Senior Program Manager | TELUS Student Bursary Program

Description

Join our team & what we’ll accomplish together

At TELUS, we believe in building stronger communities and helping those who need it most. Through acts of giving, big and small, we can positively impact the local communities where we live, work and serve. TELUS Friendly Future Foundation was established in 2018 through a generous endowment gift from TELUS and is an independent charitable organization that makes grants to Canadian charities addressing the education and health needs of marginalized youth and provides bursaries to in-need post-secondary students. Our goal is to help youth thrive and reach their full potential. 

As part of the TELUS Friendly Future Foundation team and integrated into the Corporate Citizenship & Communications team, the Senior Program Manager will be responsible for the Foundation’s flagship program - the TELUS Student Bursary - collaborating with internal and external partners to manage and execute the program with excellence. In support of our mission of connecting youth to a world of opportunities, you will work closely with academic partners, donors, students and others to run an annual application, evaluation, selection and award cycle for the TELUS Student Bursary and related named bursaries. Our goal is to award at least 500 bursaries annually, and to date our program has awarded 2,000 bursaries valued at over $6M combined to deserving students nationwide. 

What you’ll do

As Senior Program Manager, you will be instrumental in the development and execution of our bursary strategy and program, managing eligibility requirements, application, evaluation and award processes and systems, managing student data and storytelling, and building new and evolving wrap-around supports to provide holistic support for students beyond financial support. 

Working closely with the Executive Director and in collaboration with a small Foundation team, the Sr. Program Manager will leverage the bursary program to support fundraising, stewardship, storytelling and marketing objectives. You will also collaborate closely with TELUS team members to engage students in learning, networking and career opportunities. As a talented relationship builder and program manager, you will manage the program from end to end with excellence, an attention to detail and focus on student experience, all while supporting the TELUS Friendly Future Foundation mission, key objectives and fundraising goals. 

You will lead:

Program Administration & Adjudication

• Lead the governance, reporting, budget management, implementation, and all other activities associated with our TELUS Student Bursary, a multi-million dollar post-secondary award program for students in financial need

• Oversee the full application lifecycle, from planning and intake through to adjudication and award disbursement

• Design and maintain fair, transparent selection criteria aligned with the program’s priority on financial-need and marginalized student groups and goal to support youth who are committed to driving social impact in their communities

• Manage strategic program, stewardship and communications partnerships in support of the Bursary

• Lead targeted outreach to post-secondary and relevant community partners to ensure we receive sufficient applications to achieve our goals and disbursement targets for specific student groups 

• Coordinate review committees and support adjudicators with training, evaluation rubrics, and documentation

• Ensure compliance with program guidelines, legal requirements, and funder expectations

Stakeholder Relations

• Build and maintain strong relationships with TELUS business units, donors, funders, community partners, and students

• Collaborate with People and Culture on additional program components such as internships, learning or job opportunities for bursary recipients

• Maintain strong relationships with post-secondary organizations and foundations and identify opportunities to collaborate

• Update leadership including Executive Director, TELUS VP Corporate Citizenship and TELUS Friendly Future Foundation Board on program plans and achievements

Recipient Support & Case Management

• Serve as the primary point of contact for bursary recipients throughout the application and award periods

• Provide wraparound support by connecting recipients with relevant resources, referrals, and follow-up across various TELUS business units

• Monitor recipient progress and maintain confidential case records in accordance with privacy policies

Reporting & Data Analysis

• Track program metrics and produce regular internal and external reports on program performance

• Analyze application trends, demographic data, and award outcomes to inform continuous improvement

• Maintain accurate records in the organization’s database and ensure data integrity

• Maintain a pulse on the latest industry trends and benchmark our program success against these trends to identify opportunities for continuous improvement.

Communications, Stewardship and Fundraising

• Own the end-to-end stewardship of major multi-year Bursary partners, including target setting, program reporting, student engagement, in-person and virtual events and partnership announcements

• Prepare program reports, donor reports, impact narratives, and fund performance updates for donors

• Support the Foundation’s fundraising initiatives and donor stewardship 

• Seek opportunities to share the impact of our work and collaborate with internal stakeholders to drive results

• Prime all student communications throughout Bursary program cycle

Qualifications

What you bring: 

• You are results focused and detail oriented. You thrive on setting and achieving goals and creating actionable plans. You reflect on results in order to continually improve

• You are a strategic thinker with strong business acumen and a track record of initiating, monitoring and optimizing fund development plans

• You are a builder, resourceful and entrepreneurial. You seek out new opportunities and think creatively. You are self-motivated, love to be challenged and are comfortable in a changing environment

• You have sound judgment and integrity, as well as a high level of energy, enthusiasm, and dedication to the Foundation’s mission

• You are skilled at articulating an inspiring vision, while also responding to individual donor interests. You communicate and negotiate clearly, professionally and with confidence  

• You build relationships with ease and you are a strong collaborator. Along with working effectively as part of a team, you also have proven ability to work independently and to deliver results in a fast-paced, deadline driven environment

• You have strong project management skills and have the ability to create and deliver compelling presentations to senior executives, donors and other stakeholders

• French language skills are an asset

Required Experience and Education:

• 5-8 years professional program management experience in the charitable/foundation sector, preferably with experience in education, or in a student-serving role within a post-secondary institution

• Undergraduate degree in a related field

• Experience in a fundraising stewardship role is an asset

• Experience working with post-secondary institutions is an asset 

• Proven experience working with Board of Directors and other senior leaders

• Highly proficient in Google environment and AI tools

• French language skills are an asset

Advanced knowledge of English is required because you will most of the time interact in English with external parties (clients, suppliers, candidates, external partners, etc.); interact in English with internal parties (colleagues, internal partners, stakeholders, etc.); and work with IT tools whose interface is only accessible in English as part of this position's main responsibilities given its national scope.

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