This text is part of the special Philanthropy section
“As we look forward to the next century, the leaders will be the ones who empower others,” said Bill Gates. Giving back is at the heart of the action of the Laval University Foundation, which invites leaders from different fields to meet students in a privileged format.
Their backgrounds are varied and their influence is recognized internationally in the arts, business and politics. Lucien Bouchard (lawyer, politician and premier of Quebec from 1996 to 2001), Robert Lepage (playwright and producer of creations), Sophie Brochu (President and CEO of Hydro-Quebec), Bernard Voyer (great explorer and associate speaker in the research community), Christiane Germain (socially engaged businesswoman and co-president of Germain Hotels) and Joanne Liu (pediatrician and former president of Médecins sans frontières) today form the Circle of leaders of Laval University . “Everyone in their field, with their expertise and experience, brings lessons, exchanges with students and pushes them to reflections that go beyond their habits”, explains Sehl Mellouli, Assistant Vice-Rector for Studies and Business university students.
Privileged encounters
The Circle of Leaders was built on questions about the skills of the leaders of tomorrow. “We quickly understood that we couldn’t really give our students a course on leadership, but that we had to put them into action and in contact with great inspiring leaders”, explains the innovation advisor for the Chantiers. d’avenir and the Cercle des leaders de l’Université Laval Julia Gaudreault-Perron. Workshops organized around a small group of 20 to 60 students allow six renowned Quebec personalities to talk about their career, the challenges they have encountered and answer students’ questions. Various themes around leadership are explored, such as vision, values, career or even debate.
“With Sophie Brochu, our students discussed questions about personal values and the importance of aligning these with those of the organization in which we find ourselves and the society we live in”, explains Sehl. Mellouli. The workshop organized with Robert Lepage at Diamant, Ex-Machina headquarters, focused on the theme of creativity. The man of the theater notably spoke to the students about the idea of being unique, a notion different from leadership, but which is intimately linked to it.
An annual forum
Each year, the meeting is extended to the entire university community on the occasion of the Circle of Leaders forum, which allows its members to participate in a discussion panel on leadership. During the first edition, which took place virtually in April 2021 due to the pandemic, Lucien Bouchard, Sophie Brochu, Robert Lepage and Bernard Voyer discussed the leadership of tomorrow in the face of major collective challenges.
The students of the Chantiers d’avenir who took part in the workshops play a particular role in the animation of the forum. “They ask questions of our great leaders. By speaking on behalf of their fellow students, they are placing themselves in a position of leadership, ”emphasizes Julia Gaudreault-Perron, according to whom the objective is for each student to find their own style.