Career Opportunity
Position Title: Director, Integrated Mental Health, Housing and Substance Use Health Services
Classification: Program Director
Job Type: Permanent, Full-Time 1.0 FTE
Direction: Integrated Mental Health, Housing and Substance Use Health Services
Location: 55 Eccle Street, Ottawa, Ontario
Reporting to: Chief Executive Officer
Compensation: $102,957.40 – $121,157.40 plus a comprehensive compensation package that includes time-off entitlements, health benefits, life insurance, and participation in the HOOPP pension plan.
Deadline to apply: August 28, 2026, by 5:00pm
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About Us
Somerset West Community Health Centre (SWCHC) is a non-profit, community-governed organization that serves more than 15,000 clients annually. Established in 1978, SWCHC provides a broad range of health and social services, including primary care, health promotion, community development, mental health and harm reduction. We are deeply connected to the communities we serve and committed to removing barriers to care.
We are committed to advancing equity in our organizational structures, decisions and services. We work within anti-racist and anti-oppressive frameworks and continue to strengthen our accountability to Indigenous, Black, racialized, newcomer, 2SLGBTQ+ and other communities that experience barriers to health and social services.
The opportunity
We are seeking an accomplished senior leader to guide a diverse and interconnected portfolio of services supporting people experiencing challenges related to mental health, substance use, homelessness and access to care.
The portfolio includes the Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) Hub, the Peer Outreach Team, and Mental Health and Counselling Services. Together, these programs provide a continuum of community-based support - from early engagement, outreach and counselling to intensive treatment, housing assistance, recovery services and ongoing care.
The HART Hub brings together health care, substance use treatment and recovery services, mental health support, housing assistance, outreach, basic needs and systems navigation. The Peer Outreach Team builds trusted relationships with people who may be disconnected from traditional systems of care, while the Mental Health and Counselling Team provides accessible, trauma-informed and culturally responsive services to clients and communities.
The Director will lead through an established management structure that includes three operational managers and seven supervisory roles. This enables the Director to focus on strategic direction, leadership development, quality and safety, financial stewardship, partnership accountability and system influence.
The portfolio is entering an important period of maturity. The incoming Director will strengthen service quality and operational performance, support a skilled and resilient workforce, deepen relationships with community and system partners, and demonstrate the collective impact of the portfolio to funders, government and the communities SWCHC serves.
Why this role matter
This is a significant leadership opportunity for someone who can connect strategy with execution and who understands how mental health, substance use health, outreach, housing and community-based care must work together to create meaningful and lasting outcomes
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What we are looking for
You are a seasoned and credible leader who is comfortable operating in complexity. You bring strategic perspective while remaining attentive to the operational details that determine whether services are safe, reliable and effective.
You are comfortable supporting front-line leaders, working through operational risks, reviewing financial information, negotiating with partners and advising a CEO on system-level strategy.
You are calm under pressure, willing to make difficult decisions and able to communicate clearly when circumstances are uncertain. You build strong relationships while holding yourself accountable
Education and experience
- A master's degree in health administration, public health, social work, nursing, business administration or a related discipline, or an equivalent combination of education and senior leadership experience.
- Approximately 10 years of progressive leadership experience, including significant experience at the senior management or director level, with accountability for complex programs, people, budgets and organizational risk.
- Demonstrated success leading large, multidisciplinary teams in complex or high-pressure service environments.
- Experience overseeing 24/7 community health or similarly complex operations is strongly preferred.
- Strong experience with financial management, multi-million-dollar budgets, contracts, funding agreements and resource planning.
- Demonstrated knowledge of quality improvement, risk management, incident response, occupational health and safety, and service-accountability structures.
- Experience developing and managing partnerships involving multiple organizations with differing mandates and accountabilities.
- Experience working with government, funders, health-system partners, housing providers and community organizations.
- Experience providing clear and timely advice to executive leaders, boards or governance bodies.
- A strong understanding of homelessness, supportive housing, mental health, substance use health, harm reduction, treatment and recovery-oriented care.
- Demonstrated experience applying equity, anti-racism, anti-oppression and cultural-safety principles in organizational and service-delivery settings.
- Experience working meaningfully with people with lived and living expertise.
- Knowledge of Ottawa's health, housing, homelessness and community-service systems would be an asset.
