Senior Director, Program Design (2026 - 0194)

Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) is seeking a highly skilled Senior Director, Program Design to oversee the development and optimization of technology workforce development programs and enterprise-focused initiatives. This is a backfill for a vacated position within the leadership team. The ideal candidate will possess extensive experience in program design, a deep understanding of emerging technologies, and a strategic mindset to drive impactful solutions that empower Canadian businesses to adopt and leverage cutting-edge technologies.

Reporting to the Vice-President, Capacity Building and Innovation, this role will be responsible for crafting and executing a comprehensive portfolio of initiatives that support organizations in building a future-ready workforce and successfully integrating new technologies. This leadership role requires deep collaboration with key industry stakeholders, employers, and technology partners to accomplish scalable, high-impact learning solutions and business transformation initiatives.

The Senior Director will lead the design, development, and continuous enhancement of ICTC’s programs, ensuring alignment with evolving market demands, industry trends, and labor market insights. In this role, you will champion the integration of new technologies through strategic workforce planning, training, and change management to accelerate the growth and global competitiveness of Canadian companies

Do you have experience designing cutting-edge, industry-informed programs? Are you business savvy and passionate about Canadian companies’ prospects in a global economy? Are you results-oriented, a superior communicator, organized, solutions-focused, and entrepreneurial? Do you have a strong network of decision-makers in industry? Do you have a solid understanding of emerging technologies and how they can be deployed to Canada’s advantage? If so, this role may be for you! 

Key responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership and Program Execution

Drive ICTC’s strategic growth by identifying and advancing opportunities to scale or redesign ICTC’s program portfolio for industry, federal and provincial governments  and international partners. Work closely with program teams, business development, and government relations colleagues to position programs as high-impact, funder-aligned investments that address workforce and digital economy priorities and drive measurable outcomes.

Shape the overarching vision and strategy framework for a diverse portfolio of programs to ensure they develop a common throughline that supports the scaling of Canadian companies, especially in sectors which are key to growing the Canadian economy, and accelerates their national and global market expansion through the adoption of emerging technologies.

Develop innovative programs in response to emerging industry needs, ensuring alignment with corporate objectives, government priorities, and best practices.

Solicit continuous feedback from industry leaders, industry associations, and other key stakeholders to refine program content, learner engagement strategies, and ensure program relevance to current and forecasted labour market needs.

Identify and lead opportunities to localize, adapt, and expand ICTC programs for prioritized provincial and international funders, ensuring program design and delivery reflect regional priorities, cultural contexts, and jurisdictional requirements to maximize relevance and impact.

Governance & Performance Management

In close collaboration with colleagues delivering programs and conducting evaluation and impact studies, design and implement robust performance and evaluation frameworks to measure the effectiveness of programs, ensuring measurable impact aligned with ICTC’s goals.

Use ICTC and other relevant research, labor market information, workforce trends, and performance metrics to drive continuous program design improvements, ensuring outcomes are optimized and actionable.

Implement program governance structures and risk management practices.

Maintain flexibility in the portfolio of programs, adapting to shifts in business needs, market conditions, and emerging technologies.

Team Leadership & Development

Lead, coach and mentor a high-performing team to develop their skills, performance, and career growth.

Foster a culture of cross-departmental collaboration, accountability, and innovation across ICTC.

Provide strategic guidance and professional development opportunities to enhance team capabilities.

Qualifications & Experience

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Education, Business Administration, Technology, Engineering, or a related field.

Minimum of 10 years of experience in program design and workforce development, with at least 5 years in a senior leadership capacity.

Expertise in technology workforce trends, emerging digital skills, and enterprise technology adoption strategies.

Proven track record leading and motivating high-performing teams to achieve ambitious targets, people management and coaching skills; experience in supervising manager level employees.

Proven track record in building large-scale programs that drive business growth and global competitiveness.

Experience working with government agencies, corporate partners, and economic development agencies.

Knowledge of Canada’s economy, labour market and technological advancements.

Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills and ability to analyze labor market and workforce data to inform program design strategy.

