It was a high school volunteer position with the old Manitoba School for the Deaf that originally launched Mr. Alcock on a career path devoted to public service. He quickly rose to the position of Director of Manitoba Child and Family Services where he led the re-writing of Manitoba’s child protection legislation and spear-headed the initiative that led Manitoba to become the first province to introduce child sex abuse protocols.

During this period, Mr. Alcock was also a founding member of Project Prevention, Chair of the Manitoba Council of Child Care Institutions, member of the Manitoba Community Treatment Association and a foster parent with the Winnipeg South Child and Family Services Agency.

Mr. Alcock entered political life in 1988 and served as member of the Manitoba Legislative Assembly for the constituency of Osborne. During the minority government he was chosen to serve as opposition House Leader.

In 1993 Mr. Alcock was first elected to the House of Commons as the Member of Parliament for Winnipeg South, and re-elected in 1997, 2000 and 2004. He previously served as the Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, and later he helped create and was the first Chair of the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates. Mr. Alcock has also served as Chair and Member of several Standing Committees, as well as the Prime Minister's Caucus Task Force on Urban Issues.

A student of public policy, Mr. Alcock has a Masters of Public Administration from Harvard University and is a member of the Harvard Policy Group at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, which studies the impact of information technology and communication tools on the public sector and government.

It was his long-standing interest and experience in public sector management that led Prime Minister Martin to appoint Mr. Alcock President of the Treasury Board in December 2003, and to re-appoint him on July 20, 2004. The Treasury Board manages the government's financial, personnel, and administrative responsibilities. Considered the general manager and employer of the public service, it sets policy in these areas, examines and approves the proposed spending plans of government departments, and reviews the development of approved programs. Mr. Alcock carries out his responsibility for the management of the government by translating the policies and programs approved by Cabinet into operational reality and by providing departments with the resources and the administrative environment they need to do their work.

He is also the Minister responsible for the Canada Wheat Board, chairs Treasury Board, sits on the Cabinet Committee for Operations, is an ex-officio member of all other Cabinet Committees, and carries the political responsibilities for the province of Manitoba.

Mr. Alcock was born and raised in Winnipeg, where he and his wife Karen make their home with their three children.