SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. would be in better shape if it had come to an agreement sooner with Crown prosecutors, according to a former director and top shareholder.

“The solution yesterday was a good solution under the circumstances and if it had been done immediately, many years ago, it would have certainly helped a great deal to boost the remaining employees, and also to the shareholders,” Stephen Jarislowsky, founder of Jarislowsky Fraser Ltd., told BNN Bloomberg in an interview on Thursday.

“But, the political impasse put a lot of time [between] the original bad events that happened (and Wednesday’s agreement with the Crown prosecutor) and that has very much hurt the company.”

SNC pleaded guilty on Wednesday to fraud in conjunction with the company’s activities in Libya between 2001 and 2011, taking a $280 million fine to be paid out over five years. The resolution sent the company’s shares soaring, gaining more than 25 per cent over Wednesday and Thursday trading.

Jarislowsky said it’s not too late for SNC to rebuild, though he admitted it will be an uphill climb for the infrastructure giant.

“The company now, I hope it’s in the position to rebuild itself, and that is not going to be an easy task, but it is feasible,” Jarislowsky said. “And there are certain elements in the assets today that are going to be very positive. And, there are other assets which still have to be liquidated. We hope that the loss of those assets isn’t going to be too material.”

One asset Jarislowsky was adamant the company should not have surrendered was a 10-per-cent stake in Toronto’s Highway 407 toll road.

“To my mind, that was one of the best investments that anybody can make in a lifetime,” Jarislowsky said. “To give that up to just repay ordinary debt, when that asset was going to get bigger, and bigger, and bigger, as collateral?”

“The 407 was more than 50 per cent of the company and they played around with that and sold it without asking permission from the shareholders, which I thought was something that no board should countenance ever; to bypass the shareholders when they’re selling more than 50 per cent of the company.”

Jarislowsky added that major changes at the board level would be needed if the company hopes to make a recovery.

“The board should be improved at the earliest and it should be manned with people who are well-known, who are known for ethics and are highly regarded by the community, so that we can rebuild the quality of the people that are running these projects, and to make sure the kind of thing that happened will never happen again,” he said.