Senior Executive Organizational Structure

Yasmein Ghadban is the manager of the Director General’s office and Chief of Operations in the Executive Office.

Yasmein joined Transport Canada in 2017 as a Human Resources Advisor in staffing operations. She has significant experience in human resources, project management and event planning in the Government of Canada.

Early in her public service career, Yasmein worked as an Executive Assistant to the Deputy Minister at the National Parole Board. She has worked in various project management positions at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

Yasmein holds a B.A. in Human Rights with a minor in French from Carleton University.

Serge Bijimine became the Assistant Deputy Minister of Policy at Transport Canada in May 2021.

Before this, Serge was Associate Secretary General for a brief period and then Secretary General at the National Research Council (NRC). Previously, Serge held various senior executive positions, including at Environment and Climate Change Canada, where he established and oversaw the department's climate change grants and contributions programs. After joining the federal public service in 2005, Serge became an executive at the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat and worked in the economic, international affairs, security, and justice sectors.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Social Sciences from the University of Ottawa and a Master’s in Project Management from the Université du Québec en Outaouais.

Craig Hutton has been the Acting Associate Assistant Deputy Minister of Policy for Transport Canada since May 2021.

Prior to assuming his current responsibilities, Craig served as Director General, Strategic Policy and Innovation, at Transport Canada, where he was responsible for intergovernmental relations, Cabinet affairs, and for policy development related to multimodal integration, technology innovation, arctic transportation and accessibility.

Before joining the department in 2006, he served in various senior roles within government, including at the Privy Council Office and Human Resources Development Canada.

Craig holds a Master of Arts degree in Political Science from Western University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Carleton University.

Vincent Robitaille served as Assistant Deputy Minister – High Frequency Rail at Transport Canada since December 2021. He leads the integrated team responsible for the development of one of the largest transportation infrastructure projects in Canada since the creation of the St. Lawrence Seaway.

From 2018 to 2021, Vincent served as Director General – Centre of Excellence on Strategic Investments at Transport Canada. He led a team responsible for commercial policy elements of major transportation investments, alternative financing arrangements and Covid-19 support to the air sector.

Before joining Transport Canada in 2018, he served in senior roles at the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Public Services and Procurement Canada, the Public Health Agency of Canada and Global Affairs Canada, notably leading the P3 procurement of the new Champlain Bridge Corridor in Montréal.

From 2016 to 2019, Vincent volunteered as President of the Canadian Institute for Procurement and Materiel Management.

Vincent holds a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation, a Project Management Professional (PMP) designation, a Certified Director (C. Dir) designation, and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from the University of Ottawa.

On July 5, 2021, Stephanie Hébert was appointed Assistant Deputy Minister, Programs Group, at Transport Canada in Ottawa.

Before this, Stephanie held the position of Assistant Deputy Minister, Program Operations Branch, also in Ottawa.

Stephanie has worked in the public service for over 20 years, during which time she has gained broad experience through a number of different executive-level positions, including at Service Canada - Québec Region, Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, and Canadian Heritage. Notably, she has overseen communications and stakeholder relations, federal–provincial relations, service transformation, Parliamentary and Cabinet affairs, ‎and program and service delivery.

Stephanie has a Bachelor of Arts degree (with highest honours) from Carleton University and a Master's degree in Professional Communication from Royal Roads University. She also holds certificates in Public Sector Leadership and Governance, Public Relations, and Public Sector and Not-for-profit Marketing.

Ryan Pilgrim became Transport Canada’s Chief Financial Officer and Assistant Deputy Minister, Corporate Services, in June 2019.

Ryan has extensive experience in accounting, budget management and financial policy development. He began his professional career as an accountant with Ernst and Young, where he worked both in Toronto and France. Ryan joined the Federal Public Service in 2002, where he held various positions in Finance and IM/IT at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) and the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG). He subsequently moved to Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC), where he held the position of Director General, Budget and Cost Management. Ryan has also worked at the Office of the Comptroller General within the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS), where he developed a wide variety of financial policies and led the talent management of financial personnel across the Government of Canada. In 2018, he joined Transport Canada as the Director General, Financial Planning and Resource Management.

Ryan graduated from Queen’s Commerce with a specialization in Finance and is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA-CA).

Alain Langlois was appointed Senior General Counsel and Executive Director of Transport and Infrastructure Legal Services (TILS) in August 2018. He has practiced transportation law for over 20 years.

