Executive Director, Office of Major Projects

The Halifax Regional Municipality is located in Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and traditional lands of the Mi’kmaq people. The Municipality acknowledges the Peace & Friendship Treaties signed in this Territory and recognizes that we are all Treaty People.

Continuing to be recognized as one of the fastest growing cities across the country, it is a dynamic time of growth and change for the Halifax Regional Municipality. The Region is home to almost half a million residents and is the economic, financial, educational, social, and cultural centre for the Maritime region. A vibrant seaport municipality, residents hail from a unique mix of urban, suburban, and rural communities. HRM strives to provide its citizens with the best quality of life in a healthy, sustainable, vibrant community at work, play, and every day.

The Office of Major Projects

HRM is excited to announce the establishment of its new Office of Major Projects dedicated to managing complex, multi-year, multi-partner, high-value projects. As the municipality evolves, so does the scale and sophistication of the projects it undertakes.

This new office is in response to the increasing complexity and financial magnitude of projects, many now exceeding $100 million. These projects require nimble, specialized expertise in project and contract management, risk mitigation and strategic infrastructure integration. By centralizing their capabilities, HRM aims to enhance efficiency, ensure rigorous governance and ensure its staff is prepared to deliver an estimated $2 billion worth of major projects forecast over the next 10 years.

Position Profile

HRM is seeking an Executive Director, Office of Major Projects to ensure the successful delivery of major infrastructure projects that are critical to the municipality’s growth and sustainability. Initially, the Office of Major Projects will be responsible for the delivery of the Mill Cove Ferry Service, Windsor Street Exchange, and Cogswell District projects, with additional projects planned in the coming years.

Reporting to the municipality’s Commissioner of Operations, the Executive Director is responsible for:

• Providing effective leadership and strategic management of the Office, including recruiting, establishing and leading a high-performing team.
• Overseeing the successful and timely delivery of a portfolio of high-priority, large-scale, high-value, and high-risk capital projects.
• Ensuring comprehensive oversight and management of major capital projects, including conceptualization, budget management and financing, procurement, design and construction, risk management, and communications.
• Directing and integrating the activities of multiple major project operations to ensure cohesive, consistent, and effective support of the municipality's goals and strategic plans.
• Overseeing the development, implementation, and maintenance of individual project objectives and short- and long-range plans.
• Develop tracking and evaluation strategies to monitor the success and progress of project objectives.

Ideal Candidate Profile

As the ideal candidate, you are a visionary leader and project manager with a strategic mindset who has successfully demonstrated experience managing large-scale infrastructure projects. You have a track record of progressive experience overseeing complex projects within a dynamic environment, ideally with some exposure to municipal or other government environments. Additionally, you demonstrate exceptional leadership capabilities and an unwavering commitment to service delivery and excellence. A combination of knowledge related to transportation planning, procurement, engineering principles, construction processes, project management methodologies, and/or legislative and regulatory compliance required to execute high-value infrastructure projects would be considered a significant asset.

You are an excellent communicator and relationship builder, engaging effectively with a diverse array of partners. You have experience recruiting, developing, and retaining high-performing teams and your strong project leadership ensures comprehensive planning, performance monitoring, progress reporting, and project delivery. With strong financial and business acumen, you are skilled in budgeting, financial analysis, and cost control, and as a proactive problem solver, you excel at identifying and resolving project challenges. You are capable of promptly addressing issues to keep projects on track and maintain high standards of quality and efficiency. Most importantly, with a strong commitment to transparency, accountability, and public service, you bring the capability to align infrastructure projects with the municipality's long-term goals and contribute to strategic plans that drive project success, contributing to the municipality's growth and development.

How to Apply

If you are interested in pursuing this exciting opportunity, please apply online at http://www.kbrs.ca/Career/18361. For more information or to ask any questions, please contact Daniella Sam at dsam@kbrs.ca, Katherine Risley at krisley@kbrs.ca, or Erin MacDonald at emacdonald@kbrs.ca.

Halifax Regional Municipality is committed to reflecting the community it serves and recognizing Diversity and Inclusion as one of the Municipality’s core values. We have an Employment Equity Policy, and we welcome applications from African Nova Scotians and Other Racially Visible Persons, Women in occupations or positions where they are underrepresented in the workforce, Indigenous/Aboriginal People, Persons with Disabilities and 2SLGBTQ+ Persons. Applicants are encouraged to self-identify on their application.

As part of the recruitment process, KBRS will provide support in its recruitment processes to applicants with disabilities, including accommodation that considers an applicant’s accessibility needs. Should you require an accommodation to participate fully in the recruitment process, please inform KBRS at accommodate@kbrs.ca.