Unique Opportunity to Help Grow Support for Immigrants & Refugees
For the first time in decades, support for newcomers to Canada is on the decline. The alarming increase in harmful anti-immigrant rhetoric is happening alongside governments scaling back commitments and support for refugees and immigrants, just as the needs are growing at home and around the world.
The Communications Director is uniquely positioned to take a leadership role on a national stage to help CCR push back against these concerning trends by helping to grow and mobilize our members and supporters to help build a fair and just immigration system.
One flagship part of that will be stewarding the “We’re Better Together” campaign, recently launched with members and partners across the country in a collective effort to turn the tide and grow support for newcomers to Canada. BetterTogetherCanada.ca.
About the Canadian Council for Refugees
The Canadian Council for Refugees is a leading voice for the rights, protection, sponsorship, settlement, and well-being of refugees and migrants, in Canada and globally. CCR is driven by member organizations working with, from, and for these communities from coast to coast.
Committed to social justice and transformation by challenging racism, colonialism and intersecting oppressions, we undertake policy monitoring, advocacy, network building, and public education to empower members and communities to bring about systemic change.
About the role:
The Communications Director leads the way in planning and implementing a vision for sharing CCR’s story and campaigns to key communities we work with to achieve our mission. Reporting to the Co-Executive Director for Policy and Advocacy, and supervising the Communications Coordinator, this role ensures CCR’s voice is widely and effectively seen and heard across our membership, the public, media, and decision makers in order to grow our ability to protect the rights and well-being of refugees, migrant workers and immigrants.
Core responsibilities for this role include creating and advancing impactful strategies to engage members, partners and allied advocates to grow our collective voice, and overseeing communications with CCR’s members to support the success of programs, events and working groups. You’ll be especially successful in this role if you have experience in leading communications in a campaign environment, intentionally growing and mobilizing audiences and allies on an engagement journey.
Key Responsibilities:
Strategy and Organizational Development
- Working with the Co-Eds, leads strategic and annual planning for internal and external communications to serve organizational goals
- Develops infrastructure and processes to ensure effective tools for managing and measuring and evaluating projects and campaigns
- Supports broader organizational development
- Identifies risk and proposes mitigation strategies
Campaigns & Communications
- Leads on developing goals, audiences, messaging, strategies and metrics for external and internal communications initiatives, with strategies to track and assess impact and adapt based on results
- Develops recruitment strategies and engagement journeys for campaigns, identifying and segmenting audiences, including for donor engagement
- Oversees content creation and implementation in diverse formats across multiple channels, including for membership and broadcast emails, social media and to engage traditional media
- Working with the Membership Services Manager, ensures timely and engaging communications with members to support their effective participation across our programs
- Oversees and ensures brand integrity and consistency
Team Leadership
- Works with the Senior Management Team to foster strong cross team collaboration, encourage innovation and risk taking to cultivate a culture of achievement, learning, care and accountability, consistent with CCR’s commitment to equity, inclusion and anti-racism
- Collaborates with other staff to support major events, fundraising, and ensure reporting on results
This is a full-time position (35 hours per week), with opportunities for occasional domestic travel and limited expectations for work on weekends and evenings. The position is based in Montreal, and the selected candidate will be expected to work from CCR offices at least one day per week (per the current hybrid work model, subject to change).
Skills & Experience:
You’ll do well in this role if you are an innovative strategic thinker, strong project and people manager and are committed to justice and equity with a passion for working with refugee and migrant communities. We encourage applicants who may not meet all of these skills and experiences but who are interested in growing and learning with us.
Strategic Communications:
- Demonstrated experience in identifying target audiences and developing strategies, messages and channels tailored to those audiences, with measurable outcomes.
- Minimum of 5 years' experience leading on strategic development and implementation of multi-channel communications.
Engagement:
- Beyond “broadcasting” messages, demonstrated experience communicating to deepen engagement, for example to grow communities of support and/or to develop partnerships across organizations.
Project Management:
- Experience setting up a plan and team members to implement effectively and efficiently, allowing for independent and synchronized execution.
- Experience, in more than one context, managing communications calendars and implementing and evaluating campaigns.
Content Development and Digital Skills:
- Experience developing and overseeing content across copy, visual and multi-media components that serve strategy.
- Experience using design software (WordPress, Creative Cloud Suite, Canva).
- Ability to navigate audience segmentation, social media platforms, and mailers in order to successfully oversee and support implementation.
Leadership & Team Development:
- Multi-year track record of managing a team and/or supporting others’ success by providing clear vision and plans with ongoing mentorship.
- Experience building strong, inclusive communications strategies and practices to nurture a values-aligned, high-performing organizational culture.
Language Skills:
- Fluent in English and French with high competency for writing, editing and proofreading in at least one of those.
Additional Qualities That Would Help in This Role:
Media Relations: Experience in developing and maintaining relationships with journalists and editors and understanding of the core components of pitching stories to journalists and writing and distributing an effective media release.
Visual Design: Background in visual design - whether through formal education or an understanding of design theory and principles that you’ve applied through years of experience.
Communications for Fundraising: Experience developing creative communications to support fund development and donor engagement.
Sectoral familiarity: Experience working in communications in the non-profit sector.
What We Offer
- The salary scale for this position is $70,000 - $82,000 commensurate with experience
- 4 weeks’ vacation, as well as additional office-wide two weeks off during the winter holidays
- 18 days combined sick/personal days
- Group health insurance plan
- 4% RRSP contribution per year, and the option to join the VRSP plan.
Application Process
The CCR encourages and prioritizes applications from members of equity-seeking groups and will prioritize those with lived experience as refugees or migrants.
Please note that candidates must be eligible to work in Canada.
To apply, please send a resume and cover letter in a single pdf document to recruitment@ccrweb.ca, with the subject line “Communications Director.” The position will be open until filled, with an initial shortlisting process undertaken with CVs collected by January 16, 2026.
Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.