Graduate Research Assistant: Changing The Culture Of The Canadian Armed Forces: Empowerment Through Practitioner - led Innovation

OCAD University Research Assistant

OCAD University acknowledges the ancestral territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Haudenosaunee, the Anishinaabeg, and the Huron-Wendat, who are the original owners and custodians of the land on which we work, stand, and create.

Canada's largest and oldest art and design university, is a vibrant community of bold, curious, and compassionate artists, designers, and scholars who are imagining and creating a joyful, equitable, and sustainable world. The University is an internationally renowned hub for art, design, digital media, research, innovation, and creativity, and arts administration. It embraces collaborative and interdisciplinary approaches to change-making through art, design-thinking curriculum and research, making OCAD U a local, regional, national, and global leader in art and design.

It is an exciting time to join the OCAD U community. The University is at a key stage in its institutional transformation, with the implementation of its Academic and Strategic Plan and guiding principles—driving positive impact, decolonization, indigenization, and equity, environmental sustainability, emerging as a vibrant hub, student-centered approaches, innovation in learning, teaching, and research, and financial stewardship.

Project Details: The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) faces a call, and urgent need, to create a safe, secure, equitable working environment (Arbour, 2022, p. 9). Our project will develop tools for innovation that empower non-commissioned members (NCMs) to transform their organization aligned with these goals. It will do so by improving the CAF's receptivity to the variety of personnel's experiences, create new pathways for contributions to innovative change, and develop a framework for transformational leadership, where NCMs can better lead by example and focus on relationships up and down the chain of command (Mondelli, 2018, Hay, 2006; Bass, 1999; Diaz-Saenz, 2011). By focusing on the contributions of NCMs, the framework will include their insights and experiences, which are key to instilling cultural change from the bottom-up. The proposed changes will help the CAF tap into its deep reservoir of practitioner experience and tacit knowledge in a more complete and inclusive way, including those of marginalized members who have been affected by instances of misconduct in greater numbers. The work conducted with this seed funding would lay the basis for a larger project to help empower personnel to act as change agents.

Responsibilities: Working under the supervision of the Principal Investigator, Michele Mastroeni, in support of the project's research goals and objectives; Assisting with data collection, literature searches, data compilation, processing, entry, and analysis; Assisting with the preparation of proposals, progress, and final reports; Participating in the provision of a safe and secure environment for all members of the University community and its facilities.

Qualifications: Completion of a relevant graduate or current enrollment in a relevant graduate program and/or equivalent training and professional experience; Where relevant, strong organizational, interpersonal, oral and written communications, and problem-solving skills; Interest or experience in architecture, interior design, design for healthcare is an asset; Where relevant, sound knowledge of, and commitment to, healthy and safe work practices; Demonstrated commitment to the principles of equity and diversity and experience promoting a respectful work and learning environment for students, staff, and faculty.

Hours of Work: A maximum of 10 hours per week over the period of October 14, 2025, to December 12, 2025. Work Environment: The position will be a hybrid arrangement and may include both in-person (205/230 Richmond St W, Toronto, ON) and/or remote work, to be discussed with the PI. Compensation: $37.28 (Graduate Rate) per hour, subject to qualifications, plus 6% in lieu of benefits plus vacation pay, as applicable, per the provisions of the Employment Standards Act.

Please note the following: Applicants must be eligible to work in Canada for any employer (with a valid work or study permit, SIN, and Canadian bank account); Current students at OCAD University will be given priority consideration for all Research Assistant positions, with the highest priority given to those not currently holding any other TA/RA positions at the University; This appointment is conditional upon funding of the Project by OCAD U's external funding partner(s); If you are a work or study permit holder, please note a valid Social Insurance Number (SIN) and Canadian bank account is a condition of employment.

Applications should include: A one-page cover letter explaining the candidate's interest; A curriculum vitae; The contact information for two (2) referees. Please upload all three (3) components as one PDF. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please name your upload: FirstName_LastName-Job Code.

Interested applicants are invited to submit their application in confidence addressed to Michele Mastroeni, Associate Professor, Strategic Foresight and Innovation, online by clicking the "Apply for this Position" button below. The review of applications will begin on October 10, 2025, and will continue until the position has been filled.

As an employer committed to employment equity, we encourage applications from members of equity-seeking communities including women, racialized and Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, and persons of all sexual orientations and gender identities/expressions. We encourage members of designated equity-seeking groups to self-identify within the voluntary Applicant Questionnaire. OCAD U is committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free experience to applicants with accessibility needs. Requests for accommodation can be made at any stage during the recruitment process. Please contact People & Culture for more information or refer to OCAD U's Policy of Accommodation in Employment for Persons with Disabilities.