OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwire) -- 03/19/13 -- The Honourable Christian Paradis, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for the Standards Council of Canada (SCC), today announced the appointment of Suzie Gignac as member of the Council.

"I am very pleased to welcome Ms. Gignac to the Standards Council of Canada," said Minister Paradis. "Her in-depth knowledge of complex accounting issues and expertise in public sector accounting standards will be of great value to the Council in its work to promote efficient and effective standardization."

Ms. Gignac is currently the national assurance partner at Ernst & Young and served as President of the Ottawa Chartered Accountants Association. She has 16 years of experience in providing financial audit, management and internal control advisory services. In addition, from 2003 to 2005, she was Chief Operating Officer for Slengora Limited, which operates Weight Watchers of Ottawa and Eastern Ontario. Prior to that, she was the Chief Financial Officer and Financial Consultant for Yang Genomic Laboratories.

Ms. Gignac is a Certified Public Accountant. She earned her Chartered Accountant designation in 1997 and was the Ontario Bronze Medalist on the Uniform Final Exam, placing fifth in Canada. She received a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Western Ontario in 1991 and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Toronto in 1995.

The SCC is a Crown corporation and part of the Industry Portfolio. With the goal of enhancing Canada's economic competitiveness and social well-being, the SCC offers accreditation services to standards development bodies and coordinates the efforts of Canadians in the development and use of national and international standards. For more information, visit the Standards Council of Canada website (www.scc.ca).