Achiever Award
The Young Achiever's award was created to honour the individuals (under 40) who have been able to achieve greatness in their lives within an exceptional period of time.
The recipient this year is:
Emmanuel Florakas, BCom 1995, IMBA 1997
Co-Founder, President and CFO of Lixar I.T. Inc.
The Dean's Philos Award
The Dean’s Philos Award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding philanthropic achievement and social commitment.
The recipient this year is:
Mimi Lowi-Young, MHA 1981, Certificate in Business Administration 1988
Chief Executive Officer, Local Health Integration Network
A Senior manager in Associations and Public Corporations for 30 years at all levels Dean has been a leader in developing marketing, partnership and communication programs for “profit” and “not for profit” enterprises. In addition as a consultant Dean has assisted Not For Profit Organizations develop strategic plans and appropriate governance models to meet their objectives.
Currently Dean is the Executive Director of the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) Ottawa, an association for commercial Real Estate representing 60 million square feet of space and the interests of some of Ottawa’s most prominent business people. Dean is responsible for managing BOMA’s Networking, Professional Development and Industry programs including the BOMA Building Environmental STandards (BEST) program for the Ottawa area, a leading Building Sustainability program for Commercial Real Estate, with over 100 buildings certified.
Both Dean and his wife Kathy’s families have a history of community service having been involved for many years in charitable projects in Ottawa and beyond.
When still a student at the University of Ottawa Business School Dean became involved in the Big Brothers program and at the same time began a long involvement with the Hellenic Community of Ottawa. It is from his Greek heritage that he found opportunities to be part of a larger “team effort” becoming an active participant in the evolution of the Hellenic Community to now include the needs of second and third generation Greeks in its mandate.
It is within the structure of the Hellenic Community of Ottawa that Dean was able to play a role in raising money for not only the cultural and religious programs of the Greek Community, but for Ottawa Heart Institute, Parkinson Disease, Kidney Research and many others. In 2009 he was recognized for his contributions within Hellenic Community and for playing a major role in raising over $1,000,000.
Along with the many local causes that Dean and his family participate in, particularly in support of their daughter Joanne’s interests, he has been a Senior volunteer with the Lung Association of Ottawa-Carleton becoming their President in 1994, the provincial Ontario Lung Association where he has just concluded his term as Chairman of the Board, and the national Canadian Lung Association where he was appointed to the Board in June of 2010.
The Ontario Lung Association is among Canada’s longest standing, most respected not-for-profit health promotion organizations in Canada being a leader in the prevention and control of chronic lung disease, asthma, tobacco cessation and prevention, and air quality and its effects on lung health. The Ontario Lung association provides education and support to people living with lung disease in Ontario and has invested more than $27 million into lung health research carried out in Ontario.
These are exciting times in the health sector and at the Telfer School of Management. The MSc in Health Systems program is creating opportunities for students to make their marks and lead transformation.
Saunya Dover is a second year graduate student in Health Systems. She is one of seven students who have been admitted to this new program and who share a strong passion for research in health systems.
Saunya is working with researchers from the Ottawa Health Research Institute to determine why patients choose to visit the emergency room with non-urgent medical conditions. This research will help better understand a complex and systemic problem of emergency room overcrowding.
“I have always been interested in hospital emergency departments – everything from how they manage the huge volume of incoming patients to their strategies to ensure patients receive the best possible medical care. The MHS program was a perfect opportunity for me to build on my interests, combine them with knowledge acquired through course work and interactions with professors, and develop a customized research thesis that I love working on."
The MSc in Health Systems program is proud of its excellent students and is proud to help them acquire knowledge that they will use to make a difference in the Canadian health system.
If you want to make a difference, want to be a leader in the Healthcare world, or, have the passion and drive to use research to strengthen our current health systems, then the MSc in Health Systems program is for you.
This program will prepare you to become a member of this country’s next generation of leading health researchers – helping health-care practitioners, and managers achieve better patient outcomes, reduce costs and improve the quality of health-care services.
Applications for the 2009-2010 program are still being accepted. Apply today!
Visit www.telfer.uOttawa.ca/msc for more information or e-mail us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
By Karen Kavanagh, Lori Keith and Lynda Taller-Wakter, Telfer EMBA participants
The trip’s purpose was to expose the future University of Ottawa Telfer School of Management Executive MBA graduating class of 2010 to innovation and entrepreneurship experiences in the Silicon Valley – and the week did not disappoint!
In the early hours of Saturday, May 2nd our class left Ottawa excited for the trip ahead. After arriving in Silicon Valley around midday local time, we drove to the Hilton San Jose to check-in and freshen up, and were off right away for a tour of one of the region’s famed independently owned wineries. Our destination was the Savannah-Chanelle Vineyards, which is nestled in the redwood forests of the Santa Cruz Mountains. A relaxing and rambling tour of the vineyard followed – paired with wonderful wines, spectacular views, and witty comments by our guide.
Early Sunday we found ourselves back to school! In preparation for the week ahead, we discussed The Silicon Valley Edge; a collection of chapters written by several eminent technology leaders of the time. Each team profiled one aspect that makes Silicon Valley unique; be it flexible and responsive business models or serendipity vs. strategy. These discussions set the tone for what was to become a theme of this trip – for innovation, there’s no place like Silicon Valley.
On Monday, we visited the San Jose BioCenter – an impressive facility that houses 30+ biotech and life sciences companies at early stages of growth. It includes separate suites for each company as well as 3 million dollars worth of common equipment shared by the occupants – and aims to give emerging companies a big company advantage. This unique business approach is one of the reasons it received 2009’s Randall M. Whaley Incubator of the Year Award, presented by the U.S.-based National Business Incubation Association.
Next, we were off to Stanford University, which truly is an incubator in itself as past students founded many of the most successful companies in the region. We had the honour of having William F. Miller, one of the co-writers of The Silicon Valley Edge, speak to us about the unique entrepreneurial and cooperative spirit of the region. This octogenarian legend believes that the strength of Silicon Valley is in turning technology into business and his inspirational talk truly prepped us for the hectic days ahead.
