I'll start with me. I did not appoint myself. Someone else did. That someone else could explain why I was chosen. However, I can tell you why I accepted the appointment. First of all, I felt that the objective was a noble one. Moreover, I am a career public servant. I was a deputy minister in a number of major departments. My experience was not related only to decision-making, but to personnel management as well. More specifically, besides being a deputy minister at Fisheries and Oceans and at Natural Resources, I created the Leadership Network. I was the vice-chair of what was then known as the Canadian Centre for Management Development. I served as the human resources ADM at Revenue Canada. I was the head of La Relève Task Force, and reported directly to the clerk of the Privy Council.
On March 27th, 2007. See this statement in context.