Executive Director

Company Overview

THE ORGANIZATION

Canadian Actors' Equity Association (Equity) is the national association of 6,000 active performers, directors, choreographers, fight directors, intimacy directors, and stage managers who are engaged in professional live performance in theatre, dance, and opera. Equity supports the creative efforts of its members by seeking to improve their working conditions, protections, and opportunities. 

The business of Equity is to:

·       Negotiate and administer collective agreements and engagement policies on behalf of theatre, dance, and opera professionals;

·       Provide benefit plans, information, and support; and

·       Act as an advocate for its membership and the live performance sector.

Equity strives for fairness, integrity, and compassion in all its endeavours. It is a democratically structured organization run by artists for artists. It is entirely self-supporting, funded by artists working on its contracts, through a structure of member dues and fees, and non-member filing fees.

Equity is the united voice of its members, and its strength lies in the collective support given by its members to its members.

Equity has an annual budget of $3.8 million, with a National Office in Toronto, Ontario. There is a total staff complement of 25, with two staff working in Vancouver, BC, one in Montreal, QC, and one from Valley, NS. The national office oversees issues which affect the entire Equity membership, and co-ordinates interaction with national and international cultural, labour, and funding organizations. The membership, benefits, bonding, and accounts receivable departments are located in this office. The national office also deals with the administration of the collective agreements in Eastern and Northern Canada, while the staff in Vancouver deal with the administration of the collective agreements in Western Canada.

The government of Equity is vested in a national Council of 23 members from across Canada, elected every three years and representing all geographic regions and major work disciplines within the membership. Council meets ten times per year and is responsible for guiding the organisation in all matters through its policy decisions.

Since 2005, Equity’s Council has worked with Policy Governance® as the Association’s governance model. Council instructs the Executive Director through written policies which prescribe the “Organizational Results” to be achieved, and describes organizational situations and actions to be avoided (“Executive Director Limitations”), allowing the Executive Director to use any reasonable interpretation of these policies. The Executive Director is the Council's only link to operational achievement and conduct, so that all authority and accountability of staff, as far as the Council is concerned, is considered the authority and accountability of the Executive Director.

 

Equity’s Current Areas of Focus: A Selective List

 

Education, Communication, and Relationship-building

Equity continually seeks to improve its relationships internally and externally.

Council and staff, in their respective spheres of responsibility, are committed to finding ways to increase the broader membership’s understanding of and participation in their organization.

While maintaining a firm commitment to members’ rights and needs, the organization seeks to foster increasingly positive relationships with engagers, reflecting the nature of each party’s ultimate common purpose.

 

Advocacy

Equity continues to promote the cause of artists and elevate their socio-economic status within Canadian society. This involves collaboration with other cultural organizations, and promoting and addressing these issues with government entities at all levels.

 

Demonstrating the Value of Membership

We constantly work to ensure that members are aware of and appreciate the benefit of membership – the value that Equity’s range of services provides in exchange for their dues contributions.

 

Maintaining the Insurance Plan

Our insurance plan, which is currently funded internally and managed by an administrative agent, is actively monitored and refined. The goal is to provide the best and most cost-effective coverage possible at an affordable premium cost for our members.

 

Safe and Respectful Workplaces

Both physical and personal safety are key action points for Equity across the many workplaces that engage its members and use its contracts. We plan to conduct a follow-up survey on this topic in 2025 to assess progress made over the last decade, so that we can renew existing efforts and focus our future work in these areas.

 

Understanding and Reflecting our Membership

With a membership and live performance community in constant evolution, it is critical that we have a good understanding of artist demographics and their common and distinct needs. The goal is to consistently achieve equitable access to opportunity across all areas of work within Equity’s jurisdiction. We plan on conducting a new edition of our very successful membership Census in 2025, to keep our focus and work current.

 

Looking Ahead

Continuing to anticipate and prepare the organization for future trends such as:

·       -  The rapidly evolving royalty and intellectual property implications of new and digital media

·     -   The changing nature of live performance, involving, for example, an increase in the number of members who also produce

·       - Changes in the live performance sector in a post-COVID landscape.

·       - Improvements in effective use of the website and digital communications, to ensure the membership has timely, complete and readable resources available to them at all times; and

·       - Improvements in contract administration efficiency, including effective use of current digital information technologies where practical.

 

Job Description

THE POSITION

The Executive Director (ED) is the chief executive officer and senior administrator responsible for all Equity staff operations. This position presents the opportunity to lead a professional association of artists working in Canadian live performance who are united within a vital and evolving national arts community. The mandate of the ED is unusually wide-ranging, and the challenge is unique – to serve an organization whose members are both owners and clients.

The position involves a great deal of visibility, with extensive interaction with all levels of cultural, labour, and funding entities across Canada as well as internationally. Above all, this position presents the opportunity to make a real difference to the well-being of live performance artists and, ultimately, to the fabric of Canadian culture and society.

The Mandate

Council provides direction to the Executive Director in such a way as to preserve Council accountability while maximizing the Executive Director’s flexibility, creativity, and freedom to respond to evolving situations. 

 

RESPONSIBILITIES

Leadership & Strategy

·       Reporting to Council, the Executive Director is the recipient of all executive authority delegated by Council, and is held accountable for organizational performance.

·       Determine and reflect regional concerns to the national office and maintain a highly visible presence among the membership across Canada.

·       Develop and maintain a deep understanding of Equity’s Constitution, bylaws and governance policies.

