BCom Alumni

Leedana is bringing agriculture to the desert--and it got its start at Desautels

webfull — Thu, 05 Jun 2025 16:54:52 +0000

Egypt’s Nile River Valley has some of the most fertile land in the world. But most of the country is a barren desert where few plants can grow. Hassan Elrakhawy (BCom’24) wants to change that. The Egyptian-born entrepreneur founded Leedana, a startup that uses a technique called sandponics, which can reduce the amount of water needed to cultivate crops by up to 90%. The company already has farms in Egypt that grow cherry tomatoes, peppers, kale, lettuce and more. And other farms are under construction elsewhere.

Desautels’ valedictorian Grace Singer hopes for carbon-free future

webfull — Thu, 05 Jun 2025 16:53:16 +0000

This year, ten valedictorians from across the university shared their reflections and insights with ��ϲ��’s Class of 2025--with an eye cast toward the future. Desautels Grace Singer will be among them. The graduating Bachelor of Commerce student hopes to make a difference by advocating for decarbonization from within the business world. “In the long-term I hope to work directly with the adoption and acceleration of sustainable solutions, such as what I did within the cleantech company I interned at during my degree,” Singer says.

Sam Greene putting analytics skills to use with Toronto Blue Jays

webfull — Wed, 21 May 2025 19:36:02 +0000

After four years studying in Montreal, Sam Greene (BCOM’20, MMA’21) moved on to Toronto, where he caught on with Major League Baseball’s Toronto Blue Jays. Greene started in a role in an analytics role, but has since been named assistant pitching coach. As a junior member of the coashing staff, Greene is observing senior coaches like pitching coach Pete Walker and bullpen coach Graeme Johnson. “I’m specialized in using the advanced statistics we receive each match,” says Greene. “I contribute by guiding pitch choice and suggesting ways of approaching individual hitters.

��ϲ�� to award honorary degree to Don Lewtas for contributions to global finance & student learning

webfull — Wed, 07 May 2025 15:37:05 +0000

��ϲ�� University will award an honorary degree to Donald William Lewtas (BCom’75), a ��ϲ�� alumnus, at the ��ϲ�� Desautels Faculty of Management convocation this spring.

Lewtas will receive a Doctor of Laws, honoris causa (LL.D.), in recognition of his leadership in global finance and his support for hands-on education at the faculty.

Julius Alessandro Xanthoudakis (BCom'20, MMF’25) wins 2024 Peter Christoffersen Award

webfull — Wed, 19 Mar 2025 19:51:28 +0000

Julius Alessandro Xanthoudakis (BCom'20, MMF’25) has been named the 2024 Peter Christoffersen MMF Award recipient, recognizing his academic excellence and contributions to the ��ϲ�� Master of Management in Finance (MMF) program.

A Montreal native with a background in finance and data science, Xanthoudakis honed his skills in market analysis and risk management as a strategist for Desautels Capital Management (DCM)’s SRI Fund. He credits the London networking trip and MMF’s collaborative learning environment as key to his growth.

AI startup with roots at ��ϲ�� Desautels raises €9M in venture capital funding

webfull — Fri, 07 Feb 2025 23:31:03 +0000

There’s a lot that AI can do—and quite a bit that it can’t. And the mix of numbers and letters on a spreadsheet is one thing that AI has struggled to make sense of. Prior Labs wants to change that by developing machine learning models optimized to understand spreadsheets, which host an enormous amount of critical information in many firms.

BCom alum to oversee operations and drive growth at Insurity

webfull — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 20:55:57 +0000

Jonathan Victor (BCom’99) has been appointed COO of Insurity, a leading provider of cloud-based software solutions for insurance carriers, brokers, and managing general agents. He undertakes this new role with extensive experience at Insurity, where he has previously held roles such as CIO and EVP of Customer Success. In his expanded capacity, Victor will oversee cloud operations, customer success, enterprise security, system integrator operations, and professional services, ensuring streamlined processes and integration across the company.

