Chief People and Culture Officer - Summit Search Group (Ottawa)

About our Client: Confidential

Position Scope

The Global Chief People Officer (CPO) is a senior executive responsible for shaping and leading the organization’s global people strategy across all regions. This role will unify and elevate the HR function to drive organizational effectiveness, strengthen leadership capability, and cultivate a high‑performing, values‑driven culture aligned with the organization’s mission and growth.

The CPO will play a critical role in shaping enterprise strategy, enabling organizational scale, and ensuring the organization’s leadership, talent, and culture evolve to meet long‑term business and mission objectives.

This is a pivotal role for a systems‑minded leader who brings both strategic vision and operational rigor, and who thrives in complex, multicultural, mission‑driven environments.

Responsibilities

• Define and lead a multi‑year global people strategy aligned with the organization’s mission, values, and growth priorities.
• Partner with the CEO and Executive Leadership Team to shape enterprise strategy, organizational priorities, and long‑term growth plans.
• Embed and operationalize the organization’s values across the organization, ensuring they shape leadership behavior, decision‑making, and people practices.
• Build and sustain a high‑performing, inclusive culture that strengthens engagement, accountability, and organizational impact.
• Drive organizational design and development to ensure structures, roles, and ways of working enable scale and effectiveness.
• Lead enterprise‑wide workforce planning and succession strategies to support long‑term sustainability.
• Oversee executive succession planning and leadership pipeline development in partnership with the CEO and Board.
• Build leadership capability across all levels through targeted development, coaching, and mentorship.
• Coach and advise the CEO and Executive Leadership Team to strengthen leadership effectiveness, alignment, and impact.
• Partner with regional leaders to attract, develop, and retain high‑performing, mission aligned talent.
• Establish and govern consistent global people practices, policies, and frameworks across all regions.
• Lead and mentor a distributed global HR team, ensuring alignment, capability, and accountability.
• Oversee HR operations across all countries, ensuring consistency, efficiency, and compliance.
• Guide the integration and optimization of HR systems, data, and people analytics to inform decision‑making.
• Ensure equitable and competitive compensation and advantages practices across diverse geographies.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to the executive team on organizational effectiveness, culture, talent risks, and workforce decisions.
• Establish and uphold global standards for employee well‑being, safety, and duty of care while leading change management efforts to support growth and expansion.
• Lead enterprise change management and transformation initiatives associated with organizational growth, scaling, and evolving operating models.
• Provide regular insights and reporting to the CEO and Board regarding organizational health, leadership capability, succession readiness, culture, and workforce risk.
• Represent the organization externally as an ambassador for the organization’s culture, leadership philosophy, and employer brand.

Required Qualifications

• 20 plus years of progressive HR leadership experience, including at least 7 years in global or multi‑country roles.
• Previous experience serving as a Chief People Officer, CHRO, or equivalent enterprise level people executive.
• Experience in the technology sector or supporting technology‑enabled organizations.
• Strong background in organizational development, leadership transformation, and culture evolution within complex global organizations.
• Deep expertise in organizational development, enterprise change leadership, and executive team effectiveness.
• Demonstrated success building and executing people strategies in fast‑growing, complex organizations.
• Proven experience serving as the senior‑most HR leader during a period of significant organizational transformation or in an early‑stage organization, with responsibility for building or rebuilding the HR function from the ground up, including scalable people programs, processes, systems, and infrastructure.
• Experience leading distributed teams and driving large‑scale organizational change.
• Deep expertise in organizational development, talent strategy, and leadership development.
• Strong track record in mission‑driven, nonprofit, or international environments.
• Exceptional strategic thinking, executive presence, and cross‑cultural leadership capability.
• Demonstrated ability to influence executive stakeholders and Board‑level leaders on enterprise‑wide organizational matters.
• Relevant HR certifications such as SHRM‑SCP, CIPD, or HRCI preferred.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Human Resources, Organizational Development, or a related field preferred.
• Experience working in emerging markets.
• Background scaling organizations through periods of rapid growth and transformation.
• Executive coaching experience and/or formal coaching training preferred, particularly in supporting senior leaders through organizational transformation and growth.
• Experience implementing and optimizing HR technology platforms and people analytics.
• Familiarity with global employment practices across both developed and emerging markets.
• Demonstrated ability to balance innovation with operational discipline in complex, multicultural environments.
• Experience partnering with Boards of Directors, executive committees, or governance bodies on succession planning, executive compensation, and organizational strategy preferred.

Working Conditions

• Hybrid work environment with a model of 3 days in office and two days remote.
• International travel up to 25% is required.

EEO Statement

Summit Search Group is a fair and equitable search firm. We welcome and encourage applications from people with disabilities. Accommodations are available on request for candidates taking part in all aspects of the recruitment and selection process.