Board of directors
Our Board of Directors is made up of experienced corporate administrators, real estate specialists and financing industry experts.
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Otéra Capital
In addition to being Chairman of the Board of Otéra Capital, Daniel Fournier is Executive Vice-President, Real Estate, at the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. In this capacity, he oversees the institution's real estate investments, including strategy development and portfolio management and growth. He is also Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Ivanhoé Cambridge, one of the 10 largest real estate companies in the world.
Mr. Fournier has over 30 years of experience in the business community and has developed solid expertise in the real estate industry. Prior to joining the Caisse, he was Chairman of the Board of the GENIVAR Income Fund and sat on Canadian Tire's Board. He has also been fund manager of Summit REIT and of Standard Life, an insurance corporation active in the real estate sector. Mr. Fournier also was Vice-Chairman of the Board of real estate broker CB Richard Ellis Canada. He previously served as a member of the Caisse's real estate team, acting as Executive Vice-President and Chief Investment Officer at subsidiary SITQ from 2008 to 2009.
Mr. Fournier holds a Bachelor of History from Princeton University and a Bachelor of Law from Oxford University. He was the recipient of a Rhodes Scholarship.
Mr. Fortier holds a Bachelor in Business Administration, Finance and Real Estate from McGill University.
Guy Fréchette is a retired partner of Ernst & Young and Corporation Administrator. Before he left for retirement in 2008, Mr. Fréchette was Vice-President and member of Ernst & Young Canada's Board of Directors.
He sits on several boards, namely,the Canadian Public Accountability Board (CPAB), the Montreal Symphony Orchestra Endowment Fund, HEC Montréal, the Centre d'éducation physique et des sports de l'Université de Montréal (CEPSUM), as well as Fonds Ville-Marie. He's also Chairman of the Foundation for the Mentally Retarded Quebec Inc. Previously, Mr. Fréchette was President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal.
Chief Investment Officer
François Girouard joined the Mouvement Desjardins Group Pension Plan in July 1999 as a traditional investment manager. Since 2007, he has been Chief Investment Officer and, as such, he is responsible for the pension fund's asset-allocation strategy. He previously worked with Mouvement Desjardins as a unit head in Custody Services for four years and as financial analyst for ten years.
He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration from the University of Sherbrooke and has successfully completed courses on securities exchange and investment financing in Canada.
Jean-Louis Hamel is a corporate director with deep experience. He began his career as a business banker specializing in real estate and has held several senior management positions, among others, at Colliers International and CIBC World Markets Inc.
Mr. Hamel holds a degree from HEC Montréal (L.Sc.Com.), from McGill University's Law Faculty (B.C.L.) and from the Harvard Business School (AMP). He sits on several board of directors.
Michel Labonté gained his wide-ranging expertise during a fruitful career with, among other institutions, the National Bank of Canada, where he successfully held the positions of Senior Vice-President Finance and Control, Senior Vice-President, Finance and Technology and Senior Vice-President, Finance, Technology and Corporate Affairs, and Executive Advisor. Prior to this, he'd spent 10 years with Hydro-Québec. From 1975 to 1983, he held various positions with the Government of Québec, including the Treasury Board and the Minstry of Finance.
Mr. Labonté holds a Bachelor's of Arts Degree from the Université de Montréal, a Bachelor in Architecture from McGill University as well as a Master Degree in Urban Planning from the Université de Montréal. He is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors.
Karen Laflamme was promoted to Senior Vice-President, Real Estate in August 2009. In this capacity, she oversees relations with investors and governance. She is a de facto member of Ivanhoé Cambridge's Board of Directors in addition to sitting on her Board.
Prior to joining the Caisse in 1993, Karen Laflamme had been Vice-President, Real Estate Portfolio, with the Caisse's Real Estate group since January 2005. From 2003 to 2005, as Vice-Presiden, Internal Audit, Mrs. Laflamme oversaw the evaluation of the company's Risk Management, Control and Governance procedures. In 2002, the Caisse entrusted her the position as Chair of the Working Group on global diagnostics. She previously worked for the Real Estate group during 9 years, among which 6 as Director, Administration and Finance.
