In the Public Interest: Exploring Richard Dicerni’s Lessons for Today’s Public Service
Join us for a special virtual panel honouring the legacy of Richard Dicerni and the insights captured in his book, In the Public Interest. A distinguished group of senior public service leaders and colleagues of Richard will reflect on his lessons about leadership, trust, accountability, and public purpose - and how these principles continue to resonate across today’s public sector.
The panel will explore Richard’s influence as a mentor, a thought leader, and a champion in public service. Their reflections will offer valuable guidance for current and aspiring public servants navigating a rapidly evolving environment.
We encourage public servants at all levels to join this important conversation and consider how Richard’s lessons can continue shaping a strong, principled, and forward-looking public service.
- Paul Boothe - Moderator
- Marcia Nelson - Panelist
- Simon Kennedy - Panelist
- Malcolm Brown - Panelist
Paul Boothe (Moderator)
Paul M. Boothe, CM, PhD, is a former deputy minister and academic leader. He joined the University of Alberta’s Economics Department in 1984 and was appointed Professor in 1992, later serving as Director of the Institute for Public Economics. He has published more than eighty scholarly books and monographs, articles, and book chapters.
In government, he served as Deputy Minister of Finance and Secretary of Treasury Board for Saskatchewan, and held several senior roles with the Government of Canada, including Associate Deputy Minister for Finance Canada, Senior Associate Deputy Minister for Industry Canada, and Deputy Minister for Environment Canada. After retiring from the federal public service, he became Professor and Director of the Lawrence National Centre for Policy and Management at Ivey Business School. With the late Richard Dicerni, he co-founded the Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing.
Marcia Nelson (Panelist)
Marcia Nelson is a Senior Strategic Advisor with PricewaterhouseCoopers, focusing on government and the public sector. With more than 20 years of board governance experience, she currently serves on the board of Alberta Blue Cross and Blue Cross Life, and is also a member of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research Advisory Council and the Partners for Affordable Housing Advisory Council.
Previously, Marcia held several deputy minister roles in the Alberta government, including Deputy Minister of Executive Council, Cabinet Secretary, and Head of the Alberta Public Service, as well as Deputy Minister roles in Innovation and Advanced Education, Infrastructure, Health, and Housing and Urban Affairs. She received her ICD.D designation in 2013 and holds a Bachelor and Master of Arts from McMaster University.
Simon Kennedy (Panelist)
Simon Kennedy is a former senior federal public servant who held six deputy minister-level positions and played a central role in shaping national policy, legislation, and regulation. From 2019 to 2024, he served as Deputy Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, leading major industrial policy initiatives including domestic biomanufacturing, critical minerals and EV battery supply chains, and efforts to advance frontier technologies such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing.
Previously, Simon served as Deputy Minister of Health (2015–2019), overseeing key files including cannabis regulation, pharmaceutical pricing reforms, tobacco control, and the federal response to the opioid crisis. Earlier, as Deputy Minister of International Trade, he oversaw the conclusion of landmark trade agreements, and he served as Canada’s G-20 Sherpa and as the Prime Minister’s lead negotiator with the White House on the Canada–U.S. Perimeter Security and Economic Competitiveness Action Plan.
Simon currently serves on the boards of Finchley Pharmaceuticals, Quantum Valley Ideas Lab, and the Ottawa Community Foundation, and is a senior advisor at Teneo. He holds an MSc from Syracuse University, a Bachelor of Public Relations (with distinction) from Mount Saint Vincent University, and is a graduate of INSEAD’s Advanced Management Programme and the Institute of Corporate Directors’ Directors Education Program (ICD.D).
Malcolm Brown (Panelist)
Bio to be added.