News > 2009 > Launch of a Joint Quebecor–HEC Montréal Project to Support Business Journalism

Launch of a Joint Quebecor–HEC Montréal Project to Support Business Journalism

September 14, 2009

Quebecor and HEC Montréal are proud to announce a three-year partnership to help train business journalists. Students will receive top-flight training combining a knowledge of economics and business with a solid understanding of today’s media world.

These budding journalists will be able to draw on the expertise and resources of the different Quebecor companies and franchises. They will benefit from the expertise of a mentor, write articles and deliver actual reports on activities happening at or related to HEC Montréal. Quebecor will also be making a financial contribution, in the form of scholarships. This is the first such partnership in Canada.

For HEC Montréal Director Michel Patry, this initiative will help to better prepare students for the realities of the media industry. “We are proud that Quebecor has chosen our School to support the new generation of business journalists. Every year, HEC Montréal trains some 12,000 management students. If this venture helps to interest some of them in journalism, it means that they will be all the better prepared for their future careers. They will have a solid grounding in the business world and will be ready to meet the challenges of the digital age and the multi-platform approach to news reporting.”

Julie Tremblay, Vice-President, Human Resources with Quebecor, believes that this is a win-win project. “This partnership between two leaders in their respective fields will benefit not only the business world and Quebec media, but especially students. Having a business school of the calibre of HEC Montréal take part in training the next generation of business journalists is a guarantee of quality. The School’s reputation extends beyond our borders, and this initiative is sure to surpass anything that has been done in this field to date.”

Quebecor inc.

Quebecor Inc. (TSX: QBR.A, QBR.B) is a holding company with a 54.7% interest in Quebecor Media Inc., one of Canada's largest media groups. Quebecor Media owns operating companies in numerous media related businesses: Videotron Ltd., an integrated communications company engaged in cable television, interactive multimedia development, Internet access services, cable telephony and wireless telephone service; Sun Media Corporation, the largest publisher of newspapers in Canada; Canoe Inc., operator of a network of English- and French-language Internet properties in Canada; TVA Group Inc., operator of the largest French-language over-the-air television network in Québec, a number of specialty channels, and the English-language over-the-air station Sun TV; Nurun Inc., a major interactive technologies and communications agency with offices in Canada, the United States, Europe and Asia; magazine publisher TVA Publishing Inc.; book publishers and distributors Sogides Group Inc. and CEC Publishing Inc.; Archambault Group Inc. and TVA Films, companies engaged in the production, distribution and retailing of cultural products; Le SuperClub Vidéotron ltée, a DVD and console game rental and retail chain; and Quebecor MediaPages, publisher of print and online directories.

About HEC Montréal

HEC Montréal was the first business school in North America to hold the three most prestigious accreditations in management education: AACSB International (United States), EQUIS (Europe) and AMBA (United Kingdom) and has been listed in the Forbes, BusinessWeek and AméricaEconomía rankings for the excellence of its MBA program. The School has over 12,000 students in its 38 management programs, from the undergraduate to postgraduate levels, including certificates, and employs approximately 260 professors. HEC Montréal plays a leadership role in research thanks to some 50 research units (including 25 chairs), carries out projects around the world and is dedicated to training executives and senior managers. In the past one hundred years, the School has trained more than 60,000 students in a wide variety of management fields. www.hec.ca