Job Number: J1026-0959
Job Title: GM, Planning & Development Services
Job Type: Full time
Subgroup: EX01 - Exempt
Number of Positions: 1
Date Posted: November 2, 2026
Closing Date: December 31, 2026
Salary: $237,928.60 - $280,753.20/Year
Abbotsford is one of British Columbia's fastest evolving communities and an exciting place to help shape the future of city building. With a newly updated Official Community Plan establishing a long-term vision for growth, the City is looking for an accomplished municipal leader to join its Strategic Leadership Team as General Manager, Planning & Development Services.
Reporting to the City Manager, the General Manager provides executive strategic leadership and overall direction for Planning & Development Services and is responsible for advancing Abbotsford's growth management, housing, land use planning and development objectives.
As a member of the City's Strategic Leadership Team, the General Manager will play a significant corporate leadership role, working closely with the City Manager, Council, colleagues across the organization, other levels of government, the development community and community partners. The successful candidate will bring a strategic and collaborative approach to complex land-use and development matters, support continuous improvement and responsive, customer-focused service, and help translate Council's vision and priorities into effective policy, regulation and service delivery.
Major Accountabilities - Lead implementation of City growth and housing objectives, including provincial housing legislation and regulatory requirements.
- Build and maintain productive relationships with Indigenous communities, regional partners, senior governments, development industry representatives and community stakeholders.
- Champion modernization of development review, permitting and regulatory services through process improvement, digital transformation and performance measurement.
- Align growth planning with transportation, infrastructure, parks, amenities, environmental objectives, and long-term financial sustainability.
- Advance climate resilience, environmental stewardship and sustainable community development through policy leadership and cross-functional collaboration.
- Develop leadership capacity, succession planning and organizational effectiveness across the department.
- Serve as an enterprise leader on the Strategic Leadership Team, contributing to corporate strategy, financial sustainability, organizational effectiveness and major city-wide initiatives beyond the departmental portfolio.
Qualifications - Degree in Planning, Urban Studies, Public Administration, Business Administration, Engineering or related discipline.
- Registered Professional Planner (RPP/MCIP), Professional Engineer (P.Eng.), or other relevant professional designation considered an asset.
- Minimum 15 years of progressive senior leadership experience.
- Executive leadership experience within municipal government, regional government or another complex public-sector environment.
- Experience advising elected officials and executive leadership teams on sensitive and high-profile matters.
- Experience with growth management, housing strategy, major development projects and infrastructure planning.
- Demonstrated success leading organizational change, service modernization and business transformation initiatives.
Salary: $237,928.60 - $280,753.20 annually *Please note, applications will be reviewed upon submission. The posting will remain open until the position is filled.Please note: You should receive a confirmation email once you have successfully applied for this position. If you do not, please contact the Njoyn Help Desk at candidate.njoynhelp@cgi.com or 1-877-427-7717 Monday - Friday 8am - 8pm (EST).
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