Board of Directors

Jean-Guy Desjardins is Chairman of the Board and Global Chief Executive Officer of Fiera Capital, which he founded in 2003.

After working as a financial analyst and portfolio manager for a life insurance company, Mr. Desjardins co-founded TAL Global Asset Management in 1972 and was its principal shareholder until its purchase by a financial institution in 2001.

Mr. Desjardins is a member of the Board of Directors of the Société de Services Financiers Fonds FMOQ, HEC Montréal, DJM Capital Inc., and the SPACQ Foundation. He has also served on a number of company boards, including that of the Bank of Canada, where he also acted as lead director.

Mr. Desjardins also supports a variety of community and social programs, in particular as a member of the Council of Governors of Centraide of Greater Montréal. Additionally, he sits on the Investment Committee of the Canadian Centre for Architecture and on the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors of the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal.

Mr. Desjardins graduated from Collège Mont-Saint-Louis in 1966 with a Bachelor of Arts. In 1969, he earned his L.Sc.Comm. (Finance) from HEC Montréal. Mr. Desjardins is also a CFA Charterholder. He was appointed to the Order of Canada in December 2014 and, in 2015, received the CFA Institute Award for Excellence, the highest and most prestigious distinction bestowed by the CFA Institute.

Mr. Braive started his career as a fixed income analyst at Royal Trust in Montréal before being promoted to Senior Vice President of fixed income in Toronto. His strong track record led him to join Timmins and Associates (“TAL”) as a partner in 1983 to manage the firm fixed income portfolios. Mr. Braive was one of the founding partners acquiring all of the minority interest in TAL Investment Counsel in 1987 from Timminco.

Mr. Braive started the active management of fixed income portfolios at TAL, and with strong performance and an exceptional team attracted institutional clients from across Canada and the USA. He introduced new fixed income products for clients and his leadership helped build TAL into one of the pre-eminent investment management firms in Canada. He was Chairman and CEO of the institutional division from 1998 to 2001 when TAL was purchased by CIBC.

Mr. Braive became Vice Chairman of CIBC Asset Management in 2001, where as part of his role, he was responsible for the fixed income team that managed $65 billion in assets in multiple strategies. He was active in the asset allocation process, equity research and also supported relationship managers with clients. In addition, he was on the Board of Directors of CIBC Asset Management. Mr. Braive retired from CIBC Asset Management in March 2018.

Mr. Braive is currently Chair of the Investment Committee of the North York General Foundation and serves on its Research and Innovation Committee. Mr. Braive is also a Director of The National Ballet of Canada, Endowment Foundation and sits on its investment committee.

Annick Charbonneau has founded and managed two tech companies over the past decade. A fervent promoter of the presence of women in entrepreneurship, in 2021 she launched Accelia Capital, a venture capital fund whose mission is to invest in innovative companies, owned or led by women. Accelia Capital is one of the most important venture capital funds to propel female entrepreneurship in North America. Accelia Capital invests in Québec or Canadian start-ups and other early-stage companies. Prior to founding Accelia Capital, Mrs. Charbonneau was a co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Groupe Soul.City inc., a technology company that developed an urban mobility application deployed in ten metropolises worldwide.

A graduate in International Business from Pepperdine University in California, Annick Charbonneau also holds a certificate in Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Business Strategy from MIT Sloan School of Management.

Gary Collins is a seasoned corporate director with a diversified professional background, having held leadership roles within multiple industry sectors and senior government positions. He has served as a corporate director for 18 years.  Mr. Collins is Chairman of the Board of Directors at DRI Healthcare Trust and a director and Chair of the Human Resources and Compensation Committee at Rogers Sugar Inc. Mr. Collins has previously served as a director on the boards of Catalyst Paper Corporation, Chorus Aviation Inc., D-Box Technologies Inc., Liquor Stores N. A. and Stuart Olson Inc. Moreover, he has served on numerous audit committees in the past 18 years.

Mr. Collins was a Senior Adviser at Lazard Canada Inc., a premier independent financial advisory and asset management firm, from September 2016 to May 2023. In addition, he performed top management duties, including as the President of Coastal Contacts Inc. and, prior to that, as the President of Clearly, as Senior Vice President Corporate Development of Belkorp Industries Inc. and as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Harmony Airways.

