Business Officer (CO-01) / Senior Business Officer (CO-02) Inventory

Important messages

STREAM 1: Business Officers (CO-01)
STREAM 2: Senior Business Officers (CO-02) - General
STREAM 3: Senior Business Officers (CO-02) – Payments/Claims Unit

Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD) is looking for an individual to join our team. WD is routinely ranked as one of the Best Places to Work according to the Public Service Employee Survey, and we have been recognized as one of Alberta's Top 75 Employers in 2020. If you want to be part of a great organization that gets things done for Western Canadians, you want to work here.

Duties

Western Economic Diversification is looking for Business Officers and Senior Business Officers to join our team. If you are motivated and interested in an exciting opportunity for growth in a dynamic department please apply.

We are looking for people who think independently, work creatively and enjoy working in a team environment to support the priorities of the department. As a Business Officer and Senior Business Officer, you will be challenged to connect with people, build relationships, and develop creative approaches to addressing challenges or opportunities related to economic development in the West. Successful candidates will work in a team environment to provide planning, development, implementation and assessment of complex programs, in support of the WD mandate to enhance economic development.

Work environment

Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD) works to develop and diversify the economy of Western Canada by delivering grants and contributions programs and advocating on behalf of the West.

WD is recognized as one of Alberta’s top employers because of its support for employees, innovative workplace and ability to make a difference in the lives of Western Canadians. In the annual public service employee survey, WD employees consistently rank the department as one of the best places to work in the federal government.

Why Choose WD:
• Work with amazing people who support each other
• Meaningful work that makes a difference to the country
• Excellent compensation package
• Flexible work arrangements
• Modern work tools and technology

Intent of the process

This selection process is a continuous intake inventory to create and maintain an inventory for future opportunities. A pool of qualified candidates (fully assessed or partially assessed) will be established and may be used to staff similar positions at this group and level. This process may be used for various positions and tenures (including but not limited to term and indeterminate appointments, internal assignments, secondments, deployments, acting appointments) as well as other various locations, security requirements, language requirements and conditions of employment.

Positions to be filled: Number to be determined

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

A covering letter in 1,000 words (maximum)

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

ALL STREAMS:
Education:
• Completion of a degree from a recognized post-secondary institution with acceptable specialization in accounting, public administration, economics, law, business administration, commerce, finance or some other specialty relevant to the position.

Degree equivalency

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

Various language requirements
English essential and/or Bilingual imperative

Information on language requirements

STREAM 1 Business Officers (CO-01):
Experience:
• Supporting the evaluation of economic development or related project proposals, applications for funding or business plans;
• Monitoring progress against agreements throughout the lifecycle of a project;
• Maintaining collaborative working relationships with internal and external stakeholders to advance economic development initiatives or projects;
• Providing strategic advice and recommendations to management including assisting in the preparation of briefing notes.

Knowledge:
• of how Western Economic Diversification (WD) supports economic development/diversification in Western Canada; and
• of key factors influencing the Canadian economy and of the current economic and business trends, opportunities and challenges in Alberta.

STREAM 2: Senior Business Officers (CO-02) – General
Experience:
• Evaluating economic development or related project proposals, applications for funding or business plans;
• Reviewing financial statements or other financial analysis to evaluate financial sustainability of organizations;
• Negotiating project agreements and monitoring progress against agreements throughout the lifecycle of a project;
• Developing and sustaining collaborative working relationships with internal and external stakeholders to advance economic development initiatives or projects and
• Providing strategic advice and recommendations to senior management including the preparation of briefing notes.

Knowledge:
• of how Western Economic Development (WD) and other federal, provincial and regional/municipal economic programs/policies support economic development and diversification in Western Canada;
• of key factors influencing the Canadian economy and of the current economic and/or business trends, opportunities and challenges in Alberta
• of Canada’s priorities and initiatives to support communities, cluster growth and/or economic inclusiveness.

