12 November 2025 | 8:30AM - 6:30 PM EDT | Governor General Ballroom, Westin, 11 Colonel By Dr, Ottawa, ON, K1N 9J1

SYNOPSIS

Join CGAI for our annual full-day Defence Procurement Conference. This year we intend to focus on the major changes the government put forward including the commitment to spend 2% of GDP on defence this year and 5% of GDP by 2035, the creation of the Defence Investment Agency and the forthcoming Defence Industrial Strategy.

PROGRAM

To view details about speakers and view full program, click here!

8:30 - 9:30 AM - Arrival and Welcome Coffee

• Sponsored by Saab

9:30 - 9:35 AM - Opening Remarks

• David Perry, President & CEO, Canadian Global Affairs Institute

9:35 - 9:40 AM - Conference Introduction

• Simon Carroll, President, Saab Canada

9:40 – 9:45AM - COVE Fellowship Announcement 

• Melanie Nadeau, CEO, COVE

9:45 - 10:25 AM - The View from the Deputies’ Offices

• Stefanie Beck, Deputy Minister, National Defence
• Philip Jennings, Deputy Minister, Innovation Sciences Economic Development Canada
• Arianne Reza, Deputy Minister, Public Services and Procurement Canada 
• Moderator: Lieutenant-General (ret'd) Michael Day, CGAI Fellow

10:25 - 10:55 AM - Coffee Break

• Sponsored by STANTEC

11:00 AM - 12:00 PM - The CAF and The Path to 5%

• Lieutenant-General Jamie Speiser-Blanchet, Commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force
• Vice-Admiral Angus Topshee, Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy
• Lieutenant-General Michael Wright, Commander of the Canadian Army
• Moderator: Charlotte Duval-Lantoine, VP Ottawa Operations, Canadian Global Affairs Institute

12:00 - 1:15 PM - Lunch

• Sponsored by RTX

1:20 - 2:25 PM – The Industrial Policy, What Opportunity?

• Kristen Leroux, CEO, Lockheed Martin
• Major-General (ret'd) Sylvain Menard, GGR Canada Country Director, RTX
• Brigadier-General (ret'd) Kevin Whale, Senior Director Defence Strategy, MDA Space
• Dr. Craig Stone, CGAI Fellow
• Moderator: David Perry, Canadian Global Affairs Institute

2:25 - 3:00 PM - Coffee Break

• Sponsored by ATCO

3:00 - 4:00 PM – An Industrial Strategy & A New View on Exports

• Dr. Duncan Stewart, Partner, venture capital, BDC
• David Hutchison, Director General, Trade Strategy, Global Affairs Canada
• Nicolas Todd, Vice President, Government Relations and Communications, CADSI
• Ravi Singh, Director General, Defence Industrial Strategy, Department of National Defence
• Moderator: David Perry, President and CEO, Canadian Global Affairs Institute

4:05 - 5:05 PM - The Evolving Acquisition Ecosystem around the Defence Investment Agency

• Siobhan Harty, Senior Associate Deputy Minister Defence and Marine Procurement, Public Services and Procurement Canada
• Marc Rodgers, Chief of Programme, Department of National Defence
• Heather Sheehy, Assistant Deputy Minister Materiel, Department of National Defence
• Moderator: Brigadier-General (ret’d) Chris Ayotte, CGAI Fellow

5:05 - 5:10 PM - Closing Remarks

• David Perry, President and CEO, Canadian Global Affairs Institute

5:10 – 5:15 PM - Reception Remarks 

• Ian Smith, Director Business Development, University of Alberta

5:15PM - Reception

REGISTRATION

Register here or copy and paste this link in your browser: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/defence-procurement-conference-2025-tickets-1872840569559?aff=oddtdtcreator

SPONSORS

• Department of National Defence’s MINDS Program
• Lockheed Martin Canada
• General Dynamics
• Hanwha Defence and Ocean
• BAE Systems
• Amazon Web Services 
• COVE
• Davie Shipyards
• Microsoft

Conference Sponsors:

• PCL Construction
• MDA Space
• Raytheon
• Saab
• STANTEC
• ATCO
• Architecture 49
• IMP Aerospace and Defence
• General Motors
• Magellan