ABOUT THE JOB:
The Executive Assistant serves as a trusted strategic partner to the CEO, providing high-level executive support in a fast-paced, complex, and mission-driven environment. This one-year maternity leave coverage position is responsible for proactively managing the CEO's priorities, calendar, communications, and workflow, ensuring the CEO is focused on the highest-value activities that advance the organization's strategic objectives.
Supporting the leader of a large and complex provincial non-profit organization, the Executive Assistant must exercise exceptional judgment, discretion, diplomacy, and initiative. The successful candidate anticipates needs before they arise, identifies and resolves potential scheduling and operational conflicts, and serves as a key liaison between the CEO and
internal and external stakeholders.
This role requires an experienced executive support professional who thrives in a highly dynamic environment, can expertly manage competing priorities, and has a demonstrated ability to maintain order, focus, and efficiency amid constant change.
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- Act as a strategic partner to the CEO, proactively anticipate needs, identify priorities, and ensure the CEO is prepared for all meetings, events, and engagements.
- Manage an exceptionally complex and high-volume executive calendar, balancing competing organizational priorities while protecting the CEO's time and ensuring alignment with strategic objectives.
- Serve as the primary gatekeeper for the CEO's schedule, exercising sound judgment in evaluating requests, managing competing demands, and making independent decisions regarding priorities and scheduling.
- Manage and monitor the CEO's email inbox, prioritizing correspondence, drafting responses, identifying urgent matters, and ensuring timely follow-up on key issues.
- Maintain a comprehensive understanding of organizational priorities and stakeholder relationships to effectively support executive decision-making.
- Coordinate briefing materials, agendas, presentations, and background information to ensure the CEO is fully prepared for meetings and engagements.
- Track action items, commitments, and follow-up activities arising from meetings and stakeholder interactions.
- Anticipate potential conflicts, risks, and bottlenecks, and proactively implement solutions before issues arise.
- Act as a trusted liaison between the CEO and Board members, senior leadership, government representatives, donors, community partners, and other key stakeholders.
- Handle highly sensitive, confidential, and politically sensitive information with discretion and professionalism.
- Support Board and Committee activities as required, including meeting coordination, materials preparation, and minute-taking.
- Coordinate executive travel, accommodations, itineraries, and logistics while ensuring efficient use of organizational resources.
ABOUT YOU:
Education
- Completion of a post-secondary degree/diploma in Business Administration and/or equivalent experience.
Experience
- Minimum 5-7 years of progressively responsible experience supporting a CEO, Executive Director, President, or other senior executive in a complex, fast-paced organization.
Demonstrated expertise managing complex executive calendars and high-volume executive communications, including email management and prioritization.- Proven ability to anticipate executive needs, exercise independent judgment, and make decisions within delegated authority.
- Experience supporting Boards of Directors and interacting with senior-level stakeholders, government representatives, funders, and community partners is considered a strong asset.
- Previous experience in the non-profit, healthcare, mental health, public sector, or association environment is preferred.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
- Are an experienced Executive Assistant who can quickly step into a highly autonomous role with minimal ramp-up time.
- Are highly organized and thrive in environments with constant change and competing priorities.
- Can balance diplomacy, tact, and firmness when managing stakeholder expectations.
- Take pride in protecting executive time while ensuring strong relationships across the organization.
- Remain calm, resourceful, and solutions-focused under pressure.
WORKING CONDITIONS:
- This is a 1.0 FTE, one-year term position, with possibility for extension.
- The usual work week is 37.5 hrs. Most work is accomplished during the usual 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. business hours, although the candidate will need to maintain some flexible scheduling during evenings and weekends on occasion.
- The position can be based out of the Vancouver or Victoria office and offers the potential for a hybrid working arrangement, depending on project needs.
- Flexibility to travel occasionally if required.
- Salary Range: $58,733.00 - $84,429.00
- Typical Hiring Range: $66,075.00 - $77,087.00
- In determining salary, CMHA BC considers many factors including the successful candidate’s skillset and experience as well as internal equity. The final salary offer will be at CMHA BC’s sole discretion and presented as part of a competitive total compensation package.
HOW TO APPLY:
Please submit your resume along with a cover letter, clearly documenting how you satisfy the requirements outlined in this job posting to https://cmhabc.bamboohr.com/careers/103 by 5 p.m. June 26, 2026.
We regret that only short-listed candidates will be contacted to schedule an interview.
CMHA BC Division is committed to our workforce reflecting the diversity of the communities within which we work. As such, we encourage applications from persons with disabilities, members of visible minorities, First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people, people of all sexual orientations and genders, and others who may contribute to the diversity of our staff. Personal experience with mental illness and or addiction, either through self or a loved one, is an asset.
ABOUT US:
Founded in 1918, The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) is a national charity that helps maintain and improve mental health for all Canadians. As the nation-wide leader and champion for mental health and addiction, CMHA helps people access the community resources they need to build resilience and support recovery from mental illness and/or addiction.
We respectfully acknowledge xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), səlilw̓ ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), Lkwungen (Songhees) and Wyomilth (Esquimalt) peoples on whose traditional, unceded lands the CMHA BC offices are located.
