Saisir sa chance

David Culver, a leader in the worlds of business and Canadian culture, tells us about his youth in Montreal, his studies at McGill and Harvard universities and his military service during World War II. He describes his spectacular rise at Alcan to become chief executive officer of one of the largest multinationals in Canada. The memoir provides an inside look into the management of a global company with roots deeply planted in Quebec and offers pragmatic advice on how to grow talent, foster technology, and handle adversity in a far-flung organization. Anecdotes of meeting the likes of Margaret Thatcher, Henry Kissinger, and Jawaharlal Nehru, reveal the experiences of a strong corporate leader who continued to live a Montreal life, while never losing his interest in discovering the world. A man of many interests and talents, Culver reflects on his long love affair with architecture - and his efforts to restore and preserve Montreal's heritage by creating Maison Alcan - and how music and sport helped shape his life. Saisir sa chance is evidence of Culver's positive outlook and belief that the most extraordinary things can happen when you least expect them.