Alain joined TILS in 2005. From 2014 to 2018, he was General Counsel and Deputy Executive Director, then Senior General Counsel and Executive Director. From 2009 to 2014, he was senior counsel responsible for surface transportation-related issues, including the Detroit River International Crossing project. From 2007 to 2009, he was the senior counsel responsible for all transportation modes.

Alain practiced law at the Canadian Transportation Agency from 1998 to 2005. He has also practiced municipal law in Montréal. Alain is a member of the Quebec Bar and holds an LL.L. from the University of Ottawa and a certificate in Political Science from l’Université Laval.

Lisa Setlakwe joins us from the Privy Council Office (PCO), where she served as the Assistant Secretary to the Cabinet Operations – Social Development Policy. Prior to joining PCO, Lisa served as the Senior Assistant Deputy Minister of the Strategy and Innovation Policy Sector at Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada from 2016 through 2020.

Lisa has gained a wealth of experience throughout her career in the public service, having joined the former Industry Canada in 2008 as the Deputy Regional Executive Director with the Atlantic Regional Office. She later became the Director of the National Access Programs Directorate, Director General for Policy in the Science and Innovation Sector, and Executive Director of the Industrial Technologies Office, based in Ottawa.

Lisa began her career with Revenue Canada Customs and Excise and went on to work with the Royal Bank of Canada, where she spent five years in the commercial finance sector in Atlantic Canada, subsequently joining the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency where she spent eight years in the field of regional economic development.

Lisa now lives in Ottawa with her husband, their daughter and their son.

Nicholas Robinson was appointed as the Associate Assistant Deputy Minister (AsADM) of Safety and Security in September 2022. Prior to that he was the Director General of Civil Aviation at Transport Canada. He was responsible for the design and maintenance of a national civil aviation program through policy, guidelines, regulations, standards, education and awareness, in order to achieve Transport Canada’s safety priorities. The program regulates all facets of the aviation industry in Canada, including aeronautical products, personnel licensing, training, operating and flight rules, airports, commercial air services, general aviation and navigation.

Today, the scope of Nicholas’ mandate includes regulating and overseeing regulations to ensure the safety and security of the aviation, marine, rail and road modes along with the transportation of dangerous goods. This includes establishing safety and security policies, regulations, and standards and the development of guidance, tools and instructions to help industry comply with regulations and for inspectors to oversee regulatory compliance. His mandate also includes incident response and the delivery of aircraft services.

Nicholas has a Bachelor of Health Science and a Master of Arts from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Kristina Casey joined Transport Canada in April 2023 as Chief Service and Digital Officer.

Kristina comes to Transport Canada from Shared Services Canada where she served as Assistant Deputy Minister, Client Service Delivery and Management. In this role, she was responsible for ensuring that SSC services were well positioned to enable partners in delivering their programs and services to Canadians. This involved managing partner requests, prioritizing activities and incidents, and advocating for GC enterprise services while ensuring that partner-specific needs were met.

Kristina previously occupied the position of Chief Information Officer and Director General, Information Management and Technology at Global Affairs Canada (GAC). She led information and technology services to clients at GAC headquarters, as well as at sites across Canada and at Canada’s missions abroad.

In earlier work at Natural Resources Canada, Kristina was known for her leadership in advancing the department’s information management and information technology transformation. She has more than 15 years of experience in developing, managing and delivering information management and information technology.

Chantal Roy joined Transport Canada as Chief Audit and Evaluation Executive and Senior Integrity Officer on February 15, 2021.

Chantal started her career in the private sector, where she spent eight years as a management consultant, specializing in program evaluations for a variety of federal government clients, and in the development and review of performance measurement frameworks. She continued to work in program evaluation and performance measurement at Health Canada, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada and Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). Throughout her career, she has led complex program evaluations of large and high-profile projects and programs. Before joining Transport Canada, Chantal led the development of a strengthened enterprise risk management program for ESDC under the direction of the Chief Risk Officer. She has also held executive positions at the Treasury Board Secretariat, Public Services and Procurement Canada and the Labour Program.

Chantal holds an undergraduate degree in Arts (Communications) and an M.B.A. (International Management), both from the University of Ottawa, and is a Certified Internal Auditor.

Jacqueline Roy was appointed Director General of Communications on December 9, 2019.

Jackie is a career public servant who began her career in the office of the Clerk of the Privy Council. She has managed safety and security communications files with the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority, Public Safety Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, and most recently as head of communications at the Transportation Safety Board of Canada before returning to Transport Canada as Executive Director of Communications. Jackie has worked in regional positions in Moncton, Toronto and Vancouver.

