New Job Director, Advocacy And Government Affairs In Ontario

It is an incredibly exciting time for Crohn’s and Colitis Canada. In September, we launched our 2023-2026 Impact Strategy, a bold plan that goes beyond outputs to making true impact for Canadians affected by IBD. This strategy is in part fueled by tens of thousands of supporters and donors across the country, and the opportunities we can provide to empower and engage them.

Health care policies, equitable access to care, new models of healthcare delivery, drug approval process. If these words describe your core passion in helping to influence policy and system change, join the Crohn’s and Colitis Canada team and help influence policy that affects people living with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.

As Crohn’s and Colitis Canada’s Director of Advocacy and Government Affairs, you will lead the development, implementation and evaluation of Crohn’s and Colitis Canada’s advocacy strategy to influence government and private payer policies to improve the quality of life of those affected by Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Current priorities include timely and equitable access to treatments and washroom access.

THE IDEAL CANDIDATE

As the ideal candidate you…

• Are a highly motivated, creative and strategic thinker who is passionate about using your exceptional advocacy and government relations skills to influence policy.
• Manage multiple projects and work with cross-functional teams with ease.
• Possess a deep understanding of the policy landscape, in particular, the HTA process and our provincial and federal governments both on the political and bureaucratic sides.
• Are a doer, who likes to find solutions and get things done.
• Have worked with volunteers and know how to motivate and educate them, and provide the tools and resources to empower them to take action.

QUALIFICATIONS

Must haves

• Minimum bachelor’s degree in public policy, government affairs or related field;
• 10+ years of experience in influencing policy;
• Solid understanding of Canada’s political and bureaucratic government structures (both provincial and federal);
• 5+ years experience in leading the development, implementation and evaluation of advocacy strategies;
• 2+ years experience developing tools and resources for volunteers to support advocacy activities;
• 2+ years experience in educating and mobilizing communities to effect change in government policies;
• 2+ years experience in working with all levels of government to influence policy.
• Solid knowledge of Canada’s and benchmark nations’ drug approval processes;
• A solid understanding of Canada’s healthcare system, including delivery of care;
• Strong project management skills, including evaluation;
• Highly motivated and results-oriented;
• Highly effective in prioritizing, multi-tasking, and meeting deadlines;
• Ability to work within tight timelines;
• Strong ethos of collaboration;
• Strong communication skills (both verbal and written);
• Ability to work constructively with diverse groups of stakeholders and personalities;
• Successful completion of a police reference check.

Nice to haves:

• Established network of influencers, key political and bureaucratic staff, and key opinion leaders in advocacy;
• Public speaking;
• French language skills (oral/written).

WORKING ENVIRONMENT AND BENEFITS

• The opportunity to work within, create and drive a culture of growth and innovation.
• Inspire a positive work environment and help to champion our values; Courageous, Inclusive, Authentic and Collaborative.
• A meaningful role where you make a difference every day for people living with inflammatory bowel disease.
• Based out of our Toronto office in a hybrid role.
• Occasional travel to meetings and conferences.
• Flexible work hours; available to work the occasional evening or weekend.
• Extended health and dental plan.
• Employer matching RRSP program.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead the development, implementation and evaluation of Crohn’s and Colitis Canada’s advocacy strategy;
• Develop and maintain professional relationships with government, key members of Canadian payers’ ecosystem, and advocacy partners;
• Advise VP Research, Patient Programs, and Advocacy on issues arising from continuous jurisdictional scanning on all matters specific to health policy, access to drugs, therapies and patient support;
• Lead the development, implementation and evaluation of the annual advocacy plan;
• Track milestones and progress of advocacy activities;
• Develop tools, resources and strategies to support and mobilize the community on advocacy priorities, in collaboration with the marketing and communications team;
• Share progress and key outcomes with staff and our constituents in a timely manner, in collaboration with the marketing and communications team;
• Educate staff and Crohn’s and Colitis Canada’s community on key advocacy issues;
• Lead the development of reports, briefings, and presentations on a range of topics pertaining to health policy, health policy landscape, pharmaceutical regulatory issues and the public and private reimbursement of medicines;
• Monitor and develop patient input submissions proactively and in a timely manner, to support access to treatments;
• Anticipate drug submissions and collect relevant data to support patient input submissions;
• Work with regional staff and volunteers, identify and support regional advocacy priorities;
• Represent Crohn’s and Colitis Canada at key meetings, which support our advocacy mandates such as CADTH’s annual conference;
• Serve as the organizational lead and liaison, responding to all issues and queries, related to government, payers and advocacy concerns.

ABOUT US

Crohn’s and Colitis Canada is the only national, volunteer-based charity focused on finding the cures for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis and improving the lives of children and adults affected by these diseases.

We are one of the top two health charity funders of Crohn’s and colitis research in the world, investing over $140 million in research since 1974, leading to important breakthroughs in genetics, gut microbes, inflammation and cell repair as well as laying the groundwork for new and better treatments.

We are transforming the lives of people affected by Crohn’s and colitis (the two main forms of inflammatory bowel disease) through research, patient programs, advocacy, and awareness.

Visit our website (crohnsandcolitis.ca) for more information.

To protect the health and safety of our employees and community, Crohn’s and Colitis Canada is requiring that employees be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Crohn’s and Colitis Canada will provide accommodation, on a case by case basis, in accordance with its obligations for anyone who is unable to be vaccinated for a reason protected under applicable human rights legislation.

HOW TO APPLY

Crohn’s and Colitis Canada provides a competitive compensation package and a rewarding work environment.

Interested applicants are asked to submit a PDF of their resume and cover letter by clicking “Apply Now” or you will be redirected to Crohn’s and Colitis Canada’s careers page if you are viewing this posting on an external site.

This position will be posted until January 6, 2023.

We are committed to creating and fostering a diverse, inclusive, equitable and accessible work environment that reflects the Canadian communities that we work with and within. We strongly encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds. We are committed to making our recruitment process accessible to all candidates and provide accommodations upon request.

We thank all applicants for their interest to work at Crohn’s and Colitis Canada; however only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

WHAT TO EXPECT:

• Intro Call - a quick call with a member of the People team to discuss the role and learn who you are!
• First Interview - 60 minutes to go over your background, the role and Crohn’s and Colitis Canada. Also, an excellent time for you to ask any questions you have.
• Final Interview - 60 minutes for you to really demonstrate your skills by completing a task in advance and presenting to us, a chance to meet the team and your chance to interview us.
• Offer - Ideally, this is the part where we make the offer, you accept, and we all celebrate!

Job Types: Full-time, Permanent

Schedule:

• 8 hour shift

Ability to commute/relocate:

• TORONTO, ON: reliably commute or plan to relocate before starting work (required)

Education:

• Bachelor's Degree (preferred)

Experience:

• public relations: 1 year (preferred)

Work Location: Hybrid remote in TORONTO, ON