Mrs. Laflamme began her career in 1984 at Clarkson Gordon (Ernst & Young) as an auditor and subsequently was entrusted with the responsibilities of Audit Team Leader, until 1989. She then worked for 4 years as Senior Accountant at CN Real Estate.
Mrs. Laflamme holds the designation of Chartered Accountant and has over 20 years experience in the auditing and real estate sectors.
Raymond McManus is an experienced corporate director. He started his banking career in 1960 and in 1962, rose to become President and Chief Executive Officer of Laurentian Bank of Canada before he retired.
After having worked for more than 20 years at the Royal Bank and Mercantile Bank Ltd., Mr. McManus founded and led Cafa Financial Corporation, a private investment bank specializing in mergers and acquisitions, corporate financing and real estate. Over the course of his career, he acted as advisor for a number of large financial transactions.
Mr. McManus holds a Bachelor in Commerce from McGill University and is member (Fellow) of the Institute of Canadian Bankers.
He also held various positions with institutional and private groups, including Vice-President, Real Estate Financing, at Marcil Trust and Regional Manager, Mortgage Investments, at Great West Life.
Mr. Tessier sits on the Board of Directors of MCAP and Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ.
Mr. Tessier studied at the University of Ottawa. He also holds the designation of Certified Corporate Director from the Collège des administrateurs de sociétés.
Daniel Fournier
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Otéra Capital
Executive Vice-President, Real Estate, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Ivanhoé Cambridge
In addition to being Chairman of the Board of Otéra Capital, Daniel Fournier is Executive Vice-President, Real Estate, at the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. In this capacity, he oversees the institution's real estate investments, including strategy development and portfolio management and growth. He is also Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Ivanhoé Cambridge, one of the 10 largest real estate companies in the world.
Mr. Fournier has over 30 years of experience in the business community and has developed solid expertise in the real estate industry. Prior to joining the Caisse, he was Chairman of the Board of the GENIVAR Income Fund and sat on Canadian Tire's Board. He has also been fund manager of Summit REIT and of Standard Life, an insurance corporation active in the real estate sector. Mr. Fournier also was Vice-Chairman of the Board of real estate broker CB Richard Ellis Canada. He previously served as a member of the Caisse's real estate team, acting as Executive Vice-President and Chief Investment Officer at subsidiary SITQ from 2008 to 2009.
Mr. Fournier holds a Bachelor of History from Princeton University and a Bachelor of Law from Oxford University. He was the recipient of a Rhodes Scholarship.
Sylvain Fortier
President, Residential, Ivanhoé Cambridge
As President, Residential, Sylvain Fortier is responsible of the development of Ivanhoé Cambridge's new residential sector, created in April 2011. Mr. Fortier has more than 20 years of experience in real estate, both in equity and financing, and this, in the markets, products and partnerships in which the group is currently involved. He began his career at the Caisse in 2004, at Cadim, as Vice-President, Asset Management, then at SITQ in 2010, for the office buildings portfolio in the United States and this until his recent appointment.Mr. Fortier holds a Bachelor in Business Administration, Finance and Real Estate from McGill University.
Guy Fréchette
Corporate Director
Guy Fréchette is a retired partner of Ernst & Young and Corporation Administrator. Before he left for retirement in 2008, Mr. Fréchette was Vice-President and member of Ernst & Young Canada's Board of Directors.
He sits on several boards, namely,the Canadian Public Accountability Board (CPAB), the Montreal Symphony Orchestra Endowment Fund, HEC Montréal, the Centre d'éducation physique et des sports de l'Université de Montréal (CEPSUM), as well as Fonds Ville-Marie. He's also Chairman of the Foundation for the Mentally Retarded Quebec Inc. Previously, Mr. Fréchette was President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal.
