Venture Programs Coordinator

This posting is for an existing vacancy.

Role Summary:

The Venture Programs Coordinator is a fantastic opportunity for someone interested in the technology startups and innovation space. The ideal candidate is someone with strong project coordination skills who is looking to gain experience in a business accelerator environment. The Venture Programs Coordinator will be the first point of contact for early-stage tech companies entering our programs, and the person who keeps client onboarding, programming, and events running smoothly.

Working alongside our Innovation Advisors, the Director, Venture Growth, and our Strategic Partnerships & Growth team, you'll help deliver core programming for founders while building strong relationships with clients and ecosystem partners. This role meets client companies at their earliest stages and plays a crucial part in shaping a positive first experience with Innovation Factory.

We're looking for someone who demonstrates strong active listening skills, who can identify founders’ roadblocks and flag opportunities to make our programs, workshops, and office hours more valuable. You'll bring operational rigour to program tracking and CRM data, and communicate comfortably with founders, partners, and technical experts alike. Strong time management matters: you'll split your time between delivering early-stage programming and coordinating projects across the Venture Growth team.

If you're approachable, resourceful, and energized by working with people building something new, we think you'll be up for the challenge. We are actively seeking candidates who are fluent in both English and French. The ability to deliver programming and provide client support in both English and French is an asset for this role.

Core Responsibilities:

Program Delivery Support

● Independently deliver early-stage programming, including workshops, information sessions, and cohort-based programs

● Facilitate the client intake process end to end, including data entry, delivery of webinars, and assigning internal resources.

● Proactively identify participants for programs and workshops by sector, stage, or other criteria using data and tools

● Engage partners and service-provider experts for our community resource offerings, working with the Strategic Partnerships & Growth team to do so

● Facilitate knowledge exchange among clients through in-person and virtual channels

● Track program and event metrics, and contribute to the processes that measure, share, and document program outcomes

● Listen actively in client settings and report trends back to the Venture Growth team

● Support competitions, pitch events, and cohort sessions as required

CRM and Digital Tools

● Ownership and timely entry of data for incoming clients

● Maintain accurate and comprehensive client profiles ensuring records are complete and current

● Identify opportunities based on external client feedback to improve our accelerator program content (this includes, workshops, online content library and others)

Other Duties and Special Projects

● Respond to community and client inquiries by phone and email

● Coordinate meetings and conduct partner, client, and community outreach on behalf of the team

● Attend and support Innovation Factory events, some of which fall outside standard business hours

● Deliver ongoing new client overview sessions and virtual webinars

● Support client requests including partner introductions and market intelligence submissions

● Take on ad-hoc projects as directed, research, stakeholder engagement, data audits, and other duties as assigned

Qualifications

● Post-secondary diploma or degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field

● Minimum 2 years in a project coordination role and/or providing client support

● Autonomous user of a tech stack that includes CRM systems; Eventbrite and Luma for events; Canva for basic collateral; Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and Google Workspace. Ready to learn the ropes of our learning management platform

● Comfortable with routine financial administration and budget adherence

● Strong professional communication skills, written and verbal, with the confidence to hold conversations with founders, partners, and technical experts

● Organized, punctual, and detail-oriented, able to juggle multiple projects and prioritize accordingly

● Creative and resourceful, leading with a solutions-focused approach

● Works well independently and as part of a collaborative team

Assets

● Previous experience working with entrepreneurs or in an entrepreneurial environment

● Experience with learning management platforms

● Familiarity with idea validation or business model exercises

● Experience with Google Gemini and Claude

● French-language proficiency

Success Metrics (KPIs)

● Client satisfaction: strong Net Promoter Score and survey results across programs

● Engagement: consistent attendance and active participation in peer groups and workshops

● Operational excellence: programmatic deliverables of Venture Growth projects and programs delivered on time and on track

Working Conditions

● 5 days per week; 37.5 hours per week, regular daytime business hours are between 9 am EST to 5 pm EST.

● On event days, working hours will adjust as necessary for the timing of the event i.e. requiring an early or later work day.

● Opportunity for a hybrid work model, allowing some remote work

● Some localized travel and access to a vehicle are required.

Location

Innovation Factory

● B21-175 Longwood Rd S, Hamilton ON

● 5151 New St., Burlington, ON Please note that AI-assisted tools may be used to support the preliminary screening of applications. All applicant assessments and hiring decisions involve human oversight.

About Innovation Factory

Innovation Factory (iF) is a not-for-profit business accelerator, providing entrepreneurs with business services, training, mentorship and strategic connections to help bring disruptive technologies to market, increase revenues, attract investment and create jobs.

Our mission is to be the primary catalyst for technology innovation in the greater Hamilton and Halton areas with a vision to make the region Canada’s fastest-growing innovation community and the first port of call for innovators. We will do this via direct 1-1 support for companies; creating partnerships, and building community. We will create an environment and culture that draws people into the region as a place to invest, live, learn, work and start businesses.

The Innovation Factory is committed to a fair and inclusive work environment. We are an equal opportunity employer that hires and attracts talent regardless of age, race, creed, colour, religion, national origin, ancestry, marital status, affectional or sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, nationality, sex, status as a protected veteran or any other legally protected grounds and will not discriminate on these bases. Accommodation will be provided throughout the hiring process, as required. Applicants must make their needs known in advance.

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