Director, Communications & Engagement | City of Surrey
Search Overview
Organization:
City of Surrey
Sector:
Municipal Government and Public Sector
Location:
Surrey, British Columbia
Mandate Type:
Leadership Search
Leadership Function:
Director, Communications & Engagement
Search Scope:
National Leadership Search
Engagement Focus:
Public Sector Communications, Stakeholder Engagement, and Strategic Leadership
Confidentiality:
Public Leadership Recruitment Engagement
The Business Landscape
The City of Surrey engaged KIRAH to support the appointment of a Director, Communications & Engagement during a significant period of organizational growth, civic transformation, and increasing public visibility.
As one of British Columbia’s fastest growing municipalities, Surrey was continuing to experience rapid population growth, infrastructure expansion, evolving community expectations, and heightened public engagement requirements across multiple civic priorities.
The organization required a communications leader capable of overseeing strategic communications, public engagement initiatives, media relations, stakeholder management, and organizational messaging while supporting transparency and trust within a highly visible municipal environment.
The mandate carried substantial importance as effective communication and community engagement had become increasingly critical to supporting leadership alignment, public confidence, and long term organizational effectiveness within a rapidly evolving municipality.
The Leadership Requirement
The role required far more than traditional communications expertise.
The City required a senior leader capable of balancing strategic communications, media relations, stakeholder engagement, public affairs, crisis communications, community outreach, and executive advisory responsibilities within a complex public sector environment.
The ideal candidate required strong experience operating within high profile and politically sensitive environments while demonstrating leadership capability across both internal and external communications functions.
Equally important was the need for an individual capable of navigating public scrutiny, community expectations, leadership collaboration, and organizational change within one of Canada’s fastest growing cities.
The Search Mandate
KIRAH was retained to conduct a national leadership search for the Director, Communications & Engagement role.
The assignment focused on identifying communications and engagement leaders with experience across municipalities, public sector organizations, government environments, and complex stakeholder driven institutions.
Rather than approaching the mandate as a traditional communications hire, the search centered around identifying a strategic leadership partner capable of supporting organizational credibility, public engagement effectiveness, and long term communications strategy.
The engagement involved targeted outreach, leadership evaluation, and close collaboration with municipal leadership stakeholders throughout the recruitment process.
The Search Strategy
KIRAH conducted targeted outreach across municipalities, government agencies, Crown organizations, public institutions, and complex stakeholder driven environments throughout Canada.
The process focused on identifying leaders with strong experience across strategic communications, executive advisory support, stakeholder engagement, media relations, and public sector communications management.
Candidates were evaluated beyond technical communications capability alone.
The assessment process focused heavily on leadership maturity, stakeholder management approach, public engagement capability, executive presence, communication style, crisis management awareness, and organizational alignment.
Particular emphasis was placed on identifying a leader capable of balancing both community expectations and internal organizational priorities within a highly visible municipal environment.
The search process also prioritized candidates capable of operating effectively within politically sensitive and rapidly evolving public sector environments.
Candidates were assessed on adaptability, relationship building capability, collaboration style, and their ability to contribute positively across executive leadership, council environments, and community stakeholder groups.
The Appointment
The search resulted in the successful appointment of a Director, Communications & Engagement aligned with the City of Surrey’s leadership and community engagement objectives.
The appointed leader brought strong public sector communications capability, stakeholder engagement experience, and executive advisory strength aligned with the organization’s evolving operational and civic priorities.
Their ability to support strategic communications, community engagement, and organizational alignment positioned them effectively within the City’s leadership structure during a significant stage of municipal growth and transformation.
The appointment represented an important investment in strengthening public communication, organizational visibility, and community engagement leadership across the municipality.
The Outcome
Strengthened Communications Leadership
Supported the appointment of a senior communications leader capable of contributing strategically across public engagement, media relations, and organizational communications initiatives.
Enhanced Community Engagement Capability
Helped strengthen stakeholder and community engagement leadership within a complex municipal environment.
Specialized Public Sector Search Execution
Delivered a targeted leadership search process focused on communications and engagement leadership within government and public sector organizations.
Long Term Municipal Alignment
Identified leadership capability aligned with the City’s communication priorities, community expectations, and long term organizational objectives.
Key Search Metrics
National Public Sector Search
Targeted outreach conducted across municipalities, public institutions, government agencies, and stakeholder driven organizations throughout Canada.
Communications Leadership Evaluation
Comprehensive assessment focused on stakeholder engagement capability, executive communication, leadership maturity, and organizational alignment.
Municipal Leadership Search Focus
Search execution tailored to politically sensitive and highly visible public sector environments.
Successful Leadership Placement
Completed the successful placement of a Director, Communications & Engagement supporting the City of Surrey’s communications and public engagement objectives.