Building Value for Society with Chantal Sorel | Master Builders | S3 EP2

In this Master Builders episode of Navigating Major Programmes, Riccardo Cosentino and co-host Shormila Chatterjee sit down with previous colleague and friend Chantal Sorel, a seasoned leader whose 30-year career spans architecture, project management, and executive roles across industries including infrastructure, mining, and social infrastructure. With extensive international experience and a commitment to delivering value through challenging projects, Chantal reflects on her journey and shares lessons from managing high-stakes initiatives like the McGill University Health Centre.

Chantal discusses the importance of breaking barriers as a woman in construction, fostering ethical collaboration, and adapting project management practices to meet evolving challenges. Her insights highlight the critical role of leadership, strategy, and societal impact in shaping the future of the industry.

"Project management is about maximizing the result with the resources you have. That’s it. My definition of project management is maximizing the result with the resources you have and using them in the best combination—the right capacity and to the right objective and the needs that you have to fulfill, and not detracting from that. And this is what it is about. So for me, it’s always been a passion. I said I’m a builder. And of course, I’ve practiced infrastructure all my career because, for me, it was a way to deliver value, value for society. I’m a bit of an idealist, but I think that society needs value, and we’re there to deliver value." – Chantal Sorel 

Key Takeaways

• How resilience and expertise helped Chantal navigate leadership in traditionally male-dominated industries.
• Why delivering value through infrastructure projects requires balancing strategy, collaboration, and societal impact.
• How global experience and adaptability shape effective project management practices.
• The evolving role of technology, including AI, in addressing the complexities of modern mega-projects.

The conversation doesn’t stop here—connect and converse with our community via LinkedIn:

• Follow Navigating Major Programmes
• Follow Riccardo Cosentino
• Follow Chantal Sorel 
• Follow Shormila Chatterjee
• Read Riccardo’s latest at www.riccardocosentino.com

Music: "A New Tomorrow" by Chordial Music. Licensed through PremiumBeat.