Job Description
Diversity, equity and inclusion are fundamental to our mission to educate students. We are committed to education that places strong emphasis on global citizenship, social justice and equity. We live this through the strength and richness that diversity brings to our workforce and welcome contributors from equity groups including: Visible Minorities, Persons with Disabilities, Lesbian Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer persons.
We also recognize that Centennial is situated on the Treaty Lands of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation and pay tribute to their legacy as well as that of all First Peoples that have been and remain present here in Toronto. We recognize that First Peoples come from sovereign Nations and that part of understanding our responsibilities of residing on this territory are understanding the true history, circumstances and legacy of the Treaties signed here (such as the Toronto Purchase, Robinson-Huron Treaty and Williams Treaties) and including pre-contact Treaties and Agreements between sovereign Nations and that all peoples in this area are therefore Treaty people with obligations and responsibilities to all our relations.
Position Summary
Centennial College is looking for a strong strategic and collaborative leader to drive planning and alignment of key multi-functional processes across the college including: pan-institutional integrated planning, annual reporting, and strategic initiatives’ budgeting. Reporting to the AVP, Institutional Effectiveness, the Director will be accountable for developing the framework for action and directing all aspects of the Strategic Planning Office (SPO) - a high-performing central team focused on driving the design, execution and ongoing management of Centennial’s strategic agenda with senior leadership. The Director leads the development, communication and planning of the institutional strategy, annual business plans, and 5-year strategic plan. In collaboration with key stakeholders (financial planning, the project management office, data analytics and research, divisional leads), establishes measures of success and annual targets.
The successful incumbent will build effective relationships with internal stakeholders and consult leaders at the Executive level on business strategies and processes (i.e. College-wide Business Planning, Strategic Enrolment Management (SEM), resource allocation, strategic campus expansion projects, Annual Report, , etc.). They will leverage business insights and KPI results to inform planning and influence decisions to address business goals and operational efficiencies of the College as an academic institution and a business enterprise.
Responsibilities
●Establish and implement short and long-range institutional goals and strategies; monitor and evaluate effectiveness; recommend and implement changes
●Guide senior leadership on the business planning process by setting and validating departmental/divisional goals
●Assess performance indicators to ensure objectives are achieved in the broad spectrum of college programs and services
●Complete internal and external environmental scans to establish benchmarks and identify emerging issues and trends; Collaborate with senior leadership (Executive Team, Deans and Directors) to analyze the impact and potential implications of those trends on the College’s strategic priorities
●Establish a prioritization framework and scoring mechanism to evaluate strategic initiatives in partnership with senior leadership
●Plan and direct strategic analysis for comprehensive and actionable information regarding key performance indicators (KPI), characteristics of the college/community and current trends in education, utilized in the College's decision-making processes
●Establish new processes and decision-making framework for strategic initiatives
●Provide oversight and direction for budget, academic and service quality processes ensuring coordination and integration of these processes to improve operational effectiveness and accountability
●Drive the development of the College’s Strategic Plan as well as the Annual Report and Business Plans with stakeholders
●Advise the College community on strategic partnerships and proposals that may have financial and/or reputational implications/risk for the College (e.g. college partnerships, business partners, government grants)
●Act as a strategic counsel and thought partner for senior executives – both within the context of strategy projects and on an ongoing basis
●Provide leadership and direction to administrative staff and through them, to unionized staff in coaching and mentoring
●Integrate, build and enhance existing planning processes to optimize efficiency, collaboration and productivity
●Assess and advise on organizational capacity and capability to deliver on strategic initiatives
Qualifications/Experience
●Four (4) year degree in Business and/or Economics or related field and/or equivalent combination of education and related experience; Master’s Degree preferred
●Nine (9) years progressive strategic planning and business leadership experience
●Proven understanding and leadership of the business planning process in integrating objectives with departmental requirements aligned with overall direction, values, vision and strategy of day-to-day operations
●Possess out-of-the-box thinking; ability to identify opportunities to enhance institutional goals
●Strong relationship management and political acumen
●Experience developing and managing large, complex resource allocations/budgets, including monitoring and control techniques
●Demonstrated leadership experience through the lens of social inclusion, internationalization, decolonization and equitable practices
●Experience leading, coaching and mentoring staff and Human Resources functions (i.e. recruiting, performance management and development, administration, etc.)
●Strong report writing, presentation and public speaking skills
●Proven critical thinker and influence skills
●Demonstrated data management and analytics experience
●Experience working in a unionized environment is an asset