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Director: Sukyong Yang

Fall 2022 Director’s Message

Sukyong Yang Sukyong Yang

Concordia is once again abuzz with activity with the return of in-person classes and events. It’s fantastic to feel the energy and excitement on our campus once again. 

Ken flew in from Vancouver to join us for our first in-person graduation in three years, an event that took place in May. We were delighted to see the room at full capacity to witness the most recent Calvin Potter Fellows receive their certificates.

We were also honoured to have Neil Cunningham, CEO of PSP Investments, as our keynote speaker along with words of motivation and inspiration from President Graham Carr and John Molson’s dean, Anne-Marie Croteau. What’s more, donor generosity allowed us to award $14,000 in student scholarships.

This summer we held two cocktail events in Montreal and Toronto, a new tradition that we hope will catch on with our KWPMP community. We shall add a New York event when our students attend the Quinnipiac conference next spring.

Alina Israilian, a graduate of the class of 2019, got married in August. It was lovely to see so many of her classmates reunite at the wedding and learn more about their personal and professional achievements. This is the beauty of the program, where colleagues go on to become life-long friends.

I am pleased to report that all the students performed well in their internships based on my discussions with their managers. Our students intuitively understand that as representatives of the KWPMP, how they perform and conduct themselves impacts future cohorts. 

A third information session for our program will take place on October 4. We have done our share of promotion this fall term to approximately 3,000 first-year John Molson students. This will hopefully result in a new group of exceptional KWPMP candidates.

A client committee update: Judith Kavanagh, an original member of the committee, and Russell Hiscock both stepped down over the summer. Our newest client committee member, Susan Da Sie, attended her first meeting on September 20. Our students are appreciative of her more than 35 years of portfolio management experience. As Judith was chair of the committee, long-standing member Bill Healy has graciously agreed to take on that role.

On a final note, please send in your RSVP for our fall celebration on October 20, with Jeff Tory, chairman of Pembroke, as our keynote speaker. We are grateful to our supporters — corporate sponsors, seminar speakers, mentors, client community, alumni and faculty — for their unwavering encouragement, enthusiasm and commitment to ensuring that the KWPMP continues to lead as the special program that it is. I look forward to seeing you on October 20.

About the Director

Sukyong Yang joined Concordia University in 2019 as the Director of the Kenneth Woods Investment Management Program and Adjunct Professor. She has diverse experience in portfolio management and comprehensive knowledge of global equities. She has a BComm (University of Toronto, Trinity College) and MBA (Concordia University) and is a Chartered Accountant and Chartered Financial Analyst. Ms. Yang is a member of CFA Toronto and sits on the University Relations Committee of CFA Montréal.

Before joining academia, Ms. Yang was a lead global portfolio manager for an important wealth management company in Toronto and a member of the board. The investment strategy and process she implemented in her team became the investment standard for the firm. She began her investment career as an analyst at one of Canada’s largest pension boards.

In addition to 25 years of experience in the investment management business, she spent a number of years as a Consultant and Auditor at KPMG in their Amsterdam, Seoul and Toronto offices.

Contact us

Sukyong Yang, Director
Kenneth Woods Portfolio Management Program
Tel: 514-848-2424, ext. 5102
sukyong.yang@concordia.ca

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