Dominic Barton

McKinsey

Barton joined McKinsey & Company's Toronto office in 1986 and worked from there as a management consultant for eleven years, except for a one-year period from 1989 to 1990 in McKinsey's Australia offices.^[15]

Advisory Council on Public Service

Barton served on the Canadian Advisory Committee on the Public Service under former Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Barton was one of several Canadian business leaders that advised the Prime Minister on the renewal and development of the country's public service.^[23]

Advisory Council on Economic Growth

Barton served as chair of the Advisory Council on Economic Growth, the Canadian federal government's blue-chip panel, starting in 2017.^[24] The council outlined 13 recommendations, including the creation of the Canada Infrastructure Bank, the launch of a re-skilling program for the Canadian workforce, the formulation of growth strategies for sectors with untapped potential, including agriculture, and the development of the Invest in Canada hub.^[25]

The Council set a goal of lifting "the median household's income to $105,000 in 2030". It was about $80,000 in 2017.^[24] The Council also called for a gradual increase in permanent immigration to Canada to 450,000 people a year.^[26]

Academia

On 19 June 2018, Barton was named the 11th chancellor of the University of Waterloo. Barton was reappointed as chancellor on 25 February 2021.^[27]

Previously he has served as a co-chair on the Max Bell School of Public Policy Advisory Board at McGill University and on the cabinet of the University of Toronto Psychiatry Campaign.^[28][29]

Ambassador of Canada to China

On 4 September 2019, Barton was appointed to be ambassador to China by the Government of Canada.^[30][31]

After taking on the role, Barton led Canada's efforts to win the release of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, two Canadians who were imprisoned in China in December, 2018, in a move widely seen as retaliation for the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou.^[32] Throughout their detention, Barton conducted regular consular visits with Kovrig and Spavor,^[33][34] often delivering coded messages to avoid interception from eavesdropping prison guards.^[35]

The Toronto Star also reported that Barton's work on this file pre-dated his appointment as Ambassador, as his network and understanding of the relevant stakeholders helped pave the way for open communication channels between Chinese, Canadian, and U.S. officials.^[33] All three countries had "red lines" and Barton played a leading role finding a "pathway" that would ultimately lead to their release.^[36]

In April 2021, this included meetings in Washington where Barton received a commitment from senior U.S. officials to put intensity into their pressure on Beijing.^[37] The Wall Street Journal also reported that Barton maintained a line of communications with Xie Feng, China's Vice Foreign Minister, to coordinate the logistics of an eventual resolution that would bring the prisoner standoff to an end.^[35]

On September 24, 2021, Kovrig and Spavor were released from detention in China and boarded a plane with Barton to Anchorage, Calgary, and Toronto.^[38] It was reported by Canadian media that this flight followed weeks of consecutive meetings held with Barton and Chinese officials as part of a "highly choreographed" effort.^[38]

Barton was personally thanked by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for his role in securing the release of the two men.^[39]

On December 6, 2021, it was announced that Barton would step down from the role after completing the "core mission" that he had been appointed to achieve: securing the release of Kovrig and Spavor.^[40][41][42]

Writing

Barton is the author of China Vignettes: An Inside Look At China. Barton led a research team that conducted interviews with ordinary Chinese citizens and captures his findings with a series of short stories about daily life.^{[citation needed]} Barton is the co-author of Dangerous Markets: Managing in Financial Crises. This book lays out a plan for global business leaders to manage their organizations through hazardous economic environments, providing advice to executives on how to navigate increasingly volatile financial markets.^{[citation needed]} He also co-authored Re-Imagining Capitalism, which looks at capitalism through a contemporary lens and ponders how the economic system might be adapted to modern times. The book argues that the focus of capitalism should be expanded and adapted to focus more on long-termism. Re-Imagining Capitalism builds on Barton's previous writing, which reflects on the 2008 financial crisis, rejecting the "false choice" between serving stakeholders and shareholders while advocating for long-term planning from business leaders.

