Driftwood Communications Job Board
Manager, Strategic Partnerships & Government Programs
Description
Canada is wiring itself for the next decade. Driftwood is going to build a significant piece of it — and we need the person who gets us in the room.
Driftwood Communications builds and maintains critical telecom infrastructure across Western Canada. Our core capabilities are outside plant construction, splicing and testing, engineering and design, and program delivery. We've earned that capability over years of executing long-term MSAs with Canada's largest carriers. The next chapter is broadening who we serve and what kinds of programs we lead, while keeping the same field execution discipline at the center.
About the role
The telecom landscape is shifting. The Big-3 are cutting capex, but Canada is simultaneously investing in sovereign AI infrastructure, Indigenous and rural connectivity, and industrial private networks. Each of these creates programs that need exactly what Driftwood does best: durable OSP build, careful documentation, safe execution at scale.
This is a senior, owner-adjacent role responsible for accessing those programs. It is not a quota-carrying sales seat. The job is to architect partnerships, lead government program capture, and put Driftwood on the named partner roster for the most consequential infrastructure programs being built in British Columbia, Alberta, and Manitoba over the next five years.
You will be the bridge between Driftwood and the entities that decide where infrastructure dollars flow: First Nations economic development corporations, regional ISPs and cooperatives, BC Hydro and FortisBC procurement, federal and provincial program offices, and selectively, the primes leading data centre construction.
You will report directly to the CEO. You will spend less time on bid portals and more time in rooms where partnerships are structured. You will work closely with our construction, engineering, and Central Portfolio Management leaders, so every opportunity you bring to the table is one that Driftwood can execute and win profitably.
What you'll own
- BC Hydro Telecom Engineering relationship. Get Driftwood through registered contractor qualification, then build into specified project work across fibre, microwave, and substation comms. Same pathway for FortisBC.
- Federal and provincial broadband program capture. The CRTC Broadband Fund (Call 4 closes August 13, 2026), Connecting Communities BC, the forthcoming CRTC Indigenous stream, and the eventual successor to UBF. Identify the right ISP, cooperative, and First Nations partners. Get Driftwood named in their proposals as the build partner.
- Industrial private network channel. Build named-partner relationships with the integrators delivering private LTE/5G in BC so Driftwood is the default OSP and civil sub for new site deployments in mining, ports, forestry, and LNG.
- Selective data centre work. Position Driftwood as a teaming partner to primes on AI and hyperscaler builds.
Who you are
- You've spent at least seven years architecting and capturing complex infrastructure deals. That experience could come from utility procurement, First Nations economic development, telecom regulatory affairs, public sector capital programs, infrastructure investment banking, or large-program capture inside a construction or engineering firm. You don't need to have done all of it. You do need a track record of moving large opportunities from concept to signed agreement with multiple stakeholders at the table.
- You have an existing network in BC across at least some of: First Nations economic development corporations, BC Hydro or FortisBC procurement, federal and provincial broadband program offices, regional ISP or cooperative leadership, mining or industrial private network integrators.
- You're comfortable with the mechanics of public procurement: prequalification, bonding and insurance, RFP and RFQ submissions, capability statements. You know what a teaming agreement looks like and can read a JV term sheet and tell us where the risks live.
- You understand telecom OSP work at a working level. You don't need to splice fibre. You do need to know what a carrier entrance is, what a meet-me room does, why duct and handhole spacing matters, and why a clean as-built is worth its weight in gold.
- You write well. Proposals, capability statements, executive summaries, and partnership memos. Your written communication is the calling card that opens most of the doors this role depends on.
- You are direct, low-ego, and operationally grounded. You can sit across from an ops lead in the morning and a First Nations Chief in the afternoon – and be genuinely useful in both conversations.
Nice to have
- Existing relationships at TELUS, Ledcor, BC Hydro, or large BC primes/general contractors
- Mission-critical or data centre exposure (carrier entrances, diverse routing, MMR)
- Utility OT/SCADA communications background
- Experience with ISED and CRTC regulatory frameworks
- Prior P&L responsibility
Compensation
- Base salary in the $150,000 to $185,000 range, calibrated to experience, with a performance bonus tied to a small number of concrete milestones.
- Full extended health, dental, and vision coverage from day one, no waiting period.
- The role requires regular BC travel with occasional trips to Manitoba and Alberta
- Office presence is flexible.
At Driftwood Communications, we value every application. While we can only respond to those selected for an interview, we appreciate your interest and look forward to the possibility of welcoming you to our team.
Please note that applicants must be eligible to work in Canada without sponsorship as we are unable to support work visas of any kind.
Driftwood Communications head office resides on the traditional territories of the Tsawout First Nations, and we are honored to work closely with all local First Nations across Western Canada. As a company, we are committed to ensuring our workforce fairly reflects all the people of Western Canada and strive to create an environment where everyone can succeed, free of systemic barriers. Driftwood Communications welcomes everyone to contribute to our success and diligently selects the best candidate based on qualifications, skills, knowledge, and commitment.
Compensation
$150,000.00 - $185,000.00 per year