Director, Policy and Communications

Competition # : 49378

Department: Office of Service Efficiency

Location: HALIFAX

Type of Employment: Permanent

Union Status: Exclusion - Non Union - NSPG

Closing Date: 13-Aug-26 (Applications are accepted until 11:59 PM Atlantic Time)

About Us

The Office of Service Efficiency leads Nova Scotia’s work to modernize regulation, improve services, and remove unnecessary barriers for businesses, industries, sectors, and citizens.

Established in 2015, the Office began with a focus on reducing barriers to doing business in Nova Scotia. Its mandate has since expanded to support more effective, efficient, and responsive government services across departments and sectors.

The Office delivers its mandate by assessing regulatory and policy proposals against best-practice principles; measuring costs, savings, and service impacts; improving processes within government; and working with provincial, municipal, federal, and territorial partners to align regulatory and service approaches. This work supports Nova Scotia’s broader economic strategy and has earned national recognition.

About Our Opportunity

As Director, Policy and Communications, you will provide senior leadership for integrated policy development, planning, legislative support, issues management, and strategic communications. Reporting to the Senior Executive Director, you will serve as a trusted advisor to executive leadership and the Minister on complex policy, legislative, regulatory, and communications matters.

This role requires an all-of-government perspective and the ability to work across departments, sectors, stakeholders, and other orders of government. You will help shape advice, decisions, and communications that advance the Office’s mandate, support government priorities, and respond to emerging issues. Success requires sound judgment, strategic thinking, and the ability to provide clear, timely advice in a complex and evolving environment.

Primary Accountabilities

• Lead complex policy research, analysis, evaluation, and development across a broad and diverse portfolio.
• Lead and support the preparation of high-quality policy papers, briefing materials, Cabinet documents, legislative materials, and submissions to central agencies.
• Provide strategic direction for legislative and regulatory planning by identifying emerging trends, risks, opportunities, and best practices.
• Develop and lead implementation of the Office’s strategic communications and stakeholder engagement plan, ensuring messages and materials are aligned with Office and government priorities.
• As a member of the senior leadership team, contribute to Office priorities, policies, and decisions by assessing partner, stakeholder, and public perspectives and recommending strategic actions.
• Ensure the Minister and senior leaders are prepared to address complex and sensitive policy issues in the Legislature, with media, and with community and stakeholder audiences.
• Strengthen the effectiveness of Office and government communications by integrating corporate priorities and messages across digital, traditional, and stakeholder channels, and by collaborating with communications colleagues across government, the Premier’s Office, departments, and partners on matters of shared interest.

Qualifications and Experience

The Director, Policy and Communications will provide senior-level strategic policy, planning and communications leadership in support of the Office’s mandate and government’s priorities. The successful candidate will have extensive experience leading complex policy and communications initiatives, providing strategic advice to senior decision-makers, and developing evidence-based solutions to challenging public policy issues.

A strategic thinker and collaborator, the Director possesses extensive experience building relationships with senior officials, stakeholders and partners across government and beyond. The successful candidate demonstrates exceptional judgment and the ability to manage competing priorities while delivering results in an evolving environment. Experience in public policy development, strategic communications, issues management, legislative processes and stakeholder…