Workforce and culture

Table of Contents

Executive spotlight

The "One Mission, One CSIS" transformation journey

As Deputy Director of Administration, Jerome Laliberté is responsible for leading critical functions within CSIS’ internal security program, corporate services, finance, strategic planning, and organizational transformation.

While we have spent this 40th anniversary year reflecting on our past, we have also kept an eye on our future. The One Mission, One CSIS strategy launched in 2022 marked a transformative step forward for CSIS. Designed to address an increasingly complex and rapidly-changing world, this strategy ensures that we remain agile, innovative, and effective in protecting Canada’s security and prosperity.

Understanding that transformation is a continuous process is central to the strategy. By emphasizing adaptability, bold thinking, and calculated risk-taking, our way forward has clear direction as we navigate an evolving world.

The One Mission, One CSIS strategy is anchored in three foundational pillars: people first, mission focus, and digital and data-driven intelligence.

Firstly, our people are our greatest strength. Prioritizing diversity in all forms ensures a workforce reflective of Canada, which is crucial for delivering on our mission. Expanding professional development opportunities through learning paths, job shadowing, mentoring, and coaching programs empowers employees to grow their skills and take on leadership roles at all levels, and it fosters a culture of accountability, collaboration and innovation at CSIS.

Strengthening this pillar remains a priority as we create a culture where collaboration and recognition are central to how we work.

Secondly, a renewed focus on mission excellence is helping us adapt to evolving threats and opportunities. Streamlined intelligence operations make us more agile in addressing security challenges. We have focused on integrating expertise and fostering collaboration across disciplines for faster, more responsive decision-making. These efforts will position CSIS to address both traditional and emerging security challenges with greater precision and speed.

While we continue to make these changes internally, our threat environment continues to evolve around us. As such, we will continue to develop and employ foresight strategies to look at emerging risks and trends as well as strengthen partnerships in Canada and abroad in order to safeguard Canada’s security.

Finally, digital and data-driven intelligence is critical in today’s world. Advanced analytics and artificial intelligence will help us identify threat-related patterns and operate more efficiently.

Through additional funding announced this past year, CSIS can further invest in cutting-edge tools that enhance our ability to collect, process, and analyze data with precision. We are equipping our workforce with the tools and training to tackle emerging challenges with resilience and innovation. These investments support timely, actionable intelligence for decision-makers, and enhance our ability to protect Canadians.

While progress is clear, the journey is ongoing. Transformation is not an endpoint but a process of growth, learning, and adaptation. Moving forward, we remain committed to uniting as one team, strengthening our culture, and embracing bold innovation.

The work to date on our One Mission, One CSIS transformation has laid a strong foundation for our future. Together, we will build on this progress by continually renewing our strategies and evaluating outcomes in order to navigate the complexities of an ever-changing world. By staying true to our mission and values, we will ensure a safer, more secure, and prosperous Canada for generations to come.

"While progress is clear, the journey is ongoing. Transformation is not an endpoint but a process of growth, learning, and adaptation. Moving forward, we remain committed to uniting as one team, strengthening our culture, and embracing bold innovation."

Jerome Laliberté, Deputy Director of Administration at the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.

Initiatives and updates

CSIS continues to consolidate efforts and make important strides in becoming the inclusive and people-focused organization that our diverse employees expect and deserve.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Strategy

In 2024, CSIS advanced implementation of its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Strategy and three-year action plan. Overall, 96% of the 45 commitments adopted have progressed, and 38% are completed. Implementation of the strategy and action plan depends on multiple stakeholders from across the organization, and progress is shared with employees, as well as posted to the CSIS website. Active and engaged CSIS Diversity Committee members continue to provide important guidance and recommendations to management, which contributes to employee-led changes at CSIS.

In support of creating an inclusive workplace free of bias and systemic barriers, CSIS undertook an in-depth review of hiring, recruiting, and promotion processes and policies using gender-based analysis plus (GBA Plus). Recommendations stemming from this review are under discussion with stakeholders to update tools and policies and ensure systemic bias is avoided, and inclusive language and principles are meaningfully integrated throughout the talent acquisition and career progression processes. This work will continue into 2025. Other measures implemented include the establishment of a dedicated lactation room, and the expansion of multi-faith prayer rooms to accommodate greater participation during religious holidays. The organization also expanded mandatory DEI training requirements for all employees, including a learning path specifically tailored to CSIS executives.

CSIS 2023–2025 Accessibility Plan

Throughout 2024, CSIS has continued efforts to become increasingly accessible and barrier-free. With the support and guidance of our Accessibility Committee stakeholders and diverse employees with disabilities, the organization has progressed 95 of the 102 commitments (42 of which are completed) in its 2023–2025 Accessibility Plan.

Notable advances include a streamlined process for requesting ergonomic equipment; publishing products using file types that allow users to make the product most accessible to them (such as font changes); and learning opportunities for HR and other employees to increase understanding of accessibility requirements. Mandatory learning paths that include accessibility, unconscious bias, barriers, and overall inclusion have been approved for all employees, including executives.

Employee Retention and Attraction plan

In early 2024, CSIS launched the Employee Retention and Attraction (ERA) plan with the goal of enhancing employee satisfaction, reducing turnover, and fostering a culture where everyone feels valued, safe and motivated. To achieve this, CSIS focused primarily on three areas: leadership, career growth and development, and culture. It invested in a leadership development program, including 360° leadership assessments for executives, to equip them with the skills, knowledge and mindset to lead teams and transformation effectively. CSIS emphasized leadership accountabilities for people management in our talent and performance management program and made sure employees at all levels were aware of their roles and responsibilities, and had tools to do their part in supporting a thriving workplace.

