Women and innovation: Portraits of exceptional intrapreneurs

November 22, 2013

The book Innover au féminin/Savoir se dépasser – Intraprendre, under the direction of Full Professor Louis Jacques Filion (Management), has just been published by the Presses de l’Université de Québec.

Innover au féminin/Savoir se dépasser – Intraprendre, written in co-operation with four MSc graduates (Ali Fadil, Ariane-Hélène Fortin, Marie-Ange Masson and Myriam Presti), paints a portrait of women intrapreneurs who are known and renowned in their communities for their innovative work. They all have their own stories and backgrounds and work in different fields, but they all learned on their own how to excel through innovation. Professor Filion’s book consists of 12 case studies, written in a simple style, that encourage readers to think about, understand and learn from how intrapreneurs act, what they do and how they made it to where they are.

“We hear a lot about innovation and project management, but we don’t often take much interest in the people who launched and developed these innovations and projects,” emphasizes Professor Filion. “In this book we explore this overlooked aspect and invite people, both men and women, to think creatively.”

Professor Filion has been with HEC Montréal since 1993. He holds a PhD in systems and entrepreneurship from the University of Lancaster, in the UK, and has held the Rogers—J.-A.-Bombardier Chair of Entrepreneurship since 1995. He has a varied background in entrepreneurship, intrapreneurship and innovative management practices. He has received numerous distinctions, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Canadian Council for Small Business and Entrepreneurship in 2004, the title of Wilford White Fellow from the International Council for Small Business in 2005, the Julien-Marchesnay award from the Association internationale de recherche en entrepreneuriat et PME in 2006, and the Mérite promotion de l'entrepreneuriat award from the Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec in 2008. He has spoken on the topic of entrepreneurship around the globe, and has authored or co-authored some one hundred publications and over 150 case studies. 

Innover au féminin/Savoir se dépasser – Intraprendre, under the direction of Louis Jacques Filion, Presses de l’Université de Québec, October 2013, 274 pages. Available at the COOP HEC Montréal.