Overview
We are seeking an experienced, agency-trained SEO professional to lead the strategy and execution of client SEO programs during a 12-month maternity-leave contract. This is not a junior or primarily administrative role. The successful candidate will be a hands-on SEO expert who can independently diagnose performance issues, develop practical strategies, manage implementation across multiple accounts, and communicate clearly with clients and internal teams.
The role also requires a strong understanding of how search is evolving through AI Overviews, large language models, answer engines, and generative search. You will help clients improve both traditional organic visibility and their discoverability, authority, and citation potential across platforms such as Google, ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and Microsoft Copilot.
Although the initial term is 12 months, this position is being hired with long-term growth in mind. There is a strong probability that the role will become permanent for a high-performing candidate who demonstrates strategic judgment, technical depth, strong project ownership, and a positive fit with the team and our clients.
Key Responsibilities
SEO Strategy & Performance Leadership
- Own the SEO strategy and day-to-day performance of a portfolio of client accounts across a range of industries.
- Conduct comprehensive SEO audits covering technical SEO, content, on-page optimization, authority, local search, competitive positioning, and conversion opportunities.
- Develop prioritized SEO roadmaps that connect recommendations to client objectives, measurable outcomes, available resources, and realistic timelines.
- Investigate ranking, traffic, visibility, indexing, and conversion issues; identify root causes and coordinate corrective action.
- Monitor performance trends and proactively flag risks, opportunities, and accounts requiring strategic intervention.
Technical & On-Page SEO
- Lead technical SEO analysis involving crawlability, indexation, site architecture, internal linking, redirects, canonicalization, Core Web Vitals, page experience, schema, and structured data.
- Provide clear implementation requirements to developers, content teams, account managers, and external partners, and validate that work has been completed correctly.
- Optimize page templates, metadata, headings, content structure, topical relevance, entity signals, and conversion paths.
- Use Google Search Console, GA4, AgencyAnalytics, rank-tracking platforms, crawling tools, and competitive research platforms to guide decisions.
AI SEO, GEO & Generative Search
- Develop and apply Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), and AI-search strategies alongside traditional SEO.
- Structure content around entities, semantic relationships, user intent, evidence, expertise, and authority signals that improve machine understanding and citation potential.
- Assess how client brands are represented across AI-generated answers and identify opportunities to improve visibility, accuracy, trust, and share of voice.
- Use schema, expert content, source attribution, supporting evidence, and digital PR or authority-building tactics to strengthen eligibility for AI-generated responses.
- Measure emerging indicators such as AI referrals, citations, brand mentions, zero-click visibility, and cross-platform search presence.
- Use tools such as Claude and ChatGPT to accelerate research, analysis, quality assurance, and workflow efficiency without compromising accuracy or brand standards.
Content & Authority Development
- Guide keyword, topic, entity, and audience research to create content strategies that support organic growth and business objectives.
- Prepare clear briefs for writers and editors, review completed content for SEO quality, and ensure it meets search intent, E-E-A-T, brand, and conversion requirements.
- Support link acquisition, digital PR, citation development, local SEO, and other authority-building initiatives where appropriate.
Project, Team & Client Management
- Manage multiple concurrent SEO projects, priorities, dependencies, and deadlines using Teamwork or a comparable project-management platform.
- Coordinate work across account managers, content specialists, designers, developers, offshore resources, and external vendors.
- Participate in client onboarding, strategy meetings, performance reviews, and troubleshooting discussions.
- Explain technical and strategic findings in clear business language and provide practical recommendations that clients and internal stakeholders can act on.
- Maintain accurate task documentation, quality-control standards, and accountability for deliverables from planning through completion.
Website & WordPress Support
- Contribute SEO expertise to website redesigns, migrations, launches, and post-launch quality assurance.
- Work confidently within WordPress to review or implement common SEO, content, metadata, internal-linking, schema, redirect, and page-structure changes.
- Identify website-development risks that could affect rankings, traffic, usability, or measurement and ensure appropriate safeguards are in place.
Reporting & Continuous Improvement
- Interpret SEO, analytics, conversion, and campaign data to produce meaningful insights rather than surface-level reporting.
- Prepare concise performance summaries that explain what changed, why it matters, what is being done, and what should happen next.
- Stay current with search-engine changes, AI-search developments, industry standards, and emerging tools, and translate relevant developments into agency processes and client strategies.
Required Qualifications
- Minimum 5 years of hands-on SEO experience within a digital marketing agency environment.
