Speakers

A promising line-up for 2024!

We are very excited to plan an extraordinary line up of renowned thought leaders from both the public and private sectors.

We will update this section as speakers are confirmed, so please come back often to stay up-to-date. Please click on the name of the speaker to view their biographies. Please note the biographies are listed in order of presentations.

Geneviève Binet

Chair of the Board of Directors, APEX

Photo Geneviève Binet

Geneviève Binet is the Assistant Deputy Minister of Public Affairs at the Department of National Defence (DND). Prior to joining DND in 2023, she spent 16 months in the Emergency Preparedness and COVID Recovery Secretariat at the Privy Council Office (PCO) supporting the government in transforming, with partners, how it mitigates, prepares for, responds to, and recovers from emergencies, and playing a significant leadership role in supporting the work of the recent Public Order Emergency Commission. Before joining PCO, Ms. Binet was the Vice President and the Director General of the Canada Border Services Agency’s (CBSA) Chief Transformation Officer Branch, where she played an integral role in providing leadership and stewardship of the CBSA’s transformation program and its journey towards building the Border of the Future. She also worked in CBSA’s Information, Science and Technology Branch, where she led the development of corporate applications and a renewed culture in the IT sphere. She joined the CBSA in 2018, after 8 years in progressively increasing executive roles at the Canada Revenue Agency, including in Public Affairs, federal-provincial affairs, and as Chief of Staff to the Commissioner of Revenue. She joined the federal public service after a career in the market research industry.

She has a degree in Business and Anthropology from Carleton University, and a master’s Certificate in Innovation Leadership from York University’s Schulich School of Business. She is passionate about government transformation, public affairs, culture change and being a servant leader.

Carl Trottier

Chief Executive Officer, APEX

Carl Trottier picture

Carl was appointed Assistant Deputy Minister at Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) in 2016. He has been a proud member of APEX since 2006, when he first entered the executive ranks.

Carl began his career with National Defence in Human Resources with a focus in Labour Relations. He became a successful negotiator at TBS and proceeded to lead the Collective Bargaining program. His journey continued with him leading the Governance, Program and Policy Sector and working on many transformation initiatives. He then went to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to implement the new RCMP labour relations regime.

Carl brings a strong leadership background and experience in change management, negotiation, strategic planning, program development, people management, relationship management and stakeholder engagement. Carl is very excited to take on the role of APEX CEO, and to further lead the APEX vision toward an executive community with elevated wellness, elite leaders and extraordinary impacts through partnerships.

Christiane Fox

Deputy Clerk of the Privy Council and Association Secretary to the Cabinet, PCO

Photo Christiane Fox

Christiane Fox was appointed Deputy Clerk of the Privy Council and Associate Secretary to the Cabinet, effective January 27, 2024.

Prior to her appointment, Christiane held several deputy minister roles across the public service. She was the Deputy Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada from July 2022 to January 2024, the Deputy Minister of Indigenous Services Canada from September 2020 to July 2022, the Deputy Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs from November 2019 to September 2020, and the Deputy Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and Youth from June 2017 to November 2019. She is also the Deputy Minister Champion of the Federal Youth Network.

Christiane has also held several positions at the Privy Council Office, including Assistant Secretary to the Cabinet, Communications and Consultations; Director of Operations, Policy, in the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Relations Secretariat; and Director General of Communications.

Christiane started her career as a communications advisor at Industry Canada (now Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada), where she worked in communications and in science policy. She also spent a year with the Competition Policy Review Secretariat as Director of Communications and Consultations.

Christiane has a B.A. in Mass Communications and Psychology from Carleton University and is a graduate of the University of Ottawa’s Master’s Certificate Program in Public Administration.

Arun Thangaraj

Deputy Minister, Transport Canada

Photo Arun Thangaraj

Arun Thangaraj was appointed Deputy Minister of Transport on February 20, 2023.

Before joining Transport Canada, Arun was the Associate Deputy Minister at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, following two years as the Associate Deputy Minister at Transport Canada.

Before these roles, he was Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Financial Officer at Global Affairs Canada and was the Deputy Chief Financial Officer at the former Canadian International Development Agency. He also brings experience and knowledge on transportation issues, from his time at the Canadian Transportation Agency from 2002 to 2011.

Arun received the Queen Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2013 for his contribution to the federal public service and to his community. He has served on various governance boards and is a sessional lecturer in the School of Public Administration at Carleton University.

Arun is a Chartered Professional Accountant and holds a Master of Arts in Public Administration from Carleton University, a Master of Business Administration from the University of Ottawa, and an Honours BA in Political Science from the University of Toronto.

Robyne Hanley-Dafoe

Expert on Resiliency and Workplace Wellness

Photo Robyne Hanley-Dafoe

Described as one of the most sought-after, engaging, thought-provoking, and truly transformative speakers and scholars in her field, Dr. Robyne Hanley-Dafoe is a multi-award-winning education and psychology instructor. She specializes in resiliency, navigating stress and change, wellness in the workplace, and optimal performance both at home and work. Her keynotes, grounding in global research, share accessible and practical strategies that help foster resiliency and wellness within ourselves and others.

