The United Church of Canada is seeking an individual to fill the role of Executive Minister, UCC Identity and Governance on a permanent full-time basis (35 hours/week). This position represents a current, active vacancy within our organization.

All applications received through The United Church of Canada’s Applicant Tracking System (ATS) for all publicly advertised positions, AI might be used to support certain applicant evaluations however, all applications are manually reviewed by our hiring team to ensure a fair and thorough evaluation of all candidates. All decisions are made solely by the hiring team.

The UCC Identity and Governance Unit is a newly formed pillar of the General Council Office which provides integrated leadership to ensure that the Church’s structures, decisions, and practices are faithful to its identity, accountable to its governance, and aligned with its call to justice, equity, and reconciliation.

This pillar brings together governance, legal and judicial oversight, equity and anti-racism, archives and institutional memory, Indigenous governance into a coherent and mutually reinforcing framework and ecumenical coordination. Its purpose is to strengthen how the Church understands itself, makes decisions, and lives out its commitments in a consistent, transparent, and principled manner. Identity and Governance pillar exists to ensure that The United Church of Canada operates with integrity, clarity, and faithfulness to its identity as a conciliar and connected body - grounded in strong governance, informed by its history, and accountable to its commitments.

Position Purpose

The Executive Minister, UCC Identity and Governance provides strategic and operational leadership for a newly established pillar within The United Church of Canada. This role is responsible for stewarding the Church’s governance framework, denominational identity, and accountability structures, while ensuring alignment with its call and vision, and commitments to justice, equity, and reconciliation.

This position integrates multiple governance and identity-shaping functions to strengthen organizational coherence, uphold legal and constitutional integrity, and advance the Church’s commitments to Indigenous justice, anti-racism, and inclusive community.

Primary areas of responsibility:

• Leadership and Governance: Lead and develop a multidisciplinary team, fostering collaboration, accountability, and high performance. Provide visionary leadership for the UCC Identity and Governance pillar, ensuring alignment with denominational priorities and strategic plans and oversee governance processes supporting the General Council, its Executive and other council structures. Ensures effective integration of governance, justice, and ecumenical functions; Coordinate the development and implementation of a coherent strategy for engagement with national and global ecumenical and interfaith bodies, ensuring alignment with the Church’s, call and vision, and governance structures.

• Legal and Judicial Oversight: Oversee the Legal Counsel functions, ensuring compliance with applicable legislation, internal policies, and denominational governance structures; Provide strategic guidance on risk management, legal matters, and dispute resolution; and ensure appropriate processes are in place for ecclesiastical and organizational accountability

• Indigenous and Justice Governance: Provide leadership in advancing commitments to Indigenous rights, self-determination, and reconciliation; Ensure governance structures reflect justice-oriented principles and support equitable decision-making; and collaborate with Indigenous partners and leadership bodies to uphold commitments.

• Anti-Racism, Equity and Inclusion: Champion anti-racism and equity initiatives across governance structures and organizational practices; Ensure accountability mechanisms are embedded in decision-making and policy development; and Support cultural transformation aligned with the Church’s values.

• Archives and Institutional Memory: Ensure the stewardship, preservation, and accessibility of General Council Archives; and support the integration of historical records into governance, identity, and decision-making processes.

• To request a copy of the full job description, send an e-mail to: careers@united-church.ca and put Governance JD on the subject

Qualifications

• Graduate degree in Governance, Public Administration, Theology, or a related field (or equivalent combination of education and experience);7-8 years of progressive senior leadership experience in governance, legal, public sector, non-profit, or faith-based environments; knowledge of The United Church of Canada, its history and processes is essential;

• Deep knowledge of governance frameworks, board relations, and policy development; experience in legal oversight, risk management, or judicial processes is a strong asset;

• Demonstrated leadership in advancing Indigenous justice, anti-racism, and equity initiatives; experience working with volunteer governance bodies and complex organizational structures;

• Knowledge of employment equity, respectful of cultural differences, educate others on the value of diversity, promote a harassment-free environment, build a diverse workforce and a commitment to support the church’s work of reconciliation, and its desire to be intercultural and bilingual;

• Effective written and verbal communication skills, speaks clearly in positive or negative situations, listens and gets clarification; explains information in a concise, clear, impartial manner, deals with highly emotional situations and individuals, responds well to questions and demonstrates group presentation skills. Language skills in addition to English are an asset;

• Strong organizational, project and time management skills with multitasking capabilities; developing project plans, coordinating projects, communicating changes and progress, and completing projects on time and within budget and demonstrated facilitation;

• Administrative, supervisory skills, and a collegial consultative leadership style with a commitment to a coordinated team approach; ability to manage a wide range of administrative responsibilities and duties and to take initiative and act as situations warrant together with experience with conflict and change management;

• An awareness of organizational development concepts together with a willingness to explore new initiatives, new learnings and the flexibility to respond to the changing needs of the church;

• Ability to discern appropriate pathways through complex issues, problems or opportunities and the impact or implication of decisions and actions;

• Flexibility with the ability to effectively and positively deal with changing situations or priorities; initiative, good judgment, tact, discretion, resourcefulness, and creativity in problem solving and ability to make sound and timely decisions, consideration of all relevant information in making decisions, development of effective solutions to organizational problems, an innovative problem solver and an ability to anticipate obstacles and contingencies;

• Experience in fiscal management and planning, and an ability to develop and monitor budgets, read and understand financial statements;

• Excellent analytical skills and judgment in dealing with critical issues is required as is a high respect for confidentiality;

• Solid computer skills in the use of various software applications – Microsoft Office, Dynamics, SharePoint, One Drive, Teams, Zoom, and other social media and online platforms;

• Knowledge of and commitment to ecumenical and inter-faith processes. Ability to bring theological perspective and understanding to policy, practices and programs and alignment with the vision and values of The United Church of Canada: respect, integrity, passion and diversity.

Working Conditions

The United Church of Canada has adopted a hybrid workplace model, providing flexibility for this position, working both offsite and in the General Council Office, currently located in Toronto, ON. The incumbent will be provided, for work purposes, use of secure devices and must be available by email, phone, teams or zoom during regular office hours Monday to Friday. Sitting and viewing a computer screen for long periods, keyboarding/using voice recognition software, intermittent physical activity including sitting, standing and being on the phone for long periods of time will be required. Occasional additional hours may be required.

As part of our ongoing commitment to the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act and the Human Rights Code, The United Church of Canada will provide reasonable accommodations to employees with human-rights related needs.

Compensation

The salary range for this position is $120,030 to $160,041. This is based on category 12 on our salary range. Placement on the salary range will be based on factors such as market condition, internal equity, candidate experience skills and qualifications relevant to the role. Pension and group benefit plans coverage and annual vacation round out this compensation package.

Closing date for applications: June 9, 2026