Executive Leadership Program

Description

Cohort 16 | Registration is now open.
Registration Deadline: Friday, March 7, 2025

Hybrid Delivery:

•      In Person Sessions at IOG Office, Ottawa:
               -Executive Retreat: March 18 + 19, 2025
               -June 11 + 12, 2025
               -Final Sessions: October 8 + 9, 2025

•      All other sessions are virtual over Zoom (3 sessions monthly: 2 full afternoons + 1 late afternoon session, 1.5 hrs)

For future cohorts, please express your interest here. 

Our Executive Leadership Program (ELP) prepares public sector leaders across departments and jurisdictions tasked to navigate the deep and rapid changes of our times.

Program Curriculum

The Executive Leadership Program (ELP) offers a rich curriculum encompassing Trust in Institutions, International Relations, Digital Leadership, and Intercultural Competence. It emphasizes Sustainable Development and Change Management, focusing on strategic thinking and leadership in a global context. This program equips executives with skills for navigating complex challenges, fostering innovation, and driving transformational change in the public sector. It emphasizes ethical and sustainable business practices in an increasingly diverse, interconnected and digitalized world.

Program Benefits

•   You will discuss the latest, citizen-centric thinking on governance in the post-pandemic 'new normal'

•   You will be able to cut through the 'noise' of the current times to make critical decisions on resource allocation and to get results for audiences that matter

•   You will emerge more confident in your abilities as a people-leader and better able to respond to the leadership challenges you will face as your career progresses 

Program fee: $18,000

*As a not-for-profit, the IOG does not collect HST
**Includes tuition, all course materials and online tools used during the course as well as access to course resources after the program is completed. The IOG will offer the rental of a computer with all required software installed for participants. Any equipment being provided to participants will be loaned to you in-person during the Executive Retreat. The IOG will organize and cover the cost of equipment return at the end of the program.

For further inquiry or support please contact us at registration@iog.ca.

Participant Testimonials

“I am a better public servant from my time spent learning and connecting with my peers in the IOG's virtual Executive Leadership Program. My peers brought in-depth, informed and unique perspectives to the discussions we had in the program that were prompted by the excellent speakers and interesting topics we explored. The program facilitators and IOG staff brought together an incredible learning experience for us while also responding to my and my peers' needs throughout. The depth of knowledge and experience that the facilitators brought was inspirational. I couldn’t have asked for better facilitators.” 

“I would absolutely encourage everyone, not just those looking to move up but just to become better in the role they are in, because everyone can be a leader. I think it is a very important program. It really does open up the perspectives and provides some insight into how senior executives approach work and what their expectations might be. It helps to disarm senior executives from my perspective. It allowed me to get better insight into some of the more difficult topics that exist in the Public Service today. Certainly very valuable.”

“I was really happy with the quality of the speakers from the other departments. They really came from the whole array of issues that the Government of Canada is wrestling with these days. We had people talking about business transformation, which I found really really interesting and useful. The exposure to these files were really valuable.”

“I have recommended other colleagues to participate [...] I do think back on these things somewhat routinely. I just did a competition. I pull out the IOG material and refresh on subjects that I forgot. I refer to those materials for interviews. I found it useful and I continue finding it useful.”

Facilitators

Participants will benefit from the guidance and experience of 2 of the mentioned facilitators per cohort:

Jacques Paquette
Faculty, ELP Facilitator

Jacques Paquette joined the federal government in 1982 with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) and served at Canadian embassies in Pakistan, Sénégal, Hungary and France. In Ottawa, Mr. Paquette held a number of positions with DFAIT, including Director for the Coordination of G-7 Economic Summits. He moved to Environment Canada as Director-General, Corporate Management and Review, was Director-General, Multiculturalism and Human Rights at Canadian Heritage and Assistant Deputy Minister, International and Intergovernmental Affairs and Sport also at Canadian Heritage. As part of his function, he was Canada's Chief negotiator for the UNESCO Convention for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. He was the Assistant Secretary to the Cabinet for Economic and Regional Development Policy, at the Privy Council Office. At the department of Employment and Social Development, he was Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Income Security and social Development where he was responsible for the Canada Pension Plan, the Old Age Security, the Office of Disability Issues and social programs such as the Homelessness Partnering Strategy. His last position was Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Strategic and Service Policy. In this capacity and among other things, he set up an innovation lab on policy and service, he negotiated the Multilateral Early Learning and Child Care Framework approved by Federal Provincial and Territorial governments in 2017, worked on the development of the first Canada's Poverty Reduction Strategy and was Canada's Chief negotiator for Habitat III, the United Nations New Urban Agenda. Mr. Paquette retired from the Federal Public Service in July 2017. Since then, he was appointed in June 2018 member of the Board of Directors of the YMCA-YWCA of the National Capital Region and in November 2018, he was appointed as a member of the Audit and Evaluation Committee of the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner of Canada. He holds a BA in sociology and political science as well as a MA in political science from Laval University. He is a Certified Corporate Director (ASC), having completed the certification delivered by the College des administrateurs de sociétés.

Peter Bruce
Faculty, ELP Facilitator

Peter Bruce is a Senior Associate for Leadership and Learning at the Institute on  Governance (IOG).  Since 2017, he has been facilitating the IOG’s Executive   Leadership Program. He has also provided advice on digital strategies for  government organizations both in Canada and internationally. After 32 years of Public Service at the federal and provincial levels Mr. Bruce retired from the position of Senior ADM Strategy at Shared Services Canada in 2016. During his time in the Public Service, he worked in increasingly complex and interesting roles including VP/CIO/CTO at the Department of Justice, Library and Archives Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and as Deputy CIO and Interim CIO for the Government of Canada at Treasury Board Secretariat. Mr. Bruce also has extensive governance experience collaborating internationally, across Canadian jurisdictions, across the federal government, and with the private sector. He has been the elected or appointed chair of several organizations including the ICA (the International CIO Council), the PSCIOC (Canadian Public Sector CIO Council) and DPI (The Association of Public Sector Information Professionals). He currently serves on the Board of the charity Kids Up Front Ottawa on the Advisory Board for DPI.  He holds a degree in Computer Science from the University of Ottawa and an MBA from Queen's University. Mr. Bruce has also studied cognitive science and continues to explore leadership and the transformational possibilities created by advances in information and communications technology including artificial intelligence.

Francie Ducros 
Faculty, ELP Facilitator

Francoise (Francie) Ducros retired from the federal Public Service in 2020 where she  served as Assistant Secretary, Social and Cultural Programs for 4 years. Prior to that  Francie served as Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Policy, and Assistant Deputy  Minister, Education and Social Programs and Partnerships at the Department Affairs  Aboriginal and Northern Affairs and Vice-President, Afghanistan-Pakistan Policy and  Programs at the Canadian International Development Agency. Francie also served in several political positions including Chief of Staff to the Ministers of Fisheries and Oceans, and Intergovernmental Affairs, and Director of Communications to the Prime Minister.