Job Opportunity: Social Enterprise Center of Excellence Coordinator

By Karim Harji - August 12, 2009 - Comments

Our friends at DreamNow - responsible for the excellent e-book Occupation Change The World, among other initiatives - have just posted an interesting job opportunity to work in social enterprise in Toronto. The application deadline is Monday, August 17, 2009 at 5:00pm.

As noted on the DreamNow blog, this is an exciting initiative for a number of reasons: "This is a great position based in Toronto that is all about making social enterprise accessible across race, class and privilege lines. This project has received funding for three years from the Youth Challenge Fund and is looking to build two centers in the East and West of Toronto to help bring social enterprise to needed areas of Toronto."

Full job description is below, and also available as an attachment from the source.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION:

Social Enterprise Centre of Excellence (SECE) is an innovative initiative focused on education, self-determination and community development for youth with a deliberate focus on racialized and criminalized young people in Toronto's most under-served communities. SECE aims to give young people the tools to combat and overcome the barriers of lack of opportunity, racism, sexism, systemic oppression, poverty and violence using social entrepreneurship as a means to develop confidence, life and organizational skills, self-worth, ideas and power in their society. SECE's vision is to empower young people to engage in social change through social entrepreneurship and enterprise because of opportunities to finance fledgling grassroots organizations with a social purpose, educational attainment in the business and social enterprise sector which is growing field in Canada and internationally. Social entrepreneurship also affords opportunities for: cross-cultural exchange, leadership development, skill-building in communications, partnerships, collaboration and professional networking and community economic development.

SECE is a Two Phase initiative. This centre is a community hub that will be designed to bring together, support and mobilize young people in the black community and other racialized and marginalized communities around education, social entrepreneurship and social enterprise.

The centre is a multi-disciplinary workspace that will be a local and international point of reference for young people interested in social entrepreneurship and enterprise initiatives in Toronto and worldwide. The centre will also be a powerful political voice of and for the community using entrepreneurship to educate young people in the 13 priority neighbourhoods to be more civically engaged as individuals and active citizens who are part of a larger support network and mobilized community.

The centre will be a safe space for young people who are traditionally racialized, criminalized and stigmatized in our society. It will approach entrepreneurship from the perspective of developing organizational and social entrepreneurship skills as well as identity and self-awareness. Alternative education (self, community), reattachment to traditional education, capacity building and leadership will all be focused on through the lens of entrepreneurship and community economic development.

SECE is seeking a motivated and talented individual to coordinate the development process of the SECE for Youth.

POSITION DESCRIPTION:

Serving as a member of the SECE Phase 1 team, the SECE Initiative Coordinator is responsible for the overall direction, leadership and management of project, as well as the coordination of the SECE Steering Committee activities including advocacy, community outreach, partnership development, monitoring, and evaluation, and collaborating with community groups and organizations.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Working with the SECE Steering Committee to facilitate the strategic and practical development of the Social Enterprise Centre of Excellence by:

Coordinating the research for the long-term sustainability of SECE
Reporting on initiative development to the steering committee at biweekly meetings
Ensuring that all timelines are being met
Communicating with various stakeholders to ensure that initiative objectives are being met

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION

Ensure adherence and accountability to SECE's mandate and standards
Plan a two-day retreat for steering committee members
Work with YCF staff, SECE steering committee and stakeholder to Identify potential sites for centre
Organize how space will be utilized in the building including permits, licenses, health & safety issues and user logistics.
Support the recruitment of steering committee and workgroup members
Work with steering committee to further refine its roles and functions
Liaise with and report to SECE Steering Committee
Monitor required and relevant documentation and data collection
Develop proposals for new partnerships
In conjunction with the SECE Steering Committee, supervise project staff, coordinating schedules and activities
Provide leadership and team building
Ensure timely and accurate documentation of all activities
Prepare and present regular quantitative and qualitative reports and updates as required

COMMUNITY RELATIONS AND COMMUNICATION

Be aware of and involved in community process appropriate to SECE's mandate
Participate in local committees and activities of relevance to SECE
Encourage opportunities for intra/interagency collaboration, community advisory groups, and citizen participation
Ensure/guide an effective partnership selection process for the SECE location

ADVOCACY

Keep up-to-date on issues in the local community, and on issues which relate social entrepreneurship and social enterprise and to the development of SECE. In collaboration with the Steering Committee take appropriate action in response to issues or concerns
In conjunction with the UrbanArts' Executive Director and the SECE Steering Committee be prepared to engage in appropriate advocacy and action to respond to the developmental needs of SECE
Provide advice, support and recommendations to SECE steering committee on all matters related Partnership Development

KEY SKILLS AND ABILITIES

A combination of experience and education in the human services or social enterprise sector
Demonstrated history of working in community building including engagement and facilitation
Demonstrated experience in developing strategic partnerships and collaborative initiatives and developing partnership agreements
A sound understanding of shared-space/hub models as it related to the not-for-profit sector
An understanding of community issues facing African Canadian youth in underserved inner-suburban neighbourhoods.
Sound understanding of community issues facing youth in underserved inner-suburban neighbourhoods. Familiarity with priority neighbourhoods is preferred
Strong understanding and experience working with the African-Canadian community.
Working experience in Social Entrepreneurship/Social Enterprise models and practices an asset
Demonstrated ability in public relations, community development, project planning and advocacy
Familiarity and proven ability to work with government and community systems
Analytical skills to identify and resolve problems, assess project needs, formulate recommendations, develop appropriate partnership proposals, and determine actions to address issues as they arise
Able to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing to audiences of various social, cultural, ethnic, educational and economic backgrounds and liaise with community and industry professionals, SECE Steering Committee and team and UrbanArts staff
Analytical skills to identify and resolve problems, assess needs, formulate recommendations, develop appropriate service steps, and determine actions to address the needs/issues
A creative thinker with a collaborative and strengths based leadership style
Excellent client service skills with the ability to work effectively with external stakeholders
Ability to work effectively within a team
Detail oriented with proven capacity for initiative development and ability to carry out projects with minimum supervision
Good judgment with the ability to act tactfully and diplomatically
Proven organizational skills with the ability to work to deadline, handle pressure and competing priorities
Keyboarding and technical skills in an MS Office environment including Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint
Proven research and analytical skills.
Use of a car is an asset