Additional requirements
- Ability to work flexible hours, including evenings or weekends, as needed.
- This position is primarily on-site, with flexibility in accordance with operational needs and organizational policies
- Bilingualism in English and French, or proficiency in other languages commonly spoken by clients, is an asset.
We recognize that strong candidates may bring different combinations of experience. If this opportunity reflects your
leadership background and the impact you want to make, we encourage you to apply even if you do not meet every listed
qualification.
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Key Responsibilities
As the Director of Integrated Mental Health, Housing and Substance Use Health Services, you will be accountable for the following:
Strategic and System Leadership
- Provide clear strategic direction for the portfolio.
- Translate organizational and funder priorities into practical operating plans, accountabilities and measurable outcomes.
- Identify emerging community needs, service gaps, policy developments and opportunities for system improvement.
- Contribute informed analysis and recommendations to the CEO, Senior LeadershipTeam and Board.
- Represent SWCHC in senior-level discussions with government, funders, health-system leaders, housing partners and community organizations.
- Help position the portfolio for long-term sustainability, future investment and appropriate growth.
People and Culture Leadership
- Lead, coach and support managers responsible for delivering services across the portfolio.
- Build a workplace culture grounded in respect, collaboration, psychological safety, accountability and learning.
- Support workforce planning, succession planning, leadership development and employee well-being.
- Navigate conflict and difficult decisions with fairness, composure and sound judgment.
- Promote effective collaboration between SWCHC employees and staff from partner organizations.
Operational Excellence, Quality and Safety
- Ensure clear operational standards, decision-making authority, escalation procedures and management accountability.
- Strengthen approaches to client safety, staff safety, occupational health, critical-incident response and organizational risk.
- Ensure that significant concerns, incidents and organizational risks are communicated promptly and accurately to the CEO.
Partnership and Integrated-Service Leadership
- Foster trusted relationships with health, housing, municipal, Indigenous and community partners.
- Establish clear structures for collaborative planning, shared decision-making and problem resolution.
- Ensure that partnership agreements, memoranda of understanding and contractual commitments are understood,monitored and fulfilled.
- Address partnership challenges early and constructively.
- Maintain productive relationships while protecting SWCHC's responsibilities, standards and organizational interests.
- Support the development of coordinated pathways between primary care, mental health, substance use services, housing,outreach and other community supports.
Financial and Organizational Accountability
- Provide disciplined oversight of multi-million-dollar operating budgets, funding agreements and resource allocations.
- Monitor financial performance and respond promptly to emerging pressures, variances and sustainability risks.
- Ensure that expenditures, contracts and procurement decisions follow organizational policies and delegated authorities.
- Provide clear and timely financial, operational and performance information to the CEO.
- Work closely with Finance, Human Resources, Quality, Facilities, Information Technology and other organizational functions.
Outcomes, Evidence and Public Accountability
- Ensure accurate and timely reporting to funders, government partners and organizational governance bodies.
- Work with partners to evaluate the effectiveness of the integrated service model.
- Translate complex program information into clear, compelling and credible messages.
- Identify evidence that can support future funding, service expansion and public-policy discussions.
Equity, Community Accountability and Client Voice
- Ensure that services are person-centred, trauma-informed, culturally responsive and grounded in dignity.
- Demonstrate a strong understanding of harm reduction, treatment and recovery as complementary parts of a continuum of care.
- Embed equity, anti-racism and anti-oppression within program design, workforce practices, resource decisions and performance monitoring.
- Build meaningful mechanisms for the participation of people with lived and living expertise.
- Support Indigenous-led, Africentric and other culturally grounded approaches where appropriate.
- Maintain constructive relationships with surrounding communities and respond thoughtfully to community concerns and impacts.
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A workplace grounded in equity and inclusion
Somerset West Community Health Centre is an equal opportunity employer that values the diversity of the people in our programs, services and workplace. This posting is for a currently vacant position that we intend to fill through this recruitment process.
We welcome and encourage applications from Indigenous, Black and racialized communities; Two-Spirit, nonbinary and LGBTQ+ people; people with disabilities; and members of other equity-seeking groups.
Applicants are encouraged to share accessibility needs during the application process. We will make every reasonable effort to provide accommodation.
This posting is for a currently vacant position that we intend to fill through this recruitment process.
We sincerely appreciate your interest in working with us. Only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.