MBA alumna to lead Ottawa International Airport Authority

webfull — Fri, 15 Nov 2024 21:13:34 +0000

Susan Margles (BA’88, MBA’91) has been appointed President and CEO of the Ottawa International Airport Authority. Like other airports, Ottawa’s suffered during the pandemic, but it’s bouncing back with major infrastructure projects, like a new hotel and a connection to the city’s light rail transit system. Margles joins the Airport Authority after nearly two decades at Canada Post, where she—amongst other roles—served as chief people and safety officer and was responsible for human resources, labour relations and government affairs.

Undergraduate alum named Deputy Chancellor of ��ϲ�� University

webfull — Wed, 06 Nov 2024 18:46:15 +0000

Cynthia Price Verreault (BCom’82) has been appointed ��ϲ��’s first Deputy Chancellor. In this new role, she will support the Chancellor, President, and Board of Governors. Throughout her two-year term, Price Verreault will offer counsel and play a key role in representing the University at events and high-level meetings.“We are delighted that someone with as deep a knowledge of the institution as Ms. Price Verreault has will be working alongside our new Chancellor, Pierre Boivin,” says Maryse Bertrand, Chair of the ��ϲ�� Board of Governors.

BCom graduate named Rising Star 2024 by The Bermudian

webfull — Mon, 28 Oct 2024 18:35:30 +0000

For Ashley Farrington (BCom’21), short-term sacrifices are worth it if they pay out as long-term gains. The 24-year-old auditor with KPMG in Bermuda has earned some early career returns for her efforts and was recently named a Rising Star by The Bermudian. She aims to become an empathetic leader who is both approachable and decisive. “I want to be someone who has wedged her foot in the door to bring other women up with her,” says Farrington.

BCom alum is advocating for work-life balance from the C-suite

webfull — Mon, 28 Oct 2024 18:33:20 +0000

When working for a Big Four accounting firm early in her career, Sheila Vokey (BCom’84)—now President and CEO of the responsible investing firm Central 1—saw senior managers struggle to balance work and family life and decided on a different approach. After stints at the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, the Bank of Canada, and Payments Canada, Vokey headed west to Vancouver to become CFO at Central 1, where she has been an advocate of remote work and work-life balance ever since.

Three ��ϲ�� Desautels alumni celebrated at 2024 MAA Honours & Awards

webfull — Thu, 19 Sep 2024 19:20:36 +0000

Each year the ��ϲ�� Alumni Association (MAA) recognizes alumni, friends, students, faculty, and staff whose commitment has had a significant impact on alumni life, the University and/or the community. This year, three ��ϲ�� Desautels alumni were among those honoured for their contributions to the ��ϲ�� community.

BCom alum trades in a career in marketing to become a firefighter

webfull — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 17:26:46 +0000

Lesly Yao (BCom’18) isn’t your stereotypical small-town Quebec firefighter. Born in Tahiti, the Bachelor of Commerce grad was growing disillusioned with her work at a marketing firm when a Canadian Forces recruitment advertisement caught her eye—and her imagination. But because Yao was not a citizen at the time and a job with the Forces was not in the cards. “I’d always had it in the back of my mind to become a firefighter,” she says. “I watched shows about firefighting, and it appealed to me, but it also seemed unattainable.

BCom alum credits networking with helping Sports Illustrated app off the ground

webfull — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 18:04:10 +0000

In Canada, ice time is at a premium and the nearest rink might not be able to accommodate your beer league team. But in large cities, there’s often ice available somewhere, and Jonathan Azouri (BCom’16) spotted an opportunity. The co-founder and CEO of CatchCorner by Sports Illustrated, an app that allows users to book sports facilities, launched it in Toronto in 2019 and is now making it available in markets like New York, Los Angeles, and Boston.

BCom graduate and swimmer wins bronze at the 2024 Paris Olympics

webfull — Mon, 05 Aug 2024 15:35:52 +0000

Swimmer Clément Secchi (BCom’22) has become the first ��ϲ�� University graduate to reach the podium at the Summer Olympics since 2008. The 24-year-old management graduate from Aix-en-Provence, France, earned bronze for his native country on Sunday as part of the men's 4x100 medley relay. A four-time All-Canadian at ��ϲ��, the 5-foot-11, 157-pound butterfly specialist was a three-time recipient of the Forbes Trophy as the University's male athlete of the year.