The first stop on Tuesday was a visit to the U.S. Market Access Center, followed by lunch and presentations at the IBM Almaden Research Center. The message? Innovation isn’t always about new ideas, but about refining or redefining existing ideas. That it takes creativity to foster innovation, and that incubators are excellent places to hatch both.
Meanwhile, at the quintessential San Francisco ‘mobile office’ (the coffee shop), we met with the President of Relevant Mind to discuss the inner workings of social marketing firms. Client engagement, segmentation, networks, geo-targeting, channel mix - now part of our vocabulary. Another meeting - L’Atelier, part of the BNP Paribas group - provocatively asked if Obama had reinvented branding. Comments?
Finally, we were honoured to visit with local and visiting University of Ottawa alumni - notably the President, Allan Rock, at an evening alumni event. Although weary, we were energized by the networking and excited about the opportunities.
Wednesday was Cisco day! After eight presentations in six hours it became evident that culture, or the way they do things around Cisco, is a key competitive strength that stems from strict adherence to their leadership philosophy CLEAD: Collaborate, Learn, Execute, Accelerate, Disrupt.
Cisco is a leader in acquiring companies. Cisco also acquires ideas and world-class management principle. For example, their strategic goal in an acquisition is to be #1 or #2 in that market. Didn’t Jack Welch preach the same mantra at GE? Their supply chain strategy is based on the SCORE model and their objective is to deliver the best end-to-end customer experience. Sound like Disney’s guest experience?
Visit www.cisco.com/newways to experience their latest thinking.
Our last official stop of the week was at IDEO (www.ideo.com), a human-centered design firm. Design Thinking, the IDEO philosophy, is a leading innovative philosophy in strategic marketing advantage.
Did you ever consider how the Palm V got its design? IDEO.
Or how Listerine became edible strips? IDEO.
Visited an emergency room lately, lying helpless on a gurney, staring at a ceiling for an hour? IDEO is in the midst of recreating the humanless patient experience for a hospital.
We were promised exposure to innovative organizations, to learn more about the history of the Valley, and to discover emerging technologies. Our trip proved to be successful as we experienced the region’s unique and dynamic business culture first hand – and the class as a whole is now looking forward to bringing what they have learned back to their own organizations. The trip is definitely not over for us!
This article discusses the University of Ottawa's Telfer School of Management Executive MBA class trip to the Silicon Valley. The trip is part of the EMBA curriculum on "Innovation and Entrepreneurship," which includes a consulting project and holding meetings with Valley firms on behalf of client organizations, as well as special events and discussions at key Valley innovation centres, such as the San Jose BioCenter, US Market Access Centre, IBM Almaden Research Center, Cisco and Stanford University.
Karen Kavanagh, Lori Keith and Lynda Taller-Wakter are EMBA participants.
Congratulations to Jennifer Hunt (M.H.A. program), who was awarded the Robert Wood Johnson award. The award was established in 1956 by Johnson & Johnson and it is presented on a yearly basis to six students. One student from each of the six Canadian universities that offer graduate programs in health services administration, they are nominated for the valuable contribution that will make in the area of health management.
Jennifer C. Hunt, B.A. (Highest Hons.), M.A., M.H.A. (University of Ottawa)
Ms. Hunt has a B.A. (Highest Hons.) and M.A. in Psychology (Carleton University), and an M.H.A. from the Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa. In 2002, Jennifer began her healthcare career in the field of mental health research and evaluation at The Ottawa Hospital. She is currently working as a Program Analyst at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute where she is responsible for Performance Measurement and provides operational support for the VP Clinical Services. Jennifer is also a Clinical Investigator with the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and serves as a co-consultant to the Champlain LHIN on residential drug addiction treatment planning for youth. In the interest of continuing education and professional development, Jennifer is pursuing her CHE designation and is an active member of the Emerging Health Leaders in Ottawa. In the years ahead, Jennifer will strive to create positive change and improvement within our healthcare system.
Professor Dan Lane, in collaboration with Professor Patrick Watson of the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, received a $2 million grant from the International Community-University Research Alliance (ICURA) program, a joint funding initiative of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).
The effects of global climate change are increasingly visible. Rising temperatures are melting polar ice and, together with the thermal expansion of oceans, contribute to rising sea levels. Professor Lane's project entitled Managing Adaptation to Coastal Environmental Change: Canada and the Caribbean will focus on vulnerable coastal communities whose livelihoods will be most affected by these changes. The selected communities are located in the Caribbean and in Canada's Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic regions. Within these regions, particular attention is given to the impact of rising sea-levels and storm surges. The research teams aim to build the capacity of local communities to face the inevitable consequences of climate changes and will develop community awareness of the environmental threat, proposals for new infrastructure and tools for creating adaptation and mitigation strategies.
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Mr. Eugène Tassé, graduate of the 1944 business class, has been an active supporter of the Telfer School of Management, as well as a prominent leader in the business community. Mr. Tassé was a recipient of the Trudeau Medal in 1989, as well as the Dean's Philos Award in 2004 for his philanthropy and outstanding civic involvement. His generous contributions to the Telfer School have been used to promote Entrepreneurial Culture. Mr. Tassé was presented with an honorary doctorate during the Telfer School of Management spring convocation, held on Sunday, June 14, 2009 at 9:30 a.m.
Entrepreneurial Culture is the art of developing autonomy, knowledge and leadership as an individual, within an organization and within a community. It is the discipline and motivation to adopt new habits to reach success and financial freedom. The concept of Entrepreneurial Culture is not new but it is often mistaken with entrepreneurship. However, Entrepreneurial Culture is more than just entrepreneurship; it is a way of life that can be adopted by anyone and is not limited to the business world.
It is based on this philanthropic personal philosophy that Mr. Tassé decided to share his knowledge with new generations of potential leaders through the Entrepreneurial Culture Challenge.
