(14 month contract, maternity leave replacement)
Save the Children believes every child has the right to a future. In Canada and around the world, we do whatever it takes – every day and in times of crisis – to support children to fulfill their rights to a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn, and protection from harm. With over 100 years of experience, Save the Children is the world’s first and leading independent children’s organization – transforming lives and the future we share.
Save the Children Canada is a hybrid workplace based in Toronto Ontario Canada. This recruitment is open to all applicants residing in Ontario.
THE IMPACT YOU WILL MAKE:
Reporting to the Chief External Engagement Officer, the Director, Brand, Communications & Influence leader the Marketing & Communications team. This individual plays a pivotal role in shaping and executing Save the Children Canada’s (SCC) strategic communications and public relations efforts to elevate its mission, strengthen its reputation, and expand its positive impact. This position is responsible for overseeing the development and execution of brand strategies, media outreach, content creation, and public relations campaigns that foster awareness, engagement, and support for Save the Children’s mission. The Director, Brand, Communications & Influence will lead a team to ensure consistent messaging across all platforms, manage relationships with key media partners, and position the charity as a trusted leader in its sector. Working closely with key interest holders, the Director, Brand, Communications & Influence will align internal and external communications with the Save the Children’s values and goals, and will drive awareness, increase visibility, and inspire greater involvement from donors and the broader community.
Responsibilities include (but are not limited to):
Brand
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Develop and implement comprehensive brand strategies that align with SCC's vision and goals. Conduct market research to understand consumer behavior and industry trends. Monitor and analyze brand performance metrics to ensure strategies are effective and adjust as needed.
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Plan and execute multi-channel brand campaigns to enhance brand visibility and engagement. Lead team collaboration to develop compelling campaign content, including advertisements, social media posts, and promotional materials. Track campaign performance and ROI, providing insights and recommendations for future campaigns.
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Lead the development and management of influencer partnerships, ensuring mutual benefits and effective collaboration. Identify, engage, and monitor activities with key influencers who align with the SCC's values and target audience. Measure influencer activities and the impact on brand awareness and reputation.
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Oversee the development and maintenance of the organization's website, ensuring it reflects the SCC's identity and values and is in compliance with relevant legislation e.g. Accessibility AODA. Implement SEO strategies to improve website visibility and organic search rankings. Analyze website traffic and user behavior to optimize content and improve user experience.
Media and Public Relations
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Lead the development and execution of media strategies to enhance SCC's public profile and reputation. Build and maintain relationships with key media outlets and journalists. Monitor media coverage and respond to inquiries, ensuring accurate and positive brand representation. Collaborate and align with Save the Children International (SCI).
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Oversee the creation of media products, including op-eds, press releases, and key messages. Ensure all media products align with SCC 's communication strategy and voice. Review and approve media content before distribution
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Lead the development and implementation of public relation (PR) strategies to manage SCC's image and reputation. Oversee PR activities, including events, press conferences, and media briefings. Monitor public perception and address any issues or crises that arise.
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Lead the planning and execution of various campaigns to engage the public and promote the SCC brand. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure campaign objectives are met. Monitor campaign performance and share insights. Create reports to leadership.
Communications
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Lead the creation of integrated communication strategies that encompass all aspects of SCC's mission driven messaging in alignment with SCI. Ensure consistency and coherence across all communication channels, including internal and external communications.
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Review and approve all communication products, including newsletters, reports, and marketing materials to all interest holders. Monitor content performance to ensure all products meet quality standards and align with SCC's communication strategy. Provide guidance to staff, leaders, and vendors.
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Lead the development and implementation of crisis communication plans to manage potential threats to SCC's reputation. Lead crisis response efforts, including media relations and interest holder communication. Monitor and evaluate crisis strategies.
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Support the CEO’s office in developing and delivering strategic communications. Ensure the CEO's messaging aligns with SCC's overall communication strategy. Prepare and/or review CEO speeches, presentations, and other communication materials on request.
Strategic Planning & Management of Portfolio
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Lead the strategic planning process, setting goals and objectives for assigned portfolio. Coordinate strategies with other teams and with SCI to ensure alignment and execution.
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Develop and manage budgets for brand, communications, and PR activities. Provide financial reports and insights to support decision-making.
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Prepare and present reports on brand, communications, and PR activities to leadership. Analyze performance metrics and provide recommendations for improvement. Ensure transparency and accountability in all reporting processes
People Management
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Lead assigned team/department providing strategic direction, coaching, and performance management while ensuring alignment with organizational values and policies.
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Set clear team and individual performance expectations for productivity, quality, and success; providing direction and support as needed.
