Organizational Chart
Click on a position to learn more.
President and Chief Executive Officer, and Director
Derrick Cheung
Prior to his appointment as DCC’s President and CEO, Derrick has held high-level positions with large publicly-traded, private and public complex organizations. With expertise in the defence (infrastructure, equipment, materiel, environment and real property), transportation (air, rail, marine, road and public transportation), infrastructure (roads, bridges, and public works), real estate and energy industries, he has demonstrated proficiency in realizing strategic outcomes, optimizing performance, maximizing productivity and championing operational excellence. Derrick is a Chartered Director (C.Dir.) and holds master’s degrees in Laws (International Business), Business Administration, and Arts (Leading Innovation and Change). He is also a former Advisory Committee member of the University of Waterloo’s Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Aeronautics.
Director, Communications
Stephanie Ryan, B.A. (Hons), ABC
Following a 12-year private sector career in marketing communications, Stephanie joined DCC in 2002. Prior to DCC, she spent three years with a national magazine publishing firm and nine years with a life sciences business. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree from the University of Ottawa, the designation of Accredited Business Communicator (ABC) and is an accredited TESL Ontario Language Instructor.
Director, Governance and Legal Affairs, and Corporate Secretary
Alison Lawford, LL.B., LL.M.
Alison joined DCC in the summer of 2008 after having worked a number of years at Export Development Canada as the Compliance Officer and as part of the Corporate Secretariat. She is a lawyer and also has a Master of laws degree from the University of Ottawa. At DCC, Alison is responsible for all Corporate Secretariat matters including corporate governance and legal affairs.
Regional Director, Atlantic
George Theoharopoulos, P.Eng.
Since joining DCC in 2004, George has held a variety of positions including Manager, Environmental Services and Manager, Business Operations in the Atlantic Region. He received his Bachelor of Engineering degree from the Technical University of Nova Scotia. Following graduation, he worked for more than 14 years in both the public and private sectors including the oil and gas sector in Alberta and the environmental and real property sectors throughout Canada and the United States. George was promoted to the position of Regional Director for the Atlantic Region in 2011.
Regional Director, Ontario
Marcy Burton, BSc
After graduating from Queen’s University in 2003 with a Bachelor of Science (Mechanical Engineering) degree, Marcy joined DCC’s CFB Borden office as a contract coordinator. Since then, she has held various positions, including Site Manager in Toronto and Kingston, and at the Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan. Marcy was appointed Regional Service Line Leader, Construction Services, for Ontario in 2011 and Regional Operations Manager in 2015, and was promoted to the position of Regional Director in 2022. She is a council member of the Lean Construction Institute of Canada.
Vice-President, Operations—Business Management
Grant Sayers, C.E.T.
Grant joined DCC in 2003 as a contract coordinator in Suffield, Alberta. He moved to Comox, B.C., in 2008 as Operations Manager and expanded the team to respond to growth in the Client-Partner’s capital programs. In 2011, Grant took on the dual role at the Western Regional Office in Edmonton of Regional Service Line Leader for real property as well as Operations Manager responsible for delivering services to the Land Forces Western Area Engineering Branch. Prior to being promoted to Vice-President in 2022, Grant was regional director of both the Quebec and Western regions. He is a Certified Engineering Technologist with a mechanical background.
Regional Director, Quebec
Marco Palmieri, ing., MBA, PMP
Prior to joining DCC as the Regional Director in Quebec, Marco had a 20-year career in the transportation sector managing the engineering and project management requirements for complex infrastructure projects. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) degree from Concordia University and a Master of Business Administration from Université du Québec à Montréal. A professional engineer, Marco earned his Project Management Professional designation and most recently was responsible for the planning and implementation of a major transportation procurement process.
Regional Director, National Capital
Elizabeth Mah, P.Eng., GSC, PMP
Elizabeth joined DCC in 1998 following her graduation from the University of Manitoba with a Bachelor of Science (Civil Engineering). Subsequent to roles at both DCC Edmonton and Esquimalt site offices, she transferred to Ottawa in 2011. Elizabeth was promoted to Regional Director for the National Capital Region in November 2015. She is currently a board member of the Real Property Institute of Canada and sits on the steering committee for the Women's Infrastructure Network (Ottawa Chapter). She holds a Project Management Professional certificate and a Canadian Construction Association Gold Seal Certified designation.
Regional Director, Pacific
Danny Gruner, BSc, MBA
Prior to joining DCC’s Wainwright, Alberta, office in 2010, Danny worked in the forestry and oil and gas industries. She moved to Edmonton in 2011 and subsequently became Assistant Regional Business Manager. From 2015 to 2018, Danny filled the dual roles of Regional Service Line Leader, Real Property Management Services, and Manager, Real Property Operations Support. She was appointed to lead DCC’s new Pacific Region in 2022. Danny holds a Bachelor of Science (Agroecology) degree from the University of British Columbia and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Alberta.
Director, Information Technology
Navpreet Uppal, B.Eng., CGEIT, CRISC
Navpreet joined DCC in 2005 following an eight-year career in the private sector. She began as an application developer and transitioned into the role of business analyst. In 2016, Navpreet was promoted to Manager, Application Support, leading the applications team supporting the enterprise resource planning and business intelligence applications. In 2019, she was appointed Director, Information Technology (IT). Navpreet holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) degree from Punjabi University, Punjab, India. She also holds certificates in enterprise IT governance and in risk and information systems control from ISACA, an international professional association focused on IT governance.
Director, Finance
Marlies Paulhus, CPA, CGA
Marlies began her career with DCC in 2007 as an Accountant. She was promoted to Manager, Finance, in 2013 and then Controller in 2020. During her nearly three years in the latter role, Marlies oversaw the preparation of all DCC’s external financial reports and led the accounting operations team. Marlies was appointed Director, Finance, in January 2023. She holds an honours Bachelor of Commerce degree from Carleton University. She earned her Certified Public Accountant designation in 2002.
Director, Human Resources
Kimberly Morgan, CHRL
Kimberly joined DCC in 2011 following a 25-year career in the private sector in the financial services, healthcare and professional services industries. Prior to taking on the role of Director, Human Resources in 2020, she worked as advisor and manager of compensation and benefits. Kimberly earned her certificate in Human Resources Management from Fanshawe College in London, Ontario and holds a Certified Human Resources Leader designation from the Human Resources Professionals Association.