CAAT Pension Plan’s Derek Dobson is officially out, two weeks after being placed on administrative leave. He resigned as CEO after reaching a settlement agreement with CAAT, and has also agreed to pay back a $1.6-million payout he received last year in lieu of vacation time.
The payout, along with a consensual relationship Dobson had with an employee, and the board’s handling of both matters, have been at the centre of a governance crisis at CAAT. Three executives — the pension plan’s chief information officer, chief financial officer and chief pension officer — resigned en masse in December after bringing their concerns about the matters to the board.
Previous chair Don Smith was suspended, then removed from his position last month. An independent governance review of the pension plan’s policies, initiated by the board late last year, is still underway, CAAT Senior Director of Communications Stephen Hewitt confirmed in an email.
“The independent governance review is progressing well,” he said. “The board will provide an update following its conclusion.”
The pension plan also announced several new senior leadership appointments from within the organization.
Laura Foster, currently VP aligned assurance, has been appointed interim CFO.
Permanent appointments include:
- Jillian Kennedy, who joined CAAT in mid-2024 as chief strategy officer after 18 years at Mercer, has been named COO.
- James Fera has been promoted to chief legal officer & general counsel from VP legal.
- John Baiocco has been promoted to senior VP, funding & sustainability from VP actuarial solutions.
- Stephen Hewitt has been promoted to senior director of communications from director.
Permanent leaders have yet to be named for several key roles: CFO, CEO and chief human resources officer. Kevin Fahey, who recently stepped into the role of chief investment officer, is currently CAAT’s acting CEO. Scott Blakely, interim chief people and culture officer and executive vice-president, also recently resigned within weeks of being appointed.
“While the plan has recently undergone a period of significant change, I am proud that these five senior leaders are all existing CAAT employees who will drive stability and institutional continuity while leveraging their strong internal relationships to engage and inspire our teams as they serve our member constituents every day,” Fahey said in a release.