Vice-President, Strategic Growth, Productivity & Innovation
Humber Polytechnic is seeking a visionary leader to serve as their Vice-President, Strategic Growth, Productivity & Innovation (VP, SGPI).
This is a rare opportunity to shape the future of a leading Canadian polytechnic, while influencing the evolving role of post-secondary education in driving economic growth, productivity, and social impact. Operating at the centre of Humber Polytechnic’s strategic agenda, the VP, SGPI will be uniquely positioned to design and lead an integrated growth model that brings together education, industry, government, and global partners in new and transformative ways.
At a time of profound disruption across higher education, driven by changing learner expectations, technological advancement, and shifting economic conditions, this role offers the chance to build something fundamentally new. The VP will architect Humber’s next generation growth engine, redefining how institutions expand access, diversify revenue, and deliver lifelong learning at scale, positioning Humber as a national leader in productivity and a global innovator in polytechnic education.
The VP, SGPI will serve as a key voice in shaping public policy, forging strategic alliances, and advancing Canada’s workforce and innovation agenda. This role provides an exceptional opportunity to leave a lasting legacy, within Humber, across the post-secondary sector, and in the broader economic and social landscape.
Humber Polytechnic
Located in Toronto, one of the most diverse cities in the world, Humber Polytechnic is a leading Canadian post-secondary institution recognized for its innovative, polytechnic approach to education. As an Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning and a founding member of Polytechnics Canada, Humber serves more than 76,000 full-time and part-time learners across six Faculties and four campuses. The institution offers an extensive range of credentials, from apprenticeships and diplomas to bachelor’s and master’s degrees, all grounded in experiential, career-focused learning that prepares graduates to thrive in a rapidly evolving workforce.
For over 50 years, Humber has delivered a rich academic and student experience rooted in teaching excellence, applied research, and strong industry connections. Its award-winning faculty bring deep academic expertise and real-world experience into state-of-the-art labs and classrooms that mirror professional environments. Through robust partnerships with industry, community organizations, and global institutions, Humber ensures students gain meaningful work-integrated learning opportunities and access to influential networks.
Humber is also a national leader in research, sustainability, and institutional culture. Ranked among Canada’s top research colleges, it is a top performer in industry research income and partnerships, and leads the country in private sector investment. The institution has been recognized as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers for a decade and is on track to become the first postsecondary institution in Canada to achieve net-zero emissions by 2029. With a strong commitment to student success and a focus on well-being, innovation, and inclusion, Humber offers a dynamic and forward-looking environment for both learners and employees.
The Role
The Vice-President, Strategic Growth, Productivity & Innovation (VP, SGPI) is a senior executive reporting to the President, responsible for shaping Humber Polytechnic’s future-ready growth strategy and positioning the institution as a national and global leader in productivity and innovation. This newly created role comes at a pivotal moment as Humber redefines how a polytechnic institution drives economic productivity, lifelong learning, and global competitiveness.
The VP will architect and lead an integrated growth model that expands enrollment, diversifies revenue, and strengthens Humber’s global engagement through innovative approaches such as AI-enabled personalization, immersive digital experiences, and transnational education models. Central to the mandate is advancing Canada’s productivity agenda by embedding skills-first solutions, forging industry alliances, and championing digital transformation that enhances institutional effectiveness and economic impact.
Leading a broad and integrated portfolio, the VP will oversee strategic business development, continuing and professional learning transformation, student recruitment, government relations, advancement, and applied research commercialization. This role will position innovation and commercialization as a core economic engine by scaling industry-funded research, strengthening intellectual property development, and translating ideas into market-ready solutions.
As an enterprise leader the VP will work through a team of experienced senior leaders to drive institution-wide outcomes, building a unified growth ecosystem that connects education, industry, government, and global partners. The role also serves as a key voice externally, shaping public policy, strengthening partnerships, and advancing workforce and innovation priorities at regional, national, and international levels.
The Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate is a visionary, strategic, and entrepreneurial leader with a demonstrated ability to design and execute complex growth strategies in dynamic, multi-stakeholder environments. They bring a systems-level perspective, actively identifying opportunities to enhance institutional impact, financial sustainability, and market differentiation. They are skilled at designing and scaling innovative business models, including corporate partnerships, transnational education, and commercialization pathways.
A collaborative and influential relationship builder, the successful candidate is comfortable operating at both strategic and external levels, engaging with government, industry, and global partners, while inspiring high-performing teams and fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and inclusion. They are adept at leading change, leveraging digital technologies to drive productivity and growth, and advancing equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging in all aspects of leadership.
Humber welcomes candidates from higher education as well as those from relevant sectors such as industry, global education, or complex service organizations, who bring transferable leadership experience and a track record of building scalable growth platforms. Candidates will have progressive senior leadership experience with responsibility for multiple portfolios such as marketing, recruitment, government relations, business development, and strategic partnerships.
A Master’s degree in Business Administration, Public Policy, Strategic Management, Educational Leadership, or related discipline, is required.
How to Apply or Learn More
To learn more about this opportunity, including receiving a copy of the Executive Brief, please contact Katherine Frank at kfrank@kbrs.ca or Lauren Wright at lwright@kbrs.ca.
Applications can be submitted online using the "Apply Now" button below.
Please note that this posting is for an existing position at Humber Polytechnic.
All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.
Humber Polytechnic is committed to a workforce that reflects the diversity of our students and our city. We actively seek Indigenous Peoples and individuals from equity-deserving groups with demonstrated skills and knowledge to deal with all aspects of equity, diversity and inclusion in a post-secondary environment.
Humber Polytechnic and KBRS will provide support in the recruitment process to applicants with disabilities, including accommodation that takes into account an applicant’s accessibility needs. If you require accommodation in order to participate as a candidate in the recruitment process, please contact accommodate@kbrs.ca or communicate your needs to the recruitment professional named above.