The Entrepreneurial Culture Challenge (ECC) is a one year competition through which Telfer School of Management students create and implement an action plan to develop the culture of success from Eugène Tassé. This culture of success or "entrepreneurial culture”, helped Eugène Tassé become one of the region's most successful entrepreneurs.
Originally from Bourget, Ontario, Mr. Tassé is one of the most successful entrepreneurs of the Ottawa region. A self-made businessman, Mr. Tassé is the proud owner of Les Immeubles E. Tassé, a booming real estate business enterprise.
Click here to see the complete list of Honorary Doctorate Recipients [This link is no longer available]
Twenty one MBA students from American universities, including Harvard, Yale, Rice, Cornell, and Sloan as well as three students from Mexico are in Ottawa from May 31 to June 5 for an intensive week long briefing on business relations between Canada, the United States and Mexico.
The Canadian Leadership Orientation Program for MBA students from the US and Mexico is hosted by the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa and divided between Ottawa and Montreal where participants are given presentations from leading Canadian business, government and national associations.
"The Canada US trade relationship is the largest in the world and will impact the professional careers of these business graduates. Any aspiring business professional should have an understanding of North American business market structures and overall political and trade relations. They come away from this program with knowledge that will make them better business persons", said Micheál Kelly, Dean of the University of Ottawa's Telfer School of Management and one of the founders of the program.
2009 marked the fifth year for the program, which began on an experimental basis in 2005. To ensure that the program continues to deliver a rich and unique learning experience, the program has capacity of 24 participants who gain entry by invitation only.
Dean Kelly who was instrumental in founding the program says the smaller group allows for terrific interaction and enhanced learning. "This is a special program and something these business graduates will remember for a long time. We believe it will help shape their careers."
The founding program partners, the University of Ottawa, The Association for Canadian Studies in the US and HEC Montréal - created the initiative to familiarize the next generation business leaders of America and Mexico with Canada.
The Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa is pleased to announce the appointment of Jim Roche, President and CEO of Stratford Managers Corporation, as an Executive-in-Residence focusing on innovation, entrepreneurship and the management of growth enterprises.
"His vast experience and proven leadership will be invaluable to our students and programs", said Micheál J. Kelly, Dean of the Telfer School of Management. "Jim joins an impressive group of executives that is working with our students and faculty."
Mr. Roche will have meaningful interactions with our graduate students, by guest lecturing in MBA and EMBA courses and supervising MBA and EMBA business consulting projects.
His responsibilities will also include developing executive education initiatives and providing leadership regarding issues, trends and implications for teaching and research in the field of management of growth enterprises.
"It is an honour to be given this appointment", said Jim Roche. "I am looking forward to working with Dean Kelly and his team to further strengthen the Telfer School's focus on entrepreneurship and innovation."
Jim Roche founded Stratford Managers in 2006 to help businesses increase shareholder value by identifying growth opportunities and helping management capitalize on them. Stratford, staffed by highly experienced executives, focuses on fast-growing businesses in high technology, clean technology, service delivery and manufacturing.
Prior to starting Stratford, Mr. Roche was President & CEO of Tundra Semiconductor, a company he co-founded in 1995. Under his leadership, the company grew to over 300 employees with operations around the world, revenues of over $80M per annum and a public market value of over $300M.
The Executives-in-Residence program at the Telfer School of Management exemplifies its Linked with Leadership brand. These individuals provide our students with access to valuable insight into current affairs and expose them to their real life business experiences in various fields of business including International Business, Health Care, Politics, High Tech, Finance, Entrepreneurship and Law.
Eight graduate students with deep interest in Science and Technology (S&T) policy were chosen to participate in the Bromley Memorial Lecture series and events held in Washington DC. This interdisciplinary lecture series and events are made possible thanks to a collaborative effort between George Washington University (GWU) and the University of Ottawa.
The co-host, Dr. Jonathan Linton and a member of the selection committee, Dr. Scott Findlay joined the students in Washington for this event designed to provide graduate students from all faculties an opportunity to enrich their research experience by networking with members of the S&T policy community. While the schedule was packed, the students were able to make some time to enjoy various parts of the city between some of the events.
The Bromley event began with a meeting with the Assistant Director for Federal R&D at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). Kei Koizumi spoke of the challenges facing the new administration. Some of these include the need to introduce members of the OSTP with some of the government's mechanisms given that the OSTP has no "layer" of civil service workers. He also discussed the inherent difficulties in evaluating S&T policies since the metrics often used to gauge the efficacy of policies are based on models that do not accurately capture the reality of S&T activities (e.g., the linear model of innovation).
For the keynote lecture, the former Cabinet-level Director of the OSTP, John Marburger, introduced one of the projects that he championed during the Bush administration called the Science of Science Policy (SoSP).
This new paradigm advises policy makers in basing their decisions on a framework of measurable and quantifiable outcomes while shaping the nation's S&T policy environment. "Policies should be viewed as hypotheses" and further, "failing policies should have mechanisms to be easily cancelled" he urged. Marburger candidly recounted that the biggest flaw with S&T policy during the Bush administration was related to the poor management of STEM education (pun most likely unintentional). America, he says, needs to set high standards when training future generations of highly qualified and scientifically literate citizens.
During the following two days, we attended the American Association for the Advancement of Science's (AAAS) annual forum on S&T policy. At this forum, we met privately with John Holdren, the current Cabinet-level Director of the OSTP, who discussed the Obama administration's vision for promoting S&T. Holdren describes Obama as decidedly excited about current scientific discoveries and feats of engineering; further stating that Obama is a president "who deeply grasps the importance of S&T to our national goals." Additionally, we heard talks from many notable figures in the S&T policy community including the US Secretary of Energy Steven Chu and the Canadian Minister of State for S&T, Gary Goodyear.
