Minister Champagne announces appointments to the Standards Council of Canada’s Governing Council

February 5, 2024 – Ottawa, Ontario 

Today, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, announced recent appointments to the Standards Council of Canada’s (SCC) Governing Council. François Coallier was appointed as chairperson, and Dianne Salt and Ahmed Shalabi were appointed as members, effective December 15, 2023. Dennis Hogan, Ralph Paroli and Marc Tassé were also recently appointed as members, effective January 26, 2024. All of these appointments are for four-year terms.

Dr. Coallier has been a member of the SCC’s Governing Council since October 2018 and is a full professor in the Department of Software and IT Engineering at the École de technologie supérieure. He has been involved in standards development since 1984 in information technologies engineering and, more recently, biodigital convergence. Throughout his industrial and academic career, he held various positions in engineering, management and academic management. Dr. Coallier holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the École polytechnique de Montréal and is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Ms. Salt is a retired communications executive with multi-sector experience in public affairs, employee communications, media relations, social media, crisis communications and corporate responsibility. Most recently, she was Chief Communications Officer with Sodexo S.A. in Paris, France. Previously, she held senior communications roles at the Royal Bank of Canada and TD Bank Group. Ms. Salt holds an Honours Bachelor of Journalism, with a minor in French Literature, from Carleton University.

Dr. Shalabi is retired from his regulatory standards career in various fields of nuclear as well as information and communication technologies. Previously, he held consultant and advisor positions with the Canadian Standards Association, the Department of National Defence, Global Affairs Canada, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and SCC. He implemented public policy, engineering, technology, and research policy/standards solutions in international and domestic environments. Dr. Shalabi holds a Ph.D. in Nuclear/Mechanical Engineering from the University of New Brunswick.

Mr. Hogan is currently the CEO of the St. John’s International Airport Authority and has over 20 years of experience in executive leadership, corporate governance and project management from the private, public and not-for-profit sectors. Prior to his current position, he was CEO at WorkplaceNL, held several assistant deputy minister roles and was Assistant Secretary to Cabinet for Economic Policy with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. Mr. Hogan holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Business from Memorial University and a Master of Business Administration from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Dr. Paroli has participated in standards development throughout his career in science and technology, including as Board Chair for ASTM International. He is currently a director at Parnassa Building Envelope Standards and Technology Inc. and previously held various roles at the National Research Council Canada, such as scientist and Director of Research and Development, and acting Director General at the Metrology Research Centre. Dr. Paroli holds a Ph.D. in Physical/Inorganic Chemistry from McGill University and a Bachelor of Science in Analytical Chemistry from Concordia University.

Mr. Tassé is the founder of Egregia Strategic Consulting Group Inc. and CEO of Sira International Risk Advisors. He is also a part-time professor at multiple universities. Recognized as a global expert on corporate misconduct, crisis response and ethical leadership, Mr. Tassé has extensive experience as an advisor to various boards, CEOs, federal and provincial departments, agencies and crown corporations. He holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration, is a Chartered Professional Accountant Fellow, is certified as an internal controls auditor, a fraud specialist and a forensic public accountant, and is certified in anti-corruption and financial forensics.

SCC is a federal Crown corporation that leads and facilitates the development and use of national and international standards to enhance Canada’s economic competitiveness and social well-being through innovative standardization solutions. In addition, SCC coordinates the efforts of Canadians in the development and use of standards and delivers accreditation services to customers.