Connie’s many strengths are immediately apparent to anyone who knows her. The career of this young, versatile lawyer, who specializes in commercial real estate, has exploded in the last 10 years. Genuinely humble, she credits her success to the people she has worked with, whether at Ivanhoé Cambridge, Cominar or now Oxford. Because they believe in her and sense her immense potential, she is able to spread her wings professionally while taking on an active, more personal role in real estate associations like CREW M, which benefits from her considerable talents. An enthusiastic hard worker, she seizes every opportunity to learn and broaden her skills. Connie believes that the keys to success are a positive attitude and an open-minded approach to the many ups and downs encountered over any career.

While a remarkable career path like Carole Handfield’s commands attention, it is with great modesty that she talks about her 40-year career, which she breaks down into four main stages. For nearly 20 years, she built dozens of residential and commercial projects across Greater Montréal. Over the next 12 years, she lived in Poland, a country just emerging from communism, to oversee a major residential project focusing on access to home ownership. Next, she worked as a senior consultant for real estate projects in Canada, the U.S. and South America. Today, she leads a strong team of professionals at the Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ and is excited to see how millennials are transforming the worlds of housing and work.

For Catherine, destiny led her to the field of commercial real estate – a path that she couldn’t have foreseen from her school desk, but which she all the same embarked on, rising through her profession as a notary specializing in co-ownership. Still to this day, her determination to achieve nothing less than excellence is evident in everything she undertakes. Whether through her invaluable advice to help optimize a large-scale project, her involvement in the development of her young team at Cain Lamarre or writing her book Copropriété, Catherine impresses on all fronts.

Involved in several major condominium projects that have shaped the Montreal landscape, Sonia constantly exceeds the expectations of her clients by bringing ambitious solutions to the table. Her power of conviction and visionary spirit have allowed her to make her mark in the commercial real estate sector over the past 25 years. A woman of strength and skilled communicator, it’s not surprising that she opened her own firm – a challenge that few young professionals have the courage to try! It’s no doubt what makes her an inspiring mentor, who is conscious of the needs of junior lawyers with whom she collaborates on a daily basis. She imparts the importance of a solid team and the drive to push one’s limits, but also to enjoy one’s work and laugh – hard and often.

Annie had an inspiring role model in her father, himself a business leader, who taught her that the future is full of opportunities. The impressive career path of this polytechnic civil engineer has unquestionably been inspired by that optimism. Annie has participated in major projects in Québec, the U.S. and Poland. She has taken the lead on every phase of the real estate development process—enriching experiences that have defined her leadership style and eventually led her to create LSR GesDev, a real estate management and development company, with Lucie Laliberté. Annie believes that a real estate project’s success is measured by the impact it has on all stakeholders. Surrounding herself with people who share her passion, loyalty, drive for excellence and a bold, creative vision, this seasoned entrepreneur has proudly been behind projects such as Arbora, Vic & Lambert and Loggia.

Before founding her own company, ELEMENTS Planification urbaine, Martine Peyton spent several formative years that prepared her for her solo enterprise. Passionate about her chosen field, she participated in several successful large-scale projects, including the development of Quartier DIX30. She constantly pushed her limits—innovating, problem solving, negotiating, leading, managing the pressure—until she found herself ready to give free reign to her entrepreneurial spirit as a business owner. One year later, objectives have all been surpassed and opportunities abound. Recognized for her rigour, integrity and involvement, she already serves as a role model for the next generation.

Appointed Senior Partner at SDK in 1996, then president in 2007 with four other senior partners, Hélène Brisebois today heads a team of 60 people. During 28 years as a consulting structural engineer, she has carried out hundreds of real estate projects that have shaped the Montréal landscape. In 2014, this uncompromising businesswoman, who likes nothing more than a challenge, proudly received a Doctorat honoris causa from the Université de Montréal. She may smile when you call her a star, but as the only woman at the helm of an engineering firm in Québec, the description is apt. Passionate and audacious, she’s a natural leader that young professionals look up to.