Manager, associate communications at The Home Depot in Toronto, ON  M3C 4H9

With a career at The Home Depot, you can be yourself and also be part of something bigger.

Working conditions: Office (Toronto store support centre, 1 Concorde Gate, Toronto, Ont.)

Position Purpose

The Home Depot Canada’s associate communications team (ACT) is seeking a manager who is passionate about developing and executing an internal communications strategy that engages, aligns and inspires our associates, and ties back to The Home Depot’s brand, vision, business goals, values, and organizational culture.

Reporting to the senior manager, associate communications and French language services, the candidate will manage various internal communication vehicles and their related content. They will also be responsible for collaborating with internal stakeholders to ensure the successful development and execution of communication plans in support of key business priorities, projects and events. 

Position Responsibilities

• Collaborate with key stakeholders to develop, manage and execute an annual internal communications strategy that supports The Home Depot Canada’s strategic goal and objectives.

• Develop, manage and execute internal communication plans to drive awareness of company-wide priorities and support key initiatives and business changes.

• For all communication plans, develop key messages that are appropriate for impacted stakeholders in a clear and engaging manner, to ensure the message is understood, retained and prompts the required actions.

• Reinforce The Home Depot’s core values and corporate messaging to all associates, ensuring consistency and brand messaging alignment, through appropriate vehicles.

• Provide support and guidance on internal communication issues, strategies and tactics.

• Provide guidance to direct reports to ensure the successful development, execution and evaluation of communication plans in support of key stakeholder projects/programs. 

• Develop direct reports through coaching, providing performance feedback and establishing career development plans.

• Develop sustained metrics to assess the ongoing effectiveness of existing internal communications vehicles and make recommendations for continuous improvement.

• Develop and enforce standards for internal communications processes and vehicles.

• Hold themselves and team members accountable for enforcing communication channel standards (e.g., Viva Engage Terms of Use) across their assigned business functions.

• Ensure the on-time distribution of planned communications.

• Regularly assess, update and enforce the emergency communication process to ensure ad-hoc business needs are addressed efficiently.

• Identify and explore new methods of delivering communications effectively and cost-efficiently to associates at all levels, both in the field and at the Store Support Centre (SSC). 

• Lead the planning and execution of various large scale events including project management, budget management, vendor contract negotiations, site visits, on-site support (setup, execution and tear down) and post-event evaluation.

• Create a culture of accountability amongst associates. 

Experience/Knowledge Required

• Must fulfill minimum time-in-position (1 year) and consistently meet performance expectations.

• Bachelor’s Degree (BA), preferably with a specialization in communications, or equivalent work experience in related fields

• IABC or CPRS certification an asset

• CHRL designation an asset 

• Minimum 5-7 years’ experience in internal communications or related field 

• Demonstrated leadership skills (coaching, mentoring, leading direct and/or indirect teams)

• Experience working cross-functionally, specifically with communications, public relations and marketing

• Exceptional at communicating with employees at all levels and in both remote and on-site locations 

• Superb writing and proof-reading skills, including knowledge of Canadian Press style and the ability to quickly and clearly communicate complex information

• Solid interpersonal and relationship-building skills with an ability to negotiate deadlines and deliverables with business partners at all levels

• Disciplined self-starter with the ability to work independently and strong judgement to know when to escalate issues

• Solid organizational skills and a proven ability to manage projects, multi-task and operate under pressure with competing deadlines, while maintaining attention to detail 

• Strong planning, problem solving and analytical skills 

• Strong work ethic and sense of responsibility and confidentiality 

• Experience working in retail/a store environment an asset 

• Familiarity with Microsoft 365 including Word, PowerPoint, SharePoint and Teams

• Knowledge of Smartsheets is an asset

• Bilingualism (English and French) an asset

Successful candidate will demonstrate:

• Ability to strategically plan (comm’s strategy)

• Process improvement

• Project management

• People leadership

• Attention to detail

• Editing, writing, proofreading skills