The Executive Office (EO) is the central point of contact for the coordination of all departmental support to the Deputy Minister (DM) and to the Minister. The EO comprises the following groups:
Deputy Minister's Office
Led by the Chief of Staff to the Deputy Minister, the Deputy Minister’s Office (DMO) is the central point of contact for the department for all strategic issues, policy and program files of importance to the Deputy Minister and the Minister.
Profile:
Chief of Staff: Désirée Sauvé
Désirée Sauvé
Chief of Staff to the Deputy Minister of Transport
Désirée Sauvé - Chief of Staff to the Deputy Minister of Transport
Désirée Sauvé was appointed Chief of Staff to the Deputy Minister of Transport on May 30, 2022.
Désirée has extensive experience in strategic planning, Grants & Contributions, program and project delivery and communications.
Prior to joining the Deputy Minister’s Office, she led several priority files over the course of her 12 years in the department, as an executive in both Air and Marine Programs and in the Oceans Protection Plan. While the Director General of the Oceans Protection Plan for three years, she led the team in its successful renewal for another nine years.
Prior to joining Transport Canada, Désirée worked at Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, Team Canada Inc and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada where she held a variety of different roles.
Désirée received her B.A. in Political Science and French Literature from Carleton University. She is married with one daughter, one dog, two cats and a revolving door of foster dogs.
Number of Employees: 28 employees
Groups:
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Deputy Minister and Associate Deputy Minister Support Unit
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Policy and Issues Management Directorate
Deputy Minister and Associate Deputy Minister Support Unit
Both Deputy Ministers are supported by an administrative unit that handle their day to day needs. These include but are not limited to, managing and coordinating departmental support and requirements for DM-level meetings and travels, as well as managing calls and ensuring timely approval and review of key products.
Policy and Issues Management Directorate
The Policy team reviews all information, materials, and products received in the EO with a horizontal lens, providing a valuable challenge function to the department on behalf of the Deputies. The Policy team also advises the Department and senior officials on potential policy views or actions taken by the Minister that could have an impact on departmental advice.
The Liaison team provides a key strategic link between the Minister’s Office (MinO) and the department to support and advance priorities and initiatives, and ensure that directions and decisions, as well as the flow of appropriate advice and information, are conveyed with clarity, timeliness and discretion.
Additional services include:
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providing non-partisan support
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providing Departmental Liaison services
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cooperating with the Minister’s office to ensure that the Minister’s decisions are communicated to the Department in a timely manner and that the Department is advised of new information or follow-up needed as a result of briefings provided
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coordinating and facilitating MinO briefings
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organizing briefings to the Minister (Min/DM meetings)
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tasking and coordinating Minister’s Office Questions (MinOQ) and Members of Parliament Questions (MPQ)
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tasking, reviewing, updating and disclosing Question Period or Public Information Cards
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facilitating outreach by the Department
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tasking, coordinating and facilitating support materials for the Minister’s meetings and trips
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providing meeting support to the Deputy Minister
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reviewing meeting material and external communications products
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reviewing and providing a public environmental assessment for all dockets and correspondence for approval
Corporate Secretariat
Led by the Corporate Secretary, the Corporate Secretariat (CorpSec) provides a wide range of corporate and administrative services to the Minister’s Office, the Executive Office and the department.
Profile:
Jimmy Brackenridge
Corporate Secretary to the Deputy Minister of Transport
Jimmy Brackenridge - Corporate Secretary in the Executive Office of the Deputy Minister of Transport
Jimmy Brackenridge is the Corporate Secretary in the Executive Office of the Deputy Minister of Transport.
Jimmy joined Transport Canada in 2002 as Parliamentary Affairs Advisor. In 2008, he moved to Infrastructure Canada as Chief of Parliamentary and Cabinet Affairs. There, he helped navigate relations with the offices of various ministers and oversaw all parliamentary business for the Deputy Minister.
In 2012, Jimmy returned to Transport Canada as Chief of Parliamentary Affairs. Since that time, he has served in many positions in the Executive Office, including the Chief of Staff in the Office of the Deputy Minister, Director of Issues Management, Director of Strategic Services, and Transition Concierge.
Corporate Secretary: Jimmy Brackenridge
Size: 66 employees
Groups:
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Director General’s Office
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Ministerial Coordination and Briefing Unit
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Cabinet and Parliamentary Affairs Unit
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Governance and Strategic Integration Unit
Director General’s Office
In addition to supporting the day-to-day needs of the Director General, the Director General’s Office (DGO) provides operational services for the effective functioning of the entire EO, the Deputy Ministers’ Offices and the Minister and their Office. They manage the development, implementation, and coordination of all aspects of human resources, finance, procurement, executive vehicles, facilities, accommodations, telecommunications and advisory services to the Executive Office.
Ministerial Coordination and Briefing Unit
The Ministerial Correspondence and Briefing Unit (MCBU) reports directly to the Corporate Secretary and comprises of two teams:
Executive Correspondence and Editorial Services
Provides ministerial correspondence and electronic registry services for the Minister and Deputy Ministers in their communications with the public, Parliament and the Department.
Document Control Team and Information Management
Provides support services related to processing, tracking and quality control of documents for the Deputy Ministers’ and Minister’s approval or information. Furthermore, the team is responsible for the guidance related to the management of information and systems for the EO, including the coordination of Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) requests for the Executive Office and Minister’s Office.
Cabinet and Parliamentary Affairs Unit
Parliamentary Affairs Unit
Provides a wide range of services to the offices of the Minister and Deputy Ministers and to senior Transport Canada officials in support of parliamentary matters. This includes monitoring parliamentary activities and providing strategic advice related to the parliamentary fora, Standing Committees and the Minister's legislative agenda. Parliamentary Affairs also plays an important coordination role for petitions, order paper questions, and tablings for all 53 organizations in the Transport portfolio and develops Parliamentary strategies for all Memoranda to Cabinet led by TC.
Cabinet Affairs Unit
Serves as liaison between the Minister's Office, the Deputy Ministers, the Department, and Central Agencies. This includes preparing briefing packages for Cabinet and Cabinet Committee meetings; providing advice and coordinating the development, review, and approval process of all Cabinet proposals led by TC and proposals led by other government departments where the Minister is asked to co-sign; and reporting and briefing on all Cabinet-related matters.
Governance and Strategic Integration Unit
TC Committee’s Secretariat
Provides administrative support and strategic advice to Transport Canada internal committee chairs with agenda planning, meeting preparations, logistics, and records of decision.
As a centre of expertise, TC Committee’s Secretariat also provides governance advice and support to TC management executives and subject-matter experts on decision pathways, processes, and documentation.
Corporate Support Unit
Provides the EO with strategic project management expertise and offers a wide range of administrative services to support the Corporate Secretary, Chief of Staff to the Deputy Minister, Deputy Ministers and Minister and their Office within the following streams:
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People Management Strategies
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Information Management technologies
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Technology and Transformation, including IT Security
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Horizontal Projects