STREAM 3: Senior Business Officers (CO-02) – Payments/Claims Unit
Experience
Recent* and significant** experience:
• Reviewing financial statements or other financial analysis to evaluate financial sustainability of organizations;
• Managing project agreements and monitoring progress throughout the lifecycle of a project
• Auditing financial records or in evaluating compliance with contract terms and conditions.
• Developing and sustaining collaborative working relationships with stakeholders
• Providing strategic advice and recommendations to senior management

*Recent is defined as relevant experience gained within the past five years.
**Significant is defined as relevant experience normally acquired through the full time performance of duties for at least two years.

Knowledge:
• of interpreting financial statements and providing related advice, including analysis and assessment
• of assessment of financial strength and viability of a for-profit or not-for-profit organization in relation to a funding application or business plan

ALL STREAMS:
Competencies:
• Demonstrating integrity/respect;
• Thinking things through;
• Working with others;
• Showing initiative/being action-oriented; and
• Communication (Oral and Written)

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

Asset Qualifications:

ALL STREAMS:
Education:
• Graduation with a master’s degree from a recognized post-secondary institution with a specialization in Commerce, Finance, Business or Public Administration, Economics or other relevant specialty.
• A recognized professional accounting designation.

Degree equivalency

ALL STREAMS:
Experience:
• Experience in development and/or implementation of projects that support the economic inclusion of underrepresented groups.
• Experience in commercial lending, credit or repayable contributions.
• Experience in conducting developing and/or implementing projects, and/or conducting research, and/or analyzing information, and/or summarizing key findings in one or more of the following areas:
o Advanced Manufacturing
o Agri-food
o Health Bio-Sciences
o Clean Technology
o Digital Industries
o Primary Industries
• Delivering presentations to and engaging diverse stakeholder groups;
• Experience working with First Nation Communities
• Experience in delivering or developing initiatives through Grants and Contributions programs;
• Experience processing financial claims under a Contribution Agreement model; and
• Experience in commercial banking or financial consulting.
• Experience in managing accounts receivables.
• Experience in assessing the viability of business operations, including those focused on technology commercialization, productivity improvements or business scale-up activities.
• Experience in development and/or implementation of projects that build business capacity and resiliency within rural and remote communities.
***Depth, breadth and scope of experience in any one or combination of the experience requirements.

Knowledge:
• Knowledge of one or more industries/sectors: petrochemical, energy, life sciences, clean technology
• of Transfer Payment Policy and related policy governing the delivery of repayable or non-repayable Contributions in a Regional Development Agency context; and
• of key project or stakeholder management systems used in WD, e.g., Microsoft Dynamic CRM, Adobe Writer, Project Gateway, etc.
• of the innovation ecosystem in Alberta.
• Of community economic development and/or working with communities during periods of economic adjustment
• Of best practices for working in an inclusive manner with diverse groups

Conditions of employment

Reliability Status security clearance

• Willingness to travel occasionally.
• Willingness to work overtime on occasion as required.

Other information

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the designated groups when you apply.

Information on employment equity

When you apply to this selection process, you are not applying for a specific job, but to an inventory for future vacancies. As positions become available, applicants who meet the qualifications may be contacted for further assessment.

TIPS FOR APPLICANTS: When answering the screening questions ensure that you provide complete and thorough details of your experience. Do not assume that the screening board has any previous knowledge of your background, qualifications, or work history. You must be specific and provide concrete examples/details for each Experience element, as applications will be screened only on the information provided. Failure to provide sufficient information may result in your application being screened out of the competition.

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the designated groups when you apply.

If a candidate is selected for an interview, however they do not achieve the required pass mark, they will remain in the inventory and there is a 6 month waiting period before they can be re-evaluated in this selection process.

Your application will be active for 90 days. A notice that your application is about to expire will be posted to the My jobs menu of your account 30 days before the end of your active period. If you do not take action, your application will no longer be active and therefore no longer considered for this inventory. Should your application become inactive while the inventory is still open, a notice will be posted to your account indicating that your application has expired; you may select the link Update my Inventory Status to reaffirm your interest..

Depending on the number of applicants, the needs and/or Human Resources plans, volume management strategies such as random selection, top-down approach and/or establishing cut-off scores to determine who will continue in the staffing process, MAY BE USED for the purpose of managing applications.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans and to Canadian citizens, in that order, with the exception of a job located in Nunavut, where Nunavut Inuit will be appointed first.

Information on the preference to veterans

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.