Michel Servant invited to preside the Prix Relève d’Excellence 2015 Committee of Réseau HEC Montréal

April 27, 2015

Michel Servant, a Business Law partner at Lavery, will be the President of the Prix Relève d’Excellence 2015 Committee of Réseau HEC Montréal. This competition recognizes the professional success of HEC’s graduates, aged 35 and under, in four different classes: Large Enterprises, Small and Medium Enterprises (SME), Entrepreneurs and Young Professionals. The prize-winners are selected by a jury of experienced business people.

This event will take place as a Gala-Evening on Thursday, May 21, 2015, at the Parquet of Centre CDP Capital. 2015 marks the 30^th anniversary of the Prix Relève d’Excellence and Mr. Michael Sabia, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, will be the Honorary President. The Caisse is one of the largest institutional fund managers in Canada and North America.

HEC Montréal is a university business school whose reputation as a leader in teaching and research is recognized in Québec, Canada, and around the world.

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November 28, 2024

Lavery helps the Société du parc Jean-Drapeau adjust Canadian Grand Prix (F1) dates

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November 28, 2024

Lavery advises the Société du parc Jean-Drapeau adjust Canadian Grand Prix (F1) dates

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La Presse’s Big Gamble Pays Off

Pierre-Elliott Levasseur will always remember a conversation he had in 2010 with Guy Crevier, Editor of La Presse, who was also its president at the time. “The first iPad had just come out. We were both looking at the tablet and, although we didn’t know exactly what to think, we knew we had to do something with this new tool,” says Pierre-Elliott Levasseur, who has been President of La Presse since 2016. The rest, as they say, is history. La Presse’s titanic digital transformation and overhaul of its business model became a case study that has been making headlines for almost 15 years. The last major milestone in this evolution was its change of business model in 2018, when La Presse decided to adopt a not-for-profit structure. This allowed it to diversify its revenue streams by obtaining donations and assistance from the federal and provincial governments, in addition to advertising revenue. 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If La Presse hadn’t transformed itself, it wouldn’t have survived. We had no choice but to take the risk. Pierre-Elliott LevasseurPrésident, La Presse Six years later, the gamble has paid off handsomely. Since the launch of the philanthropic model, over 75,000 people have donated to La Presse. La Presse is the largest independent French-language media in North America, with over 500 employees, including 220 in the newsroom. Every month, La Presse reaches 4 million readers, or 60% of Quebec’s adult population. “The quality of the product remained at the heart of all our decisions: we never compromised on that,” says Pierre-Elliott. Human challenges Getting there wasn’t easy. “The expression we used in 2018 when Power Corporation was no longer our owner was ‘we’re leaving the nest.’ We had to find a solution together, because otherwise we’d have gone bankrupt together.” The culture of change that La Presse had developed in previous years as part of its digital transformation was the first step towards success. “It wasn’t our first transformation. But it certainly required a lot of communication to reassure people and convince them that we were heading in the right direction.” Its excellent relationship with the unions was another success factor. “The unions supported us and always acted with us.” In addition to a $50 million contribution to fund the transition, Power Corporation retained responsibility for past retirement plan obligations, which cushioned the risk and reassured employees. Legal challenges On top of the human challenges, there were legal obstacles. In order to convert to a not-for-profit structure, La Presse had to obtain a legislative change from the elected members of the National Assembly. When Power Corporation acquired the newspaper in 1967, the Quebec government passed a law preventing the transfer of ownership to foreign interests. A unanimous vote was required to amend the law. “It was definitely a period of uncertainty. It was difficult to move forward operationally,” recalls Pierre-Elliott. In July 2018, the legislative change was approved, and La Presse became an independent, not-for-profit structure. A few months later, the philanthropic program was launched, and La Presse received its first donations from readers. At the end of 2020, the tax transformation was completed, with the Canada Revenue Agency granting La Presse its Registered Journalism Organization (RJO) status, enabling it to become a qualified donee and issue tax receipts for donations received. Committed donors In 2023, 56,000 donors contributed a total of $7.8 million to La Presse, an increase of 13% over 2022. “We started from zero and have now reached nearly $8 million in donations. This would not have been possible without our loyal donors,” says Pierre-Elliott. La Presse ended the 2023 fiscal year with a positive balance sheet and a $40 million reserve fund. “This fund is designed to ensure La Presse’s long-term future, allowing us to weather economic downturns or technological changes. The fund also allows us to reinvest in our mission and in journalism in Quebec.” Never stop innovating At the same time, La Presse has seen an increase in advertising revenue in a shrinking market. These results can be attributed, in part, to yearly innovations in its advertising product offerings. “Our advertising products are based on data and careful audience segmentation, in full compliance with the industry’s highest privacy standards. 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