- Expert-level knowledge of technical SEO, on-page SEO, content strategy, keyword and entity research, internal linking, structured data, local SEO, authority development, and performance analysis.
- Demonstrated experience managing SEO strategy and execution across multiple client accounts simultaneously.
- Practical experience with AI SEO, GEO, AEO, generative search, AI Overviews, or optimization for large language model and answer-engine visibility.
- Strong project-management experience, including prioritization, resource coordination, quality control, documentation, and deadline management.
- Advanced working knowledge of Google Search Console, GA4, SEO crawling and auditing tools, rank-tracking platforms, and competitive research tools.
- Ability to independently diagnose complex SEO problems and translate analysis into prioritized, commercially sound recommendations.
- Exceptional professional fluency in written and spoken English is required, as English is the primary language used for client communication, strategy development, reporting, and internal collaboration.
- Strong attention to detail, sound judgment, personal accountability, and the ability to work effectively in a fast-moving agency environment.
- Current residence in Ottawa or the surrounding area, with the ability to work in the Ottawa office three mandatory days per week.
- Ability and willingness to work within the established hybrid model; full-time remote arrangements are not available for this role.
Highly Valued Assets
- Strong working knowledge of WordPress, including page editing, plugin environments, redirects, metadata, content structure, schema implementation, and SEO quality assurance.
- Strong working knowledge of French is a significant asset, particularly for supporting bilingual clients, reviewing French-language content, and collaborating on bilingual SEO strategies.
- Experience supporting website redesigns, migrations, staging environments, launch checklists, and post-launch SEO validation.
- Experience with AgencyAnalytics, Teamwork, SEMrush, Ahrefs, Screaming Frog, Sitebulb, Looker Studio, or comparable platforms.
- Experience with local SEO, Google Business Profile optimization, digital PR, link acquisition, or conversion-rate optimization.
- Experience improving operational workflows through AI tools, automation, templates, or standardized quality-control processes.
Preferred Certifications
Candidates possessing one or more of the following certifications will be considered strong assets:
- Google Analytics Certification (GA4)
- Google Ads Search Certification
- Semrush SEO Toolkit Certification
- HubSpot SEO Certification
- Screaming Frog Technical SEO Certification (or demonstrated advanced proficiency)
- WordPress Certification or equivalent professional experience
- Project Management certification (CAPM, PMP, Agile, Scrum, or equivalent)
- AI or Prompt Engineering certifications from OpenAI, Anthropic (Claude), Microsoft, Google, or other recognized providers
- Technical SEO or AI Search Optimization (AEO/GEO) training from recognized industry organizations
Compensation & Employment Term
- Annual salary: $70,000.
- Full-time, 12-month contract covering a maternity leave.
- Hybrid schedule: three mandatory in-office days and two remote days per week. Ottawa-area applicants only; fully remote applications will not be considered.
- Strong probability of conversion to a permanent full-time position based on performance, organizational needs, and mutual fit.
- Professional-development time and ongoing exposure to evolving SEO, AI-search, analytics, and digital strategy practices.
Ideal Candidate
- The ideal candidate is an experienced agency SEO strategist who combines technical depth, practical business judgment, project ownership, and confident client communication. You are equally comfortable diagnosing complex SEO issues, directing implementation, and improving how brands are discovered and cited across traditional and AI-driven search.
SEO Assessment
Applicants who advance to the interview stage will be asked to complete a practical SEO assessment. The assessment will evaluate technical SEO knowledge, strategy, AI Search Optimization (GEO/AEO), analytical thinking, and problem-solving abilities using real-world agency scenarios.
During the interview process I candidates must demonstrate:
- A portfolio of SEO campaigns with measurable ranking and traffic improvements.
- Experience managing 20–40 concurrent client accounts in an agency environment.
- Examples of technical SEO audits and implementations.
- Examples of AI Search Optimization (Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Copilot).
Experience using:
- Agency Analytics
- Google Search Console
- GA4
- Screaming Frog
- Semrush
- Ahrefs
- Teamwork
- Claude
- ChatGPT
- Knowledge of schema markup, Core Web Vitals, crawling/indexation, entity SEO, and local SEO.
Pay: $70,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- On-site parking
- Paid time off
Ability to commute/relocate:
- Gloucester, ON K1J 9L4: reliably commute or plan to relocate before starting work (required)
Education:
Experience:
Language:
Location:
- Gloucester, ON K1J 9L4 (required)
Work Location: In person
