City : Oakville

Category : Full time - Permanent

Industry : Education

Employer : Sheridan College

The Total Rewards Strategist, reporting to the Manager of Total Rewards, provides specialized expertise in the administration of Sheridan's Total Rewards (TR) strategy. This role ensures effective oversight and management of the Compensation, Benefits, and Pension plans for employees and retirees, focusing on costing, proactive benchmarking, pay equity, and organizational design. The Strategist executes compensation and benefits programs, enhancing the employee experience while ensuring compliance with relevant legislation and plan provisions. Assigned to support senior-level client groups, the Strategist collaborates on the analysis, design, implementation, evaluation, and communication of TR programs, while coaching leaders and building strong internal and external relationships. 

The incumbent coordinates and advises on aspects of Compensation, Benefits and Pension and provides leadership and guidance to the Total Compensation team on standardized total compensation practices. This role involves ongoing financial oversight, executing special projects, conducting compensation and peer review audits, and resolving issues related to the College's compensation and benefits plans. The incumbent monitors multiple areas within Compensation, Benefits, and Pension, producing detailed reports to enhance service delivery and ensure fiduciary management. A high degree of independence, discretion, and expertise is essential for supporting and implementing best practices in these areas. This role provides mentorship and leadership to the TR Specialist and directly manages the TR Analyst as well as co-op and students. The Strategist also builds and maintains strong relationships with external stakeholders like the College Employer Council and program sponsors.

What You’ll Be Doing

• Providing crucial support for high-level projects by delivering comprehensive costing and analytics related to total rewards, which inform senior leadership's strategic decision-making. This includes assessing the financial impacts of various scenarios and workforce composition to shape future total rewards strategies. 
• Compiling ad hoc analyses and benchmarking data to compare compensation for various roles within the sector, helping to maintain Sheridan’s reputation as a top employer. 
• Designing and delivering Sheridan's Total Rewards strategy, preparing recommendations and best practice communications 
• Overseeing financial audits and reconciliations of pension contributions, benefit payments, and compensation plans to ensure accuracy and compliance. 
• Conducting plan audits to maintain data integrity between college and insurance records and ensuring pay equity across all employee groups in accordance with the Pay Equity Act. 
• Managing projects from initial consultation through implementation, effectively communicating the value of total rewards programs across various channels and conducting specialized sessions such as the Sheridan Retirement Ready workshops to educate employees. The role also involves supporting the salary review process and assisting in the development of operating policies and guidelines to ensure compliance and enhance overall efficiency.
• Investigating discrepancies related to benefits and compensation, making necessary recommendations for improvements based on ongoing analysis. 
• Processing payout reviews for terminations, group changes, producing metrics and reports on compensation and leave cases, and maintaining accurate data records in systems like PeopleSoft, Pension Portals and Sun Life.
• Providing essential support to the benefits and compensation team by advising on salary and payroll matters, reviewing exception requests with clients, HR business partners and talent acquisition ensuring alignment with compensation policies.
• Serving as a backup to the Manager of Total Rewards, overseeing daily operations and ensuring seamless team administration.
• Representing the team in labour relations contexts, including arbitrations and union meetings, offering total rewards insights to facilitate negotiations. 
• Providing expertise on technical systems such as PeopleSoft, SunLife PSS, and Power BI Dashboards, ensuring these tools effectively support Total Rewards processes. 
• Supporting in the identification of HRIS issues and the implementation of fixes and enhancements including gathering requirements, collaborating with Workday Support to find a solution, and final stage user acceptance testing.
• Providing day-to-day administrative support for critical total rewards initiatives, particularly for senior institutional leaders and complex cases. 
• Overseeing the administration processes for compensation, benefits, and pension plans, which encompasses leave management.
• Communicating essential information about benefits, leave, and pensions to both internal and external stakeholders, including managing interactions with providers like Sun Life and CAAT Pension. 
• Collaborating closely with ayroll to address retroactive payments and discrepancies, while also reviewing and updating procedures and process flows in conjunction with Finance and IT services. 
• Managing the enrollment and reporting for benefits and pension programs, assisting employees with inquiries and administering various leave options.
• Other projects as assigned

About You

You value participating in and creating safe, brave and inclusive environments and thrive in a culture that is inclusive and contributes to workplace equity.

