HR Internship

About the Foundation

Headquartered in Toronto, the McConnell Foundation is a pan-Canadian private family foundation that supports efforts to build a more sustainable, inclusive and resilient Canada. The successful candidate will join a dynamic team that supports innovative and scalable approaches to some of Canada’s toughest challenges – such as climate change, strengthening capacity for equity deserving groups, preserving democracy and reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. We do so through granting and impact investing, capacity building, as well as convening, and co-creation with grantees, partners and the public.  

Position summary

During this HR Internship. you’ll work from Toronto in a hybrid setting to support the improvement of HR systems, streamlining processes, and enhancing employee and user experience. This role involves data management and updating policies and procedures, as well as assisting with onboarding, and contributing to inclusive workplace initiatives. The internship offers hands-on experience in a mission-driven, collaborative environment focused on deepening our people-centred systems and practices. 

Application Closing Date: November 24, 2025 

Estimated Start Date: January 12, 2026 

Duration of Internship: 6 months 
LocationCandidates must be based in Toronto, Ontario

ModeHybrid – Must reside within Canada

Employment type Full-Time (35 hours per week), Contract

SupervisorPeople and Culture Manager

Department and TeamOperations

Hiring Salary Range (90-95%)$31-32.50 per hour 

Statement on Salary NegotiationDuring hiring, employees are placed only at the top of the offered range if they demonstrate most or all asset qualifications. The Foundation offers candidates an additional 5% on the salary scale when they are based in the City of Toronto.

Main responsibilities

• Participate in research or benchmarking tasks. 
• Assist with templating job descriptions and indexing them to our job evaluation plan. 
• Support the integration of our competency dictionaries to our recruitment and performance management plans. 
• Document our people and culture processes including those with other areas of operations. 
• Support the onboarding process by preparing checklists, materials, scheduling, and ensuring documentation is complete. 
• Collaborate with operations and IT in the development of intranet resources for employees. 
• Gather policy acknowledgements and handle confidential information securely. 
• Draft HR announcements, maintain internal HR platforms, and support messaging for HR initiatives. 
• Travel to our different site locations and assist with different employee events in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa as required. 
• Contribute to DEI efforts, and coordinate training sessions, prepare materials, and track participation and completion of required courses. 

Position requirements

• Degree or current enrolment in a Human Resources Management program  
• 1-2 years' work experience in an administrative context  
• Functional Bilingualism (B2 in English and French on the Global Scale) 
• Demonstrates the values of the McConnell Foundation 
• Be situated in the Toronto area  
• Willingness to travel to and from Ottawa and Montreal as needed 

Assets

• Some professional experience in HR
• Experience working in a not-for-profit or philanthropic organization.
• Knowledge and experience with data management, analysis and visualization.

Core Competencies and Desired Attributes

• Alignment with the Foundation’s values and mission.
• Demonstrates commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion.
• Collaborates, building partnerships and working collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives.
• Instills trust, gaining the confidence and trust of others through honesty, integrity, and authenticity.
• Focuses on stakeholders, anticipating and balancing the needs of multiple vantage points and groups.
• Drives results, consistently achieving desired outcomes, even under tough circumstances.
• Demonstrates a strategic mindset, seeing ahead to future possibilities and translating them into breakthrough strategies.

Role-Specific Competencies

• Optimizes work processes, establishes effective and efficient processes to get things done, with a focus on continuous improvement.
• Plans and aligns, prioritizing work to meet commitments aligned with organizational goals.
• Shows tech savvy, anticipating and adopting innovations in business -building digital and technology applications.

Benefits

• Generous, fully paid benefits and a health spending account.
• Simplified pension employer matching (6%).
• Holiday granting and charitable donation allowances.
• Employee Assistance and Virtual Medicine programs.
• Hybrid working conditions and home office allowance.
• 8% vacation

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

The McConnell Foundation is working towards strengthening our culture of inclusion and strives to build a team that reflects our mission for a more inclusive, resilient and sustainable society. We welcome and encourage applications from Indigenous people, Black people, racialized people, women, non-binary and gender-nonconforming people, people from the 2SLGBTQQIA community, people with disabilities (visible and invisible) and newcomers to Canada.
Our recruitment team will consider equity status throughout the recruitment process, so we invite members from equity deserving groups to self-identify in their application.
Our work environment and hiring process is inclusive and accessible to anyone with unique needs in terms of accessibility and accommodations. We will support you throughout the life cycle of your employment with us. We ask that all applicants identify their accommodation needs by sending an email to accessibility @mcconnellfoundation.ca so that we can create the necessary conditions so that you can participate fully in the hiring process. All information received in relation to equity status and accommodation will be remain confidential.

Privacy

By applying for this position, you freely and knowingly consent to the inclusion of all information provided by you to the McConnel Foundation in a file created in connection with your application for this or any similar position. You acknowledge that the file created on your application will be accessible to only those company personnel involved in the hiring process. It will then be stored the Foundation’s candidate database in accordance with the Foundation’s Privacy Policy for a period of five years, unless you request its destruction in writing. You also authorize the McConnell Foundation to contact the persons named as references in order to obtain evaluations of your performance and opinions on your work during former employment experiences.