Winnipeg Humane Society – Job Posting # 2026-09-09 Date: October 30th, 2026 Position Title: Director, Clinic Operations Department: Clinic Reports to: Senior Director of Operations Classification: Non-Union Start Date: ASAP Closing Date for Applicants: Open until filled Position Summary: The Director, Clinic Operations provides strategic leadership and oversight across the Clinic Operations, Clinic Medical, and One Health portfolios, fostering a compassionate, collaborative, and accountable leadership culture. The role provides direction to Senior Veterinarians, the Outreach Veterinarian, the Manager of Clinic Operations, the Manager of Clinic Medical, and One Health, while working in partnership with Senior Veterinarians to support the leadership, mentorship, and professional development of veterinarians and registered veterinary technologists (RVTs). Key areas of accountability include strategic planning and execution, financial responsibility, operational sustainability, leadership development, and succession planning to ensure the effective delivery and long-term viability of veterinary services. Reporting to the Senior Director of Operations, the Director translates organizational priorities into departmental strategy and operational outcomes, exercising independent judgment while fostering strong collaboration across departments and organizational teams. *Who are we?*
· One of the oldest registered Non-Profit charities in Manitoba funded primarily by donations and events.
· An innovative community service organization committed to protecting animals from suffering, and to promoting their welfare and dignity.
· A team of generous partners, donors, hardworking volunteers and committed staff united in the belief that every animal deserves dignity and love.
· One of the largest and more recognized animal shelter and welfare organizations in Canada.
· Always growing, changing, and adapting to meet the expectations of the community and the needs of Winnipeg’s animal population. RESPONSIBILITIES SPECIFIC TO THE JOB LEVEL Leadership
· Apply a reconciliation-focused, culturally safe, and trauma-informed approach to leadership, strategic planning, decision-making, service delivery, and community engagement.
· Develop, implement, and periodically review a comprehensive strategic plan for the portfolios, translating organizational priorities into clear departmental objectives, annual priorities, and measurable outcomes.
· Establish departmental priorities and service expectations that reflect WHS's strategic direction, available financial and human resources, animal welfare objectives, and community needs.
· Build an accountable leadership culture by setting clear expectations for direct reports, supporting their development, and ensuring managers and Senior Veterinarians have appropriate authority and accountability for day-to-day decisions and service delivery.
· Promote a respectful, inclusive, and psychologically safe workplace that reflects WHS values and supports effective collaboration across departments.
· Lead workforce and succession planning at the departmental level, including assessment of leadership capacity, organizational design, staffing models, recruitment priorities, and critical skill requirements.
· Establish strategies that support employee engagement, retention, leadership development, and organizational resilience.
· Lead performance management and development for direct reports, setting transparent objectives and evaluating results against agreed accountabilities.
· Ensure managers and Senior Veterinarians establish appropriate staff development, training, and performance-management practices within their teams; delegate routine supervision and employee scheduling to the appropriate leaders.
· Work collaboratively with Human Resources and the Senior Director of Operations on complex employee relations matters, ensuring employment decisions and practices are consistent with WHS policies, applicable legislation, and the collective agreement.
· Model empathetic, trauma-informed, and harm-reduction leadership, recognizing the needs of staff, volunteers, community members, and the animals served. Management
- Provide strategic and administrative oversight of the portfolios, ensuring departmental plans, service models, policies, and resource allocation support organizational priorities and approved budgets.
- Establish a regular leadership and performance-review cycle with direct reports to assess progress, resolve strategic barriers, and support coordinated decision-making; routine team meetings are delegated to managers and portfolio leads.
- Identify, assess, and manage departmental operational, financial, regulatory, workplace-safety, and reputational risks; bring significant risks and recommended responses to the Senior Director of Operations.
- Oversee the development, implementation, and periodic review of policies, procedures, internal controls, and reporting mechanisms, ensuring appropriate delegation and compliance with relevant standards and requirements.
- Champion evidence-informed practices, continuous improvement, and evaluation of service models across all portfolios.
- Represent the portfolios in senior leadership planning and cross-departmental decision-making and ensure timely escalation of matters requiring organizational direction. Financial
- Develop, manage, and monitor departmental operating budgets in collaboration with Finance, ensuring responsible resource allocation and accountability for financial performance.
- Ensure appropriate financial, operational, and program records and reporting systems are in place, with day-to-day recordkeeping delegated to the appropriate managers and professional leads.
- Lead the development of annual operating budgets and financial forecasts with Finance and direct reports, aligning proposed expenditures and staffing plans with strategic priorities and available funding.
- Monitor expenditures and financial performance against approved budgets; identify variances, emerging financial risks, and cost pressures, and develop recommendations and corrective strategies.
- Regularly assess program costs, staffing models, procurement approaches, assets,