According to Professor Vonortas of GWU, the mere signaling that S&T is of great importance constitutes the single most important contribution that a president can make in terms of S&T policy. It follows then that the US is poised to make great strides in increasing our collective store of scientific knowledge and capitalizing on innovations made possible by this new knowledge.
As part of the global management module of the University of Ottawa’s Telfer Executive MBA curriculum, 2nd year EMBA candidates undertake a major consulting project that culminates at a foreign business destination during the International Consulting Project and Trip. This year, the Telfer EMBA class travelled to Santiago, Chile, from April 18 to 25, 2009.
Telfer Executive MBA Teams Open Doors in South America
By Jami Manion, Program Manager (Telfer Executive MBA, University of Ottawa)
Although one week in Santiago, Chile may sound like the ideal getaway to most, for five teams of second year Executive MBA students it was about establishing business relationships for five Canadian companies. Ranging from hydro-electric to clean-tech, education to cosmetics each team held a great potential of generating future deals for these companies.
With borders becoming increasingly invisible in this global market, the Telfer Executive MBA program at the University of Ottawa moves students out of the classroom to discover first-hand the experience of taking Canadian companies global.
The process begins with each team identifying a company with an interest in the target country. The students then become consultants for four months in order to explore the opportunities the company faces in that market. The course concludes in a one week trip to the region for final research. These students are not all consultants by trade, but for this course they set what they have learned over the past twenty months into practice.
Departing from Ottawa, many students expressed concerns over how they were going to fill their time abroad, as many had meetings planned early in the week but little scheduled for later on- “We are going to be finished by Wednesday,” they joked.
In Santiago, their perspective changed. The first meetings of the week were highly engaging and the students began to see their projects unfold.
“You could see the pieces of the puzzle coming together. All of a sudden one meeting was opening the door to yet another one; information we were unable to find earlier all of a sudden came to light once we were face-to-face,” remarked Alejandro Osorio, an EMBA student representing Norcan Hydraulic Turbine Inc.
Suddenly the momentum and enthusiasm took over the San Cristobal Hotel. Excited groups met with their supervisors and clients every evening to debrief about the progress of the day. Each meeting progressively provided them with additional options, insightful information and tremendous opportunities.
One team, who flew to Santiago with the goal of creating relationships, ended the week knowing they could make deals for their company.
After impressing selected company members, another team was invited to come back to the Chilean company’s board meeting later in the week to present their product. The same team was also invited to a trade show in June.
A third team, with three executive representatives from the company present on the trip, hoped to generate five client relationships over the week. The team exceeded their goals with an outstanding result of fourteen client relationships and six business relationships with such organizations as Export Development Canada, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, and Trade Chile.
“Most companies do not take the time to do this deep of an analysis of the country and its potential respective to their company- we did this. Now, we not only understand the high potential but that we may actually encounter a capacity issue with bringing in so much business,” commented Robin Coates, EMBA Student.
Prior to leaving for Santiago, the students had some concerns about their success in establishing contacts. They were faced with a business culture and language different from Canada.
The teams quickly understood the importance of utilizing translating services as well as adapting to the business culture in Chile, which values relationship building and face-to-face meetings. Throughout the four months prior to departure, guest speakers highlighted this fact and also stressed that a relationship would not be built in a week; the companies should consider planning a second trip to Chile to secure deals.
As the week came to a close, many groups were busy completing their reports. They returned home with valuable information for their clients and great advice for next year’s Telfer Executive MBA class, who are destined for China.
University showcases Ocean Management Research Network Peter Thornton
The University recently hosted an annual exchange between the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and the New Opportunities for Research Funding Cooperation in Europe (NORFACE), a network of research councils that promotes co-operation in research and research policy in Europe.
Dr. Samia Chreim, Telfer School of Management, with team members Ann Langley, HEC Montréal, and Patricia Reay, University of Alberta, will attempt to provide an answer to this question through a $140,850 grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) for their project entitled The Dynamics of Interprofessional Collaboration: Bridging between Macro and Micro Levels of Analysis.
In Canada and abroad, members of a variety of disciplines such as health care, social work, engineering, and education are being called upon to cross professional boundaries and to collaborate with each other. This movement towards interprofessional collaboration (lPC) involves adopting integrative approaches and solutions, and is most evident in the health care field where members of different professional or occupational groups such as physicians, nurses, physiotherapists, social workers share their knowledge and engage in joint decision-making to improve service provision.
With a special emphasis on the health care field, Dr. Chreim’s project seeks to understand the obstacles that stand in the way of such collaboration and to consider how successful interprofessional collaboration (IPC) can be realized. Dr. Chreim’s research will prove to be highly useful to government bodies that are engaged in setting policy, to educational institutions that play a major role in devising interprofessional programs and in socializing health care workers, as well as to professional associations that are engaged in setting professional boundaries and codes of conduct for their members. Additionally, it will also provide significant insights to managers and to professionals themselves on the organizational contexts, leadership dynamics and other factors that foster the successful practice of IPC.
Dr. Craig Kuziemsky,Telfer School of Management, received a $115,000 grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada .(NSERC) through the Discovery Grants Competition for his project A Methodological Approach for Modeling Interdisciplinary Teams.
Interdisciplinary teams are required to make complex decisions that require the integration of different processes and information sources. Healthcare is an excellent domain to study the behaviour of interdisciplinary teams as the provision of modern health services involves members of multiple professional groups, with different knowledge levels and often residing in different physical locations.
The overall objective of this research program is to develop a novel methodological approach for integrating the diverse information flows and work processes of interdisciplinary teams. This research focuses on healthcare but it is applicable to other domains.{mosimage}
Dr. Silvia Bonaccio, Telfer School of Management, with collaborator Charlie Reeve, Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, received a $63,898 grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) through the Standard Research Grants program for her project entitled Investigating Test Anxiety, a Source of Psychometric Bias in Aptitude Tests.
The use of aptitude tests is common in both educational and employment settings due to their capability to predict important outcomes such as scholastic achievement and job performance. However, the finding that test scores are often negatively related to self-reported test anxiety continues to fuel concerns that these could be biased against some test takers.
