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Renée Hodder (second from right) and other scholarship winners with His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada (Photo credits. Above: Office of the Secretary to the Governor General. Below: Nizam Photography)

Renée Hodder arrived at Dalhousie in 2013 with a Bachelor of Engineering degree and a desire to explore the business world. Hodder, from Mount Pearl, Newfoundland and Labrador, completed her degree at Memorial University and was already mentally prepared for the Corporate Residency MBA. “I always wanted to do it,” says Hodder. “I actually wrote the GMAT before I finished my undergrad degree. I wanted to connect my love of the technical with business.”

Throughout her MBA studies, Hodder honed her business and leadership skills. She did not choose a particular focus, but especially enjoyed strategy courses, and did her corporate residency in human resources. “It was a great opportunity to broaden my skill set,” she says, “because at the end of the day, I think that every decision is a people decision.” Hodder also gained valuable lessons from an exchange to the Copenhagen Business School. “It was the best experience in the world,” she says. “We travelled a lot, and it was a great educational opportunity. The business school was fabulous.” Her favourite part of her degree, though, was her friends in the CRMBA program and her professors, particularly Rick Nason. “I think with such small classes, we all get so close over the two years, especially with such a strong group work component,” she reflects. “They’re just such a great group of people. And having the opportunity to learn from someone like Rick, with his experience, is amazing.”

Hodder completed her corporate residency in Toronto with the Bank of Montreal. For her dedication to school and leadership, she was awarded the Futures Fund scholarship from the organization of Canada’s Outstanding CEO of the Year. Hodder received the award at a black tie gala in Toronto. “I met the Governor General, and the who’s who of Canadian businesspeople,” says Hodder. When asked if it was intimidating to meet such prominent business figures, Hodder laughs. “No, not at all. Maybe it’s the East Coast in me, but I felt completely at ease. And everyone was so welcoming and happy to share their experiences. It was an amazing evening.”

Hodder feels a bit of disbelief that she’s finished her degree. “It was a big decision to take two years off work and come and do an MBA full-time, but the experience has been incredible, and the two years went by in a flash.” Hodder is returning to Newfoundland and Labrador to continue work she began between her degrees, as a system planning engineer with Nalcor Energy. She will be using the skills from both her MBA and BEng degrees: “My team looks at generation requirements over the long term and plans the required generation to meet the electrical needs of the province.” Hodder is passionate about the energy sector. “I don’t think there’s a better place you can be in Canada,” she says, “in terms of the scale of projects we’re developing and the technologies and skills we’re applying to those projects.” Judging by her achievements so far, Hodder has an exciting career in her future.