“Very creative, very versatile and extremely innovative. It is in these words that Maysa Habelrih describes the 2021 winners of the Prix performance Québec, the highest distinction awarded annually by the Premier of Quebec to the most efficient private companies and public organizations.
“These SMEs are not afraid to question themselves and bring out new practices,” adds the President and CEO of the Mouvement québécois de la qualité, the organization that manages these awards with the Ministry of the Economy and of Innovation.
PHOTO KARENE-ISABELLE JEAN-BAPTISTE, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
Maysa Habelrih, President and CEO of the Mouvement québécois de la qualité
This year’s cohort, which brings together around ten companies, consists mainly of small companies. According to Maysa Habelrih, these established practices that were previously adopted more by the big players. “We think for example of the SME which has accelerated its digital transformation or of the one which has adopted rigorous and efficient processes, but which continues to mobilize its world with human values or a family approach”, she illustrates. .
According to Professor Jean-François Péloquin, who notably teaches the principles behind the Prix performance Québec at ESG UQAM, the winning companies are in a class of their own. “Very few organizations manage to achieve such performance in all of their activities,” he said. They understand the importance of innovation not only in their products and services, but also in their business practices, operational processes and management processes. ”
Challenges to take up
Pandemic requires, the 2021 edition brings together champions of adaptation. The crisis has indeed pushed companies to innovate even more and to show agility. “Basically, these companies have good management practices and they aim for excellence. They also review and optimize their processes over and over again, ”emphasizes Maysa Habelrih.
The labor shortage does not spare these employers, who must find new talent and retain their staff while remaining productive. Jean-François Péloquin, he believes that the problem should perhaps be approached differently.
If, instead of wondering about how to find new employees, we wondered how to modify our business model to perform, that would lead to a new approach to creative solutions. This is what today’s successful companies such as Amazon, Apple and Hydro-Quebec did yesterday.
Jean-François Péloquin, professor at ESG UQAM
Companies in all fields also face challenges related to supply chains and the lack of tools available for the implementation of strategic and digital plans.
Create trends
ValkarTech has understood the importance of innovation in order to succeed. This is why the building hygiene consulting services office won a Quebec performance award, according to its CEO. “We always try to be innovative. We don’t want to follow trends, we want to create them, ”says Serge Rioux.
For example, the firm hired four programmers two years ago to go digital and implement the principle of intelligent building. It also adopted robotics and other technological solutions before its competitors. “It’s stimulating for our team to see that we are ahead of the wave,” believes the manager.
“It’s a bit like Star Trek,” says Serge Rioux, talking about his innovations. As soon as a coffee falls on the floor, it detects it and sends a call to the housekeeping company to notify them that there is a damage. ”
The shortage is also not a challenge at ValkarTech. The company recruits employees that it supports and then trains internally. Since the pandemic, the entire team has met weekly by videoconference to share success stories and announce new contracts.
In six years of existence, the SME has succeeded in attracting large-scale clients, such as the Montreal airport, the Canadian army or the SAQ.