Director, Indigenous Affairs Office

Company: City of Toronto

The City of Toronto acknowledges that we are on the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples and is now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. The City also acknowledges that Toronto is covered by Treaty 13 signed with the Mississaugas of the Credit, and the Williams Treaties signed with multiple Mississaugas and Chippewa bands.

The City of Toronto is Canada’s largest municipality, the third-largest city in North America, and home to the largest urban Indigenous population in the country. Serving nearly three million residents, the City is also one of Canada’s largest public sector organizations, delivering services that reach virtually every aspect of civic life. Toronto’s scale and global profile give its work significance well beyond the city, with municipalities and organizations across Canada and internationally looking to Toronto to learn how a large, diverse global city is strengthening relationships with Indigenous communities and putting reconciliation into practice. With that attention comes an extraordinary opportunity to advance work that not only shapes the future of Toronto, but can also inform and inspire what others pursue in their own communities.

It is within this context that the City of Toronto invites nominations and applications for the position of Director, Indigenous Affairs Office. This is a rare opportunity for an accomplished Indigenous leader to help shape one of Canada’s most significant Indigenous leadership portfolios within municipal government. The Director will have the mandate, visibility, and relationships needed to influence how a major public institution advances reconciliation in practice – grounded in trust, reciprocity, accountability, and shared responsibility. The Indigenous Affairs Office (IAO) is at an important point in its evolution, creating an opportunity for the next Director to establish a compelling north star for the work ahead, shaped in partnership with Indigenous communities and advanced alongside partners across the City and beyond. For a leader energized by complex, relationship-centered work and the opportunity to build something enduring, the potential for impact is considerable.

Key Responsibilities

Reporting to the Deputy City Manager, Community Development and Social Services, the Director serves as the City's senior leader for Indigenous Affairs. The Director leads a team of approximately ten people and fosters a culture of collaboration, trust, shared purpose, and care within the Indigenous Affairs Office. The Director will:

• Build and sustain trusted, respectful relationships with Indigenous communities, including Indigenous organizations and collectives, Elders, youth, Knowledge Keepers, and community partners.
• Advise and influence City divisions, the Executive Leadership Team, the Mayor, and Council in delivering on Toronto’s commitments to Indigenous Peoples, as guided by Indigenous communities.
• Support the integration of Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and doing into City policies, programs, services, and decision-making processes.
• Advance the City’s reconciliation commitments through ongoing engagement, dialogue, implementation support, and continuous learning.
• Strengthen the Office’s operational foundations, including governance, protocols, frameworks, priorities, meaningful evaluation metrics, and ways of working that support sustained progress.

The Director will act as an important bridge between Indigenous communities and the City’s administration, while recognizing that reconciliation is a shared responsibility across the corporation and must be advanced in partnership with Indigenous peoples.

Qualifications

Among the qualities and attributes being sought, the successful candidate will demonstrate a deep and abiding commitment to relationship-building, and will possess the humility, wisdom, courage, and energy necessary to lead this work effectively within a large and complex public institution while remaining responsive to community. They will understand that reconciliation is relational and requires trust, accountability, continual learning, and meaningful action.  

While applicants are encouraged to share how their lived and professional experience align with the position, the following experiences, qualities, and attributes are seen as important to success in the role.

• Lived experience as an Indigenous person, complemented by demonstrated experience building trusted and respectful relationships with Indigenous communities, including Indigenous youth, Elders, and Knowledge Keepers.
• Direct experience and/or meaningful exposure to Toronto’s urban Indigenous community, along with a deep understanding of Indigenous histories, rights, self-determination, governance, and treaties relevant to Toronto.
• Demonstrated success navigating and influencing within large, complex organizations, preferably within municipal government and/or broader public sector environments.
• A reputation for credibility, integrity, sound judgment, and thoughtful diplomacy, with the ability to build trust with elected officials, senior executives, government partners, Indigenous organizations, and external audiences.
• Experience leading organizational change, strengthening governance and organizational infrastructure, establishing effective frameworks, policies and protocols, and translating strategic vision into meaningful and measurable action.
• Demonstrated people leadership experience, including the ability to build, support, and inspire teams through authentic relationships, compassion, coaching, accountability, and a shared purpose.
• Exceptional communication and facilitation skills, coupled with the ability to navigate complexity, ambiguity, and competing priorities while maintaining focus on long-term goals and impact.
• A leadership approach grounded in humility, curiosity, emotional intelligence, and cultural responsiveness, with the ability to listen deeply and lead in ways that foster trust, respect, and collective responsibility.

The expected salary for this position is between $165,310 and $222,843 CAD per year, commensurate with experience and qualifications.

This is a rare opportunity to help define what reconciliation can look like in action within a large municipal government – grounded in relationships, guided by community, and focused on lasting institutional change.

How to Apply

The City is an equal opportunity employer, dedicated to creating a workplace culture of inclusiveness that reflects the diverse residents that we serve. Learn more about the City’s commitment to employment equity.

The City of Toronto is partnering with BES Executive Search, a firm committed to ensuring that every search mandate engages a pluralistic and intersectional range of candidates. Applicants are guided through what BES calls ‘The BES Experience’—a thoughtful, candidate-centred process that meets candidates with support and care throughout the search process. All interested applicants are encouraged to apply by clicking HERE.

In accordance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), applicants living with a disability will be provided with accommodation throughout the search process. Should accommodations be required, please make Jason Murray and Helen Mekonen aware by emailing hmekonen@bessearch.com. 

BES is deeply grateful to all who express interest in this opportunity and recognize the time and effort that goes into submitting an expression of interest. While only those most closely aligned with the position requirements will be contacted for an interview, all applications are reviewed with thoughtfulness and will receive correspondence from the firm as part of our commitment to delivering a respectful and inclusive candidate experience.

BES Executive Search Inc. does not use artificial intelligence (AI) to screen, assess, or select applicants.