Social Impact Specialist

Meridian Credit Union • Toronto, ON

1d • CA$52,000 - CA$78,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

Reporting to the Senior Manager, Social Impact, the Social Impact Specialist drives the execution, enhancement, and storytelling of Meridian’s signature Social Impact programs and partnerships. The role is accountable for operational excellence across end-to-end program delivery, deepens partner and employee engagement, and strengthens alignment across Meridian’s Retail, Business Banking, and Wealth lines of business to advance both community impact and business priorities. The ideal candidate brings a deep commitment to Social Impact and a strong belief in the importance of community presence. They demonstrate excellence in reporting, project management, program administration, and communications, and are effective collaborators across diverse internal teams, external partners, and stakeholders. We are seeking a high-performing individual with a proven track record of operational excellence across multiple projects and functions. This person will play a key role in advancing our Social Impact strategy and will represent Meridian as a credible voice in the community. Knowledge of Benevity, the charitable and non-profit sectors, and Social Impact reporting are a must.

Requirements

• At least 3 – 5 years of directly relevant program management experience, ideally in a combination of not-for-profit/public and corporate sectors.
• Post-secondary and/or continuing education related to Business Administration, corporate community investment, not-for-profit program management, and/or marketing and communications. Equivalencies gained from professional training received on the job will be considered.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, and cross-functional stakeholders in a fast-moving environment.
• Demonstrated experience coordinating or managing strategic corporate or not-for-profit/public sector programs and/or partnerships.
• Must have experience and enthusiasm for spearheading the continuous improvement of programs and partnerships.
• Must have experience in and passion for cause marketing; experience working with Corporate Communications, Media Relations, Marketing and Social Media teams to optimize awareness and engagement with community programs.
• Comfort working with data: identifying metrics, maintaining tracking systems, producing insights and summaries.
• Experience with partner relationship management and operational delivery (contracts, tracking, payments, documentation).
• Experience engaging, supporting, and coordinating volunteers.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to tailor messaging for different audiences.
• Strong administrative, organizational, planning, and problem-solving skills.
• Strong background in social impact reporting, with experience coordinating data collection, performance measurement, and outcome reporting across community investment, stakeholder engagement, and purpose-led programs
• Strong computer skills in Microsoft Office Suite, and ability to learn other programs including sponsorship software. Experience using Benevity and/or GrantStream (Grants by Benevity) software is a must.
• Sound judgment in dealing with complex issues and conflict situations.
• Works well in a fast-paced, fluid environment; comfortable in an environment of continuous improvement and change.
• Own and maintain the operational infrastructure that supports Social Impact programs (database, CRM/tools, intake forms, reporting trackers, content libraries).
• Ability to safeguard data quality and maintain consistent tracking across all programs to enable reliable reporting and storytelling.

Nice To Haves

• Embedding & leveraging technology – Confidence and willingness to learn and integrate AI and emerging technologies into new ways of working. Experience with low/no code tools like the Microsoft Power Platform and generative AI productivity tools like Microsoft Copilot is considered an asset
• Critical Thinking – The ability to analyze, evaluate and interpret information from various sources and apply logic and problem solving to make decisions.
• Data Driven– Leverage data and insights to identify, prioritize and improve member experience and business efficiency.
• Curiosity & Flexibility – Comfortable navigating and embracing change and uncertainty, ask more questions, explore more options. Continuously learn and grow.

Responsibilities

• Manage & Market Signature Social Impact Programs to our Employees & Communities: Lead day-to-day execution and key projects for Meridian’s signature Social Impact programs, including stakeholder stewardship, grant-making and sponsorship initiatives, volunteer management, and support with impact measurement. Own community and grant-based partner relationships, ensuring consistent communication, responsive support, and high-quality partner experiences. Enable the integration of Social Impact programming with Meridian’s strategic priorities and business line objectives, identifying opportunities to drive member growth and community impact. Drive operational excellence by building repeatable workflows, playbooks, and clear decision points that improve speed, quality, and partner experience. Serve as the primary point of contact for Retail, Business Banking, and Wealth employees, providing clear guidance on program participation, eligibility, and processes. Own the financial administration across all Social Impact programs, including invoicing, payment information collection and fulfillment, and budget tracking.
• Coordinate Marketing & Communications of Key Social Impact Programs & Partnerships: Lead the coordination of promotional planning for priority programs and partnerships with Meridian’s Internal Communications, Marketing, Social Media, Brand, and Media Relations teams. Develop program launch strategies that drive awareness, participation, and measurable engagement across employees, members, and community partners. Translate program value into clear, audience-specific messaging (employees, Members, community partners, leaders) that increases awareness and engagement. Deepen relationships with Meridian colleagues and community partners to track and measure social impact activities, community investment, and program outcomes. Maintain the Social Impact communications calendar, ensuring proactive planning for key dates, deadlines, seasonal program cycles, and leadership communications needs. Collect and curate stories, photos, partner anecdotes, and outcomes to support internal updates, external storytelling, and executive-ready reporting.
• Communicate & Coordinate with Key Social Impact Stakeholders: Deliver clear employee-facing enablement (toolkits, FAQs, timelines, program guidance) to improve community participation and reduce friction for leaders and volunteers. Communicate and promote Meridian’s social impact goals, programs, and partnerships to internal and external stakeholders, developing and maintaining exceptional relationships. Represent Meridian in social impact industry associations as a subject matter expert, leading and sharing best practices. Administer contracts and payments between Meridian and community partners. Support the Senior Manager, Social Impact with program and partnership planning, and continuous improvement and innovation in Social Impact overall as part of Meridian’s Commitment to Communities. Partner with internal teams to ensure employee programs reinforce culture, belonging, and a consistent “how Meridian shows up” experience.
• Regularly Track and Evaluate the Performance of Social Impact Programs and Activities: Support the development and tracking of meaningful program metrics and KPIs (outputs, outcomes, engagement, partner performance), with a focus on both impact and enterprise value. Analyze trends and identify actionable insights to improve program effectiveness, partner experience, and employee participation. Produce program updates and impact summaries that are leadership-ready – clear, concise, and aligned to what decision-makers need. Support the Senior Manager, Social Impact as required and contribute to enterprise reporting inputs (e.g., quarterly updates, annual reporting, dashboards), ensuring accuracy and consistency of data and narratives. Ensure strong governance, risk management, and operational integrity across all programs, including funding compliance and partner accountability. Maintain accurate documentation and tracking of budgets, partner records, program decisions, approvals, and reporting requirements.

Benefits

• Inclusive and collaborative working environment that encourages creativity, curiosity, and celebrates success!
• Tools and technology needed to delight candidates and clients!
• Opportunity to work with and learn from diverse industry leaders.
• Hybrid work arrangements with in-person office time to collaborate, innovate and build relationships with colleagues.
• Work hard and have fun!

What This Job Offers

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