CAREERS

As a Communication Advisor you will play a critical role in developing and implementing effective communication strategies to support the Wester Irrigation District’s goals and objectives. You will be responsible for managing internal and external communications, maintaining a positive public image, and enhancing brand reputation. Your primary focus will be to ensure consistent and clear messaging across various communication channels, targeting both internal stakeholders and external audiences. You will be curious about the agriculture industry, eager to learn about irrigation and the political framework that the WID operates within, overseen by the provincial Ministry of Agriculture.

Key Responsibilities

• Communication Strategy: develop and execute comprehensive communication strategies aligned with the organization’s goals, values, and objectives.
• Messaging and Content Development: create compelling and engaging content for various communication channels, including press releases, articles, newsletters, website content, and social media posts.
• Media Relations: build and maintain strong relationships with media outlets, journalists, and industry influencers to secure positive coverage and manage media inquiries effectively.
• Internal Communications: develop and implement internal communication plans to keep employees informed and engaged.
• Brand Management: Ensure consistent brand messaging and visual identity across all communication materials, both online and offline, to maintain a strong and recognizable brand presence.
• Crisis Communication: develop crisis communication plans and act as a spokesperson during times of crisis, ensuring timely and accurate dissemination of information to minimize reputational damage.
• Stakeholder Engagement: collaborate with key stakeholders, such as executives, employees, customers, and community members to understand their communication needs and tailor messages accordingly.
• Digital and Social Media Management: Oversee the organization’s social media presence, including content creation, scheduling, monitoring and responding to comments and inquiries.
• Performance Measurement: track and analyze the effectiveness of communication activities through metrics and analytics, making data-driven recommendations for continuous improvement.
• Industry Research: Stay up-to-date with industry trends, emerging technology and best practices in communication to enhance the organization’s communication strategies.
• Strong writing skills, ability to take complex and jargon-filled information and translate into effective communication for a range of audiences.
• Project management experience, working with creative experts to deliver on time and on budget, and the ability to juggle multiple initiatives.
• Comfort working with large and small media outlets to pitch and respond.

Qualifications and Skills

• A degree or diploma in Communications, Public Relations, Marketing, Journalism or Business.
• Proven experience in developing and executing successful communication strategies across various channels.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to tailor messages to different audiences and platforms.
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build relationships with stakeholders at all levels.
• Proficiency in digital communication tools, social media platforms, and content management systems.
• Knowledge of media relations practices and experience working with journalists.
• Crisis communication and issues management experience is desirable.
• Familiarity with data analytics and measurement tools to track the performance of communication initiatives.
• Ability to work under pressure, manage multiple priorities, and meet tight deadlines.
• Creative thinking and problem-solving skills, with a keen attention to detail.

The Asset & Maintenance Coordinator works closely with our Construction and Operations teams to ensure exceptional service delivery of our WID equipment and infrastructure. This role is responsible for identifying and implementing improvements in our maintenance processes and shaping our preventative, predictive, and reliability-driven maintenance programs. The Asset & Maintenance Coordinator is responsible for the repair and maintenance budget, as well as capital planning for the heavy and light vehicle fleet. Reporting to the Senior Manager – Operations, this role will have the ability to make a significant impact on WIDs’ growth strategy and future success.

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday, with some after-hours work as required.
• Frequent travel to our field locations throughout our district.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• Ensure maintenance and fleet best practices are effectively implemented, utilized, and improved, driving strong ownership of activities, cost, and WID customer service, which includes inspections, preventative maintenance requirements, spares management, and repair and maintenance budgets.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including design, operations, and construction, to optimize equipment performance and reliability.
• Create a maintenance schedule for all infrastructure assets, (pipelines, canals, reservoirs, control structures) which includes inspection intervals, repairs, replacement, preventive, and routine maintenance requirements.
• Utilize data analysis tools and techniques to evaluate equipment performance and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Track and improve maintenance KPIs, including reliability, runtime, availability, utilization, mean time between failures, out-of-service rates, open work orders, overdue preventative maintenance orders, and other key metrics.
• Oversight of repair and maintenance budget development and management, as well as providing input to capital planning.
• Develop a strong cost management structure for maintenance that identifies opportunities to improve our business and provides for short and long-term actions that reduce costs.
• Forecast and planning for heavy and light vehicle assets, as well as input into WID equipment platform planning and field maintenance resource requirements.
• Work with Procurement and Engineering to manage vendor support and equipment relationships for critical spares and regular third-party maintenance or inspections.
• Assess and manage business systems to improve asset and fleet maintenance, including inventory and spares management, work orders, and maintenance cost tracking.
• Promote and drive a proactive and positive HSE culture within WID.

Requirements:

• 5+ years in a Maintenance role.
• Trade background or Bachelor’s degree in a relevant engineering or industrial field would be an advantage, but not a requirement
• Experience with water management, controls, oil and gas services, piping systems, or canals is strongly preferred.
• Track record in driving equipment reliability improvements related to maintenance, implementation of predictive maintenance, or reliability-centered maintenance programs would be an advantage.
• Experience managing maintenance department budgets, and ideally with input into capital equipment planning and asset management.
• Familiarity with heavy and light vehicle fleet maintenance programs, including provincial inspection requirements.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, and willingness to work in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Excellent organization and leadership skills.