This is a rare opportunity to shape the future of a leading Canadian polytechnic, while influencing the evolving role of post-secondary education in driving economic growth, productivity, and social impact. Operating at the centre of Humber Polytechnic’s strategic agenda, the VP, SGPI will be uniquely positioned to design and lead an integrated growth model that brings together education, industry, government, and global partners in new and transformative ways.
At a time of profound disruption across higher education, driven by changing learner expectations, technological advancement, and shifting economic conditions, this role offers the chance to build something fundamentally new. The VP will architect Humber’s next generation growth engine, redefining how institutions expand access, diversify revenue, and deliver lifelong learning at scale, positioning Humber as a national leader in productivity and a global innovator in polytechnic education.
The VP, SGPI will serve as a key voice in shaping public policy, forging strategic alliances, and advancing Canada’s workforce and innovation agenda. This role provides an exceptional opportunity to leave a lasting legacy, within Humber, across the post-secondary sector, and in the broader economic and social landscape.
Humber Polytechnic
Located in Toronto, one of the most diverse cities in the world, Humber Polytechnic is a leading Canadian post-secondary institution recognized for its innovative, polytechnic approach to education. As an Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning and a founding member of Polytechnics Canada, Humber serves more than 76,000 full-time and part-time learners across six Faculties and four campuses. The institution offers an extensive range of credentials, from apprenticeships and diplomas to bachelor’s and master’s degrees, all grounded in experiential, career-focused learning that prepares graduates to thrive in a rapidly evolving workforce.
For over 50 years, Humber has delivered a rich academic and student experience rooted in teaching excellence, applied research, and strong industry connections. Its award-winning faculty bring deep academic expertise and real-world experience into state-of-the-art labs and classrooms that mirror professional environments. Through robust partnerships with industry, community organizations, and global institutions, Humber ensures students gain meaningful work-integrated learning opportunities and access to influential networks.
Humber is also a national leader in research, sustainability, and institutional culture. Ranked among Canada’s top research colleges, it is a top performer in industry research income and partnerships, and leads the country in private sector investment. The institution has been recognized as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers for a decade and is on track to become the first postsecondary institution in Canada to achieve net-zero emissions by 2029. With a strong commitment to student success and a focus on well-being, innovation, and inclusion, Humber offers a dynamic and forward-looking environment for both learners and employees.
The Role
The Vice-President, Strategic Growth, Productivity & Innovation (VP, SGPI) is a senior executive reporting to the President, responsible for shaping Humber Polytechnic’s future-ready growth strategy and positioning the institution as a national and global leader in productivity and innovation. This newly created role comes at a pivotal moment as Humber redefines how a polytechnic institution drives economic productivity, lifelong learning, and global competitiveness.
The VP will architect and lead an integrated growth model that expands enrollment, diversifies revenue, and strengthens Humber’s global engagement through innovative approaches such as AI-enabled personalization, immersive digital experiences, and transnational education models. Central to the mandate is advancing Canada’s productivity agenda by embedding skills-first solutions, forging industry alliances, and championing digital transformation that enhances institutional effectiveness and economic impact.
Leading a broad and integrated portfolio, the VP will oversee strategic business development, continuing and professional learning transformation, student recruitment, government relations, advancement, and applied research commercialization. This role will position innovation and commercialization as a core economic engine by scaling industry-funded research, strengthening intellectual property development, and translating ideas into market-ready solutions.
As an enterprise leader the VP will work through a team of experienced senior leaders to drive institution-wide outcomes, building a unified growth ecosystem that connects education, industry, government, and global partners. The role also serves as a key voice externally, shaping public policy, strengthening partnerships, and advancing workforce and innovation priorities at regional, national, and international levels.
The Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate is a visionary, strategic, and entrepreneurial leader with a demonstrated ability to design and execute complex growth strategies in dynamic, multi-stakeholder environments. They bring a systems-level perspective, actively identifying opportunities to enhance institutional impact, financial sustainability, and market differentiation. They are skilled at designing and scaling innovative business models, including corporate partnerships, transnational education, and commercialization pathways.
A collaborative and influential relationship builder, the successful candidate is comfortable operating at both strategic and external levels, engaging with government, industry, and global partners, while inspiring high-performing teams and fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and inclusion. They are adept at leading change, leveraging digital technologies to drive productivity and growth, and advancing equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging in all aspects of leadership.
Humber welcomes candidates from higher education as well as those from relevant sectors such as industry, global education, or complex service organizations, who bring transferable leadership experience and a track record of building scalable growth platforms. Candidates will have progressive senior leadership experience with responsibility for multiple portfolios such as marketing, recruitment, government relations, business development, and strategic partnerships.
A Master’s degree in Business Administration, Public Policy, Strategic Management, Educational Leadership, or related discipline, is required.
How to Apply or Learn More
To learn more about this opportunity, including receiving a copy of the Executive Brief, please contact Katherine Frank at kfrank@kbrs.ca or Lauren Wright at lwright@kbrs.ca.
Applications can be submitted online using the "Apply Now" button below.
Please note that this posting is for an existing position at Humber Polytechnic.
All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.
Humber Polytechnic is committed to a workforce that reflects the diversity of our students and our city. We actively seek Indigenous Peoples and individuals from equity-deserving groups with demonstrated skills and knowledge to deal with all aspects of equity, diversity and inclusion in a post-secondary environment.
Humber Polytechnic and KBRS will provide support in the recruitment process to applicants with disabilities, including accommodation that takes into account an applicant’s accessibility needs. If you require accommodation in order to participate as a candidate in the recruitment process, please contact accommodate@kbrs.ca or communicate your needs to the recruitment professional named above.