Senior Manager, Strategic Engagement

Metrolinx • Canada,

3d • CA$140,764 - CA$198,828 • Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Manager, Strategic Engagement leads, develops and implements outreach strategies to promote the benefits of the LRT and GO Expansion projects within the 905 West regions, involve community members in the project, and create excitement about how this new transit will change the city for the better. A strong candidate is equally comfortable crafting a strategy as implementing it, facilitating a brainstorming workshop as leading detailed process improvements. No day is typical in this role, but you could spend your time coaching staff before a presentation to a community group, planning how to consult on placing art on construction hoarding, leading a site tour with urbanists and transit enthusiasts, or drafting an inclusion plan to engage the diversity of neighbourhoods along our varied communities across Peel, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, and Hamilton/Niagara regions.

Requirements

• Completion of a degree in Communications, Business Administration or a related discipline – or a combination of education, training and experience deemed equivalent
• Demonstrated years of senior experience developing and implementing strategic plans and projects.
• Demonstrated experience leading and cultivating team success, including in a matrix reporting relationship, during periods of growth and change.
• Demonstrated commitment to equity and success working with communities that reflect the diversity of the various municipalities and regions.
• Ability to build and maintain strategic relationships with internal and external stakeholders, including experience working with stakeholders with competing interests.
• Project management experience and organizational acuity to propose initiatives, build buy-in, and seek financial approvals in a large, complex organization.
• Systems thinking and management skills to summarize and synthesize complex issues and identify options or courses of action to address these issues, and lead in situations where the path forward is unclear.
• Innovation and creativity to translate strategies into action plans and outputs and to generate new concepts to meet community and stakeholder needs while also meeting the needs of the existing projects.
• Interpersonal and networking skills, tact and diplomacy to work collaboratively and convey a leadership position with a broad cross-section of government and non-government groups, and the public.
• Political sensitivity and ability to assess the political implications of a range of issues and develop plans to resolve them.
• Oral/written/presentation skills to facilitate and present technical project information to community groups at public meetings; to lead consultations; and to clearly convey ideas and listen to others.
• Knowledge of human resources legislation (e.g., Employment Standards Act, Occupational Health and Safety Act) to monitor and manage employees and contractors.
• High level of competency using Microsoft office software, particularly Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

Responsibilities

• Provides creative thought leadership with input from others to develop and deploy a strategic vision for community outreach, stakeholder and partnership building.
• Proposes and develops strategies to promote understanding, acceptance, and support for the Ontario Line and to build relationships with a variety of external stakeholders including, local businesses, non-profits, advocacy groups, nearby schools and the general public.
• Proposes and manages a range of projects, such as a community tours program, job fairs, and consultations, in an environment of matrixed reporting relationships, rapid change and growth.
• Identifies and collaborates with teams on process improvements to create consistency and efficiency for the team. These could include developing information management systems, budgets/forecasts, standard operating procedures, frontline office customer service protocols, call centre upgrades, and project management capacity building.
• In the context of complex project plans and commercial agreements, identifies opportunities to consult the public and leads strategies to bring community voices to improve project decisions.
• Develops equity strategies to ensure community relations and communications activities are inclusive of the diverse neighbourhoods where the LRT and GO Expansion projects are being built and to bring underrepresented voices into discussions about transit.
• Champions social responsibility initiatives, such as tree planting, park clean-ups, and outreach at cultural festivals, by proposing activities, managing staffing and budgets, and attending in-person.
• Identifies local issues to address strategy inefficiencies and provides leadership team with advice and strategic options to proactively manage risks and their possible impact on the LRT and GO Expansion projects within the 905 West regions.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: Associate degree