Tiff Macklem

Early life and education

Richard Tiffany Macklem was born on June 4, 1961, in Montreal, Quebec, to Dick and Janet Macklem. His father worked as the chief financial officer of the jewellery retailer Birks, and his uncle, Peter Macklem, was a noted physician and medical researcher. Macklem grew up in the Westmount neighbourhood of Montreal, where he attended Selwyn House School from grades five through eleven. He completed a pre-university year at Lower Canada College before moving on to university studies. Macklem earned a bachelor's degree in economics from Queen's University in 1983. He then pursued graduate studies at the University of Western Ontario, completing a master's degree and a doctorate in economics, which he finished in 1989. His academic focus on economics provided the technical foundation for his entire career in monetary policy and financial analysis.

Early career and progression at the Bank of Canada

Tiff Macklem began his professional career at the Bank of Canada in 1984, working for one year in the Department of Monetary and Financial Analysis. After completing his PhD, he returned to the central bank in 1989 and took on progressively more senior roles within its Research Department, later known as Canadian Economic Analysis. His expertise led to his appointment as Chief of the Research Department in January 2000. In August 2003, Macklem was appointed Adviser to the Governor of the Bank of Canada. His career then included a significant stint in the federal government, as he was seconded to the Department of Finance for the 2003 to 2004 period. He returned to the Bank of Canada in December 2004 with an appointment as a Deputy Governor. Macklem rejoined the Department of Finance in 2007, serving as Associate Deputy Minister until June 30, 2010. This period gave him valuable experience in fiscal policy and government finance, complementing his central banking background.

Senior Deputy Governor of the Bank of Canada

Macklem was appointed Senior Deputy Governor of the Bank of Canada for a seven-year term beginning on July 1, 2010. In this role, he acted as the bank's chief operating officer and sat on its board of directors. His responsibilities included overseeing strategic planning, coordinating bank operations, and sharing responsibility for monetary policy as a member of the Governing Council. Macklem also played a key role in financial stability initiatives, chairing the Standing Committee on Standards Implementation at the Financial Stability Board. As the senior deputy governor, he was widely considered a leading candidate to succeed Governor Mark Carney. This made Macklem the third consecutive senior deputy governor, after Malcolm Knight and Paul Jenkins, not to be promoted to the top job. An editorial in the Vancouver Sun suggested he might soon leave the institution. Although his term was set to run until 2017, Macklem announced his resignation in 2014 to become dean of the Rotman School of Management, effective May 1, 2014. Following his departure from the central bank, Macklem served on the board of directors of Scotiabank from June 2015 until his appointment as Bank of Canada Governor in 2020.

During his time as Senior Deputy Governor from 2010 to 2014, Tiff Macklem was the Bank of Canada's chief operating officer and a member of its board of directors. He was responsible for overseeing strategic planning and coordinating the bank's operations. Macklem shared responsibility for the conduct of monetary policy as a member of the Bank of Canada's governing council. He also participated in fulfilling the bank's responsibilities for promoting financial stability. In this role, he chaired the Standing Committee on Standards Implementation at the Financial Stability Board.

• Chief operating officer of the Bank of Canada from 2010 to 2014.
• Member of the Bank's board of directors and its Governing Council.
• Chair of the Standing Committee on Standards Implementation at the Financial Stability Board.
• Key figure in guiding Canada's monetary policy response during the late-2000s financial recession alongside Governor Mark Carney.

Dean of the Rotman School of Management

From 2014 to 2020, Tiff Macklem served as the dean of the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management. This role marked a shift from his long career in public policy to academic leadership. During his six-year tenure, he was responsible for overseeing the school's strategic direction, faculty, and programs. The position allowed him to engage directly with the business community and contribute to management education in Canada. His experience at Rotman provided a different perspective on economic issues, which he later brought back to his role at the central bank. Paul Ferley, assistant chief economist at Royal Bank of Canada, noted that Macklem's earlier departure from the Bank of Canada represented a loss of human capital, given his experience. The deanship concluded when he was named Governor of the Bank of Canada in May 2020, ending his time in academic administration.

Appointment and tenure as Governor

On May 1, 2020, the federal government named Tiff Macklem as the tenth governor of the Bank of Canada, succeeding Stephen Poloz. He formally assumed the office on June 3, 2020. His appointment came during a period of economic uncertainty at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Macklem's deep institutional knowledge from his prior roles at the bank made him a stabilizing choice for the leadership position. His return to the central bank was seen as a homecoming for a respected economist with extensive experience in both monetary policy and financial system oversight. As governor, Macklem chairs the Governing Council, which sets the target for the overnight interest rate, the bank's primary monetary policy tool.

Monetary policy and inflation management

Governor Macklem's tenure has been dominated by the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and the global inflation surge that followed. The Bank of Canada, under his leadership, initially provided substantial monetary stimulus to support the economy during lockdowns. In 2022, the bank raised its key policy interest rate seven consecutive times, moving it from 0.25 percent in March to 4.25 percent by December. This aggressive hiking cycle was aimed at cooling demand and bringing inflation back to the bank's two percent target. By 2024, with inflation showing signs of moderating, the bank shifted course and began cutting rates. Throughout this period, Macklem emphasized that the Governing Council would make future decisions on interest rates one meeting at a time, based on the incoming economic data. His communications stressed a careful, meeting-by-meeting approach to further rate adjustments.

