Business Coach

Ballad Group

The Ballad team is comprised of business professionals, strengthening the communities in which we live and work. Our diverse team brings a wealth of knowledge, experience, and creativity to each project we undertake. We provide services related to training, business planning, government relations, Indigenous engagement, and community development. Ballad ensures that the work we undertake has meaningful impact, ALWAYS.

Today, Ballad employs nearly 100 team members across 13 offices throughout Alberta. We operate innovative simulated worksites that include construction, hospitality, warehouse, retail, and industrial training environments, helping thousands of Albertans develop the skills and confidence needed to succeed in the workforce.

The Opportunity

Help aspiring entrepreneurs turn their business plans into reality.

Ballad Group is looking for an experienced business professional with an entrepreneurial background and a passion for helping others succeed. As our Business Coach, you will provide practical, individualized support to entrepreneurs as they develop their business plans, launch their ventures, and navigate the challenges of early business ownership.

You will help participants work through decisions, solve problems, and take meaningful steps toward sustainable self-employment. From refining a cash flow forecast to preparing for a first customer meeting, you will turn big goals into manageable actions and help participants maintain momentum.

The Program

Ballad’s Self-Employment Launchpad is a 16-week program supporting unemployed and underemployed Albertans in pursuing sustainable self-employment. The program combines instructor-led training, business planning, individualized coaching, peer learning, and connections with the local business community.

Based in Airdrie, the program also serves participants in Strathmore and Okotoks through a combination of in-person and virtual delivery.

This is an in-position that takes place in our Airdrie office and is 30 hours per week.

What you’ll do

- Provide individualized business coaching. Meet with participants to understand their goals, assess progress, work through challenges, and identify practical next steps suited to their business and stage of development.

- Support business plan development. Help participants strengthen their business models, market research, marketing strategies, operational plans, and financial projections. Provide constructive feedback that helps them test assumptions and build realistic plans.

- Help participants move from planning to launch. Guide entrepreneurs through implementation priorities such as business registration, licensing, pricing, establishing business systems, building a digital presence, and finding their first customers.

- Provide hands-on problem-solving support. Work alongside participants as they develop budgets, review cash flow, explore financing options, refine sales approaches, and address operational challenges.

- Build accountability and momentum. Help participants set achievable milestones, track commitments, and adjust their plans as they learn what works.

- Facilitate peer learning. Lead small-group roundtables where participants share progress, discuss challenges, exchange ideas, and support one another through the early stages of business ownership.

- Maintain ongoing contact after training. Conduct regular follow-ups with program graduates to review business activity, identify emerging needs, and provide continued entrepreneurial guidance and connections.

- Connect entrepreneurs with expertise and resources. Build relationships with local business owners, mentors, financial institutions, and business support organizations. Help participants access specialized advice and opportunities relevant to their ventures.

- Track progress and outcomes. Maintain accurate coaching notes, document business launch and follow-up milestones, and collect information needed to assess participant progress and program outcomes.

- Collaborate with the program team. Work closely with the Facilitator and Program Coordinator to ensure consistent support, identify participant needs, and strengthen the connection between classroom learning and business operations.

What you bring

- Practical experience starting, operating, or growing a business, with an understanding of the realities of entrepreneurship.

- Experience coaching, advising, or mentoring entrepreneurs and small business owners.

- Strong knowledge of business planning, financial fundamentals, marketing and sales, and day-to-day business operations.

- The ability to review business plans, budgets, cash flow forecasts, and financial projections and help entrepreneurs understand what the numbers mean for their decisions.

- A practical coaching approach that balances encouragement, honest feedback, and accountability.

- Strong relationship-building skills and the ability to support people with different backgrounds, business ideas, and levels of experience.

- The ability to help entrepreneurs work through uncertainty, prioritize competing demands, and stay focused on achievable next steps.

- Comfort using digital business tools and helping participants explore technology and AI to support their operations.

- Strong organization and documentation skills, including the ability to manage coaching appointments, follow-ups, and participant records.

- Sound judgment about when to connect participants with qualified legal, accounting, lending, or other specialized professionals.

- Connections within the Airdrie, Strathmore, and Okotoks business communities, and experience supporting entrepreneurs through business launch and early growth, would be assets.