Keisha Campbell is now serving as the Toronto Transit Commission’s first chief diversity and culture officer, a new executive role created to address systemic issues within the organization.
She joined the TTC on April 1 after serving as head of diversity and inclusion for the personal banking division at TD Bank, where she led, developed and implemented a diversity, equity and inclusion strategy for 26,000 employees across Canada, according to the TTC.
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The new role was created in September 2020 and a candidate search was undertaken at that time. The chief diversity and culture officer role was created to strategically align the functions of several areas including human rights and investigations, diversity, talent management, fare inspection and TTC special constable complaints, said Richard J. Leary, chief executive officer of the TTC, in a blog post last fall. “This new [diversity and culture] group will retain end-to-end accountability and will develop, lead, review, implement and manage all policy, programs and practices addressing anti-Black racism, diversity and inclusion, as well as recruitment and outreach.”
Following the death of George Floyd in the U.S. last May and the subsequent Black Lives Matter rallies around the globe, many Canadian employers announced concrete steps they planned to take in a bid to improve diversity, equity and inclusion for employees.
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The TTC also recently appointed Mary Madigan-Lee as its new chief people officer. She joined the TTC in March after serving as vice-president and chief human resources officer and corporate services with the Greater Toronto Airport Authority. Prior to that, Madigan-Lee held similar executive roles with Unity Health Toronto, Loblaw Companies Ltd. and Manulife Financial Corp.
In this role, Madigan-Lee is responsible for all aspects of the TTC’s people group management and planning functions, as well as being accountable for providing strategic and operational direction with respect to the services provided by the various departments within the group.