Senior Manager, Talent Development Programs

bdo; Vancouver; On-site; CAD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

BDO is seeking a Senior Manager, Talent Development Programs in Vancouver to lead an eight-person team and translate strategy into a rich portfolio of enterprise talent initiatives. The role partners with senior leaders and experts across Talent Development and People & Culture to deliver high-impact programs that build capabilities for today and the future.

The Senior Manager balances strategic thinking with operational excellence, leveraging data to demonstrate value and ensuring quality

Qualifications

• Demonstrated leadership of large teams managing enterprise talent programs.
• Ability to translate strategy into actionable program priorities and investments.
• Experience partnering with senior leaders and subject matter experts to influence capability development.

Responsibilities

• Own prioritization and evolution of enterprise Talent Development program portfolio to align with strategy and firm priorities.
• Translate business needs into clear program priorities, plans, and investments.
• Evaluate the portfolio to identify opportunities to scale, redesign, or sunset programs.
• Establish governance, quality standards, and decision-making processes for program execution.
• Lead a high-performing team of Talent Development professionals and develop capabilities.
• Build trusted relationships with senior leaders to translate priorities into practical development solutions.
• Partner with Talent Development and People & Culture to ensure initiatives deliver measurable value.

Skills

Leadership

People management

Strategic thinking

Stakeholder management

Data-driven decision making

Program portfolio management

Coaching & development

Cross-functional collaboration

Budget & resource planning

Education

Bachelor's degree in HR/Organizational Development/Business

Job description

Putting people first, every day

BDO is a firm built on a foundation of positive relationships with our people and our clients. Each day, our professionals provide exceptional service, helping clients with advice and insight they can trust. In turn, we offer an award-winning environment that fosters a people-first culture with a high priority on your personal and professional growth.

Your Opportunity

The Senior Manager, Talent Development Programs provides strategic and people leadership for the firm's enterprise Talent Development program portfolio. Reporting to the Director, Talent Development, this role is accountable for translating broader Talent Development strategy into portfolio priorities, ensuring the firm invests in high-impact programming that builds the capabilities needed today and into the future.

Leading a team of eight Talent Development professionals across multiple role levels, the Senior Manager creates the clarity, capability, and conditions for the team to perform at its best. This includes setting priorities, allocating resources, coaching and developing team members, and ensuring consistent standards of quality and execution across the portfolio.

Working closely with senior business leaders, subject matter experts, and colleagues across Talent Development and People & Culture, the Senior Manager serves as a trusted advisor on talent and leadership development needs. This replacement role balances strategic thinking with operational excellence, using business insights, data, and emerging practices to continuously strengthen programming and demonstrate measurable value to the firm.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the prioritization, and continuous evolution of the firm's enterprise Talent Development program portfolio, aligned with broader Talent Development strategy, firm priorities, and future capability needs.
• Translate organizational priorities and emerging business needs into clear program priorities, plans, and investments.
• Evaluate the portfolio holistically to identify opportunities to scale, redesign, integrate, consolidate, or sunset programming based on business need, evidence, and impact.
• Establish clear governance, quality standards, and decision-making processes across the program portfolio to support consistency, scalability, and operational excellence.
• Balance short-term business needs with longer-term capability priorities, adapting the portfolio as the firm and its needs evolve.
• Partner with the Director, Talent Development on broader Talent Development strategy, investment priorities, and opportunities to strengthen organizational capability.

People & Team Leadership

• Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing team of seven Talent Development professionals responsible for the design, management, and delivery of enterprise talent programs.
• Create clarity around team priorities, roles, accountabilities, and expectations while empowering individuals to take ownership and make decisions within their areas of responsibility.
• Allocate team capacity and resources across the portfolio based on strategic priorities, business need, impact, and available capacity.
• Provide ongoing coaching, meaningful feedback, and development opportunities that strengthen individual and collective capability.
• Build a strong talent pipeline through succession planning, stretch opportunities, knowledge sharing, and individualized development.
• Create a culture of trust, accountability, collaboration, inclusion, and continuous learning where team members are supported and challenged to grow.
• Establish and reinforce high standards for program leadership, facilitation, stakeholder partnership, and execution across the team.

Strategic Business Partnership & Influence

• Build trusted relationships with senior leaders and stakeholders across the firm, demonstrating credibility, integrity, empathy, and a strong client-first mindset.
• Serve as a strategic advisor on talent and leadership development needs, helping leaders translate business priorities and capability gaps into practical development solutions.
• Represent Talent Development in senior-level discussions, bringing a clear point of view on organizational capability, development priorities, and potential solutions.
• Influence decision making by providing thoughtful recommendations, demonstrating impact, and building alignment across diverse stakeholder groups.
• Collaborate closely with Talent Development, People & Culture, business leaders, and subject matter experts to ensure development solutions are integrated and aligned to broader firm priorities.
• Anticipate evolving internal client needs and ensure the team delivers responsive, high-quality, and practical solutions that create value.

Measurement, Impact & Operational Excellence

• Partner closely with the Talent Development technology and measurement teams to ensure consistent approaches to program measurement, data collection, reporting, and evaluation across the portfolio.
• Ensure programs align wi