Director Strategy and Operations

Role overview

This position supports the Office of the Chief Technology Officer in delivering strategic priorities and ensuring initiatives are carried out in line with governance standards, internal policies, and regulatory expectations. The role partners with senior leaders, technology stakeholders, and cross-functional teams to strengthen operating effectiveness and improve how the team works.

Key responsibilities

• Work alongside the Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer to define, monitor, and advance strategic priorities aligned with broader enterprise goals.
• Contribute to business planning, technology roadmap development, and the creation of performance measures.
• Help establish, monitor, and follow through on KPIs and KRIs for the group, while coordinating with centralized reporting teams to ensure accurate and timely data flow.
• Manage operational matters for the department, including budget planning, headcount planning, resourcing, and business continuity, and reconcile actual spending against forecasted budgets at both departmental and bank levels.
• Take part in long-term strategy work, roadmap alignment, and policy development related to complex business challenges and priority areas for the supported businesses.
• Support talent-related processes such as performance management, job evaluations, coaching, counseling, and arranging formal learning as needed.
• Conduct market and competitor research, benchmark against industry trends, and assess implications for the Bank’s strategic direction.
• Collect, analyze, and present employee engagement data to support focused initiatives.
• Lead strategic people-engagement efforts, including volunteer-driven activities and initiatives connected to Technology’s Power by People pillar.
• Coordinate communications and change enablement activities for major CTO programs such as Cloud, Data, and Architecture.
• Track delivery of strategic initiatives, ensure milestones are met, and escalate or resolve issues quickly when needed.
• Create executive-level presentations and communications that clearly explain goals, strategy, programs, processes, and vision.
• Build trusted relationships with key partners to support transformational and continuous-improvement work.
• Share the Bank’s strategic plan and priorities with relevant stakeholders.
• Identify ways to strengthen controls, simplify processes, and handle special projects and ad hoc requests.
• Apply awareness of risk appetite and risk culture in day-to-day decisions and activities.
• Support strong operational controls and compliance with obligations related to operational, compliance, AML/ATF, sanctions, and conduct risk.
• Promote a customer-first culture and contribute to broader relationship building across the Bank.
• Foster an inclusive, high-performance environment and help build team capability through coaching, succession planning, development planning, and motivated leadership practices.

Requirements

• At least 8 years of experience in strategy, operations, or consulting.
• Background in a large global organization, ideally in support of a technology function.
• University degree or equivalent work experience; a BA or MBA in business, finance, or economics is preferred.
• Demonstrated experience supporting senior executives in business management or senior program leadership roles.
• Exposure to technology regulation, compliance, governance, and finance is considered an advantage.
• Strong organizational, planning, and execution abilities with the capacity to manage several priorities at once.
• Well-developed leadership, strategic thinking, and influencing skills.
• High discretion and sound political judgment when handling sensitive information.
• Analytical thinking with the ability to interpret complex data and turn it into practical recommendations.
• Ability to perform effectively in a fast-moving, demanding environment.
• Excellent interpersonal, relationship management, and stakeholder management skills.
• Proven ability to deliver innovative solutions from concept through change management.
• Advanced working knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Perks and benefits

• Inclusive culture focused on diversity, equity, inclusion, and allyship.
• Accessible workplace support and accommodations.
• Learning support through online courses, cross-functional development, and tuition assistance.
• Competitive rewards package with bonus, flexible vacation, personal days, sick days, and benefits starting on day one.
• Collaborative workplace environment with shared spaces, free tea and coffee, and universal washrooms.
• Community engagement opportunities through employee programs.

Additional information

The role is based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, with the listed location as Toronto, Ontario. The requisition ID is 254921. Scotiabank describes itself as a leading bank in the Americas, serving customers through personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. The company emphasizes an inclusive and accessible recruitment process and invites candidates who need accommodations such as an accessible interview site, alternate document formats, ASL interpretation, or assistive technology to contact the recruitment team. Applications must be submitted directly online, and only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.

Eligibility

Professionals with significant experience in strategy, operations, or consulting who can support technology leadership in a large global organization are suitable for this position. Candidates with strong executive support experience, strategic judgment, and the ability to manage sensitive information are especially well aligned.