Lead, Analytics

At Ontario Health, we are committed to developing a strong organizational culture that connects and inspires all team members across the province. Our vision is that together, we will be a leader in health and wellness for all. Our mission is to connect the health system to drive improved and equitable health outcomes, experiences and value. How we work together is reflected through our five values: integrity, inspiration, tenacity, humility and care.   

What Ontario Health offers:   

Achieving your career goals is a priority to us. Benefits of working at Ontario Health may include the following based on employment type:   

• Fully paid medical, dental and vision coverage from your first day  

• a health care spending account  

• a premium defined benefit pension plan  

• three personal days and two float days annually  

• three weeks’ vacation to start (for individual contributors), increasing to four weeks after two years 

• career development opportunities  

• a collaborative values-based team culture  

• a wellness program 

• a hybrid working model  

• participation in Communities of Inclusion   

Want to make a difference in your career?  Consider this opportunity.   

Here is what you will be doing:

The Information Strategy, Management and Analytics (ISMA) Portfolio within Ontario Health’s Strategy, Planning, Privacy & Analytics (SPA) supports the design, implementation, and management of provincial information management/information technology solutions on behalf of the Ministry of Health. In collaboration with Ontario Health and health system partners, ISMA has developed and defined near real time data collection standards, methodologies, tools, and business practices ensure high quality data is readily available to a wide variety of health care stakeholders. Our unique approach to data lifecycle management (acquisition, management, and utilization) provides meaningful information to provincial health system stakeholders to improve access, performance, efficiency and quality of care. Our work guides real-time decision making and planning; informs the evaluation of health care system performance; and offers recommendations to ensure a sustainable healthcare future.

Reporting to the Manager, Analytics, the Lead, Analytics, is responsible for exploring emerging technologies and analytics capabilities in alignment with the HSA Analytics strategy, goals and objectives. Through their extensive technical knowledge and ability to master new tools quickly, they will develop best practices and lead proof-of-concept analytic products, workflows and advanced analytics that can be operationalized within the team for greater efficiency. It is expected they will leverage both existing (SAS) and alternate coding languages (R/Python), Business Intelligence tools, and new cloud platforms such as our Analytics Data Hub and Microsoft Azure. They will play a key role in migrating our legacy business intelligence and Excel-based reports to an online reporting platform via PowerBI.

The Lead, Analytics will lead complex analytics projects that either incorporate data across multiple areas or require datasets beyond the traditional program areas supported by ISMA; they will accomplish this through their extensive domain knowledge across the broad health sector, coupled with their ability to learn new datasets quickly. In addition, the Lead, Analytics will be instrumental in achieving our broader aim of enhancing analytics support to our main program partners through higher value analytics, specifically around forecasting, modelling, and machine learning. They will be leveraging the latest cloud technologies available at Ontario Health, working with various IT teams to develop processes and workflows that can be operationalized (e.g. MLOps). Additional roles and responsibilities may evolve, and change based on stakeholder needs and the portfolio.

Here is what you will need to be successful:  

• Act as a lead and advisor for novel or complex analytics projects, identifying appropriate methods, literature review, datasets and data elements that go beyond the traditional program areas the team supports.
• Interprets, summarizes and presents key findings to technical and non-technical audiences, management and clinical leads.
• Provide subject matter expertise in analytical, modelling, and statistical methods and their implementation through coding and software, including development of Machine Learning models where applicable.
• As part of a hub and spoke data and analytics model, advance the team’s hub advisory services, acting as the lead analytics support for nascent program teams.
• Engage with Ontario Health Regions to gather requirements, working with the analytics teams to develop and release potential analytics products that could be surfaced at a corporate level.
• Engage with corporate business intelligence team to ensure best practices and standards are adopted across the team.
• Work with the team to understand operational analytic workflows and apply proof-of-concepts.
• Develop best practice workflows and support the team’s advancements in leveraging the Analytics Data Hub and tools available in the Azure Virtual Desktop environment.
• Lead initiatives identified in analytics roadmaps and workplans that advance workflow processes, team’s analytic capabilities and provide enhanced support to their clinical business areas.
• Lead the migration of Excel-based reporting to PowerBI and ensuing phases with support from the analytics teams; including collaborating with stakeholders from program areas as well as key corporate partners to advance reporting onto a centralized online portal (Health System Insights)
• Coordinate team’s BI development backlog with corporate BI team weekly releases
• Develop project plans, sequencing activities, and interdependencies; proactively identify, manage, and escalate issues and risks as needed.
• Collaborates with other stakeholders across the organization to identify, inform and deliver department-wide initiatives.
• Stay abreast of emerging technologies and platforms that are coming to OH with an eye on determining applicability to the team and workflow.
• Work on multiple projects and assignments while shifting and adapting work in response to changes in program priorities and timelines.
• Provide guidance and technical expertise for BI and other modelling solutions to other team members.
• Consult on a broad range of projects led by other team members and across Ontario Health
• Work with digital teams for pilot project on emerging technologies and initiatives
• Contributes to local and enterprise-level data and analytics community, by participating in knowledge sharing opportunities and providing input to the development of enterprise data and analytics governance, protocols, and methodologies.
• Support routine analytics operational reporting as required.
• Mentor new analysts and onboard new staff
• Act as backup in Manager’s absence
• Perform other assignments and special projects in support of team and departmental objectives as required.