Dr. Bonaccio’s project will examine test anxiety where academic and work performance outcomes are the criteria. This research will contribute significantly to the evaluation of aptitude tests to ensure their fair and unbiased use in organizational and educational contexts, and it has the potential to inform the current debate of whether test anxiety puts test takers at a significant disadvantage relative to non-anxious applicants, and, if so, whether test administrators should provide reasonable accommodations to anxious test takers.
This is the first in a series this week on the University of Ottawa's Telfer School of Management Executive MBA class trip to Silicon Valley. The trip is part of the EMBA curriculum on "Innovation and Entrepreneurship."
Karen Kavanagh, Lori Keith and Lynda Taller-Wakter are EMBA participants and will write daily updates this week on their experiences and lessons learned in the Valley.
Looking to get involved with one of the most prestigious events at the Telfer School of Management? Looking to experience what many past students have described as "the best weekend" of their lives? Want to earn 6 ADM credits while doing it?
Come try out for an Academic team for 2010’s Jeux du commerce (JDC)! This bilingual inter-university business competition takes place the second weekend of January 2010, and consists of Social, Sport, and Academic competitions. As a member of an Academic team, you will have three hours to prepare a case in a team of three, and 20-minutes for a presentation in front of judges.
There are multiple academic cases to choose from: Human Resources, International Business, Finance, Management of Information Systems, Accounting, Tax, Strategy, Entrepreneurship, Debate, Marketing, Stock Market Simulation, and Business Ethics.
By doing an Academic case, you are eligible to take ADM 4998 (Directed Reading) and ADM 3993 (Business Case Preparation). If you have not already done so, you will need to take ADM 3993 in order to receive ADM 4998 (in which case you will receive 6 credits). Both classes will prepare you for the competition and count towards your degree as ADM electives. Please note that in order to take the credits for these classes you must have completed your core classes for 1st and 2nd year.
Interested? To apply, fill out the application form and print off a copy of your resume and transcript (this can be found on Rabaska). Place all three documents in a sealed envelope and bring to the Jeux du commerce office (DMS 2105J) or to the InfoDesk on the first floor of the Desmarais Building. ***ALL APPLICATIONS ARE DUE BY APRIL 10, 2009 AT 6PM***. Please note that a separate envelope must be submitted for each case to which you apply. The academic tryouts will take place from April 14 to April 30.
Find out more information by logging on to www.jdctelfer.ca [This link is no longer available] , or by e-mailing the VP Academic, Jasmina Charbonneau, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The Telfer School of Management Career Centre celebrated its accomplishments for the 2008-2009 academic year with an awards ceremony on March 24, 2009. With over 2,000 partners, the Centre is a leading organization dedicated to creating employment opportunities, enhancing student value, and facilitating employers’ recruitment process.
We would like to thank all of the employers, students, and alumni who have contributed to our success. Most notable are those companies that participated in on‑campus recruitment and the individuals who facilitated Career Development workshops in 2008-2009.
Our deepest thanks go to the following business leaders, all of whom were honoured for their outstanding contributions at the ceremony:
Chris Benjamin, Senior Associate Manager, Sun Life Financial Alexandra Chunga, Associate Recruitment Advisor, EDC Denis Conway, Branch Manager, RBC Allison Cross, Recruiting Supervisor, Enterprise Rent-A-Car Stephen Daze, Executive Director, OCRI Entrepreneurship Centre Rocco Scarfone, Branch Manager, RBC Vanessa Wilkin, Group Recruiting Supervisor, Enterprise Rent-A-Car
These individuals have implemented recruitment and professional development programs, facilitated workshops, and shared their knowledge and experiences with our students. A large part of our progress and growth is due to these influential leaders.
We look forward to building on these successes and to continuing our partnership with you in 2009-2010.
For more information, please visit our website at www.telfer.uOttawa.ca/careercentre or email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The University of Ottawa would like to congratulate the delegation of 35 students from the Telfer School of Management that represented us at 2009 Happening Marketing competition. This event was hosted by HEC Montréal from March 27-29, 2009. This is the second year in a row that the Telfer School has finished in the top 3.
The Telfer School won the following trophies:
1st place - Integrated Marketing Communications Case (Jasmina Charbonneau, Amanda Gorchinski, Bilal Rasheed)
1st place– Sports (Christopher Beaudoin, Mylène Gauthier, Alicia Kehoe, Isabelle Moo-Sang, Léon Forest-Nault, Natalie Saumure, Christopher Sisto, Michael Sutcliffe)
Congratulations to Carolynn Lacasse and her executive committee (Christopher Beaudoin, Jasmina Charbonneau, Jade St-Laurent) for organizing the Telfer School’s Happening Marketing Team.
Happening Marketing is an inter-university competition which gathers nearly 500 students from over 11 universities in Eastern Canada. This competition is also the second largest overseen by REFAEC, after the Jeux du Commerce.
Since 1991, students have had the opportunity to meet at this gathering and test their knowledge, skills, creativity and school spirit. Participants measure up against their peers from other universities in academic cases, as well as sport and social activities.
The recipients of the 2009 Ottawa Business Journal’s Top Forty Under 40 award have been announced. The recipients of this award have been nominated by their peers and other members of the community. They are recognized for their leadership, entrepreneurship and community building. The Telfer School of Management would like to congratulate this year’s recipients, 6 of whom are Telfer School Alumni.
March 5, 2009, Ottawa – The Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa has received a $150,000 gift from the financial-services firm Edward Jones’ Charitable Foundation to support student activities at the Telfer School, contributing to a superior student experience.
In recognition of the contribution, the Telfer School will rename its 10-screen multimedia TV system, which provides a continuous stream of timely news and information to all students, professors and visitors of the Desmarais Building, in honour of Edward Jones.
Working with leaders from the public and private sectors, the Telfer School actively cultivates strategic relationships in order to provide a superior management education to its students.
