Social Enterprise Project Developer

Welcomecentreshelter; Windsor; Hybrid; CAD 34,000 - 39,000; Full time

Job summary

The Welcome Centre Shelter for Women and Families in Windsor, Ontario is seeking a Social Enterprise Project Developer on a 12-month contract. The role blends business planning with community impact, leading a 5-year sustainability plan for a food-based social enterprise and scalable catering program.

You will balance financial sustainability with measurable community outcomes, designing training and partnerships to create employment opportunities for the agency’s target population of low-income

Qualifications

• 1+ years in business development, business planning, social enterprise management, or catering growth.
• Strong financial modeling, budgeting, and market research skills are required.
• Understanding of social enterprise scaling, food service, commercial kitchen operations, with impact measurement experience.
• Experience working with vulnerable populations, e.g., women exiting homelessness, with passion for social justice.
• Excellent written and presentation skills are needed.
• Degree or diploma in Business Administration, Project Management, or related field.

Responsibilities

• Design a clear, phased, 5-year business plan for the existing food-based social enterprise, focusing on partnerships, school lunch and catering growth.
• Forecast startup costs, budgets, and cash flow for 5 years.
• Set measurable financial and social goals for the first five years.
• Collaborate with graphic/web designer, marketing staff, and kitchen lead on communications and marketing materials.

Skills

Financial modeling

Budgeting

Market research

Communication

Education

Degree or diploma in Business Administration, Project Management, or related field

Tools

CRM systems

Job description

JOB DESCRIPTION

Position: Social Enterprise Project Developer

Hours: Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm, hybrid model

Length: Contract, 12 months

Start: October 2026

Wage: $25.50-$28.50 salary range

Reports To: Executive Director

A social enterprise is an activity of a nonprofit that employs entrepreneurial, market-driven strategies for earned income in support of its mission. Social Enterprise Project Developer will lead the creation of a sustainable five-year business plan for an existing food-based social enterprise catering and community food service program. The goal of the contract role is balancing the need to create financial sustainability with measurable community impact, while designing and supporting the implementation of innovative employment opportunities for the agency’s target community of low-income women exiting homelessness.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Experience: 1+ years in business development, business planning, social enterprise management, or catering business growth specifically.

Skills: demonstratable and strong financial modeling, budgeting, and market research skills are required

Knowledge: Understanding of social enterprise scaling, food service,commercial kitchen operations, along with experience with impact measurement and process evaluation

Culture Fit: Experience, or deep understanding, of working with vulnerable populations, such as women who have experienced homelessness or poverty. Passion for social justice, community economic development, and sustainable food systems.

Communication: Excellent written and presentation skills are needed

Education: Degree or diploma in Business Administration, Project Management, or a related field.

The following duties outline the requirements of the Social Enterprise Project Developer role; all bullet point items noted are used in instances of performance evaluation.

HUMAN RESOURCES

• Understand and adhere to contents of the Human Resource and Employee Orientation Manuals
• Participate in all scheduled staff/team meetings and any scheduled training programs

BUSINESS PLANNING AND STRATEGY

• Design a clear, phased, 5-year business plan for the existing food-based social enterprise, with a focus on identifying and strengthening community partnerships, growingschool lunch program support, and public catering growth. Phases include foundational review, brand building and community engagement, expansion and scaling forecasts, and optimization/measurement.
• Forecast startup costs, operating budgets, and cash flow projections for a 5-year period.
• Set clear and measurable financial and social goals for the first five years.
• Collaborate with graphic and web designer, marketing staff, and kitchen lead, to create communications and marketing materials related to the social enterprise.

MARKET RESEARCH

• Study the local food and hospitality market to find profitable opportunities that are a cultural fit with organizational goals.
• Identify target customers, competitors, and evidence-based pricing strategies
• Test product ideas through pilot sales or community feedback
• Map client experience and journey to identify opportunities to develop additional offerings
• Research and implement best fit recommendations for customerrelationship management systems for the organization’s food services (including social enterprise).

