Location: remote (within 4-hours PST)
Position Type: Full-time
Reports To: Head of Impact
Collaborates with: Head of Impact, Impact Team, Impact Communications, and External Partners
Compensation: CAD 140K – 150K
Start Date: ASAP
Hiring Timeline: Rolling - interviews begin immediately and continue until filled.
About Canopy
Canopy is a solutions-driven, environmental not-for-profit organization dedicated to protecting forests, species, and climate. For more than 25 years, Canopy has been a driving force in transforming wood-based supply chains, including publishing, packaging, and textiles, to eliminate fibre coming from the world's most critical forests and ensure a livable planet for all.
Position Overview
Canopy is seeking a Partnerships Lead to lead the organization’s cross-cutting partnership strategy and help translate relationships into meaningful influence, collaboration, and results. This is a dynamic leadership role for someone who understands how to build strategic alliances that expand capacity, unlock leverage, and accelerate systems change.
This role sits at the intersection of strategy, relationship building, and execution. The Partnerships Lead will work closely with the Executive Director and Head of Impact to shape and advance a partnership strategy that strengthens Canopy’s ability to meet its goals across forest conservation, supply chain transformation, and the scale-up of Next Gen alternatives.
The portfolio includes alliances, coalitions, standard setters, field builders, technical partners, implementation partners, and other actors whose participation can increase market confidence, credibility, reach, and momentum. This role will help Canopy identify where partnerships are most catalytic, develop the strategies and frameworks that guide engagement, and manage priority relationships to successful outcomes.
This role may also help bring added capacity and ecosystem support to brand cohorts and other strategic initiatives where collaboration is needed to move from commitment to implementation.
Why This Role Matters
Canopy’s goals require more than direct engagement with individual companies. They require an enabling ecosystem of partners that can build confidence, add capacity, shape norms, strengthen implementation, and help move markets faster. The Head of Partnerships will help design and lead that ecosystem strategy, ensuring Canopy is not only influencing key actors directly but also shaping the wider conditions needed for change.
Key Responsibilities
Partnership Strategy and Development (20%)
- Lead the development of Canopy’s organization-wide partnership strategy.
- Identify and prioritize partnerships that can increase leverage, credibility, capacity, and scale.
- Assess the partnership landscape to identify opportunities, gaps, and emerging actors.
Relationship Building and Management (30%)
- Build and manage relationships with coalitions, alliances, NGOs, standard setters, technical partners, and other stakeholders.
- Represent Canopy in key external forums and strategic discussions.
- Support leadership in high-value partnership negotiations and stewardship.
Partnership Design and Execution (30%)
- Develop partnership frameworks that define objectives, roles, governance, and success measures.
- Translate relationships into concrete collaborations, joint initiatives, and ecosystem-building efforts.
- Ensure partnerships are aligned with Canopy’s strategic priorities and integrated into campaigns and initiatives.
Internal Alignment and Systems (20%)
- Work cross-functionally to align partnerships with internal teams and priorities.
- Develop systems and processes for partnership tracking, prioritization, and accountability.
- Ensure partnerships generate strategic value without creating unnecessary complexity.
Desired Outcomes
- Canopy has a clear and proactive partnership strategy.
- High-value relationships result in meaningful collaboration and measurable progress.
- Strategic initiatives benefit from stronger ecosystem support.
- Canopy’s role as a systems actor and market catalyst is strengthened.
Qualifications and Experience
- Five or more years of experience in partnerships, strategy, external affairs, or related leadership roles.
- Proven ability to build and manage complex, high-value partnerships across sectors and stakeholder groups.
- Strong strategic judgment and ability to identify leverage points.
- Excellent relationship management skills, with credibility, diplomacy, and the ability to navigate complexity.
- Strong communication skills, including the ability to develop compelling partnership narratives and translate strategy into action.
- Experience working in sustainability, nature, climate, forest conservation, supply chains, corporate engagement, or systems change is strongly preferred.
- Ability to work cross-functionally and align diverse internal and external stakeholders around shared goals.
- Comfort operating in a dynamic environment with multiple moving parts and evolving opportunities.
- Experience with alliances, coalitions, standards bodies, or multi-stakeholder initiatives is a strong asset.
- Passion for environmental conservation, social impact, or mission-driven work strongly preferred.
- Embrace a “Yes, AND...” mindset to foster innovation and collaboration (link to https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-does-mean-say-yes-change-jordan-hirsch/)
HOW TO APPLY
Please submit your CV, a cover letter, and a separate response to the prompt below. Applications missing either the cover letter or the prompt response will not be considered.
On AI use and authenticity: You may use AI tools to brainstorm, edit, or proofread, but please do not use AI to write your cover letter or prompt response for you. We want to hear your voice, experiences, and perspective, not a polished, generic version generated by a model. If you use AI for minor editing assistance, please add a short note at the end of your prompt response (e.g., "I used [tool name] to proofread this response"). Applications written in a genuine, original voice will be prioritized.
Cover letter:
A standard cover letter expressing your interest in Canopy and the Partnerships Lead role.
Prompt response:
Please answer the following question in a clearly labelled section within your cover letter document:
At Canopy, partnerships are a key lever for driving systems change.
Choose one type of partner (e.g., NGO, coalition, standard setter, technical partner, brand, or other) that you believe would be most critical to advancing Next Gen alternatives (low-impact, non-forest fibres).
In your answer, briefly describe:
- Why you chose this type of partner
- What role they would play in accelerating impact
- One concrete example of how you would translate this partnership into tangible results (beyond relationship-building) and work across Canopy’s Impact Teams to activate a cross-team strategy to secure this partner’s commitment.
Please keep your response to 300–400 words.
Canopy is committed to providing an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. If you require accommodations at any stage of the hiring process, please let us know and we will work with you to meet your needs.
Canopy embraces equity and diversity and is committed to a workplace that is enriched by the people, needs, and desires of our diverse community. We thank all applicants; however, we will only contact candidates who successfully secure an interview.
For applicants outside Canada, the salary will align with a benchmarked salary band based on location. Please reach out to Anna for more information. We believe in fostering a supportive work environment where employees can thrive. We also offer comprehensive benefits packages, professional development opportunities, and a supportive workplace culture dedicated to environmental conservation. At Canopy, we prioritize the well-being and growth of our team members, ensuring they have the resources and support needed to excel in their roles and contribute meaningfully to our mission.
