Prior to taking on the role of lieutenant governor, Bartleman had a distinguished career of more than 35 years in the Canadian foreign service. He began his diplomatic career in what was then known as the Department of External Affairs in 1967. In 1972, he was given the task of opening Canada's first diplomatic mission in the newly independent People's Republic of Bangladesh. Bartleman also served in diplomatic posting in Columbia. He was then made Canada's ambassador to Cuba from 1981 to 1983. Upon his return from Cuba, he was appointed as director of security and intelligence for the Department of External Affairs. After this, Bartleman served as High Commissioner to Cyprus and Ambassador to Israel simultaneously from 1986 to 1990. From the dual posting he moved to post of Canadian Ambassador to the North Atlantic Council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation in Brussels, Belgium from 1990 to 1994. He was moved from NATO to the Commonwealth of Nations positions as High Commissioner to South Africa in 1998-1999 and to Australia in 1999–2000. Finally, he was transferred back to Europe to serve as ambassador to the European Union in Brussels, Belgium, from 2000 to 2002. Bartleman was director of security and intelligence for the Department of External Affairs at the time of the Air India Bombing. On 3 May 2007, he testified at the Air India Inquiry that he had presented an intelligence document to the RCMP warning of a possible attack days prior to the bombing. Bob Rae later admitted that he never bothered to interview Bartleman, the former head of intelligence for Foreign Affairs Canada, while investigating the Air India bombing.
Bartleman was sworn in as the 27th Lieutenant Governor of Ontario on 7 March 2002 as Ontario's 41st Vice-regal representative. As is traditional to a vice-regal appointment, Bartleman used his position to spearhead three initiatives that he personally identifies with and considers important. During his mandate as Lieutenant Governor, he sought to:
To these ends, he initiated the Lieutenant Governor's Book Program in 2004. He has collected over 1.2 million books, donated from all corners of the province from both institutions and individuals, to stock school libraries in First Nations communities, particularly in Northern Ontario. In 2005, to further promote literacy and bridge building, Bartleman initiated a program to pair up Native and non-Native schools in Ontario and Nunavut, and set-up development in five northern First Nations communities.
Personal
Bartleman is related to honorary Chief of the Mnjikaning Indians John Bigwin from his mother's side.
Writing
Bartleman published several works of non-fiction, both before and during his viceregal term. These included the childhood memoirs Out of Muskoka and Raisin Wine: A Boyhood in a Different Muskoka, and the professional career memoirs On Six Continents and Rollercoaster: My Hectic Years as Jean Chrétien's Diplomatic Advisor. Following the end of his viceregal term, Bartleman has also published a trilogy of social justice novels, As Long as the Rivers Flow, The Redemption of Oscar Wolf and Exceptional Circumstances. As Long as the Rivers Flow was a finalist for the 2013 Burt Award for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Literature.
On 25 January 2008, he received the Rotary Youth Impact Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Rotary Club of Toronto West
In 2011, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada "for his contributions to his country, notably as lieutenant governor, and as a champion of mental health, literacy and poverty reduction."
