Provincial bureaucrat recommended to become Winnipeg's new top civil servant
Mayor's inner circle nominates Joseph Dunford as the city's new chief administrative officer
Mayor Scott Gillingham's inner circle has nominated a provincial public servant with a background in engineering to serve as the City of Winnipeg's new chief administrative officer.
The executive policy committee unanimously approved a motion naming Joseph Dunford to lead the civil service. The nomination still needs council approval.
Dunford currently serves as the deputy minister of public service delivery for the province of Manitoba.
He has more than 20 years of experience as a professional engineer, having worked in Manitoba, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador, a news release from the mayor's office said. He has worked on large-scale projects, including a $5-billion hospital in Halifax.
If approved, Dunford would begin work on Aug. 4.
He would replace former CAO Michael Jack, who resigned in June 2024, less than a week after an audit of the city's workforce.
Jack had come under fire from some council members for his management of the city's administration, after the audit found the city lacked adequate processes for performance reviews and measuring progress toward key goals.
Transcona Coun. Russ Wyatt was censured by council, after he refused to apologize following an ethics commissioner report that found his criticisms of Jack amounted to harassment.
In a news release, Gillingham thanked interim CAO Sherwood Armbruster, who has served in the role since last June.
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