Director, People and Culture

You care deeply about people, but you can still make the hard calls. You understand that looking after an organization sometimes means difficult conversations and unpopular decisions, and you carry those out with fairness and empathy rather than avoiding them.

Moving between altitudes energizes you. One day you're designing a program or shaping strategy that supports the business; the next you're in the weeds helping solve a day-to-day operational problem. To you, the high-level work and the ground-level work aren't ranked as the credibility of one depends on the other.

Building on what already works, while looking for what could work better, is how you operate. You can execute an established plan with discipline, and you have the instinct to experiment; trying new, ad hoc approaches, testing ideas, and adjusting as you learn. The space between "follow the plan" and "try something new" is where you're most comfortable.

A true generalist foundation across the HR/People function, paired with real depth in labour relations, is what you bring. You're at home in a unionized environment and know how to navigate its complexities without losing sight of the people on both sides of the table.

What you'll be doing...

As the temporary Director, People and Culture, you will lead the day-to-day delivery and ongoing evolution of BC Transit's People and Culture function. Reporting to, and partnering with, the VP, People and Culture, you will oversee Labour Relations, People and Culture Operations, and Abilities Management, making sure these teams run well and work together to support employee success and organizational performance.

This role spans both the strategic and the hands-on. You will help shape workforce strategy and employee experience, and you will also be in the operational work that makes those things real: guiding your teams through active labour relations and accommodation files, resolving issues as they arise, and keeping core people programs running smoothly.

You will foster a high-performance, inclusive culture aligned with BC Transit's values while staying close enough to the work to know what's actually happening on the ground.

A key focus is making sure BC Transit's people programs, policies, and processes work in practice and keep pace with the organization's needs. You will handle the day-to-day problems that come with running these functions, find practical ways to improve how work gets done, and use data to guide decisions, balancing longer-term improvements with the immediate demands of operations.

As a trusted advisor to senior leaders, you will provide guidance on complex people matters, organizational risk, and workforce challenges, often rolling up your sleeves to work through them directly. You will lead the People and Culture team day to day, building capability and ensuring high-quality service across the employee lifecycle, including hands-on direction on significant labour relations, accommodation, disability management, and organizational change matters that require both strategic judgment and practical support.

What you might love about this role...

• Shape the future of People and Culture at BC Transit: Lead the overall direction, design, and continuous improvement of people programs, services, and practices that support employees across the organization.
• Drive organizational impact: Influence workforce planning, organizational design, culture, employee experience, talent strategies, and change initiatives that directly contribute to organizational success.
• Lead a broad and meaningful portfolio: Oversee Labour Relations, People and Culture Operations, and Abilities Management while ensuring these functions work together to support employees and business needs.
• Partner with senior leaders: Act as a trusted advisor and collaborate with leaders across the organization to solve complex challenges, manage risk, and support strategic objectives.
• Build high‑performing teams: Coach and develop leaders and team members while fostering accountability, engagement, continuous improvement, and professional growth.
• Make a difference: Contribute to an organization focused on serving communities throughout British Columbia while creating a positive and supportive employee experience.

What might not resonate...

• The scope is broad. This role requires you to move comfortably between strategy, operations, leadership, risk management, employee experience, organizational effectiveness, and complex people matters.
• The work carries significant organizational impact. The decisions made in this role can influence employees, leaders, organizational culture, operational outcomes, legal compliance, financial results, and organizational reputation.
• Priorities shift. You must be comfortable balancing competing demands, responding to emerging issues, and exercising sound judgment in an environment where priorities can change quickly.
• The details matter. Success in this role requires strong critical thinking, thoughtful analysis, attention to detail, and the ability to understand how people decisions can impact the organization both today and into the future.

This role might not be for you if...

• You prefer working exclusively in one area of human resources rather than leading a broad people and culture portfolio.
• You are uncomfortable making decisions or recommendations that carry organizational risk or significant business impact.
• You prefer focusing solely on strategy or solely on operations rather than balancing both.
• You prefer highly structured environments with limited ambiguity or change.
• You do not enjoy developing leaders, coaching teams, or influencing organizational outcomes through people strategies.

What you'll bring to the table...

Some qualities and experience you possess to be successful in this role:

• Executive People and Culture leadership – experience leading broad people and culture portfolios and teams, driving strategy and organizational outcomes across multiple people and culture functions.
• Strategic leadership and business acumen – ability to align people strategies, workforce plans, and organizational initiatives with business objectives while balancing employee experience, operational needs, and organizational risk.
• Employee and Labour relations leadership and judgment – experience operating in a complex unionized environment and providing strategic oversight on collective bargaining, grievances, arbitrations, labour relations risk, and significant employee relations matters.
• Culture, engagement, and organizational effectiveness expertise –experience leading initiatives that strengthen employee engagement, organizational culture, workforce capability, organizational design, and overall organizational performance.
• Operational excellence and governance mindset – experience enhancing services, systems, policies, and processes through data, feedback, analytics, best practices, and a strong understanding of compliance, legislative requirements, and risk management.
• Relationship-building and influence skills – proven ability to build credibility and trust with executives, leaders, employees, unions, legal counsel, and external partners while navigating complex and competing interests.

The successful candidate will typically bring a post‑secondary degree in human resources, business, labour relations, or a related field, along with 10+ years of progressive human resources leadership experience, including experience leading broad people and culture functions within a complex and preferably unionized environment. A CPHR designation is considered an asset. An equivalent combination of education, training, and experience may be considered

What we’ll bring to the table...

We value and prioritize personal wellness and offer comprehensive benefits to support all the important phases and milestones of your journey:

• Comprehensive medical and dental benefits to support you and your family, regardless of what life throws at you
• Membership in BC’s Public Service Pension Plan (PSPP). Nationally recognized for its strong investment and governance practices, PSPP is a “defined benefit” plan
• Access to fitness and lifestyle centers to help you take care of your physical fitness and health
• Various programs that support employees such as an Employee Assistance Program and health and wellness initiatives and events aimed at fostering your mental health
• A corporate learning and development program to help you in continuous career growth
• An employee recognition program where we all recognize each other's successes (not just your Leaders!)
• A social club that gives you access to events throughout Victoria

What next steps could look like...

• Interviews will be conducted he week of August 10th, 2026
• An eligibility list for future full time regular and temporary full time vacancies may be established
• The position requires the completion of a Criminal Record Check or Vulnerable Sector Search.
• If you have a disability that requires an accommodation during any stage of our recruitment process, please let us know how we can assist you by contacting careers@bctransit.com
• BC Transit is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities. If the organization identifies this position as a reasonable accommodation for an existing employee, all candidates will be notified as soon as reasonably possible

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