General Manager and Chief Executive Officer

With a mission to provide world-class services to its customers and the environment, Halifax Water has been recognized internationally for its innovation and commitment to quality. It will continue to play a key role in providing an essential service, and championing environmental sustainability, during this time of growth and transformation within the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM).

Founded in 1949, Halifax Water is a municipally owned utility that is regulated by the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board. It proudly stewards the water cycle of the HRM and provides clean water to customers and safely transfers it back to its source. An autonomous, self-financed entity, Halifax Water has an annual revenue equating to approximately $172 million, an operating budget of over $192 million, and a capital budget of over $153 million dollars. With approximately 600 employees, Halifax Water has actively grown along with the demands of its ever-flourishing metropolis home to bring premier service to its approximately 111,000 customers and a growing population of more than 490,000.

The Role:

The General Manager and Chief Executive Officer (GM and CEO) will champion Halifax Water’s belief that investment in water and its systems is critical to the social, economic, and environmental health of HRM’s fast-growing communities.

Reporting to the Board of Commissioners, as the GM and CEO you will provide leadership and will establish a strong foundation of trust and credibility with the Halifax Water team and strengthen and foster a positive culture through empowerment, engagement and collaboration. As GM and CEO, you will also develop, recommend and implement high-quality business strategies and plans which align with short and long-term objectives set by the Board, and develop and oversee annual capital and operating plans and budgets.

The Ideal Candidate:

As the ideal candidate, you bring a strong track record of executive leadership experience in a complex, unionized, multi-stakeholder environment, preferably within a regulated utility business. Your exceptional communication and people skills, combined with high emotional intelligence, enable you to connect authentically with a range of audiences and interest holders, building trust and fostering collaboration. Highly strategic and calm under pressure, you have proven your ability to develop and communicate clear objectives in complex, high growth environments. You have led comparably complex teams and budgets and have proven your ability to develop and deliver results on organizational priorities and strategic plans. With strong business acumen, you are adept at digesting and distilling complex technical, financial, and operational information. You are innately customer service focused and understand the financial management processes and the business systems necessary to successfully operate a regulated utility.

An outstanding relationship builder with strong collaboration and negotiation skills, you are able to work and partner effectively with a broad range of stakeholders including Boards, regulators, government representatives, elected officials, developers, consultants, community leaders and residents alike. You are a highly approachable, high-integrity and culturally competent leader who embodies a deep commitment to equity, diversity, inclusivity, accessibility, sustainability and creating a culture of employee safety and wellbeing in all that you do. You inspire the confidence, engagement and trust of your team, the community and key partners of your organization.

How to Apply:

If you are interested in pursuing this exciting opportunity, please apply by clicking the "Apply Now" button below. For more information or to ask any questions, please contact Daniella Sam at dsam@kbrs.ca, Katherine Risley at krisley@kbrs.ca, or Andrea Forbes-Hurley at aforbeshurley@kbrs.ca.

We would like to acknowledge that we are located in Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and traditional lands of the Mi’kmaq people. The Halifax Regional Water Commission acknowledges the Peace & Friendship Treaties signed in this Territory and recognizes that we are all Treaty People.

Halifax Water’s goal is to be a diverse workforce that is representative of the community we serve, at all job levels. Halifax Water believes a diverse workforce positively contributes to its success, and the success of our community. We encourage applications from qualified African Nova Scotians, LGBTQ+ community, racially visible persons, women in non-traditional positions, persons with disabilities and Indigenous persons. Halifax Water encourages applicants to self-identify in the cover letter.

Halifax Water is committed to accommodating applicants with disabilities throughout the hiring process, in accordance with the Nova Scotia Accessibility Act, and will work with applicants requesting accommodation at any stage of the hiring process. If you require an accommodation to participate as a candidate, please contact accommodate@kbrs.ca.