New Job Executive Director In British Columbia

Are you a collaborative leader looking for a new opportunity?

We are seeking an inclusive, approachable leader with experience working with ethnocultural, racialized, equity seeking communities and a passion for collaborating for equitable system change to become the next Executive Director or Co-Executive Directors. As a credible champion for full participation in social, economic, and civic life, our new leadership will be committed to offering holistic services and building the capacity and amplifying the collective voice of these communities.

The Executive Director(s) will build on Multicultural Family Resource Society (MFRS)’ mission, vision, and principles and lead community based initiatives for the improvement of the quality of life of newcomer Edmontonians. As a liaison with internal and external stakeholders, this position demands a deep understanding of newcomer realities (including refugees, immigrants, and persons with temporary or undocumented status), the ability to build relationships, application of intercultural and anti-oppressive principles, and outstanding organization and management skills in order to best serve MFRS’ mission and mandate.

Who we are:

Multicultural Family Resource Society (MFRS) was founded in 2005 by and for immigrant and refugee families. Sixteen years later, MFRS is uniquely positioned to meet the needs and build on the strengths of newcomers who are experiencing high vulnerability in Edmonton/amiskwaciy-wâskahikan, within the territories of the nations of Treaty 6 and Metis Nation of Alberta Region 4.

We (currently 23 highly skilled, experienced, and passionate staff) explore the potential of new models of holistic settlement and integration services while focusing on building the capacity of newcomer households and designing programs that respond to the needs and strengths of participants from newcomer communities. We bring our learning (and unlearning) to collaboratives and sector initiatives, while learning from others and integrating that into the promising practices of MFRS.

What we do:

To achieve our mission and vision, we work interdependently. We see other organizations as potential partners rather than competitors. As a staff team, we recognize that the wellbeing of each other is the key to delivering creative, flexible, and high-quality programs and services. We also work with systems to transform them (when they need to be refreshed). And we take action to stay accountable to the communities that our mission and vision are designed to empower.

As a values-driven organization, MFRS is grounded in the following principles and committed to continually learning about and incorporating anti-oppressive approaches.

MFRS Principles

Relational: A way of interaction with and within the community in which we take time to listen, care, connect and love to build mutual support hand in hand

Participant Driven: Participants identify what’s important to them, what they need, and what they want to achieve. Our programs meet participants where they’re at and support them in reaching their goals.

Empowerment: Building community and working together to share space, opportunities, skills, and knowledge for mutual learning, self-determination and ultimate well-being

Culturally Responsive: Safe spaces to maintain a home culture and adapt to new connections and diversity; and developing a deeper understanding between cultures that are always changing

What a day in the ED’s life could include:

Relational:

• Build meaningful connections across families, communities, organizations, and government so that communities can inform and lead positive change
• Respond to requests or questions from the community about the organization and its programming
• Continually learning of the changing needs and assets of the communities served by the organization
• Promote a positive and safe working environment that values teamwork, trust, vulnerability, professional growth and commitment to the MFRS mission and core values.
• Establish meaningful relationships with MFRS stakeholders to build a shared understanding of newcomer communities’ challenges and strengths and how MFRS and community resources might be appropriately leveraged
• Collaborate with the Board of Directors to enable the effective fulfilment of their governance, including actively participating in Board Committees and Board Meetings
• Communicate in a professional and culturally-responsive manner to external parties on behalf of the Board and organization, when appropriate

Empowerment:

• Establish and nurture partnerships and working relationships with community groups, funders, partners such as Multicultural Health Brokers Co-Operative (MCHB), and other organizations to support our mission and vision
• Complete clear language annual reports that are accessible to the community served by MFRS and the public
• Advocate for program needs and realities of immigrant and refugee families in Edmonton
• Lead an equitable recruitment and selection process for staff and contractors aligned with MFRS’ principles to help further the organization’s mission
• Implement an accountability process for all staff and contractors, including on-going mentoring and coaching which contributes to ongoing improvement of MFRS programs and operations and staff and contractors meeting their professional goals

