Position Title

Director, People and Culture

Department

People and Culture

Status

Full-time/Permanent

Location

Toronto, ON (Hybrid)

Application Deadline

Friday, October 2, 2026

Company Descripton The Canadian Football League is Canada’s home for professional football. With over a century of rich history and nine member teams across the nation, the CFL provides world-class entertainment and excitement to a passionate and dedicated fan base.

A season-long journey of unforgettable moments and must-see-TV broadcasts culminates in Canada’s largest single-day sporting event – the Grey Cup, where the newly crowned champions earn the right to hoist the iconic emblem of Canadian football.

The CFL is dedicated to entertaining fans in Canada and abroad. The league pursues that goal through a continuing commitment to modernize and elevate both the game and the business. The CFL is transforming its digital ecosystem and maximizing fan engagement through captivating content, data analytics, personalized marketing, and more.

Just as important as its industry-leading operations, the CFL proudly champions the values on which Canada was built – unity, diversity, inclusion, strength, and service to the community. The league is supportive of all peoples, cultures, and backgrounds, offering a respectful and inclusive working and playing environment, centered on acceptance and understanding. The CFL's successes are measured not only on the field and within its ranks, but also in its unparalleled impact in affecting positive change and bettering Canadian communities and lives.

Position Summary The Director, People and Culture creates a diverse and inclusive culture and ensures that the right people are in the right roles doing the right things to drive business success. The Director, People and Culture turns the league office strategy and business plan into actionable steps and executes efficiently and effectively. This role helps enable business success by researching, designing, implementing and managing best in class HR programs aligned with the long-term goals.

The Director, People and Culture will work with people managers to implement initiatives that drive individual and cross-functional engagement, collaboration and operational excellence. The incumbent will help foster a diverse and inclusive environment that values top performance and leverages all forms of diversity to drive results and effect a positive work culture.

Key Responsbilities

Collaborates with the senior leadership team to develop and execute the HR plan aligned with the league’s people strategy, budget and priorities





Understands the business environment and strategy and translates this into meaningful people programs, processes and policies

Consults and advises managers and employees, on all elements of the employee lifecycle

Ensures alignment across the league office and delivers consistent solutions to meet business needs

Collaborates with the senior leadership team to own all facets of HR including talent acquisition, compensation, talent management, organization design, change management and learning & development.

Owns people and culture projects from inception to implementation

Actively promotes the CFL as a great place to work and builds the employer brand to attract and retain diverse top talent

Manage a direct report, being a Manager of HR

Works with managers to execute the annual HR plan, in line with business priorities, goals and Initiatives

Provides people management coaching to managers and contributes to enhancing their managerial skills

Researches, develops and executes employee engagement, development and retention plans

Leads the annual objective setting, performance review and compensation adjustment processes

Drives implementation of learning & development and succession planning processes

Assists managers in meeting and exceeding people objectives for their team and function

Owns the advocacy for an HRIS within the league office and with the Board, if needed

Owns the potential selection, implementation, and continuous optimization of the HRIS, ensuring it is fully integrated, scalable, and aligned with business and people strategy

Leads the potential HRIS implementation as a transformation initiative, including process redesign, change management, data integrity, and user adoption

Uses data to identify trends and recommends solutions to support the business

Generates and analyzes people metrics to assist managers in making optimal people-related decisions

Guides managers and employees in the resolution of people-related matter

Develops, interprets and communicates HR policies and processes

Ensures that CFL’s processes and procedures adhere to and help advance the CFL’s commitment to Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility

Qualifications & Skills





University degree in a relevant discipline or equivalent experience

CHRL designation achieved or in progress is considered an asset

Minimum 7 years of progressive Human Resources experience; experience in sports and entertainment or in a start-up business environment

Experience evaluating, selecting, and implementing an HRIS, including overall organizational communication and change management planning is a definite asset

Senior HR professional with generalist experience who has acted as the sole HR practitioner is a definite asset

Experience supporting all provinces across Canada with knowledge of all Provincial employment legislation

Accomplished relationship-builder, skilled at inspiring, motivating and influencing

Strong business acumen and able to build initiatives, programs and policies to drive business success

Proven project management skills

Takes a pragmatic and balanced approach to all people and business matters

Confident with proven communication skills and the ability to earn credibility and trust

Able to gain and maintain the cooperation and collaboration of managers and employees

Translates vision and strategy into a plan and executes flawlessly

Able to maintain confidentiality and handle sensitive situations and information with discretion and professionalism

Demonstrates courage and conviction in advancing the people plan A creative problem-solver with well-developed conflict resolution skills

Team-player and mentor, capable of functioning with confidence and credibility at every level of the organization

Thrives in a fast-paced, evolving environment

Able to manage multiple and potentially conflicting long-term projects and day-to-day priorities

Expected Compensation The expected compensation range for this position is $125,000 - $150,000 which includes base pay plus bonuses and variable incentive pay, if eligible. This range represents a positive faith estimate for this position and should serve simply as a guide. The specific compensation offered may vary based on factors such as candidate experience, skills, budget, and location.

Other Considerations Hybrid Model

The incumbent will be required to attend the office in accordance with the CFL Hybrid Work Policy. In addition, you are required to attend meetings and other business events at the office or other venues as business needs dictate.

Work Schedule

Due to the nature of the business, the incumbent must be available and willing to work evenings, weekends and holidays, as required.

Travel

As required.

📌 Director, People and Culture (Toronto)
🏢 Canadian Football League
📍 Toronto