Under Governor Tiff Macklem, the Bank of Canada confronted a post pandemic inflation surge. In 2022, the bank raised its key interest rate seven consecutive times. This series of increases raised the rate from 0.25 percent in March to 4.25 percent in December. In 2024, the bank then cut its key interest rate five consecutive times. These reductions lowered the rate from 5 percent in June to 3.25 percent in December. Macklem has stated that further rate reductions would be considered one decision at a time.

• March 2022: Rate hike to 0.25%, beginning the tightening cycle.
• December 2022: Rate reached 4.25% after seven consecutive increases.
• December 2024: Rate lowered to 3.25% after five consecutive cuts.

Policy challenges and leadership approach

Governor Macklem has faced the complex challenge of communicating the bank's policy path during a period of high volatility. His public statements and press conferences have focused on explaining the rationale behind rapid interest rate hikes and the subsequent cautious easing. A central theme has been the bank's data-dependent approach, avoiding forward guidance that locks in a predetermined path for rates. Macklem has frequently discussed the balance between returning inflation to target and avoiding unnecessary economic damage. He has also overseen the bank's work on financial system resilience and its research into digital currencies. The governor's communications are closely watched by financial markets, businesses, and households for signals about the future direction of borrowing costs in Canada. His leadership style is seen as methodical and grounded in his extensive experience with the institution's internal workings and its role in the global financial system.

Career timeline and key positions

Tiff Macklem's career reflects a consistent focus on economic policy, moving between senior roles in Canada's key financial institutions. His path demonstrates a blend of operational central banking experience, high-level government advisory work, and academic leadership. He began at the Bank of Canada in 1984 and rose through its research ranks before taking on executive responsibilities at both the bank and the Department of Finance. His career includes a notable interlude leading a major business school before returning to lead the central bank itself.

1. 1984: Joins Bank of Canada, Department of Monetary and Financial Analysis.
2. 1989: Returns to Bank of Canada after PhD, begins ascent in Research Department.
3. January 2000: Appointed Chief of the Bank's Research Department.
4. August 2003: Appointed Adviser to the Governor of the Bank of Canada.
5. 2003 to 2004: Seconded to the Department of Finance.
6. December 2004: Appointed Deputy Governor of the Bank of Canada.
7. 2007: Becomes Associate Deputy Minister at the Department of Finance.
8. July 2010: Appointed Senior Deputy Governor of the Bank of Canada.
9. May 2014: Resigns from Bank of Canada. Becomes Dean of Rotman School of Management.
10. June 2015: Joins Scotiabank board of directors.
11. June 2020: Assumes office as 10th Governor of the Bank of Canada.

Questions about Tiff Macklem

What is Tiff Macklem's educational background?

Tiff Macklem holds a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Queen's University, which he earned in 1983. He then completed both a master's degree and a Doctor of Philosophy in economics at the University of Western Ontario, finishing his PhD in 1989. His academic training provided a strong foundation in economic theory and analysis for his subsequent career in central banking and public policy. He attended Selwyn House School in Montreal and completed a pre-university year at Lower Canada College.

What did Tiff Macklem do before becoming Bank of Canada Governor?

Before his appointment as governor, Macklem had a long career split between the Bank of Canada, the federal Finance Department, and academia. He served as Senior Deputy Governor of the Bank of Canada from 2010 to 2014. Immediately prior to becoming governor, he was the dean of the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management from 2014 to 2020. He also held roles as a Deputy Governor at the bank, as Associate Deputy Minister at the Department of Finance, and served on the board of directors of Scotiabank from 2015 to 2020.

When did Tiff Macklem become Governor of the Bank of Canada?

Tiff Macklem was named the tenth governor of the Bank of Canada on May 1, 2020. He officially assumed the office on June 3, 2020, succeeding Stephen Poloz. His appointment came during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, a period of significant economic disruption that defined the initial phase of his leadership. He was appointed after serving as dean of the Rotman School of Management.

Did Tiff Macklem work in the private sector?

Tiff Macklem's career has been primarily in the public sector and academia. His most notable private sector role was serving on the board of directors of Scotiabank from June 2015 until his appointment as Bank of Canada Governor in 2020. His core experience, however, is rooted in his decades of service at the Bank of Canada and the Department of Finance. He has not held an executive management role in a private corporation.

Why was Tiff Macklem not chosen as Governor in 2013?

However, the position was given to Stephen Poloz. This made Macklem the third consecutive senior deputy governor, after Malcolm Knight and Paul Jenkins, not to be promoted to governor. Commentary at the time suggested his lack of private sector experience, compared to Carney and Poloz, may have been a factor. He left the bank in 2014 to lead the Rotman School of Management.

How has the Bank of Canada changed interest rates under Macklem?

Under Governor Tiff Macklem, the Bank of Canada has changed its key interest rate significantly in response to economic conditions. In 2022, the bank raised its key interest rate seven consecutive times, rising from 0.25 percent in March to 4.25 percent in December to confront the post COVID 19 pandemic inflation surge. Subsequently, in 2024, the bank cut its key interest rate five consecutive times, lowering it from 5 percent in June to 3.25 percent in December. Macklem has stated that further rate reductions would be considered one decision at a time. These monetary policy actions were taken during his tenure which began on June 3, 2020, when he succeeded Stephen Poloz as the 10th governor of the Bank of Canada.

Sources and further reading

• Tiff Macklem (Wikipedia)
• Tiff Macklem (bankofcanada.ca)
• Tiff Macklem (fsb.org)
• Demystifying the Bank of Canada: Governor Tiff Macklem ... (telfer.uottawa.ca)
• Tiff Macklem on economy and global crisis (queensu.ca)

Checked by the Yadude Books desk. Last updated 2026-10-31.