Description

Key Responsibilities

• Ecosystem Health & Growth: Ensure the thriving health and integration of Riipen’s Canadian ecosystem. Build bridges between post-secondary institutions, employers, and workforce development programs to create impactful opportunities for students, youth, and professionals, particularly in upskilling and reskilling sectors. The goal is to enhance accessibility to real-world learning and improve employment outcomes across diverse regions and industries.
• Sales & Business Development: Lead the sales strategy for post-secondary institutions across Canada, working with Account Executives and Partnership Managers to expand Riipen’s footprint. Drive revenue growth by establishing deep, lasting relationships with educational institutions, consortiums, and government stakeholders. Ensure that these partnerships contribute to measurable impacts on learners' professional development.
• Government & Consortium Engagement: Collaborate closely with federal, provincial, and local governments to secure and manage government-funded WIL programs, including Level UP and Advance Ontario. You will ensure compliance with these programs and work towards their expansion to new provinces and territories, aligning with both government objectives and Riipen’s mission to scale WIL across Canada.
• Partnership Expansion: Develop and expand strategic partnerships with workforce development programs and consortiums, addressing local and national skill gaps. Your ability to foster mutually beneficial relationships with employers will be key to ensuring long-term success and sustainability for the Canadian WIL ecosystem.
• Cross-functional Leadership: Collaborate cross-functionally with Riipen’s marketing, employer engagement, and service delivery teams to ensure that the Canadian ecosystem is well-supported and in alignment with the company’s broader goals. Your leadership will be instrumental in harmonizing efforts across departments to maximize the impact of WIL on students and employers alike.
• Revenue Accountability: Drive sustainable revenue growth by expanding partnerships with post-secondary institutions and consortiums. Set and track key performance indicators (KPIs) that measure success in areas such as account growth, program adoption, and revenue expansion.
• Leadership & Team Management: Lead, mentor, and inspire a team of Account Executives and Partnership Managers. Your team will play a vital role in expanding Riipen’s presence across Canada, working directly with institutions and workforce development programs to create a high-impact ecosystem of WIL opportunities.

• Successfully onboard new post-secondary institutions and consortium partners across Canada.
  • Achieve revenue growth from post-secondary institutions, government programs, and workforce development partners.
  • Secure new long-term contracts with federal and provincial governments, ensuring the continued expansion of Riipen’s WIL offerings.
  • Foster the continuous improvement and scaling of grant-funded programs like Level UP and Advance Ontario.
  • Drive the development of new strategic partnerships to address evolving workforce challenges and ensure alignment with WIL goals.
  
  

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise

• Experience working in the higher education and workforce development space is a must
• Experience in government relations, ideally in workforce programs and grants
• 10+ years experience in managing complex, high value accounts
• Excellent written and spoken French is a huge asset in this role
• Experience building relationships with diverse stakeholders across an organization and becoming a trusted advisor in designing innovative programs.
• Experience navigating complex funding streams and aligning solutions to secure budget for growing partnerships
• Able to build relationships and trust within higher-education institutions to build programs that support their end goals
• Experience building and scaling customer-centric programs
• Experience in working through strategic culture shifts and transformation, focused on client-centricity
• Self professed customer-obsessed, and advocate in the WIL space
• “Roll your sleeves” up mentality and experience in doing the doing; Riipen has a do-er mentality and this role is no exception
• Brings the ability to move quickly and support teams in iterating as they go to put practices into practice

Benefits

• Extensive experience in Canadian higher education, with a deep understanding of the post-secondary landscape.
• Demonstrated success in working with federal and provincial governments on grant-funded initiatives, securing and managing large-scale funding.
• A strong understanding of Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) and its critical role in preparing students for the workforce.
• Proven experience leading cross-functional teams, managing stakeholders, and delivering results in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• A revenue-focused mindset with a history of driving growth and achieving targets.

About Riipen