Name of a company! | CGI as in ?

There are company names that say it all and others that are… more mysterious. The Press take advantage of the summer to tell the origin of these sometimes very well-known names.

Do you know this company name in just three letters: CGI?

Probably not, unless you are involved in the management of large government or business organizations. Or you are an investment manager for Canadian stock exchanges.

In fact, the abbreviation CGI is the incorporated name of a Montreal multinational company providing management information technology consulting services.

Founded in 1976 by Serge Godin and André Imbeau, CGI is now one of the largest companies in the global management information technology market. Its revenues are approaching $14.5 billion, its global workforce is 91,500 employees and its market capitalization is close to $33 billion.

Despite its size, CGI remains little known to the general public. The main reason? Unlike the big commercial brands in IT, CGI’s business activities are mainly found in the back office of large government organizations and large companies established in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.

For example, the consulting services provided by CGI are often central to the development and successful performance of online services offered by these large government or commercial organizations.

A three-letter name?

That said, where does the name CGI come from? It comes from the company’s original name: Conseillers en gestion et informatique CGI inc.

On the one hand, the abbreviation “CGI” takes the first letter of the three words describing its business activities: management and IT consultants. On the other hand, the abbreviation “CGI” also contains the first letter of the last name of each of its two founders: Godin and Imbeau.

In 1981, the company shortened its name to just CGI. Then, on its tenth anniversary in 1986, CGI went public on the Montreal Stock Exchange.

No CGI on the stock market?

In the case of CGI, however, its listing on the stock exchange could not be done with the usual three-letter acronym taken from its name, as most companies do.

In fact, in 1986, the acronym “CGI” had already been used on the stock market for many years by a Toronto investment management company: Canadian General Investments, hence the abbreviation CGI.

As an alternative, CGI executives chose the name GIB to list the shares on the Montreal and Toronto stock exchanges.

In 1999, the Montreal Exchange withdrew from the stock market to concentrate on the derivatives market (stock options, futures contracts on stock indexes, currencies and bond rates, etc.).

For the two co-founders and directors of CGI, the choice of the abbreviation GIB as the new stock market acronym has nevertheless allowed them to keep the first letter of their last name – Godin and Imbeau – in this new designation for investors.

Star value on the stock market

Fifteen years after its IPO, and until the sharp correction in the technology sector in the early 2000s, CGI completed four two-for-one stock splits.

In 1998, CGI was able to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange. This Wall Street rating opened the way for it to join the largest portfolio and equity fund managers on the stock market planet.

In 2024, CGI is firmly established among the very valuable Canadian companies on the stock market.

Serge Godin, 74, is still heavily involved in CGI’s management as executive chairman of its board and controlling shareholder of voting rights. At most recent count, Mr. Godin’s block of shares is worth about $3.7 billion.

André Imbeau, also 74, still sits on the company’s board of directors, where he acts as an advisor to the executive chairman of the board, Mr. Godin.

Previously, in 2006, André Imbeau retired from the day-to-day management of CGI as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Until 2016, he sat on the Board of Directors as Vice Chairman and Corporate Secretary.

As for Mr. Imbeau’s holdings in CGI shares, they now amount to a few hundred thousand units after a series of resale and monetization transactions that he began in 2008.

At its peak, about ten years ago, Mr. Imbeau’s holdings in CGI’s share capital amounted to 4.5 million shares.