The Senior Serving Engineer is the highest-ranking officer with a military engineering background, is attuned to what is happening at the highest levels of the Department of National Defence, and is responsible for promoting the CME and for determining the impact of major policy decisions on the CME. The Senior Serving Engineer is involved in personnel matters within the CME and in Military Engineering structure issues. The Senior Serving Engineer also provides advice to the Chief of Defence Staff, Assistant Deputy Minister (Human Resources Military) and the chiefs of the three environmental staffs on senior engineer officer appointments. The Senior Serving Engineer sits on the Branch Council and may be called upon to fulfil ceremonial obligations when the CME Colonel Commandant or the CME Branch Advisor is unable to attend official functions.
This list includes CME Senior Serving Engineers since Unification.
| Lieutenant-General L.G.C. Lilley, DSO, CD | 1966 - 1970 |
| Major-General G.H. Spencer, OBE, CD | 1970 - 1972 |
| Major-General N.C. Brown, DFC, CD | 1972 - 1974 |
| Major-General R.E. Ashton, CD | 1974 - 1978 |
| Major-General N.G. Trower, MBE, CD | 1978 - 1979 |
| Major-General N.S. Freeman, CD | 1979 - 1982 |
| Major-General J.A. Stewart, CD | 1982 - 1985 |
| Major-General D.M. Gray, CD | 1985 - 1987 |
| Major-General J.E. Woods, CD | 1987 - 1990 |
| Major-General J.L. Adams, CMM, CD | 1990 - 1993 |
| Brigadier-General D.W. Edgecombe, CD | 1993 |
| Major-General K.G. Penney, OMM, CD | 1993 - 2003 |
| Major-General E.S. Fitch, OMM, MSM, CD | 2003 - 2006 |
| LGen J.C.M. Gauthier, CMM, CD | 2006 - 2009 |
| MGen D. Benjamin, CMM, CD | 2009 - 2011 |
| MGen J.M.C. Rousseau, CMM, CD | 2011 - 2014 |
| LGen C.T. Whitecross, CMM, MSM, CD | 2014 -2020 |
| LGen M.A.J. Carignan, CMM, MSM, CD | 2020 - |