Most recently, Barton co-authored Talent Wins: The New Playbook for Putting People First, which argues that the primary driver of long-term success in companies is talent. The book maintains that business executives and leaders need to develop and manage their human capital even more intensely than they do their financial capital.^{[citation needed]}

Board and advisory positions

Barton has been a member of multiple boards like the Singapore Economic Development Board's International Advisory Council and worked as an advisor to the Asian Development Bank.^[43][44] Barton also sits on the steering committee of the China–United States Exchange Foundation.^[45]

In April 2022, Barton joined the board of Rio Tinto, and in May, he became chairman.^[46]

In April 2022 Barton was also appointed as Chairman of the Management Board of Leapfrog Investments, a private investment firm that invests in high-growth, emerging markets, with a focus on social and environmental impact.^[47]

In October 2022 the Eurasia Group, a global political risk consultancy, announced that Barton was joining the firm as a Strategic Counselor. Eurasia Group cited Barton's extensive business and diplomatic acumen as reasons for the appointment.^[48]

Century Initiative

Barton co-founded Century Initiative, described as "a diverse, non-partisan network of Canadians” dedicated to advocating for policies and programs aimed at increasing Canada's population to 100 million by 2100. In addition to immigration, this work focuses on urban development and infrastructure, early childhood supports, employment and entrepreneurship, and education. Barton is no longer involved with the project.^[49]

Rio Tinto

In April 2022 Barton was recruited to join the board of Rio Tinto in the wake of a series of crises, including the destruction of the Juukan Gorge rock shelters in 2022 and the related crisis of values and culture,^[50] becoming Chairman on 5 May 2022.^[51] As Chairman, he has overseen efforts to rebuild the company's social licence, reform its culture, and improve operational and financial performance, with the share price reaching new highs and the company outperforming peers in total shareholder return. He has positioned Rio Tinto as a partner to government and customers in the energy transition, emphasizing the role of mining and materials industries in suppling the inputs required for industrial growth and the energy transition.^[52]

Under Barton's chairmanship, Rio Tinto has made multibillion-dollar capital investments in Canada, Australia, the United States, Guinea and Argentina. ^[53]

LeapFrog Investments

In April 2022 Barton was appointed Chairman of the Management Board of Leapfrog Investments, a private investment firm that invests in high-growth emerging markets with a focus on social and environmental impact.

LeapFrog's portfolio comprises 38 companies across financial services, healthcare, and the energy transition. These companies have served more than 622 million low-income consumers in emerging markets, while generating positive returns to shareholders.^[54]

Awards

INSEAD Business Leader for the World Award (2011); Order of Civil Merit (Peony Medal), South Korea (2013), Public Service Star, Singapore (2014); Academy of International Business International Executive of the Year (2014); Foreign Policy Association Corporate Social Responsibility Award (2017); Public Policy Forum Testimonial Award (2017), Canada. ^[55]

Honorary degrees

Honorary doctorates from the University of British Columbia (LL.D., 2012); York University (LL.D., 2012); Western University (LL.D., 2014); the University of Edinburgh (D.Sc. Social Science, 2014-15); Amity University, India (2015); the British Columbia Institute of Technology (Honorary Doctor of Technology, 2016); Saint Mary's University (D.Com., 2018); and the University of Toronto (LL.D., 2018).^[56]

In 2010 he was made an Honorary Fellow of Brasenose College, Oxford.^[57]

Philanthropy

In 2022 Barton made a $1 million gift to the UBC Vancouver School of Economics, establishing the John and Barbara Barton Fellowship for international PhD students, and a $1 million gift to the University of Waterloo supporting Indigenous undergraduate scholarships, international study programs and the Velocity entrepreneurship initiative. He is a major benefactor of the University of Oxford, supporting the Rhodes Trust and Scholarships for students from some Canadian provinces and has made substantial contributions to Brasenose College. He is a member of the University Chancellor's Court of Benefactors, Oxford's senior body honouring its most distinguished philanthropic supporters. He has served on the board of the Malala Fund and as a champion of the United Nations HeForSheInitiative.^[58]