Education and Experience

• An undergraduate Degree in Information Management, Information Technology, Engineering Business Administration, Health Sciences, Health Administration or Health Informatics or equivalent experience working, is required.
• Master’s degree in engineering, health informatics, health services research, health economics, epidemiology, statistics, or other relevant discipline is an asset.
• 5-7 years of analytics experience, including a demonstrated ability of applying novel / advanced end-to-end analytics products; previous experience in healthcare sector preferred.
• Minimum 3 – 5 years experience of leading analytics projects
• 2+ years of management or mentoring experience
• Demonstrated ability to lead, formally or informally, teams to deliver effective services in a client-focused model.
• Experience using health care and demographic datasets and standards, including CIHI (DAD, NACRS, CCRS, NRS), WTIS, ON-MARG, and Statistics Canada census, considered an asset.
• Experience with Microsoft Office applications (Excel, Word, PowerPoint)

Technical Skills

• Expert experience coding in SQL
• Expert MS Excel skills (data manipulation, advanced formulas, pivot tables, data model, scenario analysis, VBA) required, including ability to query and analyze data with spreadsheet, database and other analytics software.
• Strong experience with SAS and SAS Macros is required.
• Extensive Experience with PowerBI and data modelling required.
• Extensive Experience with R or Python required.
• Experience in forecasting and anomaly detection techniques preferred,
• Knowledge of 3rd-party PowerBI tools such Tabular Editor and DAX Studio an asset
• Knowledge of Microsoft Azure platform and available services an asset

Knowledge and Skills

• Knowledge of the Canadian health care system and health care administrative data
• Knowledge of machine learning forecasting and modelling methods
• Demonstrated ability to learn new knowledge domains and technical skills quickly.
• Ability to develop options and recommendations and assess risks.
• Knowledge of health indicators (e.g., definitions, reporting periods, populations)
• Ability to conduct analyses of large datasets using statistical, visualization, and reporting tools.
• An understanding of health equity, including the social determinants of health and their impacts on health outcomes for different populations
• Strong communication skills with experience interpreting, synthesizing analytic and technical information, and presenting to key stakeholders and leaders.
• Experience collaborating with stakeholders from Program areas as well as key corporate services such as Enterprise Data Warehouse, Data Architecture, Data Engineering, Security, Privacy, Privacy and Business Intelligence teams to deliver business intelligence projects.
• A novel thinker who enjoys generating and exploring innovative ideas and solutions
• Advanced problem-solving capability with excellent attention to detail
• Demonstrated initiative and independence in taking appropriate action and anticipating organizational needs.
• Ability to complete tasks as assigned in a timely manner with high-quality results

Location: Ontario (currently hybrid; subject to change)

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All applicants must be a resident of Ontario to be considered for roles at Ontario Health.  

Ontario Health encourages applications from candidates who are First Nations, Métis, Inuit, and urban Indigenous; Francophone; members of Black and racialized groups; 2SLGBTQIA+ communities; trans and nonbinary individuals; and people living with disabilities.

Ontario Health is an accessible employer, and we offer accommodation in all aspects of employment, including the recruitment process. If you require a disability related accommodation in order to participate in the recruitment process, please email careers@ontariohealth.ca and a member of the team will connect with you within 48 hours.