Under the direction of the Manager, Student Success and Retention, the team lead contributes to the institution’s success and its community of learners by providing leadership to the Academic Advising team, supervising staff, and coordinating workflow to ensure accurate and timely advice and service. In addition to performing the core academic advising duties and assigned special focus including general, international, nursing, Aboriginal, the Academic Advising Team Lead supervises and mentors the Academic Advisors, the Administrative Assistant – Student Success & Retention and other seasonal and casual employees as required. The Team Lead develops and aligns long-term planning with Student Services and the Registrar’s Office and CNC’s strategic directions, and has overall responsibility for maintaining strong Academic Advising services for CNC students.

As Team Lead:
• Leads and supervises the Academic Advisors, the Administrative Assistant-Student Success & Retention and other seasonal and casual employees as required.
• Supervises, coordinates, and supports the day-to-day operations of the Academic Advising team, including supervising staff, addressing staff/student concerns, planning, coordinating, assigning, prioritizing, and evaluating the accuracy of work assignments.
• Works closely with the administrative assistant to implement on-boarding, training, and professional development of new and current advisors.
• Provides leadership to team members by coaching, guiding, and modelling key strategies in setting professional development goals in alignment with NACADA, CACUSS and other relevant organizations principles and best practices
• Creates, implements, and evaluates a unified approach to Advising roles with focuses and specialties.
• Provides leadership to academic advisors and administrative assistants to develop a cohesive and integrated team through best practices approach to support student success and retention by staying current on relevant research and actively participating in local and national professional organizations.
• Explicitly supports student success and retention efforts by co-creating and leading numerous programs such as Student Planner, Early Alert, Devant, Student Success initiatives, etc. with a goal of ensuring a strong and positive student-centric culture in Advising.
• Develops and implements guidelines and proposes new advising initiatives for increased advising efficiency. Creates and maintains training protocols and practises for new and existing academic advisors on different advising-related topics.
• Responsible for planning and coordinating academic advising-related events such as pop-up sessions, class visits, information sessions etc.
• Work with Institutional Research in the implementation of data collection practices and to establish data analysis needs for Academic Advising.
• Serves as a liaison to the Academic Advising team in internal and external meetings.
• Oversees the scheduling of academic advising services.
• Collaborates with other departments and promotes Student Services departmental goals.
• Regularly consults with the Office of the Registrar in the development of process and communication practices.
• Collaborates with internal and external departments to share best practices and common issues related to student success; and ensure consistency in communications and work practices.
• Actively participates in relevant committees and working groups and interdepartmental teams.
• Collaborates on an ongoing basis with accessibility services maintaining a strong continuum of student supports.
• Implements career advising strategies relevant to the Academic Advising Area.
• Actively monitors service delivery, identifies service gaps and advocates and provides advice for the elimination of student barriers to achieving superior student success.
• Troubleshoots/advises on escalated time-sensitive complex student issues, as required.
• Lead the Student Services advising team with collaboration to define and implement pre-arrival assessments for student success.
• Regularly assesses the needs of students through the student life cycle and implements innovative processes for holistic support.

As Academic Advisor:
• Participates in and adheres to professional standards in the academic advising community (e.g. National Academic Advising Association (NACADA), Canadian Association of College and University Student Services (CACUSS), Centre for Higher Education Research and Development (C.H.E.R.D.).
• Utilizes a developmental advising model that motivates students to define their education and career goals.
• Assists students in understanding program admission, prerequisites, and completion requirements using various advising tools.
• Supports students in identifying barriers to success and refer them to resources and services.
• Assists students in navigating through the student life cycle.
• Understands and supports students at critical stages within their educational journey and refers them to appropriate support services for issues that cannot be resolved through Academic Advising.
• Provides information on admission and placement testing and assists with interpretation of results.
• Provides information on career exploration and facilitates student’s use of career services within the College’s available resources.
• Utilizes CNC operating systems with a critical eye to assess, optimize and evaluate certificate and diploma completion requirements.
• Maintains a thorough understanding of academic and non-academic policies and procedures and assists students to understand how these relate to academic standing and the student experience.
• Maintains knowledge of CNC programming and provide feedback through appropriate mechanisms, including committee membership, Education Council proposals, etc.
• Optimizes the student experience by providing timely feedback to student inquiries.
• Maintains confidentiality through every interaction, while ensuring appropriate documentation is kept accordingly.
• Provides feedback and recommendations for improvements to systems (Colleague, Student Planner, etc).
• Actively collaborates and participates in student information events and workshops (including but not limited to Orientation, Student Life Expo, Open house, Student Planner workshops, meet and greets, trades info tables, registration workshops, Health & Wellness Fair).
• Maintains awareness of college-wide initiatives, latest programs and integrates new programming/pilots when possible.
• Seeks out and participates in professional development opportunities for academic advising and specialized areas.
• Advocates for Academic Advising on CNC committees and interdepartmental meetings.
• You will be part of a team actively engaged in contributing to and accomplishing the vision, mission, and goals of the College and in supporting the aspirations and needs of our learners.
• You will promote a positive work atmosphere by interacting and communicating in a professional manner that demonstrates mutual respect with students and colleagues.
• Duties as assigned by Manager, Student Success & Retention or designate

• Bachelor’s degree (or higher) specializing in Education or Social Sciences or a related field.
• Registered International Student Immigration Advisor (RISIA) would be considered an asset.
• Three (3) or more years’ experience as Academic Advisor in a post-secondary setting.
• Ability to effectively lead and support others to complete projects.
• Ability to manage complex decisions and time sensitive workflow
• Understanding of and commitment to the philosophy of adult education and customer service.
• Strong skills in working with routine and non-routine office procedures and systems.
• Proven ability to work positively with a very demanding workload, changing priorities, and continuous interruptions and to coordinate activities with the work of the team.
• Ability to work independently and meet extremely demanding work schedules and deadlines, over which the incumbent has little or no control.
• Proven ability to maintain positive working relationships internally and externally.
• Superior interpersonal skills including the ability to contribute positively to a team oriented work environment.
• High degree of sensitivity to both verbal and non-verbal cues.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Proficient in appropriate technological resources including the following computer application areas: Word-processing; E-mail, Internet and Web based research.
• Experience with a student information system such as Colleague preferred.
• Drivers’ license.