François Girouard
Chief Investment Officer
Mouvement Desjardins Group Pension Plan
François Girouard joined the Mouvement Desjardins Group Pension Plan in July 1999 as a traditional investment manager. Since 2007, he has been Chief Investment Officer and, as such, he is responsible for the pension fund's asset-allocation strategy. He previously worked with Mouvement Desjardins as a unit head in Custody Services for four years and as financial analyst for ten years.
He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration from the University of Sherbrooke and has successfully completed courses on securities exchange and investment financing in Canada.
Jean-Louis Hamel
Corporate Director
Jean-Louis Hamel is a corporate director with deep experience. He began his career as a business banker specializing in real estate and has held several senior management positions, among others, at Colliers International and CIBC World Markets Inc.
Mr. Hamel holds a degree from HEC Montréal (L.Sc.Com.), from McGill University's Law Faculty (B.C.L.) and from the Harvard Business School (AMP). He sits on several board of directors.
Michel Labonté
Corporate Director
Michel Labonté gained his wide-ranging expertise during a fruitful career with, among other institutions, the National Bank of Canada, where he successfully held the positions of Senior Vice-President Finance and Control, Senior Vice-President, Finance and Technology and Senior Vice-President, Finance, Technology and Corporate Affairs, and Executive Advisor. Prior to this, he'd spent 10 years with Hydro-Québec. From 1975 to 1983, he held various positions with the Government of Québec, including the Treasury Board and the Minstry of Finance.
Mr. Labonté holds a Bachelor's of Arts Degree from the Université de Montréal, a Bachelor in Architecture from McGill University as well as a Master Degree in Urban Planning from the Université de Montréal. He is a member of the Institute of Corporate Directors.
Karen Laflamme
Senior Vice-President, Real Estate, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
Karen Laflamme was promoted to Senior Vice-President, Real Estate in August 2009. In this capacity, she oversees relations with investors and governance. She is a de facto member of Ivanhoé Cambridge's Board of Directors in addition to sitting on her Board.
Prior to joining the Caisse in 1993, Karen Laflamme had been Vice-President, Real Estate Portfolio, with the Caisse's Real Estate group since January 2005. From 2003 to 2005, as Vice-Presiden, Internal Audit, Mrs. Laflamme oversaw the evaluation of the company's Risk Management, Control and Governance procedures. In 2002, the Caisse entrusted her the position as Chair of the Working Group on global diagnostics. She previously worked for the Real Estate group during 9 years, among which 6 as Director, Administration and Finance.
Mrs. Laflamme began her career in 1984 at Clarkson Gordon (Ernst & Young) as an auditor and subsequently was entrusted with the responsibilities of Audit Team Leader, until 1989. She then worked for 4 years as Senior Accountant at CN Real Estate.
Mrs. Laflamme holds the designation of Chartered Accountant and has over 20 years experience in the auditing and real estate sectors.
Raymond McManus
President and Executive Officer, Otéra Capital
Raymond McManus is an experienced corporate director. He started his banking career in 1960 and in 1962, rose to become President and Chief Executive Officer of Laurentian Bank of Canada before he retired.
After having worked for more than 20 years at the Royal Bank and Mercantile Bank Ltd., Mr. McManus founded and led Cafa Financial Corporation, a private investment bank specializing in mergers and acquisitions, corporate financing and real estate. Over the course of his career, he acted as advisor for a number of large financial transactions.
Mr. McManus holds a Bachelor in Commerce from McGill University and is member (Fellow) of the Institute of Canadian Bankers.
Yvon Tessier
Corporate Director
Yvon Tessier is Corporate Director and has been active in real estate since 1963. From 1990 until his retirement in 2009, he was Senior Vice-President, Investments, at SITQ. In this capacity, he was responsible for SITQ's real estate investments in Canada and internationally.He also held various positions with institutional and private groups, including Vice-President, Real Estate Financing, at Marcil Trust and Regional Manager, Mortgage Investments, at Great West Life.
Mr. Tessier sits on the Board of Directors of MCAP and Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ.
Mr. Tessier studied at the University of Ottawa. He also holds the designation of Certified Corporate Director from the Collège des administrateurs de sociétés.
