Director, Executive Leadership Development

Job Summary

The Director, Executive Leadership Development is responsible for defining, leading, and implementing the leadership and development strategy, including assessments and coaching, for the executive team and senior-level enterprise talent. The incumbent is accountable for guiding the members of CN’s executive team through tailored development and coaching programs. Additionally, the incumbent leads the implementation of an executive leadership development program aimed at identifying and developing CN’s future c-suite leaders. The position plays a pivotal role in shaping the executive bench with leaders who are agile, inclusive, foster a culture of excellence driving employee engagement, retention, and organizational success.

Main Responsibilities

Executive and Senior-Level Enterprise Development

·         Understand and articulate the accountabilities, experiences and capabilities that reflect executive excellence, current and future

·         Partner across the organization to design the executive development approach, processes, and practices

·         Work closely with leadership stakeholders to develop and lead CN’s Executive Leadership Development Program

·         Enable actions to accelerate development in order to ready an executive talent bench to meet future business demands

·         Identify insights from assessments and present information, recommendations and proposed executive-level development interventions and plans

·         Collaborate with the Learning and Development team to create targeted executive development programs based on assessment results and feedback data

·         Ensure alignment with business goals, talent management and succession priorities to promote a culture of learning and growth

·         Define and establish an internal coaching process and practice to ensure holistic, high touch and impactful support to optimize the ability for executive development

·         Provide one-on-one coaching to our executive leaders in support of feedback from their external assessments and as part of customized development plans. Ensure to embed the corporate values and role modelling behaviours into CN’s executive and leadership DNA. (We Care About Each Other; We Strive for Excellence; WE Succeed Together; We Lead Responsibly)

Process and Governance for Assessments

·         Design and execute a comprehensive executive assessment approach at the individual and organizational level

·         Act as an expert in the application of rigorous diagnostic frameworks and data-based assessment techniques (qualitative and quantitative)

·         Develop strategy on the purpose, relevance and use of assessments, insights, and industrial and organizational models to identify, develop and grow the executive leadership talent

·         Act as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) and change agent with impactful influencing skills to cultivate a workplace that fosters development and growth

·         Work collaboratively with SMEs, members of the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) and the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) group to ensure executive learning, development and skills building are aligned with CN’s corporate strategy

·         Stay abreast of trends and best practices in leadership development and integrating new ideas and approaches into existing programs

Working Conditions

The role has standard working conditions in an office environment with a regular workweek from Monday to Friday. The incumbent must be available to work evenings and weekends when needed. The role requires occasional travel (25%) across Canada and the United States (U.S.). Due to nature of the role, the incumbent must be able to work in a high-pressure environment, meet deadlines to ensure executive and board-level deliverables, handle pressure, and stress. 

Requirements

Experience

Industrial and Organizational Psychology

·         Minimum 15 years experience in Industrial and Organizational Psychology

·         Minimum 10 years of demonstrable experience in in-house leadership, talent management and executive development for large corporate organizations

o   Experience in implementing talent management and succession programs

o   Track record of effectively developing and implementing wide range or Executive and Organizational Development programs, systems and tools

o   Experience in a complex, multidivisional organization known for progressive Human Resources (HR) approaches*

o   Prior experience as an external consultant for a leading provider in executive development*

*Any experience for these above would be considered as an asset

Education/Certification/Designation

·         Master’s Degree in Industrial or Organizational Psychology

·         Certified executive coach

·         Certified practitioner in one or more 5-factor psychometric assessments

·         Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Industrial or Organizational Psychology*

*Any designation for these above would be considered as an asset

Competencies

·         Collaborates with others and shares information

·         Demonstrates agility and drives change

·         Knows the business and stays current on industry needs

·         Applies critical thinking

·         Sets direction and inspires others

·         Communicates with impact

Technical Skills/Knowledge

·         Understands the specific qualities and competencies that make effective leaders within the organization 

·         Fluently bilingual, both written and verbal (English, French)* 

*Any knowledge for any of the above would be considered as an asset

About CN

As a leading North American transportation and logistics company, CN is a true backbone of the economy. With a team of approximately 25,000 railroaders, our focus is on moving both our company and the economy forward. We transport US$200 billion worth of goods annually for a wide range of business sectors from resource to manufactured products to consumer goods, across a 20,000-mile network spanning Canada and mid-America. CN is the only Canadian company listed in the Transportation and Transportation Infrastructure sector of the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI). Launched in 1999, the DJSI World represents the gold standard for corporate sustainability. At CN, we work as ONE TEAM, focused on safety, sustainability and our customers, providing operational and supply chain excellence to deliver results.