Policy Development Officer - City of Toronto, Toronto

About this opportunity

The City of Toronto's Employment & Social Services (TESS) division is seeking a Policy Development Officer to provide strategic policy leadership and expert advice. This role is crucial for strengthening the social and economic well-being of Torontonians by addressing complex social policy issues, emerging trends, and service modernization. As a member of the Strategic Planning, Research, and Engagement unit, you will play a key role in advancing the City’s Poverty Reduction Strategy and improving supports for residents facing financial hardship in Toronto.

Day-to-day

In this dynamic role, you will lead and support various projects, engage with diverse stakeholders, and drive the development of impactful policies. Your daily responsibilities will encompass a range of activities focused on policy, research, and project management to benefit Toronto residents.

• Lead strategic policy analysis and development processes by formulating and recommending new policies and approaches and detailed implementation plans to support the delivery of programs and services.
• Apply an equity lens to policies, programs, and strategies, ensuring strategic alignment with actions outlined in the Reconciliation Action Plan and the Toronto Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism, and assess the impact of proposed changes on various community groups.
• Provide expert interpretation of federal, provincial, and municipal strategies, policy, and legislation, identifying the impact of changes or new initiatives, and recommending opportunities for improved service planning and delivery.
• Monitor and analyze provincial and federal policy developments and maintain effective relationships with government partners to support advocacy and system transformation opportunities.

• Undertake consultation with stakeholders and lead public consultation processes.
• Foster strategic partnerships and build effective working relationships with service providers, Indigenous organizations, Black-mandated/Black-led/Black-serving organizations, organizations serving other equity-deserving groups (i.e. refugees, newcomers, 2SLGBTQ+ residents, youth, etc.), community and social sector stakeholders, City divisions, other orders of government, and elected officials.
• Plan and carry out presentations and consultations with community and sector stakeholders, technical consultants, members of the public, and other groups, as appropriate, to develop new policies and programs, and ensure awareness of existing and emerging issues and concerns.
• Liaise with cluster and corporate partners to maintain strategic alignment and oversight across all areas that impact divisional work, priorities, and clients.
• Participate in various committees and act as a divisional representative.

• Research, analyze and evaluate policies/programs.
• Lead and directly conduct ongoing research (qualitative and quantitative) and analysis of trends and activities related to poverty, homelessness, income security, and related services to provide information and identify emerging issues and opportunities to senior management.
• Lead the interpretation and synthesis of administrative, demographic, and socio-economic data to identify trends, evaluate outcomes, and support evidence-informed decision-making.
• Embed the collection, analysis, and reporting of disaggregated socio-demographic data into projects to inform divisional projects.
• Apply evaluation best practices to develop targets, criteria, and outcomes to measure the effectiveness and outcomes of programs and policies.
• Monitor the implementation of policies and programs and evaluate their ongoing impact through identifying and operationalizing metrics, targets, and outcome measures using a human-centered design, and data-informed approach.
• Develops and interprets research and analysis tools and databases to support evidence-informed decision-making.
• Prepare and present Council reports, research analysis, major funding requests, briefing notes, presentations, and other policy reports/recommendations, as required, by senior management and consistent with unit, divisional, and corporate priorities and strategic directions.

• Manage project teams to research, prepare, and develop strategies for integrating programs and services.
• Collaborate with project team members, ensuring effective teamwork, high standards of work quality and organizational performance, continuous learning, and encouraging innovation in others.
• Apply project management skills in the leadership of staff teams on projects related to policy development, implementation, and evaluation.
• Champion the implementation of policies and programs leading to positive outcomes for equity-deserving groups and applies an intersectional, equity-driven analysis to project planning and evaluation.
• Develop and manage project budgets, requests for proposals, and service contracts with external consultants and other partners.

Requirements

To succeed in this Policy Development Officer role, candidates should possess a strong background in public policy, research, and project management, coupled with excellent communication and analytical abilities.

• Post-secondary education in public policy, public administration, social science, or related discipline or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Considerable experience with research methodologies (quantitative and qualitative) and using evidence to support policy and program development, and evaluation.
• Considerable experience in policy and strategy development including experience advancing knowledge translation between research, policy, and operations.
• Considerable experience with project management including project design, development, and implementation.
• Considerable experience in community engagement/consultation processes, including relationship-building, facilitation, consensus-building, and conflict resolution.
• Experience using data analysis and visualization tools to support policy development, program evaluation, and strategic planning.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to communicate with a broad range of internal and external stakeholders, senior management, and political representatives through preparing reports, and delivering effective presentations.
• Able to work independently, and collaboratively in a team environment to produce high-quality work.
• Highly developed strategic, organizational, analytical, and conceptual thinking skills with the capacity to understand complex operating and policy issues, and performance measures, as well as the ability to respond to emerging issues.