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Social Innovation Educator - Public Sector

"I am an educator and mentor. To be an educator is a serious commitment. My day rarely ends at 3 p.m. and my workweek spills past Friday. There are students who need support and guidance and my job is to give them the tools to succeed in the classroom and in life. There are lots of highs and some lows too, but I tell my students that commitment and passion is what differentiates a successful student; it’s also what sets apart great teachers, great leaders and great innovators."

Salary Range:

$85,000 - $123,000

The Tip

Pick external certifications that align to your life goals and build a plan to get these one by one. They not only signal expertise, they signal intentionality and focus.

Priority Knowledge & Skills
Systems Thinking

Knowledge & ability to:

  • Understand systems thinking

  • Analyze and map systems

  • Identify and make plans for future trends

  • Recognize trends, opportunities and underlying patterns

 
Human-Centered Design & Design Thinking

Knowledge & ability to:

  • Apply human-centered design principles to solve problems

  • Think laterally

  • Identify patterns

  • Work with third-party groups, such as think tanks, labs and accelerators

  • Ability to formulate research questions

  • Conduct secondary, qualitative and/or quantitative research

  • Synthesize key issues

 

Communication, Collaboration & Facilitation

Knowledge & ability to:

  • Use contextual knowledge

  • Communicate effectively in all formats

  • Cultivate new collaborations and partnerships across sectors

  • Develop & execute workshops, training sessions and/or events

  • Use technology and specialized collaboration tools

  • Compelling presentation & report writing skills

Changemaking

Knowledge & ability to:

  • Be authentic, empathetic and ethical

  • Ask questions

  • Embrace challenges as opportunities to create systemic change

  • Break down silos and leverage relationships

  • Engage a changemaker mindset

 

Oversight & Knowledge Management

Knowledge & ability to:

  • Develop and manage the planning process

  • Direct coordination of activities across departments, stakeholders, clients & users

  • Leverage stakeholder relationships

  • Manage and analyze complex data

 

Core Transferable Skills

Be an expert at all core transferable skills:

  • Thinking skills

  • Communications skills

  • Organizational skills

  • Interpersonal skills

  • Technical literacy

Building Block Experiences
Education & Learning:

  • Bachelor of Business Administration (Marketing)

  • Master of Business Administration (Management)

  • Ph.D. (Social Enterprise)

  • Instructional Teaching Certificate

  • Course Design Certificate

 

I spent more than a decade in university. There were lots of highs and lows, but a Ph.D. is about discipline, focus and commitment. (There’s a reason why less than 50% of those who start their Ph.D. actually complete it.) The best advice I received was to pick a subject that you are passionate about, so when the going gets tough you are committed to completing your research.

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Employment Experiences:

  • Camp counsellor in high school and university

  • Graduate research assistant in marketing research. Supported professor in delivering lectures and grading assignments.

  • Worked in consumer products and petroleum industries in finance, corporate planning and marketing

  • Consulted to private and nonprofit organizations in business and strategic planning

  • Ran a charity and discovered a whole new world, which caused me to return to school and pursue a Ph.D.

  • Started as a sessional instructor in research methods, and later moved to the business school where I designed and taught courses in social innovation

 

Being a university professor is highly competitive. Many faculty today are only part time or contract. While I had always been drawn to teaching throughout my career, it was only after my years in industry that I decided to return to school. Being a university professor requires demonstrating research, publishing and educational expertise.

 

Community Experiences:

  • My community commitment intersects with my commitment as an educator

 

A big part of this role is working with colleagues and students and sometimes helping them to connect with the community. It is exciting in that we are all creating a new curriculum that will help to transform education.

 

Contextual Experiences:

  • President of student business club

  • Volunteered on a number of different nonprofit boards as board chair and treasurer

 

My contextual experiences framed my values today. I am a passionate believer that students should view learning as something that also happens outside of the classroom—via clubs, volunteering and working in the community.

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Relationships:

  • To succeed as a professor your network is critical and mine includes leaders in industry, the nonprofit and public sectors

 

My network is very important to me. I lean on it every day for inspiration and am often approached by colleagues for help in connecting with the community.

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