What You Will Get To Do
The Town of Whitby is committed to eradicating racism, oppression, and inequities in our community and the workplace. As an integral part of the Organizational Effectiveness team, the Senior IDEA Specialist (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Anti-racism) takes an organization-wide approach to assist leaders and staff in identifying and removing barriers for individuals or groups who experience marginalization, oppression and/or racism.
Reporting to the Manager, Organizational Development, the Sr. IDEA Specialist is responsible for advancing the Town of Whitby’s Internal IDEA Action Plan. This position is built on key partnerships with Human Resources, leaders, and internal committees and groups. This position will advance the integration of IDEA principles across all Town people and talent management practices to support a safe, equitable, and inclusive work environment and a culture free from discrimination that encourages all employees to bring their whole self to work and reach their full potential with the Town of Whitby.
This position builds staff capacity to address inclusion, equity, and anti-racism gaps, and will work to advance the 41 recommendations in the full IDEA action plan to programs and services delivered by the Town of Whitby. The Sr. IDEA Specialist will advance the Town’s commitments through the Coalition of Inclusive Municipalities, the Truth and Reconciliation Calls To Action, the Accessibility Plan, and the IDEA Focused Service Lens through consultation and review, and the identification and development of appropriate staff training, resources, and supports to ensure staff have the knowledge and ability to facilitate IDEA best practices.
Duties for this role include, but are not limited to:
- While serving as a subject matter expert and change agent, provide leadership and direction to advance the implementation of the internal IDEA action plan, enhancing the Town’s culture of equity, belonging, and inclusion. Develop new action plan items as required, including resources and tools to advance goals as part of the Town’s Community Strategic Plan.
- Manage the implementation, evaluation, and continuous improvement of internal IDEA priorities and initiatives.
- Communicate internal IDEA action plan progress, process and schedule to the Senior Leadership Team (SLT), and prepare reports to Council as required.
- Work with appropriate department and division leaders to identify problems or risks that may jeopardize the achievement of the internal IDEA action plan.
- Work with leaders to audit and evaluate practices, policies, and processes that pose an obstacle to achieving the recommendations within the internal IDEA action plan, provide recommendations on eliminating barriers that result in differential treatment, marginalization, discrimination, and/or harassment.
- Develop a diversity indicator data collection and analysis strategy to inform decisions that address gaps in the workplace.
- Continue to measure the progress and effectiveness of IDEA initiatives, support good decision making in the Town, and provide effective reporting.
- Partner with all areas of Human Resources to facilitate integration of IDEA best practices into all human resources practices.
- Work alongside leaders and staff to further diversify and advance inclusive workplace culture and evaluate existing structures to ensure systemic barriers impeding employee and organizational development are removed.
- Participate on and/or act as a lead on internal committees that have an IDEA or human rights component. Represent the organization on various committees, networks and resource groups.
- Work with people leaders, staff, and teams across the organization to resolve concerns and address changes in group norms, values, and culture to support internal IDEA goals.
- Facilitate discussions on challenging IDEA topics and collaborate on finding optimal solutions.
- Act as a key advisor on major internal projects and initiatives to ensure the people side of change is being addressed, and to promote and develop change management strategies and tactics as it relates to IDEA principles and best practices.
- Partner with the Corporate Communications team to identify systemic barriers to communication, making recommendations, and implement solutions to strengthen internal communications and engagement.
- Support the development of events and content for communication channels.
Who You Are
- Our Organizational Effectiveness team is looking for an enthusiastic, solutions-oriented change agent who takes initiative and thrives on understanding tough issues and partnering to put thoughtful plans in place to improve them. You are altruistic with a focus on the greater good, recognizing that change is a process and patience is key.
- You value partnerships and understand the power of a network. Your excellent communication and interpersonal skills coupled with your own lived experience enables you to skilfully build, establish and maintain positive working relationships with a diverse organizational community. You demonstrate tact, respect, and sound discretion when working with a broad range of partners. You seek to understand people’s experiences and have a knack for not only aligning people to a vision, but also being part of positive change. You have an understanding of the complexities of identity through a lens of anti-oppression, anti-racism, and issues surrounding the various forms of power, privilege and oppression in the workplace.
- You demonstrate political acuity and can balance the needs of the organization with those of individuals and teams. A high volume of work and large goals does not intimidate you. You are excellent at understanding dependencies, prioritizing work, and managing your time to deliver on critical outcomes.
What You Bring To Our Team
- Minimum of five (5) years of experience managing, developing, and successfully implementing equity, diversity and inclusion policies and programs, preferably within a public sector organization.
- A combination of education such as a bachelor’s degree in a related field (e.g., Human Resources, Organizational Development, Equity and Diversity Studies, Social Work, Law, Sociology, etc.),and/or related experience that may include knowledge gained from learning from Elders, Indigenous knowledge keepers, and community members.
- Knowledge and understanding of diversity, equity, and belonging, with demonstrated ability to take action and achieve results to help drive the Town’s commitment integrate these principles into its culture and employer brand.
- Lived experiences and personal understanding of the issues and concerns of equity-deserving groups, along with the challenges that come with systemic racism, discrimination, and inequity
- Experience working with diverse and under-represented populations, including program development and/or project management focused on structural or systemic change.
- Knowledge of, and ability to comply with policies, procedures, and relevant legislation, such as the Ontario Human Rights Code, Employment Standards Act, Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, and Occupational Health and Safety Act.
- Understanding of HR practices in a unionized work environment, collective agreements, and related labour legislation, procedures, programs, and services.
- Courses or certification in diversity, equity, inclusion, and/or human rights considered an asset.
- Canadian Certified Inclusion Professional (CCIP) designation considered an asset.
- Change Management Certification (e.g. Prosci) considered an asset.
What We Offer You
- Salary: $119,537 - to $135,837 per annum (Pay Grade11)
- Benefits and retirement plan offered in accordance with Corporate programs and/or the applicable Collective Agreement
- A hybrid work environment and flexible work arrangements where employees are empowered to do their best work in the way that works for them. This is designated as a Remote Hybrid role. Remote Hybrid recognizes that up to 60% of job functions associated with the role can be done virtually, from a remote office. Further details on these programs will be discussed through the selection process.
We are an Equal Opportunity Employer
At the Town of Whitby, our values guide everything that we do. We celebrate our differences, which is why we are committed to building an inclusive and barrier-free environment for our team. If you need a specific accommodation during the recruitment process, please let us know, and we will be happy to provide. Any information received relating to accommodation will be addressed confidentially.
Acknowledgement will only be forwarded to those applicants who are invited for an interview.
Personal information provided is collected under the authority of The Municipal Act, 2001 and the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
Union Affiliation: No Affiliation
Hours: Monday to Friday – 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (thirty-five hours per week).
Flex hours may be required.
Location: Whitby, ON