Participant Driven:

• Oversee the funding, planning, implementation and evaluation of MFRS programs, and apply an equity lens to this work
• Ensure that MFRS programs contribute to the organization's mission and reflect the priorities identified by the communities we serve and our program participants and remain relevant to their realities
• Engage meaningfully with communities on MFRS’ strategic direction: determining current and future needs and capacities, in order to collaboratively co-create innovative solutions

Culturally Responsive:

• Work with MFRS staff to adapt MFRS programming, policies and engagement strategies to match the current cultural, political, social, economic, and technological context of the communities we serve
• Review existing policies on an annual basis to ensure they are relevant, equitable, and appropriately protect MFRS from undue risk and ensure our accountability to community and recommending changes to the Board as appropriate

Financial and risk management

• Work with staff and the Board to prepare and manage a comprehensive budget, within the authority delegated by the Board
• Seek appropriate resources for MFRS to meet its strategic goals through proposal writing, application of funds, and fund-raising/ fund development oversight
• Develop an operational plan with the available resources and funds, according to the approved budget, which incorporates goals and objectives that work towards the strategic direction of the organization that meet the needs of the community and builds upon their capacities
• Provide the Board with comprehensive, regular reports on the revenues and expenditure of the organization

Ideal Candidates have the following:

Behavioural competencies:

• Openness to intercultural learning • Self-awareness
• Collaborative Team Building • Focus on outcomes
• Agility • Life-long learning
• Embedding Equity into Organization Leadership • Strategic Thinking
• Systems Thinking • Accountability

Experience:

• Minimum 5 years’ experience in a senior leadership role within the non profit sector including supervising staff and managing programs
• Minimum 5 experience in establishing and maintaining formal and informal partnerships with other service providers and stakeholders
• Minimum 5 years of working in services that directly support refugees and immigrants
• Minimum 3 years of proposal writing of independently written funding proposals for at least two different funders and written at least 5 proposals
• Minimum 3 years of facilitation experience
• Experience in working in ways that align with MFRS principles

Skills and Attributes:

• Commitment to social inclusion, equity and anti-oppressive practices
• Ability to multitask in this position, and thrive in a working environment with multiple demands
• Extensive knowledge of existing community resources and contacts
• Understanding of how staff and programs should build and foster relationships with families from diverse areas and backgrounds, and effectively advocate for their needs
• Understanding of holistic family support, and strength-based and trauma-informed practice for families facing complex situations
• An eye for creating efficiencies and keeping track of details, especially in relation to budgets and developing program systems
• Passion and knowledge of the context of work in the not-for-profit/charitable sector
• Knowledge of approaches to achieve equity and inclusion in work teams and the workplace
• Knowledge of history and key issues for refugee/immigrant communities in Edmonton/Canada

If you are interested:

We will be holding a virtual Candidate Open House on November 2 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. This is an opportunity to learn more about the position. We will review the job description, open up the space for questions from candidates, and provide examples of what our work looks like in practice. Please see Zoom information below to join the Open House.

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85017651687

Meeting ID: 850 1765 1687

Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kMIfWVPmo

In your cover letter, please explain which two of MFRS’ principles guide you as a leader in your professional work and you embody in your personal life. Please indicate in your resume any educational experiences you have had in any context that contribute to the execution of this job. We thank all applicants but only those shortlisted for an interview will be contacted. Résumés without a cover letter will be deemed as an incomplete application and will not be accepted.

If making a submission for joint leadership as Co-Executive Directors:

• The application package should include a cover letter from each person reflecting their individual takes on why they want to apply as a team and what the benefits of this arrangement would be for MFRS
• The cover letter should also include details of previous work together, demonstrating previous capacity to work as a leadership team in some capacity

Only those applicants who best demonstrate how they meet the qualifications outlined in the job posting will be contacted to advance to the next phase via e-mail or phone once the posting has closed.