Strong business acumen, entrepreneurial orientation, and a track record of achieving results that drive business growth and performance.

Expertise in strategic planning, program monitoring, risk management, and performance evaluation.

Demonstrated ability to drive organizational transformation and implement continuous improvement initiatives.

Strong facilitation and negotiation skills, with the ability to engage and align cross-functional teams.

Exceptional stakeholder management, interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to influence senior executives and manage teams.

Expert-level experience in using project management tools and Microsoft Office, including Outlook, SharePoint, Word, Excel, Teams, and PowerPoint.

Fluent in English. French proficiency is a strong asset.

Experience with government relations is a strong asset.

Are you?

An inspirational leader- Are you someone who motivates others, drives meaningful change, and navigates challenges with grace and resilience?

Driven and Determined - Are you highly motivated, self-starting, and willing to go above and beyond expectations with the drive to improve and exceed goals?

Optimism with a “can-do”, results-driven orientation – Are you able to think creatively and successfully navigate barriers and obstacles? Do you stay focused on achieving priority goals and results?

Dynamic, resilient, and flexible - Are you able to keep up with and embrace the rapid pace of change, advances in technology, intense competition and unparalleled levels of uncertainty? Are you open to change, evolving requirements, continuous feedback, and have the capacity to work with remote teams across Canada?

A strategic, creative thinker – Are you skilled in analyzing complex situations and relationships? Are you able to channel your curiosity to navigate intricate challenges and drive innovation? Do you identify inter-relationships, patterns, and trends while noticing configurations across seemingly unrelated events? Do you synthesize information to pinpoint opportunities and issues? Do you tend to visualize new possibilities, challenge assumptions, and generate options to solve problems, seize opportunities?

Collaborative - Are you able to work with and through others to achieve results? Do you have the emotional intelligence to understand the needs and perspectives of others, share information, report back, and be a strong team player?

A decisive decision-maker – Are you able to analyze situations carefully, seek diverse perspectives, and make decisions that align with strategic goals and objectives?

Ethical - Can you work with and steward confidential information and data? (This role requires high integrity, good judgment, confidentiality, and ethical compliance)

A champion of diversity and inclusion - Are you committed to diversity and inclusion and understanding the issues and challenges faced by diverse groups?

An excellent communicator – Do you have outstanding interpersonal and communication skills?

Persuasive – Are you able to present concepts, ideas and proposals and close the deal?

Strategic thinker and doer – Are you an expert in developing and executing strategic plans?

Reliable – Do you demonstrate reliability, organizational skills, and accountability to meet and exceed project and funder deliverable requirements?

Passionately committed to lifelong learning - stay abreast on industry trends, seek out new perspectives, and invest in your own personal and professional growth.

Why Join Us?

Be part of a dynamic, mission-driven, entrepreneurial organization committed to advancing Canada's competitive advantage in the digital economy.

Lead high-impact programs that drive economic growth and shape the future of Canadian businesses.

Work in an agile, collaborative, innovative, and forward-thinking environment where we are always helping each other achieve collective goals.  

Location 

Remote, anywhere in Canada (preferable Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal)

Term 

Permanent position, with competitive salary, benefits, vacation, personal time and RRSP contribution.

About ICTC 

ICTC is a neutral, not-for-profit national centre of expertise with the mission of strengthening Canada's digital advantage in the global economy. For over 30 years, and with a team of 80+ experts, we have delivered forward-looking research, practical policy advice, and capacity building solutions for individuals and businesses. Our goal is to ensure that technology is utilized to drive economic growth and innovation, and that Canada's workforce remains competitive on a global scale.

OUR MISSION IS TO: Strengthen Canada’s digital advantage in a global economy

OUR VISION IS TO: Foster globally competitive Canadian industries and a prosperous society empowered by innovative digital solutions.

ICTC is committed to being an equal opportunity employer. If you require accommodation measures during any phase of the hiring process, please notify us as soon as possible. All information received in relation to accommodation requests will be kept confidential.

ICTC respectfully acknowledges that ICTC headquarters is on the ancestral and unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg People.