Jackie has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science as well as a Diploma in Public Relations Management, both from McGill University.

Jackie is passionate about music and musical theatre. She is an avid sports fan(atic), and particularly adores the Ottawa Redblacks and the Canadian Football League.

Based in Vancouver, Robert Dick is the Assistant Deputy Minister for the Pacific Region, overseeing all of Transport Canada’s programs and operations in the region.

Before joining the department’s team in British Columbia, Robert served in Ottawa as the Director General of Air Policy. In that position, he was responsible for Canada’s Permanent Mission to the International Civil Aviation Organization, international air policy, and domestic aviation sector policies related to air carriers, airports and air navigation services.

Robert has nine years experience working in various roles in the Privy Council Office. He has also worked at Public Safety Canada on national cyber security and western economic diversification.

Shari Currie was appointed the Regional Director General of the Prairie and Northern Region on December 15, 2017.

Shari has extensive experience in policy and regulatory development, consultation and engagement, operations and management in the academic, not-for-profit and public sectors. From 2009 to 2017, Shari focused primarily on aviation safety and security as the Regional Director, Civil Aviation – Pacific, responsible for oversight of the aviation sector. Prior to that role, she held the position of Director of Policy and Regulatory Services, Civil Aviation, where she concentrated on strengthening the aviation safety regulatory framework, as well as the position of Director of Air Cargo Security, Aviation Security, where she led program design and implementation and was heavily involved in the adoption of more stringent security requirements by the International Civil Aviation Organization.

Prior to joining Transport Canada, Shari held positions at Public Safety Canada, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat and the Department of National Defence, as well as the Parliamentary Centre and its subsidiary office, the Centre for Legislative Exchange.

She holds a Bachelor’s degree (Honours) from the University of Manitoba and a Certificate in Public Sector Leadership and Governance from the University of Ottawa.

Duwayne studied Engineering at Ryerson University, graduating in 2004 with a degree in Electrical Engineering. Duwayne also holds an MBA from the University of Phoenix.

Duwayne has extensive experience in the transportation industry. Prior to a private sector career in both commercial and military aerospace manufacturing and high speed railway, Duwayne began his career in the Federal Public Service in 2011 and worked as a Regional Engineering Manager and a Rail Safety Inspector in Ontario Region. Duwayne left TC in 2017 to take on the role of Vice-President of Engineering and eventually became the Chief of Engineering at Metrolinx – a Transit company in Toronto. During his time at Metrolinx, he developed the company’s first Engineering and Asset Management team, deployed billion dollar asset management programs, safety oversight and risk management programs. Duwayne returned to Transport Canada in spring 2021, as Regional Director General for Ontario Region. In his spare time, Duwayne likes to do woodworking, run half marathons and dedicate his time to helping professionals with career development.

Mélanie Morier was appointed Regional Director General for Transport Canada in the Quebec Region on September 26, 2022.

Mélanie has extensive experience in management, engagement, corporate functions and a range of operational issues in the Government of Canada.

Throughout her career, she has held various positions in the Quebec Region and in Ottawa at the Canadian Human Rights Commission, Canadian Space Agency, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Citizenship and Immigration Canada. In February 2010, she returned to the Quebec Region to join Transport Canada as the Regional Director, Human Resources. Since then, she has successively held the position of Regional Director in Corporate Services, Programs, and Marine Safety and Security.

Mélanie holds a Bachelor in Business Administration from l'École des Hautes Études Commerciales de Montréal and a Master of Science (Administration) from Concordia University.

Daniel Kumpf started as the Regional Director General of Transport Canada, Atlantic Region in November 2022.

Daniel has been with the public service for over 20 years. In 2020, he was appointed Regional Director General, Atlantic Region at Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) where he led the region through the Covid-19 pandemic. He gained broad experience through several executive positions at ISC, Indian Oil and Gas Canada, and Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Daniel has overseen the development of strategies to implement national initiatives and strategic frameworks to deliver a full range of services to First Nations in support of social development, child and family services, education, capital management, land and environmental management, and economic development. He has also worked closely with First Nations as they pursue oil and gas development on their lands.

Prior to joining the public service, Daniel worked in urban planning for 10 years. Born and raised in Alberta, he is a member of the Métis Nation of Alberta and resides in Moncton, New Brunswick.