Dr. Supriya Syal (she/her)
Chief Behavioural Scientist at the Privy Council Office, Government of Canada
Dr. Supriya Syal is Chief Behavioural Scientist at the Privy Council Office, Government of Canada. In this role she is working to create and scale a culture of evidence-based decision making across government, and drive the use of behavioural science for social impact through improvements in federal policies and programs that impact Canadians.
Prior to her current role, Supriya was VP Research and Innovation at BEworks Inc., a global behavioural science strategy and consulting firm. At BEworks, Supriya oversaw the company-wide research portfolio, and headed the in-house BEworks Laboratory, spearheading private and public sector innovation through experimentation, identifying and developing new platform applications and business strategies, and leading collaborations with partner organizations. She has won multiple awards, published in top academic and popular journals, and has co-authored a number of policy white papers on the use of behavioural economics to inform real-world challenges. Her recent piece on using behavioural science to increase voter turnout was published in the Scientific American Mind, and was featured in Forbes Magazine and on NPR. Supriya obtained her PhD in Psychology from Cornell University, and also holds prior degrees in Biochemistry and Molecular Neuroscience.