Genoa Design employees donated $12,000 to children in Newfoundland and Labrador for the Janeway Children’s Health and Rehabilitation Centre.Provided
When Lebanon-born Mohamad Saad was working as an engineer in Australia in the mid-2000s, he couldn’t have foreseen that when he met his future wife there through mutual friends, it would lead him to a fulfilling career on another continent – at Genoa Design International Ltd. in Mount Pearl, N.L.
Saad’s wife hails from Newfoundland and Labrador, and in 2008 they moved to St. John’s, where he found work as a project engineer consultant. In 2021, he joined Genoa Design as a project manager. “There’s a boom in the St. John’s tech sector, and Genoa has a great reputation as a good employer with lots of big national and international clients,” he says.
As a specialist in the shipbuilding sector, the company is handling 3D modelling and production drawings for the Vancouver Shipyard’s offshore science vessels, which is the project Saad is helping to oversee. “There are many moving pieces and lots of money at stake, so at times it can be stressful meeting our targets,” he says. “But I work with a good group of people in a positive environment, so when there’s stress, we all share it.”
Saad believes that culture of support, plus an emphasis on wellness, trickles down from CEO Gina Pecore. “There’s a very strong, diverse leadership with lots of women at the senior level,” he says. “Male-dominated environments in this industry tend to be more abrasive – here, you know you’ll be supported.”
Ensuring employees remain healthy comes in different forms, including an annual $1,000 wellness bonus, which Saad uses for golf. He also appreciates a peer-recognition program that provides more than just a financial bonus every quarter. “It’s nice to be recognized for going above and beyond – it really perks up your day,” he says.
Other perks are also appreciated, such as free snacks, catered lunches every few weeks and stand-up desks for everyone. “It’s great because you don’t have to put a ticket in to get a standing desk, it’s automatically provided,” says Saad. “Small perks like these show employees they’re valued.”
Unlike Saad, chief program officer Laurie Balan was born and raised in Newfoundland and Labrador. Armed with a mechanical engineering degree from Memorial University, she joined Genoa Design in 2020 as chief technical officer to set up the design and delivery team. “After working in shipbuilding for 20 years, I was excited to see what it would be like to report to a female leader,” she says.
Pecore had reached out to Balan to see if there might be a fit, and Balan was impressed by the CEO’s extensive industry experience – then by her leadership style. “Gina encourages and welcomes everyone to have a voice,” she says. “She has created an environment that wants to hear from a diversity of people and thoughts.”
Genoa Design lives by its values – put people first, live well, create lasting relationships, make a difference, own it and never stand still. “There’s always conscious pause in all decision-making to ask, does that align with our values?” says Balan. “Everything is built with that in mind.”
Mentorship happens at both the senior and junior levels, and continual professional development is encouraged. The internal Genoa Academy offers courses in soft and technical skill development, and a team of technical subject-matter experts respond to new products and services in the market.
“I learn so much from both the people who report directly to me and from the executive team,” says Balan. “I feel like there’s mentorship through every conversation, because everyone has different backgrounds and experience. It really is a case of a rising tide lifts all ships.”
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