Dr. Émilie Gibeau is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Management at the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC). Since joining RMC in 2019, she has developed and delivered courses in leadership, organizational behaviour, organizational design, ethics, and change management at both undergraduate and graduate levels, in both official languages.
Her research focuses on co-leadership and organizational functioning in complex, high-stakes environments. She examines how leadership is enacted in practice under conditions of hierarchy, interdependence, and operational pressure, with particular attention to command teams, cross-boundary coordination, morale and organizational effectiveness in defence contexts.
Dr. Gibeau currently leads a Canadian Defence Academy (CDA)-sponsored research program on leadership teams in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). This work examines how officer–non-commissioned member (NCM) command teams operate across hierarchical levels, elements and environments, identifying the mechanisms that enable coordination, decision-making, and performance under constraint, as well as their role in supporting readiness and culture change across the institution.
In parallel, her research on military–civilian collaboration in collaboration with Chief Professional Conduct and Culture (CPCC) examines how structural disconnections, competing priorities, and resource constraints shape coordination across defence and public-sector interfaces.
Her research is grounded in sustained collaboration with CAF stakeholders and contributes to ongoing efforts related to leadership development, organizational effectiveness, and institutional reform within the Defence Team. Her work combines theoretical development with applied relevance, supporting both academic advancement and practical decision-making in defence contexts.
Dr. Gibeau is a founding director of the Canadian Leadership Research Institute (CLRI), which develops applied research and training programs tailored to defence and public-sector organizations.
Research Interests
- Co-leadership and command teams
- Leadership in high-intensity and military contexts
- Organizational design, silos, and coordination
- Change management and culture
- Military–civilian collaboration and governance
Selected Publications
- Gibeau, E. (forthcoming). A Typology of Senior Enlisted Leadership Roles - accepted for publication in the Critical Senior Enlisted Leaders (CSEL) Series – Volume 1.
- Gibeau, E., & Hussein, M. (2026). Leading in and around triads in the Canadian Forces Health Services: Challenges and enabling factors. Canadian Military Journal, 26(2).
- Gibeau, E. (2025). Co-leadership in healthcare organizations: Expanding and constricting new senior management roles for physicians. Journal of Health Organization and Management. Advance online publication.
- Gibeau, E. (2025). Insight from extreme contexts: Co-leadership’s stability paradox. Leadership in Health Services. Advance online publication.
- Gibeau, É. (2024). From hierarchical to matrix structure: Tensions in negotiating shared leadership configurations. International Journal of Organization Theory & Behavior, 27(1), 14–34.
- Gibeau, É., Langley, A., Denis, J.-L., & Van Schendel, N. (2020). Bridging competing demands through co-leadership? Potential and limitations. Human Relations, 73(4), 464–489.
- Gibeau, E., Reid, W., & Langley, A. (2016). Co-leadership: Contexts, configurations and conditions. In J. Storey, J. Hartley, J.-L. Denis, P. ’t Hart, & D. Ulrich (Eds.), The Routledge companion to leadership. Routledge.
- Gibeau, E., Langley, A., Denis, J., Pomey, M., & Van Schendel, N. (2014). When physicians become managers. Revue Gestion, 39(3), 63–73.
Courses Taught
BAE330, BAE422 / AAF422, BAE434 / AAF434, BAE464 / AAF464, MPA527, MBA595
Contact
Email: Emilie.Gibeau@rmc.ca