January/February 2025

I hope the winter term is going smoothly for everyone.

EQUIS visit

January was a busy and exciting month. A major milestone was the EQUIS visit, where we met with the members of the peer review team. I want to thank everyone in the office of accreditation and faculty relations, led by Alexandra Panaccio, as well as everyone who participated in the visit. As part of the EQUIS process, the peer review team cannot officially disclose their recommendation to the school. However, we can say that it was a productive visit, offering valuable feedback and ideas for future progress. In a few weeks, the peer review team will submit their report and recommendation to the EQUIS accreditation board, who will make the final decision. Their next meeting is in May, and we hope to hear their decision shortly after.

Celebrating our success

External recognitions

Congratulations to Alexandra Dawson and Michael Carney, professors in the department of management, on being named among the top 50 most productive scholars in family business globally, according to the Texas State University Family Business Research Productivity Ranking. The rankings are based on the last five years of publications featured in the top three academic journals dedicated to publishing family business research. Thanks to our colleagues’ achievements, Concordia moved up to number seven from 13 among all universities ranked.

In January, Louise Champoux-Paillé, co-director of the Barry F. Lorenzetti Centre for Women in Entrepreneurship and Leadership, and Patrick L. Kelley, former executive director of corporate relations at John Molson and senior advisor to Concordia’s president, were awarded the King Charles III Coronation medal.

Louise was honoured for her dedication to advancing women in senior management roles and promoting diversity in all its forms. Patrick was recognized for his long-standing service to several major organizations, including Air Canada, Molson, Government of Canada and Concordia. Bravo Louise and Patrick!

Media outreach

I want to thank Jordan LeBel, professor of marketing, and Lawrence Kryzanowski, professor of finance, who made themselves available to provide expert commentary on US President Trump’s proposed tariffs. You can read their comments in the following outlets:

• Radio-Canada (Jordan) and Radio-Canada (Lawrence)
• Le Devoir
• Ici télé
• CKOF FM
• CBC
• QUB

John Molson Perspectives

You'll notice some changes to the John Molson Perspectives website. There is now more information about how to submit your research as well as a newsletter sign-up. You can see the full editorial team led by Arman Sadreddin, director of Perspectives and assistant professor in business technology management.

We are proud to continue to build on this platform that brings our practical, relevant and impactful research to the broader business community. By utilizing a different mode of dissemination, we continue to enhance our research reputation. I encourage you to submit your work, and I extend my thanks to those who have already contributed and to the editorial board members.

Open House

We welcomed approximately 3,700 visitors (prospective students and their guests) on Saturday, February 15 for the Winter Open House. As we know, students often decide to attend a program or university based on their positive experience during such visits. I thank everyone who took the time to volunteer and serve as great ambassadors for our School.

Case competitions

Graduate

We were proud to host the 43rd edition of the John Molson MBA International Case Competition from January 5 to 10. Thirty teams competed from around the world. In the end, HEC Montréal earned the first place. I want to give special thanks to Bill Meder, Cynthia Law, Guy Barbeau and Li Yao for their support of the MBA ICC.

Undergraduate

The John Molson undergraduate students placed second overall at the Jeux de Commerce Central (JDCC) in Ottawa from January 3-5 and earned the School of the Year award. In addition, undergraduate students participated in the Jeux du commerce (JDC) from January 10-13 and placed third overall and earned second place for the academic cup.

Congratulations to the students and their coaches! These results highlight their dedication and hard work, and we are proud of their accomplishments. Thanks to faculty advisor Nora Baronian for her continued support of the students.

Staff changes

Departures

In December, we bid farewell to Tanya Volpe-Standing, who served as the department administrator in accountancy for just over two years. She has now moved to Arts and Science, and we wish her all the best in her new role and thank her for her contributions.

We also said goodbye to Farhad Tahmasebi, the administrative assistant for MBA and graduate programs. We extend our best wishes to him as well.

Lastly, Mary Perri will be retiring in early March after 11 years of dedicated service as senior director of undergraduate programs. Please join me in honoring Mary's career and sending her our heartfelt wishes for a wonderful and well-earned new chapter in her life. Thank you, Mary, for everything you have done for our students and colleagues at JMSB and Concordia.

New hires

Welcome to Selina-Josie Leone who joins the dean's office as administrative coordinator. Her previous role was assistant to the chair in the department of mathematics and statistics in the Faculty of Arts and Science. Many will also remember her from her time in John Molson in the office of the associate dean, accreditation and faculty relations, as well as in the budget office. Welcome back Selina!

Support and returns

Batoul Al-Sinan returned as administrative assistant in the Graduate Diploma in Chartered Professional Accountancy (CPA) on February 6. Our sincere thanks to Virginia Gerald for helping out in the CPA program during Batoul’s leave.

Additionally, Kelly Nolan returned on February 2 as administrative assistant for the MSc and MSCM programs. Our thanks to Laurel Tidman for her support in the MSc office while Kelly was away.

Closing remarks

Despite the challenges our university faces, I am confident in the JMSB community's dedication to the success of our students and colleagues.

Your positive efforts to secure our second accreditation before and during the EQUIS visit have made me incredibly proud and energized by what we can achieve together. #WeAreJMSB!

As a reminder: One of the overarching pursuits of our strategic plan is to celebrate and share JMSB successes. To that end, please contact Taylor Tower, communications manager, at taylor.tower@concordia.ca with details about recent successes – your own, your students’, your colleagues' – so we can continue to shine a light on our strengths.

With my warmest regards,
Anne-Marie Croteau, PhD, CDir
Dean