Denise Amyot

Denise worked for over 10 years as CEO of Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan), the largest national post-secondary association in the country and a global leader in education for employment in more than 25 countries. At the international level, CICan works in particular on the empowerment of women and the issues of sustainable development, equity and indigenous education.

The organizations she has chaired have all been named “Employer of Choice” and won awards for diversity and inclusion as well as for work related to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

She was CEO of a Crown corporation of the Government of Canada and worked for nearly 30 years at the federal level, including as assistant deputy minister at the federal level three times. She has worked in the areas of policy and program management, human resources and talent management and public affairs in the social, scientific, economic and cultural fields in Ottawa and the region as part of her duties in several federal ministries and two central agencies.

Denise has worked several times in her career with equity groups: in the Northwest Territories, in Indigenous Affairs, at Canadian Heritage (multiculturalism, race relations), and at ESDC (people with disabilities and vulnerable groups). Denise has extensive experience in leadership development. She is certified in professional coaching and has led, for over 10 years, the leadership institutes for Presidents and Vice-Presidents offered by Colleges Institutes Canada and at the federal level, at different levels. She does a lot of mentoring and coaching with the next generation in Canada and on the international scene. Over the past year, Denise has completed leadership and coaching training in Canada, Tunisia and Senegal.

Denise serves on several boards, including the Qatar Foundation, the World Federation of Colleges and Polytechnics and the Forum for International Business Education.