Jacynthe Côté. We often talk about female leadership, she is a convincing example. She comes from Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean like me. She was CEO at Alcan. My father worked at Alcan. I worked there as a student. I imagine that influenced my choice of career in mining. Aluminum and metal mining: in both cases, we touch on metallurgy. Jacynthe Côté has always impressed me. His journey is unblemished. I find her inspiring.
I’m an early riser. Morning is a good time to write down ideas. Otherwise, by chatting freely in the door frame with colleagues in the office. Often, I try to put myself in the head of my interlocutor, for example in a negotiation. What is he trying to gain? I put these elements forward when the time comes to present our proposal to him.
Impossible. I pick up when I hear: “You can’t do this. You can not do that. »André Gaumond [discoverer of the Éléonore mine deposit] was told that he was wasting his time looking for gold in James Bay. “A dreamer, who doesn’t understand where the industry is going. » At Canadian Malartic, the founders of Osisko were told that it was not possible to operate an open-pit gold mine in Canada. At Windfall [the next gold mine in operation in Quebec, owned by Osisko Mining] too, we had our share of denigrators.
I think of Winston Churchill’s words: “Never waste a good crisis. » I am a person who looks for the positive in every event. I try to always see the positive and build on that.
I was Canadian champion in judo under 95 kg as a teenager.
Between June 24 and July 1, on family vacation and changing time zones. It’s quite the best combination to have peace and relax. Otherwise, a dinner with friends can get the job done.
When Virginia was integrated into Osisko in 2014. From project geologist, I became vice-president, then president. I pinch myself again. John Burzynski [today executive chairman of the board of Osisko Mining] trusted me. It’s special how one-off events determine one’s career path.
I would take more mineral discoveries. I would take as much passion from my employees and I would take less administrative time. [Osisko Mining is awaiting permits to begin construction at Windfall.]
I had three. John Burzynski, Bob Wares, geologist who discovered the Canadian Malartic bulk gold deposit, and Paul Archer, vice-president of exploration for Virginia Mines at the time of the Éléonore discovery.
Takes the time to meet and listen to your employees, to give feedback, to lead by example, to inspire, to have a vision. When you become a boss, you are still the same person, but the perception of you by those around you changes. For the employees, it’s no longer Mathieu Savard who comes to talk to them, it’s their boss. We must be aware of this. At Osisko Mining, we take turns featuring our employees on social media. They can then share the information with their family. For them, it becomes a source of pride.
