The M&A Club is launching its Academy with an exclusive first program for women entrepreneurs
November 21 2025
The M&A Club of Canada announces the launch of its Academy and its first training program, Growth Through Acquisition, with the first cohort dedicated to women entrepreneurs beginning in February 2026.
Mergers and acquisitions aren’t learned in a classroom, but in the field. The experience of industry experts is essential to understanding each step of a transaction and avoiding mistakes. Learning directly from those who conduct acquisitions every day turns theory into a successful transaction,” says Ugo Dionne, President of the M&A Club of Canada.
Responding to an urgent need
In Quebec, only 18% of businesses are majority-owned by women, while nearly 1,000 Quebec companies will be up for sale in the coming year. This program is part of the Women’s Repreneurship Movement launched in April 2025 by the Fonds de solidarité FTQ and BCF Business Law. Growth Through Acquisition provides women entrepreneurs and executives with practical tools to seize these opportunities and transform Quebec’s entrepreneurial landscape.
A unique program in Canada
The training is designed for established entrepreneurs leading companies generating at least $10M in revenue. This 18-hour program, delivered over three full days, will enable them to use mergers and acquisitions as a strategic lever to accelerate their growth.
The program covers six essential components: building strategy, mastering financial and tax dimensions, understanding legal aspects, structuring financing, negotiating and closing the transaction, and succeeding in post-acquisition integration. It addresses both technical and human elements — often overlooked but critical to a transaction’s success.
A national partnership with the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC)
BDC serves as the national partner of this initiative. Far from a traditional academic program, it focuses on practical and concrete learning. Sessions will be led by renowned experts and industry leaders: BDC, PwC, BCF, Investissement Québec, Altero, and National Bank.
The first cohort, exclusively for women, will take place from February to April 2026. A second mixed cohort will follow in the fall. The program will then expand across the rest of Canada, including Toronto, Calgary, and Vancouver. Noémie Poli, founding partner of Altero — a consulting firm specialized in organizational transformation and post-acquisition integration — will lead the program.
About the M&A Club
Founded in 2009, the M&A Club is the largest Canadian network of mergers and acquisitions and private equity professionals. With 15 chapters across Canada, it organizes more than 150 roundtables each year, as well as flagship national events such as the M&A Forum and the M&A Awards Gala.
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