Reporting to the Director of Corporate Business Services, this role requires a strong leader and experienced business professional to provide objective strategic advice to drive efficiencies and service delivery improvements. As a member of the Corporate Business Services Leadership team, this role develops and implements a range of strategic projects and initiatives that respond to divisional, departmental, corporate and Council priorities.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Leads and manages the Business Improvement Services section.
• Manages the Corporate Policy review and development program, the Project Management Support Office, and a team of Management Consultants.
• Drives a customer focused culture throughout the team to deepen internal client relations.
• Develops strategy, work plans and provide oversight to the implementation of corporate wide continuous improvement programs including the Lean Program.
• Develops an understanding of departmental operations and business centres to assist in determining what business concepts and practices can be further developed to benefit the City.
• Identifies and coordinates the prioritization of division/department wide issues and develop strategic plans to eliminate barriers, optimize opportunities and seek partners if necessary.
• Leads the development and implementation of corporate business improvement strategies, frameworks, standards and tools to support consistent service delivery across the organization.
• Leads service reviews, business process redesign and modernization initiatives to improve service outcomes, operational efficiency, client experience and organizational effectiveness.
• Oversees the development of performance measures, progress reporting, benefits tracking and outcome evaluation to demonstrate the impact of business planning, service planning in relation to the Strategic Plan.
• Champions data informed decision making by developing performance measures, dashboards, benchmarking approaches and reporting tools to monitor outcomes and identify improvement opportunities.
• Builds and maintains strong relationships with internal clients, leadership teams and cross-functional partners to support collaboration, alignment and successful implementation of corporate priorities.
• Supports organizational change management by helping divisions assess impacts, engage stakeholders, communicate changes and sustain improvements.
• Promote a culture of continuous improvement, learning, accountability and service excellence within the section and across the corporation.
• Facilitates cross-functional workshops, strategic discussions, business process mapping sessions and problem-solving activities to support collaboration and alignment across divisions.
• Develops business processes to support continuous improvement initiatives.
• Leads negotiation of major contractual third-party agreements and partnerships.
• Oversees the Corporate Business Planning process for Government Services (includes 7 divisions) and be responsible for formalizing business plans for inclusion in capital and current budgets.
• Leads work teams in independent business analysis; organizational strategy, operational review, best practices, benchmarking, business models and cost/revenue models.
• Prepare reports for the Director, Commissioner and Council as required and will manage and provide leadership to section staff; including recruitment, training, development and performance management.
• Provides oversight for governance, intake, prioritization and resourcing of Business Improvement Services projects and initiatives.
• Manages section resources, budgets, consultant supports, vendor relationships and project allocations to ensure effective delivery of priorities and responsible stewardship of public resources.
• Develop and hold staff accountable to corporate policy and departmental and divisional standards.

Skills and Qualifications

• Post-secondary education in a relevant field such as business, finance, public administration or related field of study, or a combination of education, training and experience deemed equivalent with an emphasis on business planning in a government or business setting.
• Minimum of 5 years direct related experience at management level.
• Demonstrated leadership, team building and strong interpersonal skills required.
• Must have strong organizational, analytic, project management and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrated ability to develop strategic business plans.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex, cross-functional projects involving multiple stakeholders, competing priorities and sensitive organizational issues
• Experience developing and implementing frameworks, standards, tools, policies or governance models to support consistent corporate practices.
• Strong strategic advisory skills, with the ability to provide objective, evidence-based advice to senior leadership.
• Political acuity and sound judgment, with the ability to operate effectively in a municipal, public sector or similarly complex environment.
• Strong client relationship management skills, with the ability to build trust, influence outcomes and support internal clients through complex business challenges.
• Excellent written communication skills, including the ability to prepare briefing notes, reports, presentations and recommendations for senior leadership and Council.
• Must possess excellent negotiation, communication, presentation and community building skills with a strong commitment to customer service and excellence.
• Knowledge of management principles, business planning, accounting practices and financial and budget management.