and operational efficiencies; identify cost-containment opportunities and recommend changes to services or resource allocation where sustainability is at risk. Business Development
- Identify and evaluate opportunities for strategic partnerships, service development, and innovation that advance WHS priorities and demonstrate a clear community need and sustainable business case.
- Provide strategic oversight of approved business development initiatives, ensuring proposals have defined objectives, resource requirements, risk assessments, and financial implications; delegate project implementation to the appropriate lead.
- Establish measures to evaluate the outcomes, financial performance, and organizational value of business development initiatives, and report results to senior leadership.
- Recommend opportunities to expand, modify, partner, or discontinue initiatives based on demonstrated outcomes, strategic fit, and financial sustainability. RESPONSIBILITIES SPECIFIC TO THE ROLE
- Provide strategic and administrative oversight of veterinary services, ensuring service models, staffing resources, and operational priorities support high standards of animal welfare, organizational objectives, and financial sustainability.
- Ensure a clear distinction between administrative and operational oversight and professional veterinary authority. Clinical medical decisions, treatment protocols, prescribing practices, and other matters requiring veterinary judgment remain under the authority of appropriately licensed veterinary professionals, including the Senior Veterinarians.
- Build and maintain strategic relationships with internal departments, external service providers, veterinary partners, and other stakeholders to support coordinated, effective, and sustainable service delivery.
- Ensure appropriate governance and accountability frameworks are in place for medical supplies, equipment, controlled substances, clinical records, and related regulatory requirements; delegate routine inventory and equipment management to the appropriate operational and clinical leads.
- Oversee procurement strategy and resource planning for veterinary supplies, equipment, and contracted services, in collaboration with Senior Veterinarians and managers, balancing quality, service requirements, and cost effectiveness.
- Ensure appropriate systems and accountabilities are maintained for surgical, complication, mortality, controlled drug, and individual patient medical records, with qualified and operational responsibilities clearly assigned.
- Support the evaluation and adoption of evidence-informed shelter medicine and animal welfare practices in partnership with Senior Veterinarians and relevant professional staff.
- Provide strategic participation and direction, as appropriate, in Population Rounds and the Protecting Animal Welfare Committee, supporting alignment with organizational policy and animal welfare objectives.
- Support animal outcome decision-making processes by ensuring alignment with organizational policies, operational considerations, and animal welfare standards, while respecting veterinarians' professional authority in matters requiring veterinary medical judgment.
- Ensure appropriate systems are in place to monitor regulatory compliance, licensing, professional standards, workplace safety, incident reporting, and relevant policies; require timely escalation and resolution of identified gaps.
- Provide strategic oversight of workforce planning and recruitment for veterinary and technical roles in partnership with Senior Veterinarians and managers, considering service needs, financial capacity, and succession requirements.
- Lead the development and ongoing evaluation of an integrated sustainability plan for the WHS Clinic and One Health portfolios, including recommendations to continue, expand, modify, restructure, or discontinue services.
- Establish expectations for departmental workforce planning, leadership coverage, and succession planning. Ensure managers and portfolio leads are accountable for day-to-day scheduling, leave coverage, and professional development processes within approved staffing models and the collective agreement.
- Establish performance expectations and indicators for veterinary service delivery in collaboration with Senior Veterinarians; review operational, financial, and service outcomes at a strategic level without assuming responsibility for professional assessment of clinical practice.
- Provide strategic leadership and oversight of the One Health portfolio, ensuring program objectives, service delivery models, and partnerships are aligned with WHS priorities, community-identified needs, reconciliation commitments, and approved funding.
- Ensure clear program leadership, reporting relationships, decision-making authority, and accountability for staff and volunteer coordination; delegate day-to-day program planning, scheduling, and implementation to the appropriate program lead.
- Ensure One Health services and partnerships are developed and delivered in a culturally safe, trauma-informed, and respectful manner, guided by community priorities and informed by ongoing engagement with Indigenous communities and other partners.
- Establish measurable objectives and performance indicators for One Health, and regularly evaluate program outcomes, service reach, resource use, funding obligations, and operational and financial risks. Provide reports and recommendations to senior leadership, including opportunities to improve, adjust, restructure, or
- discontinue activities where required to support sustainability.
- Ensure appropriate operational planning, policies, procedures, risk controls, and resource assessments are completed before new One Health services or initiatives proceed.




