Director of Continuous Improvement and Customer Experience

Organization: City of Hamilton

Position: Director, Continuous Improvement & Customer Experience

Reports to: Director Enterprise Portfolio Management

Location: Hybrid Role; Hamilton, Ontario

THE CITY

As one of Canada's largest cities, the City of Hamilton is home to a diverse and strong economy, an active and inclusive community, a robust cultural and dining scene, hundreds of kilometers of hiking trails and natural beauty just minutes from the downtown core, and so much more.

With a culture of collective ownership, steadfast integrity, courageous change, sensational service and engaged empowered employees, the City is seeking talented and ambitious individuals who embody these values to join their team.

THE OPPORTUNITY

The Director, Continuous Improvement & Customer Experience, is a visionary and strategic leader responsible for leading a team of staff, to identify and leverage opportunities to recover, rebuild and transform the organization with the aim of achieving an organization that is superior to that before the cybersecurity incident and overall enhancing the customer service experience. Chair of the Transformation Team, this role will lead the strategic "Think Tank" of change agents and problem solvers who will work to provide recommendations to Senior Leadership to ensure a consistent organizational approach for business sustainability, cost efficiencies, quality view and an enhanced customer experience while rebuilding and recovering stronger and better from the cybersecurity incident.

GENERAL DUTIES

Customer Experience:

• Drive the execution and delivery of an enterprise customer service experience strategy.
• Incorporate an internal and external quality focused customer-centric approach into decision-making processes, emphasizing the significance of aligning efforts with customer needs and satisfaction to drive efficient and effective solutions.
• Develop and implement strategies to enhance the overall customer experience, ensuring services are responsive and user-friendly.
• Conduct research and gather feedback to understand community needs and expectations.

Continuous Improvement:

• Lead the development, implementation, and management of a city-wide continuous improvement program by identifying, recommending, and coordinating shared cross-departmental solutions to operational issues and challenges.
• Prioritize cross-departmental system recovery.
• Encourage, identify, and track opportunities for rebuilding, quality and continuous improvement both vertically and horizontally across the organization to maintain continuity of service for customers and staff, add efficiencies, and enhance the customer experience.
• Gather information from business units and make recommendations to SLT on the enhancement of existing applications, acquisition of new applications, development of altered or new processes and enterprise solutions.
• Provide leadership and facilitate staff development in the utilization of problem solving and priority setting tools for the execution of breakthrough projects.
• Establish justification for Continuous Improvement efforts and link to objectives, Business Plan objectives, and the City's Strategic Plan.
• Participate in medium to large-sized strategic projects.Analyze, re-engineer and implement streamlined business processes to optimize workflows.

Think Tank Leadership:

• Facilitate brainstorming sessions and workshops to generate innovative ideas for improving municipal services.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to identify and evaluate opportunities for continuous improvement.
• Foster organizational collaboration by securing the input of subject matter experts and the Transformation team, to ensure a consistent organizational approach, business sustainability, cost efficiencies and an enhanced customer experience, as it relates to the rebuilding and transformation of city's system infrastructure while improving customer experience.

Project Development and Implementation:

• Oversee the pipeline of projects, ensuring alignment with strategic goals and community needs.
• Lead the design, planning, and execution of projects that enhance service delivery and operational efficiency.
• Consider operational recovery efforts that maintain continuity of service for customers and staff while minimizing service impacts.
• Utilize a project management approach to secure approvals and the assignment of resources to initiatives.
• Coordinate and manage projects effectively and ensures they are delivered on time, on budget, and to agreed quality standards.

Performance Metrics and Evaluation:

• Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the impact of initiatives and projects.
• Regularly assess and report on project outcomes, making recommendations for future improvements.
• Use statistical analysis to identify performance trends and make recommendations for project opportunities/enhanced services based on verified data testing.

Collaboration and Stakeholder Engagement:

• Build strong relationships with internal departments, community organizations, and stakeholders to foster a collaborative environment.
• Engage with community members to gather insights and promote transparency in the project development process.
• Ensure coordinated, timely and consistent messaging on recovery, rebuild and transformation efforts to staff, public and City of Hamilton stakeholders.
• Prepare and present reports on efficiency and effectiveness activities and plans to Council and senior levels of staff.

Innovation Culture:

• Promote a culture of innovation and continuous improvement within the municipality.
• Encourage staff participation in idea generation and implementation of best practices.
• Attend all EOC Management/Senior Leadership Team meetings to make recommendations and receive decisions.

Health & Safety:

• Demonstrated knowledge of the Health and Safety Act and applicable regulations as it relates to the position.
• Ensures that employees are provided with and use the appropriate equipment, material and/or procedures required to perform the assigned duties. Ensures that all employees perform work in accordance with applicable Health and Safety legislation and all City of Hamilton corporate and departmental policies and procedures. Ensures that appropriate action is recommended for those employees who do not work in compliance with legislation, policies and procedures.
• Works in accordance with the provisions of applicable Health and Safety legislation and all City of Hamilton corporate and departmental policies and procedures related to Occupational Health and Safety.

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

Mandatory Requirements

• Senior Leadership Experience:
• Demonstrated ability to influence and drive change at the director or senior management level, especially in large, complex organizations with multiple service lines.
• Customer Service Strategy:
• Proven experience setting up and leading customer service strategies, ideally in environments with direct customer/public interaction and measurable service outcomes.
• Continuous Improvement Expertise:
• Strong knowledge of continuous improvement methodologies (e.g., Lean Six Sigma), with a preference for candidates holding a Six Sigma Black Belt or equivalent. Experience leading continuous improvement initiatives across multiple departments or business units.
• Change Management:
• Demonstrated success in leading organizational change, including culture shift, process redesign, and cross-functional collaboration. Ability to drive change without direct authority over all stakeholders
• Program Management:
• Experience overseeing projects, aligning initiatives with strategic goals, and ensuring delivery on time, on budget, and to quality standards.
• Facilitation & Collaboration:
• Strong facilitation skills, with experience chairing cross-functional teams or "think tanks." Ability to build consensus, resolve conflict, and engage diverse stakeholders (internal and external).
• Analytical & Strategic Thinking:
• Advanced analytical skills, including the ability to define metrics, interpret data, and make evidence-based recommendations. Experience developing KPIs and using data to drive service improvements.
• Understanding of Public Sector/Community Needs:
• Experience working in or with public sector organizations, with an understanding of community engagement, needs assessment, and the unique challenges of municipal service delivery.
• Exceptional Communication:
• Highly developed verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to present to senior leadership, council, and the public.
• Education:
• University degree in Business, Commerce, Planning, or a related field, with progressive senior-level experience (municipal/government sector preferred).

Preferred Requirements

• Direct Experience in Customer Service Operations:
• First-hand experience running a customer service environment, especially in a context with high public interaction and service complexity.
• Experience Leading Consultants:
• Ability to guide and collaborate with external consultants on strategy development and implementation.
• Knowledge of Municipal Services:
• Familiarity with the breadth of municipal services (e.g., emergency services, public health, recreation, permits, public works, etc.) and the operational realities of delivering them.
• Track Record of Innovation:
• Demonstrated ability to foster a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.
• Health & Safety Knowledge:
• Understanding of relevant health and safety legislation and its application in a municipal context.