Manager, Business Operations

The Opportunity
 
Job classification: M1100 - Manager
Salary range: $102,000 - $112,000 (Based on 30 hour work week). Placement within the range is typically based upon a review of skills, experience, and internal equity. 
Hours per week: 30 (0.8 FTE)
Paid leave: 4 Weeks Vacation / 14 Flex Days per year
Deadline to apply: 4:00PM, Friday October 2, 2026
 
The Manager, Business Operations provides management-level leadership and oversight of QPES’s commercial, financial, and operational activities, ensuring opportunities and projects are effectively coordinated from initial client engagement through scoping, costing, contracting, delivery, invoicing, and closeout.
Reporting to the Associate Vice President (AVP), the Manager serves as the central business operations lead, connecting QPES technical teams, clients, and SAIT corporate functions to ensure projects are appropriately planned, resourced, commercially structured, delivered, and financially managed. The role integrates technical, operational, and financial inputs into business proposals, project plans, budgets, forecasts, and recommendations for AVP approval.
The Manager has delegated authority for the day-to-day management of QPES business and financial operations and is accountable for effective budget management, financial controls, forecasting, reporting, and operational processes. The role monitors performance, identifies risks and opportunities, and recommends actions to support sound resource allocation, financial performance, and organizational priorities.
The Manager is accountable for decisions and commitments made within established delegated authorities and financial parameters, while escalating material or strategic matters to the AVP. The AVP retains final approval and overall accountability for major financial, commercial, contractual, and operational decisions.
Through this role, the Manager ensures QPES operates with effective business processes, financial discipline, commercial consistency, and operational coordination, enabling the organization to respond effectively to client needs while supporting successful project delivery and sustainable growth.

How you'll contribute

Commercial Proposals & Project Development

- Lead the development and coordination of commercial and applied research proposals from initial client opportunity through final internal approval.

- Work directly with clients to understand project objectives, scope, schedules, deliverables, and commercial requirements.

- Coordinate technical input from QPES laboratory staff, technical leads, the Director of Science, and the Lab Manager.

- Develop comprehensive project scopes, schedules, budgets, and commercial proposals.

- Ensure proposals accurately reflect the labour, equipment, materials, external services, and timelines required to complete the work.

- Coordinate internal SAIT approvals and requirements necessary to move opportunities into active projects.

- Ensure approved projects have appropriate contracts, purchase orders, and financial structures in place before work begins.

People Management

- Lead, assign, and review the work of direct reports while establishing clear priorities and managing team workloads.

- Coach, mentor, and support employee development and growth.

- Manage individual and team performance, including formal performance management as required.

- Participate in recruitment, selection, and onboarding activities.

- Provide input and recommendations related to employee performance, corrective action, and dismissal.

- Manage budget-related decisions affecting personnel revenue and expenses within established authority.

- Identify staffing and resource requirements to support QPES's evolving operational needs and growth.

- Coordinate approximately 14 indirect team members across QPES to support project scoping, costing, scheduling, time tracking, financial reporting, and project delivery.

Project & Operational Coordination

- Own, maintain, and continuously improve QPES project costing models and costing structures.

- Work with technical teams to establish realistic staffing hours, equipment utilization, material requirements, and third-party costs.

- Develop and maintain consistent staffing, equipment, and service costing methodologies.

- Coordinate project pricing and margin analysis for review and approval by the AVP.

- Use actual project performance and operating experience to continuously improve costing models and assumptions.

- Ensure commercial and applied research activities are appropriately costed and financially tracked.

- Coordinate projects from approval through execution, invoicing, and closeout.

- Maintain visibility across active projects, including schedules, budgets, resource requirements, and deliverables.

- Work with technical teams to track project progress and identify potential scope, schedule, resource, or budget issues.

- Coordinate project timesheets and ensure labour is accurately allocated to projects.

- Monitor actual project costs against approved budgets, identify variances, and recommend appropriate actions.

- Follow up with internal teams to ensure required information, approvals, and deliverables are completed on schedule.

- Establish and maintain consistent project management processes across QPES commercial and applied research activities.

Financial & Business Operations

- Serve as the internal lead for QPES financial and business operations under the direction of the AVP.

- Coordinate the development and ongoing management of the overall QPES operating budget.

- Monitor revenue, operating expenses, project expenditures, financial commitments, and forecasts.

- Maintain project-level financial reporting and overall visibility into QPES financial performance.

- Coordinate with SAIT Finance on project setup, invoicing, accounts receivable, and financial reporting.

- Ensure client invoices are issued accurately and on schedule, and follow up on outstanding financial items.

- Coordinate purchasing, procurement, and other financial processes required to support project delivery.

- Provide regular financial and operational reporting, analysis, and recommendations to the AVP.

SAIT & Internal Coordination & Client & Stakeholder Engagement

- Act as a primary operational interface between QPES and SAIT corporate services.

- Coordinate requirements involving Finance, Procurement, Contracts, Legal, and other internal groups as required.

- Navigate internal processes and follow up across teams to keep projects and client opportunities moving forward.

- Establish clear and effective workflows between QPES technical teams and SAIT administrative functions.

- Identify process bottlenecks and develop practical solutions to improve project execution and commercial responsiveness.

- Participate in the development of new client and business opportunities.

- Lead commercial scoping discussions with clients and coordinate internal stakeholders to translate client needs into actionable project requirements.

What you bring

Education

- Bachelor's degree in business, engineering, science, finance, project management, or a related discipline.

- Master's degree in Business Administration, Finance, or a related field is considered an asset.

Experience

- 5–7 years of demonstrated experience in project management, business operations, commercial operations, or a related role.

- Supervisory or people leadership experience is considered an asset.

- Experience working in applied research, laboratory operations, engineering services, energy, industrial technology, or another technically complex environment is considered an asset.

Skills

- Strong project management capabilities, with demonstrated experience coordinating multidisciplinary teams and multiple concurrent projects.

- Experience developing project budgets, cost estimates, forecasts, pricing models, and financial tracking.

- Ability to translate technical project requirements into practical scopes, schedules, budgets, and commercial proposals.

- Strong understanding of project costing, financial controls, budget management, and variance analysis.

- Experience working collaboratively with finance, procurement, contracting, legal, and other corporate functions.

- Strong organizational and prioritization skills, with the ability to manage complex activities through to completion.

- Strong written and verbal communication skills.

- Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making abilities.

- Ability to build effective working relationships with technical specialists, senior leaders, clients, and corporate support functions.

- Ability to balance client needs, operational requirements, financial considerations, and organizational priorities.

We sincerely thank all applicants for their interest in this opportunity. We understand how important communication is, and we are committed to following up with every candidate. Please know that each application is thoughtfully reviewed, and you will hear from us either way.
 
Together, we build bold futures 
 
At SAIT, we equip you with the resources you need to shape bold futures for yourself and our communities. We offer a comprehensive package including: 
 
- Defined Benefit pension through LAPP to help you retire with confidence 
- Generous time off to pursue other passions and support your wellbeing 
- SAIT paid premiums for medical, dental, and vision benefits so you, and your family, are well supported 
- Access to a Health Spending or Taxable Spending Account  
- Benefits supporting mental health and access to Greenshield + for virtual therapy at a reduced rate 
- Professional development opportunities through our Free Seat Program, tuition support, access to LinkedIn Learning and discounted Continuing Education & Professional Studies courses  
- Excellent dining options on campus 
- Free access to our fitness facilities and group fitness classes 
 
And the perks keep on coming!