Growth and collaboration take off at NAV CANADA

Diana Kelly’s plan to become an elementary school teacher changed in her third year of university, when she decided to follow in her father’s footsteps and become an air traffic controller. In 2000, she joined NAV CANADA in Winnipeg. “I joined a male-dominated profession as a young woman,” she says. “I’m happy to report that today, more women are interested in a profession in aviation.”

Ottawa-based NAV CANADA is a privately run, non-profit corporation that owns and operates Canada’s civil air navigation system. After working in several different areas and roles, Kelly became chief human resources officer in 2022. “It’s such exciting and meaningful work to provide safe aircraft movement in Canada – our employees really connect to the purpose of our company,” she says.

NAV CANADA supports its teams, prioritizes their well-being and fosters a culture of care through wellness and peer support programs. It strives to create a psychologically safe environment where every employee feels respected, heard and empowered to thrive personally and professionally. “By championing these values, we aim to build a workplace where everyone can bring their best selves to work each day,” says Kelly.

Saira Kanani appreciates that NAV CANADA is a safe place to be your authentic self. “As a female South Asian employee, it’s nice to come to work without any layers of discomfort because it is a healthy work environment,” she says. “NAV CANADA has done a lot of work and continues to build a culture of acceptance.”

Since she joined NAV CANADA in 2013 as a senior internal auditor, Kanani has benefited from many opportunities to grow professionally. In 2015, she moved into her current position as manager of internal audit. “I’m always learning – every project is exciting and comes with a great deal of new knowledge,” she says.

Acquiring knowledge at the outset was vital, because when Kanani arrived, she knew very little about the aviation industry. “I knew that planes fly, and that there are air traffic controllers in towers, but that was about it,” she says. “I didn’t understand the effort and professional skills that go into safe aviation until I started working here.”

In fact, the organization’s purpose is at the heart of everyone’s work. “It trickles into all of the groups across the organization,” says Kanani. “Everyone has a role to play.”

In addition to offering rewarding work, NAV CANADA gives back to the communities it serves, with a focus on sustainability and giving to those in need. That could mean supporting cancer research, providing flights for disadvantaged Canadians to medical appointments and working to reduce the environmental footprint in the aviation industry. “We’re very embedded in communities, and giving back is important to us,” says Kelly.

If employees are interested, they can move across the organization and the country. Kelly has worked in Winnipeg, Edmonton and now, Ottawa. “I’ve stepped way outside my comfort zone a couple of times but I’ve had the privilege of having great managers who have focused on my performance, providing feedback and mentoring,” she says. “There’s great training and internal mentorship, too.”

For her part, Kanani says, there is “a ton” of ongoing learning from each other along with many programs including, for example, leadership and development, subject-specific training and secondment opportunities. She volunteers around the world and is fortunate to be able to bring back her learnings and apply them within her work at NAV CANADA.

“I love my job – I don’t know how else to say it!” says Kanani. “I’ve found my professional home.”

This article appeared in the magazine announcing this year's National Capital Region's Top Employers winners, published March 4, 2025 in the Ottawa Citizen. This article was prepared with the financial support of the employer, which reviewed but did not write its contents.