Communications Advisor ****AMENDMENT - Work Environment****

Work environment

As one of Canada’s Best Diversity Employers, AAFC is proud to celebrate our achievement in creating a diverse, respectful, and positive workplace where all employees are valued and recognized for their unique qualities, ideas, voices and perspectives.

JOB DESCRIPTION:
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada provides leadership in the growth and development of a competitive, innovative and sustainable Canadian agriculture and agri-food sector. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada provides leadership in the growth and development of a competitive, innovative and sustainable Canadian agriculture and agri-food sector. The activities of the Department range from the farmer to the consumer, from the farm to global markets, through all phases of producing, processing and marketing of farm, food and bio-based products. The responsibilities for Public Opinion Research and Consultations are currently expanding into a new team at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

Below are examples of the activities to be undertaken by the Communications Advisor:
•Prepare statements of work and contract specifications for Consultations and Public Opinion Research (POR) products and services. Develop, assess and evaluate POR and Consultations products, such as proposals, estimates, questionnaires, moderator’s guides, and reports.

• Manage various aspects of POR and Consultations projects

•Contribute to a strategic plan a strategic plan for departmental and Ministerial consultation and engagement activities; and the annual public opinion research (POR) plan.

•Contribute to the design, development and maintenance of consultations and engagement services, products and tools to support departmental activities.

•Keep up to date on qualitative and quantitative research methods, government POR procurement policies and procedures, and POR industry standards.

•Prepare strategic summaries, briefing notes, memos and presentation material of POR and Consultations commissioned by the department and coordinate the publication and distribution of these summaries.

Intent of the process

*The immediate need is to staff 1 indeterminate position for the location indicated for this process.

A pool of qualified candidates may be established to staff similar positions with various tenures as well as various linguistic requirements within Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC).

In the event that an employee of the public service is qualified through this process, and there is a temporary need, he/she may be considered for acting or assignment/secondment opportunities.

Positions to be filled: 1

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

Contact information for 2 references.

You must meet all essential qualifications in order to be appointed to the position. Other qualifications may be a deciding factor in choosing the person to be appointed. Some essential and other qualifications will be assessed through your application. It is your responsibility to provide appropriate examples that illustrate how you meet each qualification. Failing to do so could result in your application being rejected.

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

NOTE: Candidates must clearly demonstrate IN THEIR COVER LETTER how they meet the education and experience factors listed in the essential and asset qualifications. Candidates must use the criteria as a header and then write one or two paragraphs with concrete examples to demonstrate how they meet the experience criteria required, including the duration of the experience. Resumes will be used as a secondary source to validate the experience described in the cover letter. Failure to provide this information in the requested format may result in your application being rejected.

A degree* from a recognized post-secondary institution.
Notes:
1. Based on their education, training and/or experience, indeterminate incumbents of positions in the IS classification are deemed to meet the minimum education standard whenever a bachelor's degree without specialization is called for in a position classified as IS.

2. At the manager's discretion, an acceptable combination of education, training and/or experience, may serve as an alternative to the minimum education standard.

*Unless it is otherwise specified (e.g., Master’s degree), the term “degree” refers to a baccalaureate as established by educational authorities.

If you were educated outside of Canada, you must have your certificates and/or diplomas assessed against Canadian education standards. Click the link below to contact the Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials (CICIC).

Degree equivalency

Recent* and significant** experience in providing input to public opinion research analyses, strategies or plans.

Recent* and significant** experience in designing, coordinating and/or conducting public opinion research projects (e.g. with public or private sector organizations).

Recent* experience in preparing research summaries, reports, briefing notes, or presentations.

*Recent means within the last five years.

**Significant means experience that was a core part of the candidate’s employment for at least three years.

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

Bilingual - Imperative (BBB/BBB)

Information on language requirements

Knowledge of the Mandatory Procedures for Public Opinion Research as outlined in the Government of Canada’s Directive on the Management of Communications.

Knowledge of best practices for opinion based research as detailed in the 10 Core Principles of the Marketing Research and Intelligence Association (MRIA) Code of Conduct.

Knowledge of qualitative and quantitative research methods (e.g. best practices for questionnaire design and data analysis).

Knowledge of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) key initiatives.

Interactive Communication
Writing Skills
Strategic Thinking
Client Focus
Teamwork
Planning and organizing
Judgement
Initiative

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

A degree from a recognized post-secondary institution with a specialization in communications, public administration, political science, sociology or public opinion and policy analysis or a Graduate Certificate in research analysis or Marketing Research and Business Intelligence.

If you were educated outside of Canada, you must have your certificates and/or diplomas assessed against Canadian education standards. Click the link below to contact the Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials (CICIC).

Degree equivalency

Recent* experience using online survey software (e.g. FluidSurveys, Voxco, Simple Surveys, etc.).

Recent* experience in preparing statements of work, proposals or contract specifications for research projects.

Recent* experience using Microsoft Excel, SPSS, R or other software tool for statistical analysis of opinion or marketing research data.

Experience conducting qualitative research such as interviews or focus groups.

Experience in writing public environment analysis reports.

*Recent means within the last five years.

**Significant means experience that was a core part of the candidate’s employment for at least three years.

Selection may be limited to members of the following Employment Equity groups: Aboriginal persons, persons with disabilities, visible minorities, women

Information on employment equity

In support of achieving a diversified workforce, consideration may be given to candidates self-identifying as belonging to one of the following Employment Equity groups: Aboriginal peoples, Persons with a Disability; Visible Minorities, Women.

Ability and willingness to work overtime or adjust work schedule according to organizational needs on short notice.

Some travel may be required.

Conditions of employment

Secret security clearance

Other information

Applications submitted by email will not be accepted. You must apply on-line through www.jobs.gc.ca.

Persons with disabilities preventing them from applying on-line are asked to contact 1-800-645-5605.

Persons are entitled to participate in the appointment process in the official language of their choice. Applicants are asked to indicate their preferred official language in their application.

Communication for this process will be sent via email. It is the responsibility of the candidate to ensure accurate contact information is provided and updated as required. Candidates who apply to this selection process should include an email address that accepts email from unknown users (some email systems block these types of email).

All communication relating to this process, including email correspondence, may be used in the assessment of qualifications.

Appointment decisions may be based on one or more of the following criteria:
- Matching of the individual's experience or qualifications to the strengths and weaknesses of the work team.
- Matching of the individual's experience or qualifications to the specific duties of the position being staffed.
- Depth, breadth, type of work-specific experience.
- Level/degree of one or more competencies/qualifications.

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled, diverse workforce reflective of Canadian society. As a result, it promotes employment equity and encourages candidates to indicate voluntarily on their application if they are a woman, an Aboriginal person, a person with a disability or a member of a visible minority group.

The Public Service of Canada is also committed to developing inclusive, barrier-free selection processes and work environments. If contacted in relation to a job opportunity or testing, you should advise the Public Service Commission or the departmental official in a timely fashion of the accommodation measures which must be taken to enable you to be assessed in a fair and equitable manner. Information received relating to accommodation measures will be addressed confidentially.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans and to Canadian citizens, in that order.

Information on the preference to veterans

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.