Jody Thomas

Dr. Jody Thomas was appointed as National Security and Intelligence Advisor to the Prime Minister of Canada, effective January 11, 2022. As a dedicated public servant, Thomas leads with strength, care and conviction, tackling some of Canada’s most sensitive security challenges.   

Thomas is a person of exceptional merit who has made substantial contributions to Canada in her role as a public figure. She has dedicated more than 37 years to public service. In the past eight years, Thomas has served at the most senior levels of the federal government. Prior to being appointed as the NSIA, she served as the Deputy Minister of National Defence.  

In 1984, Thomas joined the naval reserves as a diesel mechanic at age 17 and was among the first women to serve on a Canadian military vessel. Thomas began her career in the public service in 1988 when she was appointed Chief of Business Planning and Administration with Public Works and Government Services Canada’s Atlantic Region. Thomas then moved to the West Coast as the Business Manager of the Esquimalt Graving Dock in Victoria, British Columbia. From 1995 to 2010, she joined Passport Canada where she served as Manager of the Victoria Passport Office. This led to a number of senior roles within the Passport Office, culminating in Chief Operating Officer, where she managed service delivery at 35 locations involving 3,000 employees across Canada. 

In 2010, Thomas joined the Canadian Coast Guard, where she held the position of Deputy Commissioner of Operations for four years, during which she provided leadership and functional direction in the development of the Coast Guard’s strategic and operational policy frameworks. In September 2014, Thomas was appointed as Special Advisor to the Deputy Secretary to the Cabinet (Operations) at the Privy Council Office until her appointment as Commissioner of the Coast Guard on January 1, 2015. On March 13, 2017, she joined the Department of National Defence where she served as Senior Associate Deputy Minister. She was appointed as Deputy Minister of National Defence on October 23, 2017, a role in which she served until January 10, 2022.  

Thomas was instrumental in overhauling a culture of hiding sexual harassment and assault in the Canadian Armed Forces. As a woman navigating her way through the ranks in a male-dominated workforce, she did not shy away from challenging conversations. Thomas is a courageous and resolute advocate for mental health and equity, diversity and inclusion in the defence and security communities.  

Thomas has been at the centre of some of the most seminal domestic and international decisions in recent Canadian history, including: Canada’s security posture concerning the war in Ukraine; critical intelligence and counsel to the Prime Minister and Cabinet during the occupation in Ottawa that ultimately led to the Emergencies Act; response by the Canadian Forces to BC wildfires, Fraser Valley Flooding and the COVID-19 pandemic; concerns over Canada’s sovereignty in the Arctic; and Canadians being held illegally by foreign governments.  

At the same time as Thomas provides a point of authority on some of this nation’s top security concerns, she is also a steadfast spouse, mother and friend.