- Monitor programs alignment with approved budgets and funding agreements and recommend adjustments when program delivery is not sustainable. QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE The following are mandatory qualifications and experience for this role: Specific to the job level:
- Post secondary education in a relevant discipline.
- Minimum five years of progressively responsible management and leadership experience, including demonstrated responsibility for operational planning, financial management, budget oversight, performance management, and leading multidisciplinary teams in a complex service environment.
- Demonstrated experience developing and implementing strategic or operational plans, evaluating programs and service models, leading organizational or service improvements, and reporting performance and recommendations to senior leadership and/or a Board of Directors.
- Access to a vehicle and valid Manitoba driver’s license. Specific to the role:
- Demonstrated leadership experience in veterinary services, animal welfare, healthcare, social services, or a comparable regulated and/or community-service environment.
- Demonstrated understanding of veterinary clinic operations, animal welfare practices, or comparable regulated healthcare/service environments, including the ability to work effectively with licensed professionals
- Demonstrated experience managing departmental budgets, evaluating staffing models and resource requirements, and assessing the financial and operational sustainability of programs and services.
- Experience working respectfully and effectively with underrepresented populations, diverse communities, and complex social issues; experience supporting culturally safe and collaborative partnerships is an asset. The following qualifications are desired and would be considered assets:
- Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree or Registered Veterinary Technician (RVT) certification.
- Experience in a non-profit, community-service, or mission-driven organization.
- Demonstrated knowledge and application of the Five Domains Model of animal welfare KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS The following are mandatory knowledge and skills for this role: Specific to the job level:
- Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present complex operational, financial, and program information and recommendations to senior leadership.
- Ability to establish and maintain effective relationships across organizational levels and with external partners, professional stakeholders, and community organizations.
- Strong strategic, analytical, and problem-solving skills, including the ability to assess complex issues and risks, interpret performance and financial information, evaluate options, and make evidence-informed recommendations.
- Demonstrated ability to lead through others, develop leaders, establish clear accountabilities, and manage performance in a multidisciplinary, unionized environment.
- Demonstrated financial acumen, including budget development, financial monitoring, forecasting, resource allocation, and identification of cost-containment opportunities.
- Ability to lead change, build organizational capacity, and foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement, with an understanding of collective agreement requirements.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office 365 Suite (Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, and Excel). Specific to the role:
- Ability to integrate animal welfare science, evidence-informed practices, and the Five Domains Model into strategic and operational planning, while respecting the professional scope and authority of licensed veterinary professionals.
- Ability to evaluate service quality and outcomes from an organizational and community perspective, and to support accessible, respectful, and responsive service delivery. The following knowledge and skills are desired and would be considered assets:
- Understanding of modern shelter medicine, veterinary service delivery, and the regulatory and professional environment in which veterinary teams operate.
- Knowledge of animal welfare issues and the ability to assess program and service impacts on domestic animals.
- Bilingual (English/French). PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES
- Strong sense of commitment and personal dedication.
- Demonstrated growth mindset and ability to problem solve.
- Commitment to organizational and team member development.
- Solutions oriented, and results driven.
- Ability to independently manage multiple tasks in a fast-paced environment.
- Strong aptitude to establish and maintain positive working relationships with others, both internally and externally, to achieve the goals of the organization. Exemplifies Winnipeg Humane Society’s Core Values:
· We let empathy guide our commitment to animal welfare and approach to all individual beings, people, and animals alike.
· We value and accept each other.
· We are committed as an organization to lead with integrity and accountability.
· We are guided by innovation and remain open to change.
· We foster an inclusive, purposeful, and safe communication space.

How to Apply
Forward your resume and cover letter with salary expectations to: Attention: Meghan Irwin [email protected] Please quote the Job Posting Number in your email or cover letter subject line. NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE The WHS is committed to providing accessible employment and ensuring that our recruitment, assessment, and selection process is barrier-free. If a candidate requires accommodation during the hiring process, Human Resources Services will work with the individual to meet their needs. The WHS values diversity and equality in its team. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or age. We thank all applicants for their interest, but only those selected for an interview will be contacted. For more information and other employment opportunities, visit https://winnipeghumanesociety.ca/about-us/careers

Advantages:
- Company events
- Company pension
- Disability insurance
- Employee assistance program
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
- Store discount
- Vision care
- Wellness program Work

Location:
In person

📌 Director, Clinic Operations (Winnipeg)
🏢 Winnipeg Humane Society
📍 Winnipeg