“Edward Jones has been involved with the Telfer School on a number of fronts, including recruiting our students, participating in our Career Centre’s activities, and engaging with students by attending and sponsoring their various networking events. We are pleased to count Edward Jones as one of our dedicated partners and as another prime example of our links with leadership”, said Micheál J. Kelly, Dean of the Telfer School of Management.
”We are pleased to have the opportunity to partner with the Telfer School of Management to help them develop the next generation of Canadian business leaders,” said Gary Reamey, Principal, Edward Jones Canada. “We value the long-term and rewarding relationship that we’ve built with the Telfer School as well as its students and alumni.”
About Edward Jones
Edward Jones is a full-service investment dealer with one of the largest branch networks in Canada. It is a member of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada and the Canadian Investor Protection Fund, and a participating organization of the Toronto Stock Exchange. Including its affiliates, Edward Jones serves more than 7 million individual investors in Canada, the U.S. and the United Kingdom from more than 10,000 locations.
The financial-services firm Edward Jones was named to the No. 4 spot, up one spot from last year, on the "50 Best Employers in Canada” list by The Globe and Mail's Report On Business magazine and La Presse. This is the firm's seventh consecutive appearance on the list. Edward Jones' associates give generously to help others. They serve on local boards and committees, and volunteer in countless ways to help schools, hospitals, businesses and their neighbours.
The Edward Jones Charitable Foundation reinforce this commitment to "giving back" by supporting a variety of causes including museums, the arts, educational programs, medical programs and human services.
Dr. David Doloreux is the 2008 recipient of the University of Ottawa Young Researcher Award. This prize is presented annually to a faculty member who has made outstanding contributions to research.
Only two prizes are awarded every year and Dr. Doloreux received the only one in the field of social sciences for his work in technology and innovation management, industrial and regional policy, and innovation systems and clusters. Each award is accompanied by a bursary of $10,000 to cover research assistant salaries. His innovative research program, his formidable record of high-quality publications and his commitment to engaging and supporting others in their own research and research training placed him as an outstanding and deserving recipient for this award.
"What's stopping us from making the residential sector totally green?"
Join us for a one day workshop
A special workshop on identifying barriers to change and innovation to reduce impacts of climate change in the residential sector
When: Monday, February 23, 2009, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm
Where: Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa
The residential sector in Canada generates about one fifth of greenhouse gases. These emissions can be reduced by as much as 60% by the year 2030. All this requires is the deployment of known technologies, innovations, and practices, already in the market.
What's stopping us from reaching that objective?
We have a compelling vision of what needs to be done and why. We know what can be achieved and how. We even have the necessary technologies. So why is Canada making so little progress? This will be a unique workshop of building practitioners, contractors, researchers and government officials to explore the nature of barriers to change and innovation.
The challenge:
Many studies have been carried out over the past years on what should be done and what technologies should be used. Our objective for this workshop is to explore how we might make this transition to sustainability in the building sector faster and easier by overcoming the different barriers to change.
This workshop is part of a much larger project exploring the barriers to the transition to a sustainable society at the University of Ottawa's Telfer School of Management. Mitigating the effects of climate change represents the largest change management challenge in global history.
The Telfer School project aims to identify and better understand the barriers to addressing this challenge by looking to the past and learning from our experience, and by talking to people in the field: practitioners, researchers, and program officials. Funded in part by the Gordon foundation and Natural Resources Canada, the two-year project will address various aspects of a region like Ottawa-Gatineau to see what is stopping us from moving towards a sustainable society and implement ting the needed change. For more information, contact Dr. J. Andre Potworowski, (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) project director, and check our project blog, Making it happen -- the transition to a sustainable society.
PROGRAM (updated as of February 3, 2009)
Key questions to be addressed:
What have we learned?
Over the last thirty years we have tried to reduce usage of fossil fuels. Many of the necessary technologies already exist and are available in the market. Refinements and improvements are always possible, but there is enough available already to make a big difference. So what have we learned from these years of federal, provincial, and municipal efforts to reduce energy consumption of Canada's residential sector?
What are the barriers to change?
Identify major themes and obstacles, including jurisdictional, legal/economical, and behavioural challenges
What are some common themes?
Discuss common themes and possible integrated areas of intervention.
Some of our presenters and resource persons:
Hugh MacLeod, Associate Deputy Minister to the Premier of Ontario: Climate Change
Peter Love, Chief Energy Conservation Officer, Conservation Bureau, Ontario Power Authority
David Foster, Director of Environmental Affairs Canadian Home Builders' Association
Gordon Shields, Executive Director Net-Zero Energy Home Coalition
Dana Silk, General Manager Envirocentre, Ottawa
Preliminary results from the Telfer School research project on barriers to innovation and change
Agenda
Overview of objectives and sustainable visions
Recent case studies
Breakout into groups and sharing of past experiences
Synthesis and priorization of major barriers to innovation and change
Congratulations to Professor Gilles LeVasseur who has been awarded the Lieutenant Governor’s Ontario Heritage Award for his contributions to the preservation of franco-ontarian heritage.
This award recognizes the citizens of Ontario who make a volunteer effort to preserve, protect and promote community heritage. He will be recognized on February 20, 2009 at Queen’s Park.
The latest installment of this year’s Alumni Breakfast Speaker Series took place on February 11, 2009. The Breakfast was themed “Canada’s University in the service of the world” and featured guest speaker Allan Rock, President and Vice-Chancellor, University of Ottawa.
President Rock spoke of the University’s initiatives to make the University of Ottawa more prominent on the world stage, including the University’s Service office which will open in March 2009. The breakfast also featured a short presentation by students linked with the Making Niger our Business project, an initiative created by Professor Guy Laflamme. A portion of the proceeds from the breakfast were donated to the Making Niger our Business project.
Dr. Jonathan Linton, Power Corporation Professor in the Management of Technological Enterprises, is the recipient of the Technology Innovation Management Research Award, sponsored by the publishing house Elsevier.