·       Keep abreast of any actions at the World Intellectual Property Organization or United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization which could impact live performance and related arts and culture.

·       Approve and oversee all contracts for goods and services and commercial transactions, including commercial leases and staff purchases and expenses.

·       Chair the RRSP Committee, which oversees the management of over $100 million dollars in member-owned assets.

·       Manage Equity’s complex relationships with those members who are also producers, striving to achieve a balance that both respects Equity’s rules while also creating conditions to allow self-engagement.

Collective Bargaining

·       Support the creative efforts of its members by seeking to improve their working conditions, protections, and opportunities through the negotiation and administration of various collective agreements.

·       Equity currently negotiates and administers 4 ballet agreements, 3 opera agreements, 3 theatre agreements, and 3 federal agreements, each typically running on a three-year cycle. In addition, Equity produces and administers 8 smaller-scale engagement policies, with review and updating on a similar cycle. This work is a significant part of the Executive Director’s job, with several agreements and policies due for renewal each year.

·       Negotiate periodic renewals of the collective agreement with the Canadian Office and Professional Employees Union (COPE), Local 343, the labour representative for the majority of Equity’s staff.

·       Develop and maintain a level of understanding of, and enforce as appropriate:

-        Grievance and arbitration practices, and the collateral impact of human rights protections

-        Labour standards, workplace regulations, employment practices, and case laws as they arise out of collective bargaining and policies as well as with respect to Equity’s own staff

-        All relevant privacy laws and pension benefits as they pertain to insurance and RRSP administration

Government Relations

·       Advocate and lobby on behalf of Equity at the federal and provincial levels (as possible) either alone or in collaboration with other industry partners.

·       Maintain contacts in every province and in large urban areas to stay abreast of political developments regarding relevant issues – arts funding most particularly, but also legislative developments.

·       Liaise with the many umbrella organizations in which Equity participates, including federal and international entities such as the Canada Council, the Department of Canadian Heritage, Employment and Social Development Canada, the Canada Revenue Agency, the Coalition for Cultural Diversity, the International Federation of Actors.

Outreach & Advocacy

·       Maintain an effective relationship with engagers, in both negotiating and administering contracts.

·       With engagers, promote the development of an innovative approach to creating new opportunities for Equity members.

·       Be an effective and eloquent spokesperson for Equity in public/media situations, both orally and in writing (with support from the Communications Director).

Management

·       Demonstrate to staff and to Council an ethic of service balanced with a sense of vision, creativity, and care for staff well-being, inspiring others to follow suit.

·       Evaluate options and facilitate decision-making regarding updating Equity’s information technology systems, and oversee staff and consultants responsible for their implementation and operation.

·       Maintain an awareness of when outside consultant expertise is required, and instruct and oversee the activities of such consultants, which may include lawyers, accountants, auditors, pension plan administrators, insurance brokers and, from time to time, others in areas such as public relations, survey firms, and Policy Governance.

 

DEMONSTRATED COMPETENCIES & PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES

Strong interpersonal skills

Because of Equity’s unique governance structure, the Executive Director must have excellent listening skills and the ability to engage with people in a collaborative, consultative, and empathetic manner.

Negotiation skills

The ability to educate engagers about the role of Equity, and to be appropriately firm in negotiation of contracts while collaborative in their administration.

Political Savvy and Diplomacy

Because the Executive Director supports an elected body, they must have the ability to exercise tact, judgment, and a high degree of sensitivity and diplomacy. The role of Executive Director requires patience and balancing, and it is important for the Executive Director to be able to regularly determine how far and how hard to “push” an idea, and when to pull back.

Sound Judgment and Decisiveness

As Equity’s senior staff officer, the Executive Director will be required to make decisions requiring a high degree of sensitivity and judgment. They will require an ability to balance the dual mandate of serving Council and being the head administrator.

Relationship-Building Skills

Relationship-building skills are an important part of effective advocacy, staff leadership, governance, regional/national cooperation, and external partnerships. The Executive Director must have the capacity and desire to address and manage the dynamics of a variety of key relationships without losing sight of the organization’s mission. They must be consultative and collegial, and able to work in partnership with other individuals and organizations to promote the voice of the performing arts.

Perspective and a Sense of Humour

A good sense of humour will serve the new ED well, especially given the many demands and pressures of the role.

 

CANDIDATE QUALIFICATIONS

·       A strong passion for the arts and culture, combined with a strong belief in the importance of artists in Canadian society, with a preferred understanding of, and appreciation for, theatre, dance, and/or opera.

·       A former role that has required a significant level of negotiation or contract enforcement.

·       Working knowledge of contract and/or labour law, labour relations, and collective bargaining.

·       Experience in public advocacy and increasing an organization’s visibility, particularly within cultural and government entities.

·       A history of operating within a comprehensive governance model / structure.

·       Experience working with or on volunteer boards/councils, specifically those where the board is acknowledged and active as the sole governance point of the organization.

·       Experience working with a spectrum of internal and external stakeholders.

·       Several years in broad-based (generalist) senior management roles, with exposure to a variety of functional areas, including financial management, operations, human resources, and communications.

·       Experience running a smaller organization with a modest management infrastructure, or in a senior role running a full department within a larger organization (e.g. a production department).

·       Possesses strong communication skills, oral and written, in formal and informal situations.

·       Exposure to or some familiarity with Policy Governance® would be preferred.

• Equity is a national organization; fluency in both official languages is an asset.

·       Willingness to relocate to Toronto, and travel significantly in the performance of their duties.