In 2024, CSIS’ Chief Culture Officer (CCO) focused on promoting and supporting an environment of engagement, openness and inclusivity. The CCO communicated widely to increase reflection and conversations across the organization about desired behaviours. To strengthen and nurture organization values, beliefs and practices, CSIS’ Values and Ethics team evaluated the organization’s value and ethics training program, identifying needed enhancements. This work, including developing targeted case studies, continues into 2025.

The retention rate has improved, returning to pre-pandemic levels. As of December 2024 (Q3), annual attrition was at 3.3%, lower than it has been at Q3 since 2018. The ERA plan is being updated for 2025 with new measures to further foster a more supportive and engaging workplace that attracts and retains top talent.

CSIS Ombuds Office

In early December 2023, the former Director of CSIS, David Vigneault, announced the creation of an independent CSIS ombuds office. The purpose of the Ombuds Office is to better support all CSIS employees, augment existing mechanisms, and help build a strong culture of trust and respect with CSIS employees at all levels. The creation of the Office also responds to an earlier recommendation from the Clerk of the Privy Council for all departments to establish an ombuds-type function to provide employees with a trusted space to discuss harassment without fear of reprisal, and to help navigate existing systems.

The Ombuds will report directly to the Director of CSIS, and the Office will be independent and separate from all other CSIS business lines and reporting structures. The Ombuds Office will adhere to the four key principles of all ombuds: informality, independence, impartiality and confidentiality. They will analyse trends and patterns to identify systemic issues and provide an overview and recommendations to the organization, as well as an annual public report summarizing issues based on anonymous aggregate data. The CSIS Ombuds Office will also include the delivery and monitoring of internal conflict management services, and will undertake employee exit interviews.

CSIS’ commitment to this initiative is steadfast, and various key aspects of the project have been completed to date. The establishment of the ombuds office was led by the CSIS Deputy Director of Policy and Strategic Partnerships to ensure separation between the office and CSIS’ human resources functions. The recruitment process itself was led by an independent recruitment firm.

Wrongdoing Report

At the end of 2023, the former CSIS Director announced that CSIS would produce an annual report addressing misconduct and wrongdoing to ensure transparency, to hold the organization to account, and to clearly demonstrate that inappropriate behaviours are being and will continue to be addressed. The first Addressing misconduct and wrongdoing at CSIS report will be published in 2025, and will provide complete statistics for both 2023 and 2024.

For 2024, we have seen an increase in reporting from employees, which is indicative of the willingness of employees to use the internal mechanisms available to them. In 2024, there were 50 new cases related to breach of conduct and 33 new occurrences related to harassment and violence, representing a total increase of 63% over 2023. A total of 34 cases were closed in 2024, with 33 deemed founded. (Note: some cases that were closed were carried over from 2023.) In these cases, the appropriate disciplinary or administrative measures were taken, ranging from verbal warnings to dismissal.

Advancing values and ethics

In 2023, a renewed conversation around values and ethics in the public service began, led by John Hannaford, Clerk of the Privy Council. During the pandemic, the public sector faced a level of complexity not previously experienced by public servants. The public service also onboarded thousands of public servants during this time. With the last update to the Public Service Code of Conduct dating back to 2012, and to ensure a consistent application of values and ethics in discussions, actions and behaviours of public servants, further efforts were made by a team of senior officials to reinvigorate the conversation and ensure that all public servants understand the fundamental role they play in serving Canadians and upholding public trust.

CSIS has its own complimentary Code of Conduct that constitutes the basis for its employees’ actions and behaviours in the workplace. We are proud to say that the CSIS Code of Conduct features prominently in the recruitment and onboarding process for new employees, and active employees are required to sign an annual affirmation reiterating their commitment to the Code of Conduct. Furthermore, CSIS’ “Stop, Reflect, Inquire” method and annual attestation were featured in PCO’s report Continuing Our Dialogue, Positioning for the Future as best practices. Then interim Director, Vanessa Lloyd, spoke about these best practices and their contribution to decision-making at CSIS in October 2024 at the Government of Canada’s Values and Ethics Symposium.

Employee networks

CSIS places great value on its employee-led networks, which serve to unite employees and amplify their unique perspectives across the organization. Employee networks are very active and include the Black Women’s Network; the Black, Indigenous and Persons of Colour (BIPOC) Network; the CSIS Women’s Network; the Pride Network; the Women in IT Plus (WiT+) Network; the Indigenous Network; the Jewish Network; the Latin American Network, and the Young Professionals Network. Networks are a crucial platform for collaboration, and there are many inspiring examples of network-led community building initiatives designed to educate and immerse employees in common experiences. CSIS strongly endorses the networks’ collective dedication to creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued, respected, and empowered to share and celebrate their diversity in an increasingly vibrant and dynamic workplace.

**Employee demographics**
	Representation (2023)	Representation (2024)	Objective by March 31, 2027
Persons with disabilities	7.1%	7.5%	9.0%
Indigenous Peoples	2%	2.3%	3.4%
Racialized groups	20.7%	21.3%	24.9%
Women in science and technology	18.8%	18.6%	24.9%

**Intelligence officer demographics**
	Representation (1984)	Representation (2023)	Representation (2024)
Female	7%	36%	44%
Male	93%	64%	56%

**Expenditures**
	2021–2022	2022–2023	2023–2024
Salaries*	$404,107,049	$415,818,326	$557,907,209
Operating	$238,065,778	$256,628,550	$270,508,389

*Salary costs include employee benefits payments

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Date modified:: 2025-07-14

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