This award is based on the number of articles published by an author over the last five years in the top ten academic Technology Innovation Management journals. Dr. Linton is one of seven researchers to have maintained this status for an entire decade. He will receive his award at the annual International Association for the Management of Technology (IAMOT) Conference, which will be held in Orlando, Florida in April 2009.
In addition, Dr. Linton, has recently co-edited the book Principle Concepts of Technology and Innovation Management with Robert S. Friedman (New Jersey Institute of Technology) and Desiree M. Roberts (State University of New York-Empire State College).
The University of Ottawa's MHA Alumni Association (MHAAA) is proud to announce that Brian Malcolmson has been appointed the association's President for the year 2009, effective January 1, 2009.
A uOttawa MHA graduate from 1976, Mr. Malcolmson brings over 35 years of health management experience and has remained connected to the University and healthcare innovation. He is currently the Associate Vice-President, University Affairs at the Montfort Hospital and is responsible for planning the future Research Institute on francophone and minority population health.
Mr. Malcolmson's vast healthcare management experience will serve the MHAAA well as it continues to expand its network of highly sought-after graduates.
To find out more about the MHA Alumni Association and its activities, visit the MHA web site
The Telfer Human Resources Association held its first annual networking breakfast on Thursday, January 15th. With the support of two gold sponsors, the HRPAO and the ORRA, this sold out event was a great success and the perfect start to the association’s first year as a student organization.
The Telfer HRA Networking Breakfast provided an excellent opportunity for students from the Telfer School of Management to network and build relationships with 42 different employers from Ottawa’s business community.
The key note speaker Leslie Wieterman, Vice President of Career Management Consulting at Right Management, gave an insightful presentation surrounding the three stages of networking and provided both students and professionals with the opportunity to exercise these new found tips.
If you would like more information regarding the Telfer Human Resources Association, how to become a member, or any upcoming events please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
The MHA Alumni Association and the Telfer School of Management are proud to announce that Anne Pearce is this year’s Health Leadership Award winner. The Health Leadership Award is presented to the MHA resident who best demonstrates leadership qualities, and whose Residency Field Project represents an innovative contribution to health services. Anne completed her residency at Renfrew Victoria Hospital and her project entitled “Feasibility of an Alternate Source of Revenue for an Ontario Hospital” examined potential revenue generating opportunities.
The Award was presented on December 12, 2008 at the presentation event where all fall 2008 MHA residents presented their Field Projects to current students, faculty and their peers.
Congratulations go out to Anne and the 2008 MHA Residents, many of which have now completed their degree requirements and will continue to proudly represent the Telfer School of Management in the health care field.'
“A national imperative” supporting female business owners should be a priority
By: Barbara Orser, M.B.A., Ph.D.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
One of the forces that can lead Canada out of recession is the growth of women-owned firms. Women are involved in leading half of Canadian small-and medium-sized firms, with one in five firms being majority female-owned. The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor reports that, compared with most developed nations, women in Canada are among the most entrepreneurial.
Read the complete article on the National Post’s FP Executive web site. (this link is no longer available)
The Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa, in partnership with the Indo-Canada Ottawa Business Chamber, hosted the Telfer India Forum on February 19, 2009. This half day event involving senior business and government leaders from Canada and India helped Canadian companies better understand how to engage with Indian companies as they play an ever growing role in the global marketplace.
Photo (L to R): Nishith Goel, Chair - Indo-Canada Ottawa Business Chamber & CEO Cistel Technology Inc, Marvin Hough, Executive in Residence, Telfer School of Management, Shashishekhar M. Gavai, High Commissioner of India to Canada, Micheál J. Kelly, Dean, Telfer School of Management.
Post event wrap-up, by Marvin Hough
2009 Telfer India Forum – Engaging with Indian Companies Going Global
By Marvin Hough,
Executive-in-Residence at the Telfer School of Management (University of Ottawa) and a former Trade Commissioner in India and Vice President, Asia at EDC.
With India increasingly integrating into the global economy and growing on the radar screens of Canadian companies across the country, an increased focus on this future economic super power is timely. Recognizing the emerging importance of the market, the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa convened a highly successful India Forum on February 19, 2009. This conference brought together over 125 Canadian and Indian companies, intermediaries, government officials and academics under the theme of “Engaging with Indian Companies Going Global.”
The event was the second annual Telfer India Forum and demonstrated the ongoing commitment of Telfer and its partner organizations to this priority market. Moreover, it clearly highlighted the importance for Canada of continually and diligently building on its approach to engaging with India.
Three broad messages emerged from the Forum and provided an umbrella for the proceedings.
India is on an irreversible path as it integrates into the global economy and it will continue to propel itself forward and become an economic superpower. India’s growing confidence in global commerce, its significant economic growth rates, its innovative private sector, growing intellectual power and youthful population will all help it steer the course and meet the various challenges going forward.
Now is the time for Canada to proactively engage with India and to build on both India’s emergence in global commerce and the recent momentum in Indo-Canadian commercial collaboration. Canada clearly needs to take a holistic approach in engaging with India and take advantage of recent trends including closer government to government exchanges, growing bilateral trade and the tripling of Canadian exports to the market in the last 5 years.
Indian companies going global will continue to expand their footprint around the world and represent significant and growing opportunities for Canada and Canadian firms. Developing relationships with these companies will position Canada and Canadian firms to achieve significant and growing results.
The Conference featured presentations from Shashishekhar Gavai, the Indian High Commissioner, Navin Dave, Managing Partner for Global Resource Leveraging at KPMG, Peter Nesbitt, Regional Vice President, South and South East Asia at Export Development Canada (EDC) and David Good, Chief representative, North America for Tata Sons Limited. The presentations served to underscore the degree to which India is going global and the emerging opportunities for Canadian firms, the value and cost effectiveness in leveraging human capital from India in today’s competitive environment and the significant steps being taken by Indian firms in investing globally and importance of developing relationships with these increasingly confident global players.
