Senior Manager, Government & Community Relations

How you will contribute as part of the TRCA team:

The Senior Manager, Government and Community Relations (City of Toronto and Durham Region) works as a senior relationship manager communicating with internal and external stakeholders to maximize the impact of TRCA work and create opportunities for TRCA. The Senior Manager leads a small team that collaborates with all parts of the organization to establish coordinated approaches to communications, program delivery, and issues management that consider the interests of board members, elected officials, government partners, and local communities.​ The Senior Manager works closely with municipal and government partners to negotiate and advance work plans, budgets, service delivery agreements, council/board reporting, engagement and communication strategies. 

Major Responsibilities:

     Stakeholder Relations

• Tracks and follows up on communications and requests from elected officials across all levels of government, as well as municipal and provincial staff and agencies and citizens across TRCA’s jurisdiction in close coordination with the CEO and relevant members of the Senior Leadership and Management Teams.
• Develops and executes project proposals, MOUs and SLAs and related correspondence as part of the corporate effort to formalize relationships with stakeholders, as required, by coordinating and leading meetings with municipalities and other partner organizations and agencies and developing resources.
• Leads the preparation of updates on TRCA and partner programs and projects of interest within our jurisdiction for CEO, SLT, Communications, and relevant TRCA staff, Board Members and elected officials, to ensure that they receive relevant information to be shared with their constituencies.
• Serves and represents the Authority on relevant governmental and partner committees, public forums, advisory panels and working groups where a cross-divisional TRCA perspective is needed.
• In partnership with relevant TRCA staff, municipal partners, and other organizations and stakeholders, identifies and cultivates business development/funding opportunities and specific strategies in support of TRCA initiatives, projects and objectives.

Leadership and Leading Staff

• Leads a team in daily / weekly duties, delegating tasks and supporting the development of the people on the team. Ensures business processes are streamlined, documented and cascaded to team members.
• Manages employee performance, team performance and supports a culture of workplace equity and inclusion that celebrates diversity.
• Works closely with Directors, Associate Directors and senior staff in other divisions of TRCA to communicate important considerations on programs and plans raised by elected officials and senior staff of relevant municipal and agency partners.  
• Works collaboratively with the Human Resources team to facilitate the hiring process, onboarding and recommends compensation adjustments based on employee performance.

Financial Management

• Responsible for overseeing the annual budget and supporting overall financial planning processes within the organization; controlling own area budget and supporting the fiscal responsibilities of the organization.

Strategic Partnership Building

• Builds and maintains external stakeholder relationships; working strategically with internal and external stakeholders, utilizing networks to establish and activate connections to achieve organizational goals and to explore new business development opportunities.
• Incumbents may also be assigned other duties as operationally required.

What will you need to succeed:

• University degree in Environmental Studies, Planning, Public Administration, Business Administration, Political Science, or a related field.
• Valid Ontario Class G2 driver's license.
• 7+ years of experience in the environmental sector, including project and program management experience and in-depth experience working with various levels of government, including elected officials.
• 3+ years of progressive managerial experience.
• Experience in developing Memorandums of Understanding, Service Level Agreements, project intake proposals and other agreements with a variety of partners and stakeholders.
• Working knowledge and understanding of topics that include watershed ecosystems, urban sustainability, flood mitigation, climate change, greenspace management and/or land use planning.
• Knowledge and understanding of environmental legislation and municipal responsibilities, operations and general practices; well versed in legislation and regulations concerning TRCA’s mandate.
• Ability to communicate technical information to a non-technical audience
• Influential communicator able to facilitate discussions between parties with different perspectives of competing interests and resolve conflicts
• Demonstrated expert at interacting diplomatically with others in public forums
• Effective problem-solving skills and leadership skills, including staff coaching and managing performance and working collaboratively with other divisions
• Experience with local municipal processes, municipal councils, development, and infrastructure planning/delivery would be considered an asset.