The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing works with municipal partners and community stakeholders to promote and support local governments to plan, manage and invest in their communities' futures. Affordable housing is a key factor in the growth of every town, city, and community in Ontario.
As the Director of the Housing Programs Branch you will have the opportunity to affect change and have a lasting impact on the lives of Ontarians. You will act as a strategic partner across a vast array of stakeholders. You will combine your change leadership, program delivery and communications expertise to lead the design and delivery of housing and homelessness programs. You will promote strategic integration across program and policy areas.
The Director will lead a high performing team to work collaboratively with external partners, other levels of government and internal partners across the ministry and government to provide client-focused services. The Director will also work with their leadership team and staff to advance innovation, creative problem-solving, and best practices in policy development. As a member of the ministry's senior leadership team, this Director will be accountable for advancing employee engagement and wellbeing, and upholding a diverse, inclusive, accessible and respectful workplace where every employee has a voice and the opportunity to fully contribute.
An effective leader in the Ontario Public Service (OPS) is responsible, innovative and collaborative. A responsible leader is someone who demonstrates authenticity, accountability, and courage in how they interact with others. An individual who models ethical behavior, and who is honest and capable of making difficult choices. An innovative leader is someone who leads with common purpose, embraces positive disruption, and has a future mindset. An individual who inspires others, values continuous learning, and encourages development and integration. A collaborative leader focuses on helping others to grow, drives people-centered outcomes and promotes an environment of inclusivity. A leader who consistently works to confront bias and systemic barriers while understanding the importance of creating a more diverse and accessible workplace.
OPS Commitment to Diversity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and Anti-Racism:
The OPS is an innovative, responsive, and accountable public service that works hard to be diverse, anti-racist, inclusive, accessible, merit-based, respectful and equitable. Diversifying leadership teams is a top OPS priority with the goal to achieve parity with the Ontario labour force by 2025 for the most underrepresented groups (Indigenous, racialized and persons with disabilities) in leadership positions.
To advance this goal, the OPS is collecting socio-demographic information that will help to address potential barriers and achieve equity in hiring. You are requested to complete the
voluntary survey and contribute to building a more diverse, anti-racist, inclusive and accessible OPS.
The OPS invites all interested individuals to apply. As an organization that promotes equity and diversity, the OPS encourages applications from Indigenous, Black, racialized, and persons with disabilities. The OPS offers employment accommodation across the recruitment process and all aspects of employment consistent with the requirements of
Ontario's Human Rights Code. A dedicated team of employment accommodation specialists are available to discuss individual accommodation needs and ensure the hiring process is inclusive and free from barriers. Contact them at
ExecutiveAccommodations@ontario.ca if you require an accommodation to participate in the recruitment process. All information discussed related to accommodation will be kept confidential.
Visit the
OPS Anti-Racism Policy, the
OPS Diversity and Inclusion Blueprint and the
Multi-Year Accessibility Plan to learn more about the OPS commitment to advancing racial equity, accessibility, diversity and inclusion in the public service.
What can I expect to do in this role?
Reporting to the Assistant Deputy Minister, you will:
• Contribute to the government's affordable housing agenda. By leading the innovative program design and implementation of all major housing programs such as the Investment in Affordable Housing Program, housing allowance programs and greening initiatives.
• Build and foster strategic partnerships with municipalities, Indigenous communities and sector organizations.
• Embrace and promote working across organizational boundaries to ensure an integrated approach across policy and program areas.
• Champion change and shift strategic focus in response to changing priorities and the need to proactively plan for the future.
• Influence and advise government officials, senior management, and colleagues within and outside the ministry; providing viable strategies and practical solutions to resolve complex and high-profile issues.
• Provide briefings and strategic advice to the Minister, Deputy Minister and Assistant Deputy Minister on policy options, analysis, and recommendations.
• Advance a culture among colleagues and staff that prioritizes collaboration, engagement, inclusion, equity, accessibility, excellence, and well-being.
How do I qualify?
Leadership
• You have proven expertise in innovative strategic planning, with an emphasis on the design and development of strategic partnership frameworks.
• You are an inclusive leader who fosters and creates a culture of diversity, inclusion, accessibility, anti-racism, and equity in the workplace.
• You demonstrate resiliency and have experience leading and motivating high-performing and multi-functional teams in a fast-paced, highly visible, and demanding environment, while promoting employee wellbeing and engagement.
• You demonstrate political acuity and can effectively brief and deliver strategic and confidential advice to the senior leaders and various other stakeholders.
• You have a strong track record of building credibility with staff, stakeholders, and partners.
• You are experienced in change management and have a track record of championing the adoption of innovative methods and technologies that drive true transformative business practices and solutions and taking measured and appropriate risks related to innovation.
• You have experience working through contentious human resource and labour relations issues.
Change Leadership and Innovation
• You challenge assumptions and look for ways to improve service delivery with measurable outcomes.
• You have demonstrated experience as a project and program management leader, working within complex transformation and change environments, working with a vast array of stakeholders and partners.
• You are a strategic and innovative thinker who can lead professionals in the timely delivery of programs and projects.
• You provide strong executive leadership to ensure strategic direction, organizational alignment, fiscal and human resource accountability, and delivery on time, within scope and budget.
• You are adept at enabling teams to identify opportunities, challenges, and solutions to complex, cross functional problems, keeping a clear focus on program objectives.
• You have demonstrated experience in leading and affecting change.
• You can develop and implement the modernization of existing IT systems.
Relationship Management and Political Acuity
• You have a proven track record of fostering collaborative internal and external relationships to promote a seamless integration of policy/program design and service delivery.
• You are an effective communicator, negotiator and consensus builder who is able to work collaboratively with colleagues and stakeholders to advance shared priorities and manage complex issues.
• You have experience managing broad contracts and have effectively managed third-party service providers to deliver products/services.
• You have led public, external stakeholder and/or First Nations consultations in order to develop policy or program options.
• You can independently build and manage relationships with external partners and stakeholders based on transparency, accountability, and trust.
• You have a high degree of integrity and political acuity to manage complex issues within the context of multiple interests, and with high public profile and scrutiny.
• You anticipate and respond to politically sensitive situations.
• You can work collaboratively across divisions, ministries, levels of government, and/or with external partners to advance innovative initiatives and continuous service improvements.
Job Knowledge
• You have experience as a senior leader responsible for the design, implementation, and delivery of complex programs.
• You have experience conceptualizing oversight programs and governance frameworks to ensure third party service delivery partners are compliant with their contractual obligations/service level agreements.
• You have experience in the design and development of communications strategies.
• You have experience in engagement, consultation, and negotiation methods, techniques and best practices; new and emerging trends in communications (e.g. social media and the government's vision) to manage the development and implementation of stakeholder, indigenous and key partner relations and communications strategies and to support ministry initiatives.
• You have experience working through Strategic Planning Process submissions.
• You are adept at managing multiple competing priorities.
• You are a confident public speaker and presenter able to engage a wide variety of audiences effectively.
