Meeting the Leadership Moment: Conviction and Courage in Extraordinary Times
As published in Policy Magazine
As the CEO of the Business Council of Canada, I have the privilege of working with many of Canada’s most influential leaders. They are women and men who care deeply about their employees, their communities, their customers and our country.
When they speak about leadership, a common theme emerges; leading is easy in good times, the test of a leader comes when times get tough.
We are living in extraordinarily tough times. The global order is shifting. Economic alliances are evolving, supply chains are being re‑engineered, and security and prosperity are once again tightly intertwined.
Countries are reasserting the importance of economic sovereignty, strategic resilience and national purpose. Domestically, new technology is changing the way we work, leading to upheaval for many workers. Affordability remains a key concern for Canadians and their families.
In our current context, leadership requires more than merely managing institutions more efficiently or seeking to preserve continuity. It requires recognition that circumstances have changed, and we must respond with decisiveness, courage and conviction.
We know we can do it because we’ve done it before. Time and again, Canadian leaders have demonstrated the ability to pivot during a crisis.
Most recently, six years ago this month, our world shut down in response to the COVID pandemic. That’s when leaders across Canada were tested as never before.
Business leaders acted with speed and purpose to keep their employees safe. Manufacturers re-tooled to produce ventilators, protective gear, medical equipment and other supplies.
Companies involved in energy, transportation and communications ensured our essential needs were met. Organizations led food drives and vaccination clinics, and piloted rapid screening tests.
Most importantly, the private sector worked in tandem with governments of all levels with a sense of urgency.
We need that clear-eyed vision and teamwork again.
Canada is rich with world-class talent, resources and ideas. We are fortunate to have capable leaders across sectors. What we have sometimes lacked, at pivotal moments, is the resolve to act with focused conviction. This cannot be one of those moments.
The true test of whether we will meet this moment is whether we can come together and act with the speed and clarity that it demands.
We cannot default to incrementalism. While studying, consulting and deliberating at length are important in a democracy, excessive caution becomes a liability when the world is moving quickly.
Other countries are accelerating investments, building strategic industries and strengthening their economic resilience. They are aligning policy, private-sector ambition and national priorities to compete and win.
Canada’s prosperity will ultimately depend not just on the decisions made in boardrooms or government offices, but on the talents, skills and ambitions of Canadians across the country.
Canadian leadership across the public and private sectors must collaborate and move with similar urgency. That means accelerating major projects, modernizing regulatory systems, removing interprovincial trade barriers and ensuring our policies enable growth rather than hinder it.
It means recognizing that competitiveness, economic prosperity and national security are inseparable. And it means acting now, so that Canada remains a leading economy in a rapidly changing world.
Our country’s greatest strength is its people. Canada’s prosperity will ultimately depend not just on the decisions made in boardrooms or government offices, but on the talents, skills and ambitions of Canadians across the country.
Strong leadership invests in that human potential: building the workforce, skills and opportunities needed for Canadians to thrive in a rapidly evolving economy.
Canada’s leading employers are investing in their employees, helping them grow, adapt and learn new skills.
That includes recognizing and developing talent wherever it exists. It includes equipping people with the education, training and mobility they need to participate in the industries that will define the future.
And it includes ensuring that Canada remains a place where people with drive and determination can build meaningful careers and prosperous lives.
Leadership must also include seizing the economic opportunities before us.
Canada has the resources, ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit to lead in areas that will shape the global economy—from energy and critical minerals to advanced manufacturing, technology, and artificial intelligence.
But opportunity alone does not guarantee prosperity. It must be matched by the will to act and the ability to translate potential into progress.
True leadership is also about bringing people along. Not simply asking Canadians to adapt to change but ensuring they can share in the opportunities that change creates.
Bringing people along, in this sense, is about more than consensus building. It is about elevating our society and strengthening the foundations of our prosperity. It means creating well-paying jobs, growing industries, and expanding opportunities for Canadian households.
When leadership aligns ambition with opportunity, the result is enhanced quality of life, stronger communities and greater confidence in the future.
And that is ultimately the goal: a Canada where economic growth translates into broader prosperity; where hard work is rewarded; where families can build secure futures, and where the next generation sees even greater possibilities ahead.
Because in these extraordinary times, the true test of leadership is not simply whether we manage change but how we shape it, in ways that inspire and empower an entire country to rise.
