Senior Advisor

Update: New closing date

Important messages

We are committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free work environment, starting with the hiring process. If you need to be accommodated during any phase of the evaluation process, please use the Contact information below to request specialized accommodation. All information received in relation to accommodation will be kept confidential.

Assessment accommodation

GIVE YOURSELF THE BEST CHANCE TO SUCCEED!
1. Follow the instructions in section “In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)”.
2. Contact us if you need assistance in completing and submitting your application or if there is a reason preventing you from applying online.
To learn more about accommodation measures, click on the link below.
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-service-commission/services/assessment-accommodation-page/the-basics-of-assessment-accommodation.html
3. Let us know if you are a member of an employment equity group, your application could be prioritized. To learn more, refer to the section “Organizational Needs”.

The federal public service is stronger and more effective when it reflects the diversity of the Canadian population that it serves. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada is committed to building and promoting a diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce that is representative of Canadian society. All candidates who consider themselves qualified are encouraged to apply, including members of equity-seeking groups or of an employment equity group (women, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, and visible minorities).

Duties

Are you looking for challenging work that will make a difference in the lives of Canadians? Want to work for an employer consistently ranked among the top federal public service employers for job satisfaction? Join us in protecting the privacy of Canadians.

The Compliance Sector of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (the “OPC”) is mandated to ensure that government agencies and businesses comply with their privacy obligations. The OPC protects individuals’ fundamental right to privacy, and in doing so, fosters trust in the digital economy and society. Increasingly, OPC investigations examine emerging privacy-impactful business models and technologies through high-profile investigations. For instance, we recently investigated:
- mobile app geolocation tracking;
- sharing of in-store purchase data with social media platforms, where the customer requested an e-receipt
- Law enforcement use of a third-party facial recognition application to identify persons of interest.

The OPC is a world leader in enforcement collaboration, both domestically and internationally, which provides an opportunity for many investigators to work with enforcement colleagues from across Canada and around the globe.

The next few years will be exciting for the OPC! As we continue our investigative work to tackle existential issues like Generative AI and ever-evolving cybersecurity threats, we will also be preparing for the implementation of legislative reforms in both the public and private sectors.

Here's an overview of the different tasks a person in this position is called upon to perform:
- Investigate compliance with federal privacy legislation by public and private organizations, on complex issues in a global digital economy and society.
- Gather and analyze evidence from a variety of sources – including through interviews and site visits - to determine whether there has been a breach of the law, make recommendations to bring organizations into compliance, negotiate undertakings to resolve issues, and prepare reports to communicate the Office's findings.
- Independently advance several high-profile investigations and other projects, often including national and international cooperation, while remaining professional and delivering high quality products.
- Collaborate and communicate, orally and in writing, with various internal and external partners or stakeholders, including parties to an investigation, as well as with national and international regulatory authorities, within and outside privacy.
- Provide information and advice to senior management, verbally or in writing.
- Lead virtual multi-disciplinary teams including technologists and lawyers.
- Mentor junior investigators in the performance of their duties.

Work environment

Working at the OPC means :
- Working for an employer consistently ranked among the top federal public service employers for job satisfaction.
- Making a difference in the lives of Canadians;
- Working in a small organization where collaboration, collegiality and support are paramount, and where employees can have a high degree of influence and exposure;
- Finding creative solutions to contemporary issues;
- Being quickly integrated as a new employee and obtaining a variety of development, training, coaching and mentoring opportunities;
- Benefitting from dedicated in-house support for compensation and IT services;
- Working with people who care about the well-being of employees and colleagues, inclusiveness and fairness; and
- Benefitting from a modern, ergonomic and fragrance-free workplace.

Intent of the process

This process will be used to establish a pool of candidates that may be used to staff similar positions at an identical or equivalent group and level with various official language proficiency (Bilingual Imperative CBC/CBC, English Essential) various security profiles (reliability, secret, top secret), various tenures (indeterminate, specified period) using various staffing activities (indeterminate, term, deployment, acting, assignment, secondment) for positions with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada or the Public Service.

Positions to be filled: Number to be determined

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

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

INSTRUCTIONS TO FOLLOW
You must clearly demonstrate how you meet the education and experience qualifications, both essential and assets, by responding to the screening questions in the online application. Please note that it is not sufficient to only state that the requirement is met or to provide a listing of current responsibilities; rather, you must provide concrete examples that illustrate how you meet the requirement. Lack of details may result in your application being rejected as the Assessment Board will have insufficient information to determine whether or not you meet the qualifications. To have a better idea on how to answer the screening questions, we encourage you to watch this video developed by the Treasury Board Secretariat:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GW7P3g9hhI


EDUCATION
A degree* from a recognized post-secondary institution or an acceptable** combination of education and experience in a field related to the Office’s mandate may serve as an alternative to the degree.

Definitions:
* The term “degree” refers to a baccalaureate as established by educational authorities.
**The term “acceptable” refers to the following:
A completed secondary school diploma; and
• Two years of experience in the field of compliance investigation or enforcement; or
• Two years providing information and advice on matters regulated by statute; or
• Two years providing advice and recommendations on initiatives and programs related to individual rights; or
• Two years providing advice and recommendations on the interpretation and application of the Privacy Act, the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, human rights, the Access to Information Act and other rights-related matters.