This year’s Forum also involved an interactive panel discussion with representatives of global Indian firms including ICICI Bank of Canada and Aditya Birla Minacs and Canadian firms who have successfully penetrated the Indian market including EION Wireless and Taraspan Group Inc. The panel discussion allowed for a candid exchange on key themes including the current business environment in India in the face of the global economic storm, recent terrorist attacks and the upcoming elections, the current state of Indo-Canadian commercial relations and steps needed to accelerate the pace of growth and to effectively engage with Indian companies going global. The discussions illuminated the resilient nature of the Indian market and the need for Canada to be much more proactive and holistic in its approach to partnering with India and Indian firms.
The Forum was also an opportunity for the Telfer School to launch its new Focus India initiative, a comprehensive executive learning program dealing with all key aspects of “doing business in India”. This program designed for senior executives of Canadian firms with a strong interest and commitment to the Indian market, will be rolled out in the fall of 2009. The initiative is being led by Marvin Hough, Executive in Residence at the Telfer School of Management and a former Trade Commissioner in India and Vice President, Asia at EDC.
The Telfer School’s collaboration with other key players with a commitment to the Indian market also moved forward through this year’s Forum. The Forum was organized in collaboration with the Indo-Canadian Ottawa Business Chamber and sponsored by KPMG, Gowlings and ICICI Bank Canada. Partners in the undertaking included OCRI, CATA, Ottawa Citizen, EDC, Tata Consultancy Services, and the Ontario Ministry of International Trade and Investment.
The University of Ottawa would like to congratulate the team of 80 Telfer School of Management students that represented us at the Jeux du Commerce 2009 (JDC). This annual competition, featuring 13 universities from Eastern Canada, was hosted by l’Université du Québec à Montréal from January 2-5, 2009. This is the first time in the history of the JDC competition that the University of Ottawa has finished first overall, and the fourth time that it has finished in the top three.
The Telfer School won the following trophies:
1st place overall
1st place in these activities:
Entrepreneurship Case
Ethics Case
Finance Case
Human Resources Management Case
Ultimate Frisbee
Volleyball
Contribution to the community
2nd place in these activities:
Marketing Case
Strategy Case
Taxation Case
Recognition Award : “Normand Fortier, University of Ottawa”
As I head into the final days of my deanship of the Telfer School of Management, I can’t believe how quickly the last 10 years have passed.
No matter what I do next, the last decade will likely remain my career highlight.
During this time, I have been privileged to be part of an exceptional community of faculty, staff, students and alumni.
I have also been truly fortunate to be able work with the best team of people that I have encountered in my 30 year career. Their level of dedication and commitment to the Telfer School and its students and to the University of Ottawa is the major reason for the success that the School has had over the last decade.
Together, we have accomplished a great deal in pursuit of the goal of making the Telfer School a leading centre for management education and research. These accomplishments include the triple crown of international accreditations, a named school, a new building, a vibrant career centre, a dramatic increase in research productivity and funding, heightened alumni and community engagement, a growing endowment and a high quality student experience that is the envy of campus.
I also want to thank Ian Telfer for his extraordinary support for the School. His extremely generous gift in 2007 has given the School the foundation and the momentum to achieve its aspirations.
In meeting with students and alumni during my early days as dean, I suggested that at the end of my term, my success in this position should be measured by the increase they saw in the value of their degree. I leave the deanship comfortable in knowing that what we have achieved over the last decade has made the quality of the education that we offer widely recognized nationally and internationally.
I feel very confident about the future of the Telfer School and while I look forward to having the time to get back to doing some research and writing, I also look forward to returning to this great community as a faculty member at the end of my 2 year leave.
James E. Orban (EMBA 1998) received the Dean’s Philos Award, recognizing individuals who have demonstrated outstanding philanthropic achievement and social commitment. The award was presented at the Telfer School of Management Gala of Excellence on September 29, 2007.
In 2003 James was appointed to the position of Publisher of the Ottawa Citizen. He is responsible for all the day-to-day business and editorial operations at the Citizen. Throughout his newspaper career Jim has been involved in many community and newspaper organizations. His current community activity include: University of Ottawa board of Governors, Sisters of Charity Health Services Foundation (Chair 2001-04), the Ottawa Partnership (TOP), the Ottawa Hospital (marketing and communications), University of Ottawa (external relations committee) and Telfer School of Management advisory board, the Ottawa Senators Foundation, Salvation Army advisory board, the Boys and Girls Club advisory board, Opera Lyra board of advisors, and the School of Dance Advisory Council.
Tuan Nguyen, BCom 1999, receives the Dean’s Philos Award, recognizing individuals who have demonstrated outstanding philanthropic achievement and social commitment. This award was established in 2004 on the School of Management’s 35th Anniversary.
Tuan Nguyen graduated from the School of Management with a Bachelor of Commerce in 1998. He is presently the owner and managing partner of Open Space Marketing, a marketing communications firm that delivers on marketing needs of local and multinational organizations with a focus on web-marketing and technologies. However, his passion is in the community.
Among many community projects, Tuan co-founded a very successful non-profit organization called Commerce and Administration Student Charity Organization (CASCO) which has chapters in Ottawa and Montreal. His love for the community helped him flourish as a business professional, community member, a global citizen, and an expert in corporate social responsibility.
“Tuan provides an excellent role model for our students”, said Dean Micheál Kelly. “His work for community organizations and his commitment to social and community causes is extraordinary. The School of Management is extremely proud of him and of CASCO, the organization that he co-founded and which continues to be a major vehicle for the School's students to give back to the community”.
The award will be presented at the School of Management Gala of Excellence on September 16, 2006.
The following article was written by a member of our student community. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Telfer School of Management. For more information or to flag inappropriate content, please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
The Telfer Human Resources Association held its first annual networking breakfast on Thursday, January 15th. With the support of two gold sponsors, the HRPAO and the ORRA, this sold out event was a great success and the perfect start to the association’s first year as a student organization.