You are a self-directed, take initiative and are able to work under limited supervision to meet program goals and deadlines.

You are a results-oriented natural leader and have a highly collaborative spirit which, combined with your keen communication & interpersonal skills, empowers you to build positive and collaborative relationships to create and maintain a positive organizational culture.

You have a passion for Excel and thrive on organizing and analyzing data and are comfortable with large data analysis and costing models. 

You are an innovative thinker with fine problem-solving and investigation skills which allow you to resolve technical program and administrative conflicts.

You have the ability to manage people and teams, assert ideas and influence people. 

You are flexible, adaptable and prepared to be in multiple locations during the course of a day.

The successful candidate will also meet the following qualifications:

• 4-year bachelor’s degree preferably in Human Resources or a related field.
• 7 years of practical working experience with providing advice/coaching on compensation, pension and/or benefits. (Or an equivalent combination of education and experience).
• Practical experience with compensation activities including communication of those activities – job design, job analysis, job documentation, job evaluation, salary administration, workforce planning. 
• Advanced Excel skills with the ability to create complex formulas, use pivot tables, and analyse large data sets efficiently.
• Experience with implementation of new or enhanced compensation programs.
• Excellent knowledge of pension & benefits legislation.
• In-depth and up-to-date knowledge of labour contracts/collective agreements - salary schedules, benefit provisions, group insurance benefit contracts, Employment Standards Act, Human Rights Code, Employment Insurance Act, relevant Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) regulations and Pension Act of Ontario.
• Well- developed analytical and problem-solving skills for pension analytics, ability to analyse payroll information (e.g. building historical data from incomplete employee records).
• Must possess one of the following certifications: Certified Compensation Professional (CCP), Certified Employee Benefit Specialist (CEBS)Certification,Certified Human Resources Professional (CHRP) of Leader(CHRL) or Pension Plan Administrative Certificate(PPAC).

Who We Are

Every member of the Sheridan community is passionate about the transformational role we play in people’s lives. Our strategic plan, Sheridan 2027: Forging the Future (https://www.sheridancollege.ca/sheridan2027), charts a path towards a new ground-breaking model of higher education that reshapes post-secondary education and better prepares students for the future. We are committed to demonstrably advancing equity, diversity, and inclusivity. Diversity is our strength and fuels our commitment to excellence. Across our campuses, we’re making meaningful strides towards developing an equitable and inclusive community.

• For more information, visit: Why Work at Sheridan

Other Details

Department: Human Resources
Primary Work/Campus Location: Trafalgar (may be assigned activities at any Sheridan campus) 
Work Categorization: Hybrid Position | On-site at least 3 days/week
Reference #: J1124-0513
Employee Group: Administrative
Payband: NL
Salary Range: $88,228 - $110,284
Application Deadline: December 11, 2024

Sheridan is deeply committed to implementing the Calls to Action framed by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. We acknowledge that we live and work on the traditional territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nations, Anishinaabe Nation, Huron-Wendat and the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. Sheridan is situated on these lands, and it is our collective responsibility to honour and respect those who have gone before us, those who are here, and those who have yet to come. We are grateful for the opportunity to be working on this land.

Sheridan values the diverse and intersectional identities of its students, faculty, and staff. Sheridan regards equity and diversity as an integral part of academic excellence and is committed to accessibility for all employees. Sheridan seeks applicants who embrace our values of equity, anti-racism, and inclusion. As such, we encourage applications from qualified candidates who have been historically disadvantaged and marginalized, including those who identify as First Nations, Métis and/or Inuit/Inuk, Black, members of racialized communities, persons with disabilities, women and/or 2SLGBTQ+.

Sheridan will provide job applicants with accommodation in accordance with the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. To request accommodation, please contact Human Resources.

You may be asked to provide copies of your educational credentials at the time of interview. Upon hire, we require official confirmation of educational credentials and Canadian equivalency assessments, if applicable.