Degree equivalency

EXPERIENCE
Significant* experience in delivering oral briefings and drafting written reports or other documents detailing facts, analysis and conclusions or recommendations to senior management**.
Significant* experience independently planning and conducting projects.
Significant* experience managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
Significant* experience collaborating with internal and external partners or stakeholders.

Definitions:
* Significant experience will be assessed in regard to the complexity and diversity of the analysis conducted; the level of autonomy demonstrated; or a minimum of 2 years of experience.
** Senior management is defined as Director, Director General or above

If you possess any of the following, your application must also clearly explain how you meet it (other qualifications)

ASSET QUALIFICATIONS
It is desirable to answer the screening questions related to the asset qualifications in the online application. They could be the deciding factor in selecting candidates to be invited to the next assessment phase or in selecting the person appointed to the position.

EDUCATION
Successful completion of a recognized post-secondary education with acceptable specialization in law, information technology, computer engineering, economics, or any other field involving the Office’s mandate.

Degree equivalency

EXPERIENCE
Significant* experience working in investigations or enforcement or using investigation techniques, in a regulatory environment (e.g., PIPEDA, Privacy Act, Access to Information Act, Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Human Rights legislation, Competition Act).
Significant* experience analyzing issues, programs or systems from a privacy perspective.
Significant* experience in negotiating resolutions or agreements between parties.
Experience in the use or protection of personal information in specific contexts such as marketing, insurance, cybersecurity, telecommunication, finances, statistics, government service delivery, law enforcement, national security, or other.
Experience in managing human resources**

Definitions:
* Significant experience will be assessed in regard to the complexity and diversity of the analysis conducted; the level of autonomy demonstrated; or a minimum of 2 years of experience.
** Managing human resources is defined as supervising people/staff, including employee performance management/assessment, assignment of work and management of workload.

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

Various language requirements
English Essential
Bilingual Imperative CBC/CBC

Information on language requirements

COMPETENCIES
Working effectively with others
Showing initiative and being action oriented
Information research and synthesizing
Effective writing
Effective oral communication
Analytical thinking
Ability to negotiate
Adaptability/Flexibility

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

Employment equity is an important part of working at the OPC. In order to ensure a diversified workforce, preference may be given to qualified candidates self-declaring as belonging to one or more of the following employment equity groups: Aboriginal peoples, women, persons with disabilities and members of visible minority groups.

Members of employment equity groups are encouraged to self-declare during the online application process by selecting the appropriate box under the Employment Equity (EE) section. You will have to give your consent in order for us to use your self-declaration for the purpose of appointment. We encourage you to choose Collection Purpose 1 (Purpose 1 – Appointment processes and statistics related to Appointments and EE Workforce Representation).

To learn more about employment equity, click on the link below.

Information on employment equity

OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENTS
Ability and willingness to travel on occasion
Ability and willingness to work overtime

Conditions of employment

Various security clearance requirements

Other information

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the designated groups when you apply.

Information on employment equity

NEXT STEPS
• The screening process (review of applications) is to determine whether you meet the education and experience qualifications. Please refer to the instructions provided in the section “In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)".
• If your application is retained at the screening process, you will be invited to the next assessment phase to assess the qualifications listed under the section “The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)”. A variety of tools may be used to assess those qualifications (such as: written tests, interviews, presentations, role plays, reference checks, etc.). An invitation, including the assessment tool and the qualifications to be assessed, will be sent to you. It is important to reply to the invitation and to provide all the required information.
• Should you proceed to the next assessment stage, such as an exam or interview, we will send you an e-mail with additional information on the assessment format so that you can determine if you may require an accommodation (such as a different test format, an adaptive technology, or additional time).
• A passing mark will be established for each qualification assessed. Essential qualifications listed in the advertisement are mandatory. Therefore, if you don’t obtain the passing mark established for an essential qualification, your application will no longer be considered and you will be notified of this outcome.
• Please note that assessors may select candidates for the next assessment phase based on asset qualifications, scores obtained, etc.

GENERAL INFORMATION
Acknowledgment of receipt of applications will not be sent; we will contact candidates when the screening process (review of applications) is completed.

Communication for this process will be sent via email and/or via your GC Jobs account. It is your responsibility to ensure accurate contact information is provided and updated as required. You should also include an email address that accepts email from unknown users (some email systems block these types of email). It is your responsibility to regularly check your email, junk email and your GC Jobs account to know all the details about this process.

It is to be noted that it is your responsibility to ensure that, during the life of this selection process, you communicate any changes related to your telephone number or e-mail address to the email address indicated on the poster. Failure to do so might exclude you from the selection process.

You are entitled to participate in the appointment process in the official language of your choice.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans first and then to Canadian citizens and permanent residents, with the exception of a job located in Nunavut, where Nunavut Inuit will be appointed first.

Information on the preference to veterans

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