AVP, Customer Research – Canadian Tire – Toronto, ON

Canadian Tire Corporation is looking for a seasoned research leader to step into a high-impact executive role at their Toronto headquarters. As AVP, Customer Research, you’ll lead the enterprise-wide customer research function — one of the most strategically significant roles within Canadian Tire Corporation (CTC) — and ensure that the customer voice shapes decisions at every level of the business. This is a rare opportunity to influence strategy at scale across one of Canada’s most recognized retail organizations.

Reporting to the VP, Customer Strategy & Enablement, this role sits at the intersection of customer insights, enterprise strategy, and business performance. You’ll work hand-in-hand with Marketing, Merchandising, Digital, Loyalty, Owned Brands, and Corporate Development teams to ensure every research investment is prioritized, actionable, and clearly tied to outcomes that matter.

About the Role: AVP, Customer Research

This position is responsible for owning the full enterprise customer research strategy and portfolio — from intake and prioritization through to design, execution, and synthesis of insights. You’ll align the research agenda with CTC’s True North Strategy, CCG, and Lighthouse initiatives while driving a culture of evidence-based, customer-led decision-making across the organization.

Beyond strategy, this role requires hands-on leadership of a vendor and panel ecosystem, advancing modern methodologies including always-on tracking and agile learning, and shaping how insights are communicated to senior, time-constrained audiences. You’ll also bring a strong commercial lens — connecting research outcomes to enterprise financial results and business priorities while managing research budgets for maximum efficiency and value.

Benefits and Salary

Canadian Tire Corporation offers competitive salaries and wages, along with store discounts and supported learning through the Triangle Learning Academy. Eligible employees benefit from Canadian Tire Profit Sharing, retirement and savings programs, and an enhanced flex benefits package that includes $5,000 per year in mental health benefits for employees and their families. Total well-being tools and resources are available to all employees.

Responsibilities

As the enterprise lead for customer research, the AVP, Customer Research is accountable for the full research lifecycle — from shaping the right questions alongside business leaders to delivering clear, compelling recommendations. This role demands both strategic vision and operational rigour, with a focus on connecting customer insight to measurable business outcomes.

• Own the enterprise research strategy and portfolio aligned to True North Strategy, CCG, and Lighthouse enablement — overseeing intake, prioritization, design, execution, and synthesis
• Partner with business leaders to shape problem statements, clarify trade-offs, and deliver actionable recommendations tied to business outcomes
• Oversee the research ecosystem including vendors, external partners, and CTC’s owned research panel, ensuring panel health, quality, and representativeness
• Advance modern research methodologies such as always-on tracking, micro-occasion insights, and agile learning approaches
• Manage research budgets to drive efficiency and reinvest resources into higher-value learning initiatives
• Strengthen insight storytelling and activation so outputs are clear, compelling, and build confidence in customer-led decisions across the enterprise
• Build a high-performance, customer-obsessed team culture grounded in curiosity, rigour, and cross-functional collaboration

Requirements / Skills

The ideal candidate brings deep expertise in customer research and insights combined with the leadership presence to influence at the executive level. Canadian Tire is looking for someone who can operate with both strategic clarity and hands-on capability — someone who treats the customer voice as a critical business asset and knows how to make it resonate at every level of an organization.

• 10+ years of progressive experience in customer research, insights, strategy, or analytics within a complex organization
• Strong leadership and stakeholder influence skills, including managing senior practitioners and external partners while influencing at the AVP, VP, and executive levels
• Deep expertise across qualitative and quantitative methods including syndicated, custom, advanced analytics, trackers, and agile research approaches
• Hands-on panel management experience overseeing an owned research panel and maintaining quality, representativeness, and reliability
• Strategic and commercial orientation — connecting insights to enterprise strategy, business priorities, and financial outcomes
• Exceptional communication skills — ability to simplify complexity and deliver compelling insights to senior, time-constrained audiences
• Experience applying AI in research — including AI-enabled tools for insight generation, synthesis acceleration, and modernizing customer learning delivery
• Bachelor’s degree required; a graduate degree (MBA or equivalent) is an asset

How to Apply

To apply, use the official link below to submit your application through Canadian Tire Corporation’s careers portal. Make sure your resume is current and reflects your experience in enterprise research leadership before submitting.

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