PROJECT DIRECTOR BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION (TEAM CENTRAL)

Toronto is Canada’s largest city, the fourth largest in North America, and home to a diverse population of over 2.9 million people. Consistently ranked one of the world’s most livable cities, Toronto is a global centre for business, finance, arts and culture.

Recognized as one of Canada’s Best Diversity Employers and Greater Toronto’s Top Employers for 2024, the City of Toronto promotes professional development and is committed to providing opportunities to lead, learn and grow. We value integrity, reliability and fairness, and we embrace the diversity of the people we work with and serve.

Join our dynamic team as we drive transformative changes in this new and exciting role of Project Director Business Transformation (TEAM Central)!

This is a unique opportunity to lead a high-profile transformation program that will enhance service delivery and improve employee experience across the City of Toronto. The City Manager's Office has identified TEAM Central as a priority initiative under the Back-to-Basics (BTB) portfolio, and we are seeking a visionary leader who can accelerate progress and deliver results

TEAM Central is the City of Toronto’s one stop shop where employees and managers can quickly and confidently access information and receive support through their employee journey at the City. This is a joint service comprised of staff from the People & Equity and Pension, Payroll & Employee Benefits divisions, who offer support through phone and web-based channels. TEAM Central was launched in 2020 and was the first service of this kind at the City of Toronto. The service is in a state of growth, and continues to mature and develop as we look to take TEAM Central to the next level, with enhanced technology, streamlined support and increased service offerings.

As a visionary leader the Project Director will provide strategic direction, leadership and operational support for the evolution, integration, implementation and service delivery of new technology and enhanced services for the City’s TEAM Central Unit. Leading the development, implementation and execution of the plan across the divisions, enhancing the City’s Employee Service Centre, TEAM Central and to ensure alignment with the strategic direction of the organization.

The Project Director will have a dual reporting relationship to the Director Pension, Payroll & Employee Benefits (PPEB) and Director P&E Service Hub.

What will you do?

The Project Director, Business Transformation (TEAM Central) , will play a pivotal role in driving a high-profile transformation program that enhances service delivery and improves employee experience across the City of Toronto. Reporting to both the Director PPEB and Director P&E Service Hub, you will set the strategic direction for TEAM Central, overseeing its organizational structure, service transformation, and integration. You will lead the development, implementation, and execution of a multi-year project plan that includes major technological upgrades, such as an enterprise CRM system, new telephony platform, and self-serve options, ensuring that these enhancements align with the strategic goals of the City.

In this role, you will conduct a comprehensive review of TEAM Central’s people, processes, and technology to develop a future state operating model and drive City-wide improvements in service delivery. As a visionary leader, you will modernize and streamline operations, resulting in faster response times, improved service accuracy, higher employee satisfaction, and measurable gains in cost savings and resource optimization. You will serve as a strategic advisor to senior leadership, providing regular briefings, presentations, and progress reports to ensure alignment with the City’s priorities.

Collaboration will be key as you establish strong partnerships with stakeholders, deploying engagement strategies that meet the diverse needs of the organization. Your expertise in change management methodologies and agile project management will be instrumental in navigating the complexities of this transformation.

This role involves providing program management staff with direction, guidance, processes, and tools to increase efficiencies and improve effectiveness. Leading, training, and motivating a diverse workforce, the candidate will ensure effective teamwork, resolve issues, ensuring accountability, maintain high standards of work quality and organizational performance, and foster continuous learning and innovation. In collaboration with Technology Services (TSD), you will develop, recommend, and administer the annual budget, ensuring expenditures are controlled within approved limitations and establish service level agreements to ensure solution delivery, quality, and performance standards are met.

Through established best practices the Project Director ensures transparency and fairness in decision making and project implementation, anticipating and managing emerging issues, and identifying and implementing flexible solutions responsive to changing needs are also essential.

With a strong commitment to diversity, inclusion, and the City’s values, you will foster an organizational culture focused on delivering exceptional services and anticipating and managing emerging issues with flexible, responsive solutions.

What do you bring to the role?

• Extensive senior-level experience in managing complex, high-profile projects with multiple stakeholders, particularly those that require accelerated delivery times and improvements in service delivery.
• Proven track record in implementing critical technological infrastructure at an enterprise level, particularly CRM systems and telephony solutions.
• Demonstrated experience in leading transformation initiatives that encompass people, processes, and technology within a large public or private sector organization.
• Expertise in customer experience design, operations, tools and modernization, including a deep understanding of emerging practices in customer experience (CX) and the ability to leverage technology and innovations to enhance service delivery, improve operational efficiency and customer satisfaction in an Employee Service Centre.
• Considerable experience managing and motivating project teams, ensuring effective teamwork, high standards of work quality and organizational performance, continuous learning and encourages innovation across team.
• Experience in managing budgets and financial resources, including the ability to control expenditures and align them with approved budgets.
• Post-secondary education in the relevant field, such as Business Administration, Human Resources and project management etc., or equivalent combination of education and experience. Project Management or change management designations are considered a strong asset.
• Strong ability to engage and influence executives, sponsors and senior management, providing strategic advice and decision making to meet large-scale divisional and organizational objectives.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to identify emerging issues, prioritize them, and develop effective strategies to address them.
• Excellent communication and negotiation skills including report writing, developing presentations and briefing documents to engage with key leadership and build support for initiatives.
• Strong facilitation skills, with experience driving decision-making and dialogue with various stakeholders on “ways of working”, collaboration, shared alignment and performance effectiveness.
• Political acumen and the ability to navigate complex political and executive landscapes, effectively managing competing goals and priorities, consulting and problem solving while maintaining positive working relationships.
• Sound judgement with an ability to work on confidential and sensitive matters.
• Familiarity with current issues and best practices related to equity, accessibility, human rights, inclusion, reconciliation and deep understanding and a thorough working knowledge of the Ontario Human Rights Code, the Occupational Health & Safety Act, Accessibility for Ontario's with Disabilities Act, Employment Standards Act and Municipal Freedom of Information Act.

What We Offer :

• We recognize the need for flexibility and offer a hybrid working environment that will provide you with an appropriate work-life balance required to thrive in today’s fast paced world.
• A strong benefits package which includes competitive salaries, vacation and other unique offerings.
• We offer an excellent defined benefit pension plan bringing added value to our overall compensation package through OMERS.
• We support ongoing learning and development and offer educational opportunities with tuition subsidies
• Opportunities to join and take an active role with City’s Communities of Inclusions comprised of employees who share a common identity, lived experience and / or set of interest and support each other’s professional development, sense of belonging and promote a culture of inclusion.