Michael Gullo

Background

About Michael Gullo

A policy and public affairs professional with the capacity to advance an organization's policy and advocacy objectives by bridging diverse opinions and building consensus through coalition building. Supply chain and competitiveness policy: As part of the Canada Transportation Act review, advocated that commercial and market-based forces should drive freight rail transportation by filing a fact-based submission and leading a coalition effort with supply chain partners. This work included advocating for the modernization of the western grain handling and transportation system. Climate change and sustainability: Successfully promoted the rail industry's ability to support Canada's greenhouse gas emissions targets by negotiating two Memoranda of Understanding with the Minister of Transport, and leading all research and policy development work to promote the environmental benefits of rail through a framework that facilitates the increased movement of goods and people by rail. Public policy and risk management: Following the Lac-Megantic incident, worked to rehabilitate the perception of transporting dangerous goods by rail by implementing a public relations strategy which included researching safety performance, developing a policy position underscoring the need for both rail and pipelines to support the competitiveness of Canada's energy industry, and developing a communications plan to engage decision-makers, stakeholders and the public. Coalition building: Heightened the importance of transportation to economic development by assembling a coalition of association executives to meet regularly with the Governor of the Bank of Canada to discuss how to overcome policy issues impeding the efficiency and resiliency of Canada's transportation supply chain. Branding and stakeholder engagement: Improved the awareness of the railway sector's commitment to sustainability by developing the RAC's inaugural sector-based platform - Right Track. This included leading and directing all aspects of strategic design, bench-marking, stakeholder outreach, programming and branding. Operational delivery: Directed the RAC's Policy and Public Affairs team by developing a planning process to identify priorities and assign tasks to key resources and staff. This process included oversight of a weekly meeting driven by a work planning and prioritization framework aligned with the association's triennial strategic plan.