Hanley-Dafoe’s work is inspired by personal experience. She learned resiliency from the ground up as someone who has experienced significant obstacles throughout her life. This, combined with more than 18 years of university teaching and research experience, makes Hanley-Dafoe’s work both accessible and relatable while providing realistic and sustainable strategies for understanding and practicing everyday resiliency and wellness.

Hanley-Dafoe is the bestselling author of two books: Calm Within the Storm, which won a 2022 Silver Nautilus Award, and her most recent, Stress Wisely: How to Be Well in an Unwell World

Dr. Marie-Hélène Pelletier

PhD, MBA, Leadership Resilience & Burnout Psychologist

Photo Marie-Hélène Pelletier

Throughout her career in business management and psychology, Dr. Pelletier has spearheaded the dialogue on the crucial issues of leadership resilience and work performance. Drawing on her extensive background in corporate, insurance, governance and public sectors, she brings an international perspective and unique expertise on leadership. She is a practicing leadership psychologist and executive coach with over 20 years of experience and holds a Ph.D. and an MBA from the University of British Columbia. Marie-Helene is a Member of the Global Clinical Practice Network of the World Health Organization, and past Director on the boards of the Canadian Psychological Association and the International Association of Applied Psychology. She has presented and authored and co-authored a number of industry and academic publications and has won numerous academic and industry awards. In 2024, Dr. Pelletier published her award-winning book, The Resilience Plan: A Strategic Approach to Optimizing Your Work Performance and Mental Health.

Peter Mansbridge

OC, Former Chief Correspondent for CBC News and Anchor of The National

Photo Peter Mansbridge

Peter Mansbridge is one of Canada’s most respected and recognizable figures, having spent 30 years as CBC News’ chief correspondent and anchor of The National. He joined the CBC in 1968, where, over the course of five decades, he covered almost every major Canadian and international event.

From the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the 9/11 terrorist attacks to Olympic Games, federal elections from 1972 to 2019.  Peter is also the bestselling author of four books: Mansbridge: One on One; Extraordinary Canadians; Off The Record and his latest, How Canada Works.

After retiring from the CBC in 2017, Peter now serves as the president of Manscorp Media Services, where he develops documentary films, and hosts one of Canada’s leading political podcasts, The Bridge. He is also Senior Counsel at Spark Advocacy in Ottawa, and the Honourary Colonel of Canada’s Special Forces Regiment.

And finally, Peter is Chancellor Emeritus of Mount Allison University in New Brunswick, and a Distinguished Fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto.

Amber Mac

Deputy Innovation Speaker | Co-Host, The Feed on SiriusXM | President, AmberMac Media Inc.

Photo Amber Mac

Amber is the President of AmberMac Media, Inc., an award-winning content development agency, an award-winning podcaster, and a bestselling author. She is also the co-host of the weekly emerging technology radio show and podcast #TheFeed on SiriusXM.

In 2024, Amber was named one of DMZ’s Women of the Year for driving innovation and progress in the Canadian tech industry. In 2022, Amber joined the board of directors at GFI (TSXV: PEAS), a plant-based farm-to-fork food and ingredients company. In 2021, Amber was named one of the Bay Street Bull Women of the Year for her leadership in the technology sector.

In 2010, she wrote the national bestselling business book Power Friending (Portfolio: New York) and in 2016, she co-wrote the Amazon bestseller, Outsmarting Your Kids Online.

Amber has keynoted more than 500 events around the world and has moderated sessions with: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau; German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, former FBI Director James Comey; business coach Tony Robbins; famed astronaut Chris Hadfield; and many other notable leaders.

Rick Hansen

Man in Motion | Champion for Accessibility and Inclusion

Photo Rick Hansen

Rick Hansen, C.C., O.B.C. is a Canadian icon who has dedicated his life to awakening the world to the potential of people with disabilities. He is best known as the “Man In Motion” for undertaking an epic 26 month, 40,000 km journey around the world in his wheelchair. The Man In Motion World Tour was fueled by Hansen’s two original dreams of a world without barriers for people with disabilities and a cure for paralysis after spinal cord injury.

Hansen is a three-time world champion, nine-time Pan Am gold medalist, and six-time Paralympic medalist. He is the Founder of the Rick Hansen Foundation, an organization committed to creating an inclusive world where people with disabilities are living to their full potential.

For over three decades, Hansen and his team have been focused on the removal of barriers. Currently, he and the Foundation are rethinking how people of all ages and abilities access spaces where we live, work, learn and play. The Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Certification™ (RHFAC) is the only program that rates, certifies, and showcases accessible building based on their level of meaningful access for persons with mobility, vision, and hearing disabilities. To date, more than 1,350 sites across Canada have been rated through the program.

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