SOCIAL IMPACT AND TRAINING DESIGN

• Research and build a job-training framework tailored for women rebuilding their lives after homelessness.
• Partner with food service staff to ensure a safe, trauma-informed (supportive and understanding of past trauma) training environment.
• Create measurement tools to evaluate how well the business helps women increase their financial independence.
• Work closely with the Food Services Programs Coordinatorto integrate trainees into the kitchen.

OPERATIONS AND PARTNERSHIPS

• Source commercial kitchen spaces, equipment, and food suppliers, as needed towards scaling plans.
• Review and modify existing food service standard operating procedures for food safety and daily operations.
• Build relationships with local food vendors, donors, and community partners.
• Identify new market opportunities, corporate clients, and revenue streams for the catering business.
• Provide input on team roles and responsibilities to support a growing business.
• Support the Food Services Programs Coordinator in standardizing recipes and streamlining potential supply chains.

FINANCIAL

• Prepare, monitor, and report on annual and project-based budgets
• Develop a finance framework to track financial performance
• Refine pricing strategy for existing and future offerings
• Confirm and finalize data collection methods, customer relationship management systems, and tools

Other duties as assigned/applicable to the position as outlined above

DEMANDS OF THE POSITION

Strength Guidelines

This position may occasionally require lifting, pushing, and carrying items. The maximum weight an employee may be asked to lift is approximately 30lbs.(e.g., a box of paper or supplies, food delivery orders, presentation materials, and supplies). While this role does not involve heavy lifting on a regular basis, the ability to move light to moderate loads safely from time totimeisrequired. Strength requirements arestatedin a gender-neutral manner to ensure inclusivity and fairness.

Motion Parameters

The role involves various physical movements depending on the task or activity.Employees maybe requiredto sit for extended periods, stand, or walk throughout a shift, climb stairs, bend, reach, squat, kneel, or perform repetitive motions. Walking is included in this role, both indoors and outdoors. Role involvesoperatinga computer, telephone, andkeyboard,all of which require continuous and controlled use of hands and fingers, or completion of same with the support of assistive medical devices.

Vision and Hearing Requirements

Adequate vision and hearing (with or without accommodation) arerequiredto perform the essential functions of this role. As a partial desk-job, it requires excellent near vision (with or without assistance device) to clearly read text, view computer screens, and handle multiple small documents at once. Role includes frequent: reading documents or screens,observingsurroundings, communicating in person or over the phone, daily use of cell phones for communication, andmaintainingawareness in potentially noisy environments.

Work Environment

Work is primarily conducted indoors in an office area outside of the main spaces of the agency. The environment of a shelter setting requires all staff, regardless of position, to engage with clients in varying spots of the environment, such as in offices, lobbies, parking lot, etc.). The environment will involve exposure to varying noise levels, strong odors, potential for contact with unknown substances, andstressfulsituations.Employees will be exposed to outdoor weather conditions in the event of outdoor events and activities organized as part of their work.Employees should be comfortable working in a fast-paced setting with frequent unpredictability and distraction potential.Position involving working with and/or near those from infancy throughthe elderly. The environment includes the ongoing use of both video and audio surveillance of common and staff areas used for purposes of ongoing staff supervision, training, coaching,andcrime response when needed.

Emotional Demands

Role may include required demonstrations of certain behaviors,followingspecific protocols, or using specific scripts when speaking with service users or community partners. Employees must be prepared to engage with individuals experiencing crisis, trauma, physical or mental health concerns or significant distress. Staff may be exposed to sensitive information, including disclosures that can be emotionally triggering, involve themes of abuse, and/or historical or acute trauma. Time stressors may include routine time constraints on specific duties and deadlines related to agency work. Emotional demands include responding to competing demands from vendors and contacts.

The Welcome Centre Shelter for Women and Families is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminatebased onsex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, and we encourage all qualified candidates to apply.