He has also been a member of the British Columbia Legislative Assembly and served as Minister of Finance of British Columbia, from June 2001 to December 2004.

Lucie Martel is a corporate director. She is a member of the Board, a member of the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee, and Chair of the Human Capital and Compensation Committee of Alithya Group Inc.

She has been a Director and Chair of the Human Resources Committee of the Fondation de l’Institut de Cardiologie de Montréal and a member of the Board and Chair of the Human Resources Committee of the SAQ (Société des alcools du Québec).

She retired from Intact Financial Corporation in December 2021, where she was the Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer since September 2011. Previously, Mrs. Martel was a Senior Vice President at AXA Canada, which was acquired by Intact Financial Corporation in September 2011. She has also been an executive at the Laurentian Bank, where she acted as Vice President, Human Resources Management and Development, and has experience with roles in manufacturing and retail companies such as Direct Film and Uniroyal.

She has more than 30 years of experience in strategic management of human resources, executive compensation, ESG (environmental, social and governance) and labor relations.

Mrs. Martel holds a bachelor’s degree in industrial relations from Université de Montréal and is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors.

Guy Masson retired from Stikeman Elliott LLP in March 2021, where he practiced law for over 40 years, including as Head of the Tax Group from 2000 to 2010. Mr. Masson was a senior counsel and retired partner at Stikeman Elliott LLP at the time of his retirement.

Mr. Masson is also the founder and President of RGM Legal Inc. where he has been practicing law since retiring from Stikeman Elliott LLP. Mr. Masson’s main practice areas continue to be corporate reorganizations, mergers and acquisitions, tax structuring, domestic and international tax and estate planning and tax dispute resolutions for corporate, institutional and private clients.

Mr. Masson is a member and former President of the Association de planification fiscale et financière, a former founding member of the Tax Symposium Committee for Québec senior tax practitioners, a member of the Canadian Tax Foundation and a Gouverneur de la Fondation du Barreau du Québec.

Mr. Masson holds a law degree from Université de Montréal and he is a member of the Québec Bar.

Jean C. Monty began his career at Bell Canada in 1974 and held numerous positions within the BCE group. He joined Nortel Networks Corporation in October 1992 as President and Chief Operating Officer before being nominated President and Chief Executive Officer in March 1993. On April 24, 2002, Mr. Monty, then Chairman of the board and Chief Executive Officer of Bell Canada Enterprises (BCE Inc.), retired after a 28-year career. He was a member of the Board of Directors of Bombardier Inc. from 1998 until 2017 and Alcatel-Lucent S.A. from December 2008 until January 2016, as well as its Vice Chairman and Chairman of the Audit and Finance Committee. From January 2016 to June 2018, Mr. Monty served on the Board of Directors of Nokia Corporation and he was also a member of its Personnel Committee. Mr. Monty is a member of the Board of Directors of DJM Capital. He is also a member of the International Advisory Board of HEC Montréal. He was appointed a member of the Order of Canada for his contribution to business, public interests and community affairs. In recognition of these achievements, he was elected Canada’s Outstanding CEO of the Year for 1997. In addition, he was inducted into the Académie des Grands Montréalais.

Mr. Monty holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Collège Sainte-Marie of Montréal, a Master’s degree of Arts in Economics from the University of Western Ontario, and a Master’s degree of Business Administration from the University of Chicago.

François Olivier is a corporate director. He was President and Chief Executive Officer of Transcontinental Inc. from 2008 to December 2021. After joining the Printing Sector of TC Transcontinental in 1993, he rose through the ranks to ultimately take on the role of President of the Information Products Printing Sector, and then becoming Chief Operating Officer in 2007. Through the years, Mr. Olivier consolidated the Canadian printing industry and transformed the company by diversifying its assets into flexible packaging with strategic acquisitions. Under his leadership, TC Transcontinental has become Canada’s largest printer, a leader in flexible packaging in North America, and a Canadian leader in its specialty media segments. Prior to joining TC Transcontinental, François Olivier worked as General Manager of Canada Packers. Mr. Olivier is a member of the board of directors of CAE Inc. and a member of its audit committee and governance committee. He also serves as a governor of Portage, a Canadian non-profit organization helping people suffering from substance-abuse related problems overcome their dependencies. Mr. Olivier holds a B.Sc. degree from McGill University and is a graduate of the Program for Management Development at Harvard Business School.