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Montreal, September 13, 2007 – The Board
of Directors of Transcontinental today unanimously recommended
the appointment of François Olivier as President and
Chief Executive Officer effective February 20, 2008, the date
of the next shareholders’ meeting. With Transcontinental
since 1993 and current President of the Printing Products
and Services sector, Mr. Olivier now becomes Chief Operating
Officer and assumes responsibility for the Corporation’s
three sectors of activity. Luc Desjardins will remain President
and Chief Executive Officer until next February to ensure
a smooth transition. Mr. Desjardins joined Transcontinental
in 2000 as Chief Operating Officer and became Chief Executive
Officer in 2004.
“Luc Desjardins very successfully guided Transcontinental
through an important stage of its development,” said
Rémi Marcoux, Executive Chairman of the Board. “Since
2000, Transcontinental’s revenue and profit growth has
been well above average for the main players in our industry.
Earnings per share rose from $0.63 to $1.58, and were it not
for the fast rise in the Canadian dollar during that period,
would have reached $1.97 last year, for annual compound growth
of 17.7%. Our market capitalization rose from $653 million
to $1.8 billion. In the context of the profound transformation
in our industry, this is a remarkable achievement, and on
behalf of the Board of Directors and myself personally, I’d
like to congratulate and thank Luc.”
Mr Marcoux continued: “François Olivier has
an impressive track record with Transcontinental. Since 1993
he has risen through the ranks, exceeding expectations at
every stage. He has become particularly known in the past
few years for developing our newspaper outsourcing model in
North America, a segment that holds much promise for the future.
François is an entrepreneur and innovator whose core
priorities are growth and performance and who enjoys great
credibility throughout the company. He was appointed CEO following
a rigorous process conducted by the independent members of
the Board under the direction of lead director J.V. Raymond
Cyr, with the support of an outside consulting firm. The depth
of our management teams made it possible for us to identify
an internal candidate, who is also a member of my family,
who can provide the crucial guarantees of continuity and stability
in the current economic context.”
Luc Desjardins said that he is proud of everything he has
achieved since 2000: “We have the right teams in place
at head office and in our three operating sectors. We have
a proven decision-making structure and processes. And to ensure
our medium and long-term growth, we have launched Evolution
2010, a stimulating business project that has been embraced
by all our employees. With François and our management
teams, I am leaving the company in good hands and in an excellent
position for the future. For myself, at age 55, I expect to
be taking on other major managerial challenges. It’s
good timing for Transcontinental as well as for me.”
A member of the Corporation’s Executive Committee,
François Olivier started as general manager for a Montreal
printing plant, then became responsible for a group of four
printing plants in the Montreal and Toronto area. In November
1999 he was appointed Senior Vice President of the Newspaper
Group in Transcontinental Printing, with responsibility for
managing a network of some 20 printing plants from Halifax
to Vancouver. It is to him that Transcontinental owes its
solid partnerships with the dailies La Presse, The
Globe and Mail and The New York Times. In October
2005, Mr. Olivier was appointed President of the Printing
Products and Service sector, which has 5000 employees and
reported revenue of $700 million in 2006. His credits
include the turnaround in Transcontinental’s Commercial
Products Group and Mexican operations. He was also the driving
force behind a 15-year contract signed in November 2006, worth
a billion U.S. dollars, to print the San Francisco Chronicle
and its related products, a major and promising breakthrough
for Transcontinental. He is also responsible for company-wide
growth in organic sales, a key component of Evolution
2010.
François Olivier is 42 and holds a B.Sc from McGill
University. He has completed the Program for Management Development
at the Harvard Business School. He is married to Isabelle
Marcoux and they have two children, Jeanne and Philippe.
Profile
The largest printer in Canada and sixth-largest in North America,
Transcontinental also ranks as the country’s leading
publisher of consumer magazines and French-language educational
resources, and its second-largest community newspaper publisher.
Transcontinental distinguishes itself by creating strategic
partnerships that integrate the company into its customers’
value chain, notably through its unique newspaper printing
outsourcing model and its value-added services. From mass
to highly personalized marketing, the company offers its clients
integrated solutions which include a continent-leading direct
marketing offering, a diverse digital platform and a door-to-door
advertising material distribution network. Transcontinental
is a company whose values, including respect, innovation and
integrity, are central to its operation.
Transcontinental (TSX: TCL.A, TCL.B) has more than 14,500
employees in Canada, the United States and Mexico, and reported
revenues of C$2.3 billion in 2006.
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For information:
Media
Nessa Prendergast
Director, Media Relations
Transcontinental Inc.
Telephone: (514) 954 2809
nessa.prendergast@transcontinental.ca
Financial Community
Jennifer F. McCaughey
Director, Investor Relations
Transcontinental Inc.
Telephone: (514) 954 2821
jennifer.mccaughey@transcontinental.ca
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