Events and Community Engagement Specialist

Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa; Ottawa; Hybrid; CAD 68,000 - 82,000; Full time

Job summary

Join a leading non-profit in Ottawa as an Events & Community Engagement Specialist. Leverage your skills in event coordination, fundraising, and community engagement to support youth services. You'll work collaboratively to create impactful events and strategies, enhancing community awareness and involvement in projects that uplift vulnerable youth.

Benefits

15 days of annual vacation + 1 personal day

100% YSB-paid group health benefits after 3 months

Pension plan from Day 1

Qualifications

• 3+ years of hands-on non-profit or corporate event experience.
• High energy individual with exceptional donor care and relationship management.
• Ability to manage time and establish priorities with minimal direction.

Responsibilities

• Oversee planning, production, and financial reconciliation of all events.
• Support third-party events maintaining partnership for retention.
• Coordinate activities aligning with the YSB Foundation’s community engagement strategy.

Skills

Event coordination

Community engagement

Fundraising

Communication

Team collaboration

Problem-solving

Education

Post-secondary education in events management, public relations, communications, fundraising

Tools

Raiser’s Edge

Microsoft Office

Job description

Location: Ottawa, Ontario

Reports to: Executive Director, YSB Foundation

Employment Status: Full-time temporary, 15-month contract (Maternity leave coverage)

Bargaining Unit Status: Excluded

Annual Salary: $68,016.00 - $81,723.20

Language requirements: English is essential; Bilingualism (English & French) is an asset

Closing date: June 22, 2025

Schedule: Hybrid, Monday to Friday (40 hours per week including paid breaks)

Competition #: 25-081

Posting Stage: Internal & External

About Us

YSB: Founded in 1960, the Youth Services Bureau (YSB) is one of the largest and most comprehensive non-profit agencies in Ottawa and a registered charity. It provides mental health services, employment programs, emergency shelter, community, health and housing services, and justice programs to youth in the Ottawa area, serving upwards of 3,000 vulnerable youth aged 12+ and their families every month. YSB employs 390 caring professionals in more than 22 locations across Ottawa.

The YSB Foundation: The YSB Foundation team raises awareness and funds in support of YSB programs, services, capital improvements and innovation projects. The team is proud of its work in annual giving, corporate partnerships, major gifts, legacy giving and events and community engagement, and was honoured to receive the Association of Fundraising Professionals Ottawa Philanthropy Award for Innovation in Fundraising in 2021.

The role: In the Events & Community Engagement Specialist role, you will use your exceptional skills, energy, creativity, and storytelling ability to welcome even greater participation in our signature events while also supporting a growing number of third-party event partners. Reporting to the Foundation’s Executive Director, you will work as part of a highly collaborative, goal-oriented, respectful and productive team, and be responsible for overseeing the planning, production, marketing, evaluation and financial reconciliation of all events. You will continuously seek new ideas and new ways of ensuring our team’s success in supporting YSB’s programs and services in youth housing, mental health, employment and justice.

We are searching for a real dynamo, and someone who is passionate about YSB’s work in helping youth be all they can be regardless of barriers they face or have faced in the past.

What You Will Do

Coordination of the YSB Foundation’s events portfolio

• Continue to steward, reimagine and reinvent signature events
• Steer the development of new opportunities to build community awareness and profile through potential new signature and third-party events, including the development of an annual plan and event work plans that include objectives, timelines, budget and post-event reports
• Support a growing range and volume of third-party events to ensure an appropriate level of support is provided, and an exceptional level of partnership is maintained for retention
• Lead the retention of current event sponsors, and collaborate with the Executive Director and Fundraising Officer to seek out prospective new sponsors
• Utilize strong administrative and computer skills to ensure all administrative and data management tasks associated with event management are captured in a thorough, detailed and timely fashion in the Foundation’s donor database management system (Raiser’s Edge) and to enable ongoing stewardship
• In collaboration with the Foundation team and YSB’s Communications Coordinator, ensure an appropriate level of communications and marketing support for signature and third-party events as well as sponsor recognition
• Foster positive relationships internally within YSB, as well as with donors, sponsors, event participants, volunteers, staff, and the community
• Lead the recruitment of volunteers for signature and community events, and support corporate and community group volunteer activities within YSB
• In collaboration with the Executive Director and Foundation Team, help facilitate the recognition plan for all event-related participants, sponsors and volunteers
• Possess strong speaking skills to share YSB’s work and stories, in particular in promotional videos for Foundation events and in speaking at third-party events
• Attend and represent the Foundation at other community events as required, represent the YSB Foundation and provide support as a member of third-party event planning committees
  
