Honorary degree citation - Corinne Charette
By: Michel Magnan, June 2011
Mr. Chancellor, it is my honour to present to you Corinne Charette, engineer, alumnus, and the Chief Information Officer of the Government of Canada.
Corinne Charette was appointed Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the Government of Canada in May 2009. She is among the highest ranking women in the federal civil service. As CIO she is responsible for setting the strategic direction and establishing policy for the federal government in the areas of information management and security, information technology, access to information and privacy. Equally important has been her dynamic leadership as a public and private sector manager over thirty five year, defining the emerging role of chief information officer in the organizations she has served.
Lorsqu’elle a commencé ses études à Loyola dans les années 1970, Mme Charette s’intéressait à l’architecture. Toutefois, elle s’est vite passionnée pour ce qui était à l’époque un domaine d’avant-garde : l’architecture d’ordinateur et ses applications potentielles. En 1975, elle a obtenu un baccalauréat ès sciences en génie, un programme qui ne comptait alors que quatre étudiantes. Recrutée sur le campus par IBM, elle a d’emblée été chargée de l’installation des premiers postes de guichet dans les succursales bancaires canadiennes. Durant sa carrière, elle a contribué à une série d’innovations dynamiques en fait de mise en œuvre et d’utilisation des technologies de l’information auprès de grandes sociétés : Au Mouvement Desjardins, elle a pris part à l’implantation de systèmes de veille stratégique et d’une informatique d’utilisateur final, deux domaines alors émergents. À VIA Rail, elle a été responsable de l’adoption des premiers ordinateurs personnels. De retour aux Services mondiaux IBM en 1996, elle a dirigé la mise en application de systèmes Internet pour les secteurs des banques et du transport aérien, l’une des premières innovations du genre au Canada.
After creating the Canadian eBusiness practice for KPMB, she returned to banking this time at CIBC as Senior Vice-President responsible for internet banking. In 2003 Charette was named CIO for Fintrac, the federal agency responsible for the detection of money laundering and terrorist financing in Canada, and later served as CIO for Transat before returning to the federal government in her current position.
She has said that change has been a powerful and positive accelerator for professional and personal development, a view reflected in the challenging roles she has sought out, all involving emerging information technology opportunities. Despite the many professional demands of her career, and her constant quest for new challenges, Corinne’s commitment to her two sons, her family and friends has been unwavering. She is a member of the Loyola Alumni board and an active campaigner for charity.
Mr. President and Vice-Chancellor, on behalf of Senate and the Board of Governors, it is my privilege and honour to present to you Corinne Charette so that you may confer upon her the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa.