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Oversee budget management, recruitment, change management and career development while ensuring compliance, fostering a respectful, values-driven culture, and maintaining a safe and inclusive workplace
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Ensure regular and transparent communication on strategy and policies, uphold SCC’s Code of Conduct, Policies, Leadership Charter, Reconciliation, Equity, Anti-Racism, Diversity, Inclusion (READI), Health and Safety standards, integrates Child Safeguarding practices, models competencies, and professional and ethical behavior.
Qualifications include (but are not limited to):
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Post secondary education in a relevant field or equivalent experience.
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Minimum 5-7 years of management experience leading marketing and communications. Experience in International Development, Non-Governmental Organization (NGO/INGO), or other not-for-profit sectors is preferred. People management experience in a unionized environment is preferred.
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Exceptional ability to craft clear, concise, and compelling messages for diverse audiences and channels. interest holders. Experience in developing and maintaining brand voice, tone, and messaging consistency across all platforms.
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Expertise in drafting internal and external communications, including newsletters, memos, and crisis responses.
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Advanced communication, interpersonal, and teamwork skills for diverse audiences to build strong working relationships across cultural and organizational settings, both internally and externally. French/Spanish/Arabic language skills is an asset.
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Demonstrated project management experience for task execution of assigned objectives supported by proficiency with MS Office tools and relevant technologies. Ability to work under pressure within tight timelines to achieve SCC objectives.
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Displays analytical and problem-solving skills to support initiatives with demonstrated adaptability to support change management for successful task implementation.
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Applies judgment and make sound decisions that are accountable, justifiable, and in adherence to policies and procedures.
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Considers organizational strategy and thinks creatively to support innovative initiatives and collaborations that deliver benefits for the children and families we serve.
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Ability to occasionally travel locally, nationally and internationally (less than 10%) as required.
WHAT WE OFFER
The salary range for this position is non-union pay band 8 between $98,594.73 - $116,449.57 CAD depending on skills and experience. In addition to this, our employees will have the following package of additional benefits:
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Comprehensive benefits package for you and your dependents available three months after employment start date. Coordinated benefits for your partner paid by Save the Children Canada.
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Hybrid workplace including opportunities to work remotely and flexible work hours to support employee wellbeing and work life balance.
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4 weeks of annual paid vacation.
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In addition to annual leave, we offer an end of year office closure December 25 - January 1 (SAVE Days) so we can all recharge simultaneously.
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5 paid personal days.
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3 paid float days.
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10 paid sick leave days.
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Parental leave top-up.
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Employer contributions to group pension plan. Access to help save for a first home through the pension provider.
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Learning and development opportunities and specialized training including professional development time.
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Confidential Employee Assistance Program services available to you and your dependents from your first day of employment.
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Organization-wide membership access to Headspace.
HOW TO APPLY?
If you are interested in this position, please visit the career page at https://www.savethechildren.ca/ and submit your resume and cover letter by 5:00 pm EST August 31, 2026. Internal candidates, please apply via ADP by 5:00 pm EST August 24, 2026. Applications will be reviewed on ongoing basis. We thank all applicants for their interest, however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted. Please note that AI is used in some components of the recruitment process. It is our individual and collective responsibility to ensure all children are protected from deliberate or unintentional acts that lead to the risk of, or actual, harm caused by our employees. Each employee shall be aware that there may be additional vulnerabilities facing children associated with their age, socio-economic background, disability, gender, racial heritage, religious belief, identity, sexual orientation or identity, and is committed to ensuring this does not form barriers to effective safeguarding.
Each employee is committed to fostering and sustaining a safe environment through proactive, accessible, and effective approaches that seek to prevent and respond to any harm to the children including but not limited to sexual exploitation and abuse. SCC and all its employees will take all reasonable steps to make itself safe, both as an organisation and in the conduct of all aspects of its day-to-day operations of emergency, humanitarian, developmental, policy, campaigning and administrative work.
SCC supports and acts in compliance with the Human Rights Code. SCC is committed to providing accessible employment practices that are in compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (‘AODA’). Providing an accessible and barrier-free environment is a shared effort, and as an organization, SCC is committed to working with the necessary parties to make accessibility for all a reality. If you require an accommodation during any stage of the recruitment or employment process, please notify People & Culture at [email protected]
Please Note: This job opportunity is to fill an existing vacancy.
This recruitment process may involve the use of AI-enabled or automated tools within ADP Workforce Now to help manage job postings and application workflows. These tools may assist with tasks such as organizing applicant information, identifying potential matches based on job-related qualifications, or supporting communication and scheduling.
All hiring decisions are made by our People & Culture team and hiring managers. No automated tool makes final decisions about your candidacy. If at any point you have questions about how your information is used, please contact our team at [email protected]
