Manager, Talent Attraction & Acquisition

Position Description Reporting to the Executive Director, Change Leadership and Talent Strategy, the Manager, Talent Attraction Acquisition provides hands-on operational leadership for the delivery and continuous improvement of recruitment services across George Brown Polytechnic's academic, support and administrative employee groups. Operating within a complex, multi-union environment, the Manager ensures recruitment practices are consistent, equitable, accessible and compliant with applicable collective agreements, employment legislation and institutional policies. The role requires sound judgment in navigating competing operational priorities, advising hiring managers on complex recruitment matters, and balancing service responsiveness with collective agreement obligations. The Manager leads the Talent Acquisition team, oversees recruitment operations, and provides direct recruitment expertise for executive, senior leadership and other complex or high-priority searches. The role is accountable for building team capability, improving recruitment processes, strengthening hiring-manager relationships and delivering a positive candidate experience. The Manager also advances George Brown Polytechnic's People Plan priorities by strengthening inclusive hiring, diversifying talent pipelines, improving recruitment technology and reporting, and supporting more consistent and effective hiring practices across the institution. Key Responsibilities Lead the day-to-day operations and service delivery of Talent Acquisition across administrative, support and academic employee groups. Establish clear priorities, service expectations and consistent recruitment practices across the Talent Acquisition team. Provide operational guidance and expert advice to hiring managers throughout the recruitment process, including role intake, sourcing, assessment, selection, offers and onboarding hand-offs. Provide direct talent acquisition consulting and end-to-end recruitment support for senior leadership and other complex or high-priority recruitment. Monitor recruitment activity, service levels, workloads, recruitment timelines and operational risks, taking action to resolve issues and improve delivery. Ensure recruitment practices are consistent with collective agreements, employment legislation, policies and applicable accessibility and equity requirements. Build and maintain talent pipelines for priority, recurring and hard-to-fill roles. Manage recruitment vendors and external partners to ensure service quality, value and alignment with GBP requirements. Establish and monitor recruitment performance measures, including time-to-fill, recruitment volumes, service responsiveness, candidate experience and hiring-manager satisfaction, using data to identify operational improvements. Lead practical improvements to equitable hiring by identifying and removing barriers in job requirements, sourcing, screening, interviews, and selection; equip hiring teams to apply these changes consistently and track their impact. Lead, coach and manage the Talent Acquisition team, including workload planning, performance management, capability development, quality assurance and accountability for recruitment service delivery. Make customer service and executive relationships concrete: listening, clear advice, timely communication, follow-through, and respectful challenge. Other duties as assigned. Educational and Experience Requirements Four-year degree from a recognized post-secondary institution in Human Resources, Business or a related field (or Polytechnic degree combined with equivalent depth and breadth of experience) is required. Minimum seven (7) years of practical, progressive work-related experience, specializing in talent acquisition/talent management across a range of disciplines/professions and talent management in high volume, changing client-focused environments. Demonstrated experience using applicant tracking systems, recruitment analytics and reporting to manage recruitment operations, improve service delivery and support workforce planning. Demonstrated experience leading and delivering recruitment in a complex, unionized environment, including applying collective agreement provisions related to job postings, internal competitions, seniority, candidate assessment, selection and hiring decisions, is required. Demonstrated expertise in inclusive and equitable hiring practices, including diverse sourcing, accessible recruitment and anti-bias approaches. Demonstrated hands-on experience leading executive and senior leadership recruitment, including search strategy, candidate sourcing, assessment, selection, stakeholder management and offer negotiations, is required. Demonstrated ability to improve, standardize and streamline processes and service delivery. Strong understanding of employment legislation, human rights, accessibility requirements and recruitment practices in a unionized environment. Experience with deployment and implementation of HR technology (HRMS, ATS), dashboards and analytics. Brings a data-driven lens to proactive talent acquisition and management to anticipate and support organizational workforce talent planning. Demonstrated experience in working across all levels of complex, dynamic organizations including familiarity with senior management teams. Skills and Attributes Shows clear ability to maintain confidentiality of information, to exercise tact and diplomacy, to exhibit good judgement and to earn credibility across levels of an organization by providing informed, insightful recommendations, guidance and advice. Ability to manage multiple priorities and coordinate defined projects or implementations without requiring extensive project-management infrastructure. Strong project management skills leading HR projects across areas including talent acquisition, employee orientation, employment branding, preferred vendor or similar. Ability to explore practical uses of emerging technology, including automation and AI-enabled tools, where they can improve efficiency, data quality, accessibility and the candidate experience while maintaining appropriate human oversight and equity considerations. Broad leadership skills managing a diverse team of experienced individuals. Solid written and verbal communication skills, conflict resolution, organization, and analytical skills. Excellent teamwork and interpersonal skills. Demonstrated commitment to uphold the polytechnic’s priorities on equity, diversity, inclusion and Indigenization (EDII).