Business Advisor

**About WESK**:
Women Entrepreneurs of Saskatchewan (WESK) is a non-profit organization with over 900 members across Saskatchewan. We are dedicated to helping women start, develop, lead, and grow their businesses through business advising, financing, training, and networking events. Since 1995, we’ve disbursed over 850 loans putting more than $46 million directly into women-owned businesses across the province.

With offices in Regina and Saskatoon and services accessible across Saskatchewan, WESK is dedicated to supporting women at every stage of their business journey. While we are a small team, our impact is significant Our size enables us to remain agile and responsive, allowing us to adapt quickly to emerging needs and opportunities. Collaboration is at the core of our non-profit culture; we work closely together, united by a shared purpose and a deep dedication to advancing the success of women in business.

We are looking for a full-time Business Advisor either in Regina or Saskatoon. Reporting to the Client Services Manager, the Business Advisor is responsible for supporting entrepreneurs in their business journey by offering resources, best practices, and strategic guidance. A critical part of this role involves guiding clients through the lending process: helping them understand eligibility requirements and supporting them to prepare the required documents. The Business Advisor contributes to WESK’s mission by meeting clients where they are at and providing tailored support to help them achieve their business goals and thrive as entrepreneurs.

**Responsibilities**:

- **Business Advising**: Use experience and training to provide insights, recommendations, and encouragement to clients. Offer guidance and support in all areas of a business plan, financial projections, and lending options.
- **Feedback Delivery**: Provide written and verbal feedback on business ideas and documents in a supportive and constructive manner.
- **Resource and Strategy Development**: Identify and share resources and strategies to help clients achieve their business goals.
- **Business Documentation Preparation**:Assist clients in preparing comprehensive business plans and financial projections.
- **Program and Service Knowledge**: Provide detailed information about WESK’s services, events, and financing options.
- **Collaboration with Lending Team**: Work closely with the lending team to manage potential and current loan clients.
- **Collaborative Contributor**:Values teamwork and actively seeks to support others or projects when workloads fluctuate.
- **Loan Knowledge**:Comprehension of WESK loan policies, eligibility requirements and processes.
- **Empathetic Client Interaction**:Balance empathy and objectivity when working with clients to provide realistic and respectful feedback.
- **Creative Thinker**:Creative problem solver.
- **Client Centric Approach**:Understand the unique client journey, adapt to client needs, and provide the appropriate support.
- **Active Listener**: Ability to adapt communication styles to build trust and communicate in a way that makes others feel safe, heard, and motivated.
- **Client Process Improvement**: Collaborate with the Client Services team to enhance processes and client experiences. Review and improve business advising and lending procedures to enhance client-centric approaches, efficiency, and risk mitigation.
- **Stakeholder Engagement**: Build and maintain strong connections with ecosystem organizations, including networking, collaborating with support organizations, and delivering presentations to strengthen partnerships and expand resources available to clients.
- **Planning and Organization**:Manage multiple clients and projects while meeting timelines, including calendar management to maintain work life balance.
- **Research and Knowledge Sharing**: Research best practices, trends, strategies, available grants, and resources from other organizations, and share this knowledge with the business advising team to enhance client support.
- **Record Management**:Store and record client information and interactions in Zoho modules, and SharePoint.
- Some travel is required within Saskatchewan_.

**Experience**:

- Experience advising, managing, or owning a business and/or post-secondary education in business or related discipline.
- Experience with preparing business plans and financial projections.
- Demonstrated ability to provide feedback that balances empathy and objectivity that is supportive, respectful and realistic.
- Experience with lending products, processes and policies considered an asset.

**Mindset**:

- **Mission-Driven**: Have a desire to make a positive impact for women entrepreneurs in Saskatchewan.
- **Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Commitment**: Prioritize learning and skills development to better support equity-deserving groups, including youth, Indigenous, Black, rural, 2SLGBTQIA+, people with disabilities, and newcomer women. Lead with integrity to build