  

Community Engagement Strategy

• Support and drive the evolution of the YSB Foundation’s engagement strategy, in line with best practices and trends in the field
• Coordinate, plan and organize activities or events in line with the YSB Foundation’s community engagement strategy
• Manage the Foundation’s In-Kind Donations program, including responding to, receiving and organizing the distribution of in-kind donations to YSB program areas and ultimately youth clients
• Responsible for the creation and distribution of the YSB Foundation’s Newsletter/e-Newsletter, published twice a year (print and electronic). Involves gathering and writing content (youth story interviews, program staff interviews, corporate profile, events update, etc.), working with designer on layout, coordinating printing, posting on website, social media content to share stories
• Foundation website content (ensure content on events, donor profiles and blog sections are created and kept up-to-date)
• Youth stories/speakers (gathering of stories and speakers specific to signature and 3rd party events and marketing campaigns)
• Internal communications (ensuring regular Foundation updates are provided for YSB’s Intranet, Town Halls, and for colleagues, etc.)
  
  

Young Professionals Network and Youth Cabinet

• Empower young professionals to advance the YSB Foundation's fundraising and outreach goals, while offering them valuable networking and educational opportunities to deepen their engagement in the community.
• Mentor and guide the YSB Foundation’s Youth Cabinet in learning about YSB’s services and sharing that knowledge with their peers. Coordinate the Youth Cabinet’s fundraising events and activities, ensure they are recognized for their high school volunteer hours
  
  

This opportunity may be right for you if you have the following:

• You possess post-secondary education in events management, public relations, communications, fundraising, and/or equivalent of training and professional experience
• You possess 3+ years of hands-on non-profit or corporate event experience
• You are passionate about fundraising in support of young people
• You have a proven ability to set and accomplish goals and objectives, and can manage your time and establish priorities with minimal direction
• You are a high energy individual with a positive attitude, exude passion and enthusiasm, provide exceptional donor care and relationship management, and carry out your work with a high level of professionalism
• You value and respect diversity, equity and inclusion and are dedicated to working within a positive and supportive workplace and team culture
• Are a problem solver, and have above average attention to detail, accuracy and thoroughness
• Have a high level of flexibility, good judgment, resourcefulness, and take initiative
• Possess strong computer literacy including Microsoft Office, Raiser’s Edge and AKA Raisin
• Have solid communication skills, including solid verbal, written and listening skills, and a high level of respect and empathy working with donors, clients, colleagues, Board members, volunteers, suppliers and partners
• Have the ability to adhere to tight deadlines in a fast-paced work environment
• Ability to work a flexible schedule, including occasional evenings and weekends
• You have valid driver’s license and access to a reliable vehicle
  
  

You Get Bonus Points If

• You are fluent in both written and spoken English and French
• Have 2+ years of non-profit community engagement experience, with a demonstrated passion for engaging students, educators, parents, community groups, and faith groups
• You possess experience with Raiser’s Edge and/or AKA Raisin or a similar fundraising and peer-to-peer fundraising platforms
• You have experience in creating virtual events, including podcasts
  
  

What We Offer

• An opportunity to join a vibrant team and be part of truly meaningful and rewarding work
• A team where you get to be yourself everyday and where you have the freedom to innovate
• 15 days of annual vacation + 1 personal day
• 100% YSB-paid group health benefits after 3 months
• Pension plan from Day 1
  
  

Join us!

If you think this role is a good fit, we would love to hear from you. Please visit the career section of our website to submit your resume and one-page cover letter. Don’t just tell us what we want to hear, tell us your story and why you would make a great addition to our team.

We know applying to a job takes time and thank all candidates for their interest. While we are not able to get back to every candidate, we will ensure shortlisted applicants are aware of their status and will do our best to provide feedback if that can be helpful.

At YSB and the YSB Foundation, we are committed to building a workforce that reflects the diversity of our community. We encourage applications from Indigenous peoples, racialized people, people with disabilities, people from the LGBTQ community and/or people with intersectional identities. Accommodation will be made available for applicants with a disability throughout the hiring process, kindly make your needs known in advance.

All interested candidates are encouraged to apply. In the event a qualified candidate is not found, candidates that do not meet the qualifications indicated on the posting may be considered. Qualified candidates may be contacted at any time throughout the application window, upon the closing date.