Learning and Development Advisor

WHO WE ARE:

The Jenkins Group of Companies is a forward-thinking organization dedicated to driving sustainable growth and financial stability across our diverse portfolio of companies. Known primarily for our strong reputation and success in senior living, we are recognized as an industry leader in this space. Built on a commitment to long term living and healthcare for both senior adults and children, the group operates residences and care facilities in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, including The Berkeley Retirement Residences, Wolfville Nursing Home, Evergreen Home for Special Care, and The Mount Continuing Care Community. This commitment to care extends to four Tiny Tot Early Years Centres in Charlottetown and Summerside, PE, with continued growth through medical centres, property holdings, and Libra Financial, a new debtor-in-possession financing company.

Our group is built on a passion for providing support and care to the community, which is exemplified by our compassionate team of employees. Our culture is grounded in the importance of belonging to a community, and its positive impact on happiness and overall wellness for all stakeholders. Relationships are built on collaboration, understanding, and continued drive for growth and success.

POSITION SUMMARY:

We are building an L&D program from scratch over the next year and are looking for an energetic and creative individual to join our team who wants to understand how a business really runs, then support the team to do that well. You may not be deeply experienced but you are able to demonstrate how you can translate what you know to tangible outcomes.

Do you love watching someone go from “I’m not sure” to “I’ve got this”? This is your role. You’ll help our managers and employees build real, on-the-job skills, coach through real conversations and you will create practical, engaging training content using AI tools and software at the pace our growing learning program needs.

You will also be embedded in the business, working alongside teams in each company to support organizational development initiatives, including documentation of org charts, accountability workflows (RACI), risk assessments related to people and resourcing, supporting development of talent pipeline, succession planning, and retention programs.

You’ll spend lots of time at our locations in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island getting to know each team, its residents and its culture, so everything you build fits the real work. You coach and support.

This role does not manage performance or employee complaints; it assesses, teaches, coaches and supports. Success is measured by what people can actually do on the job, not by the number of training sessions we hold

How you will develop people

Every manager you support moves through the same learning cycle until they are competent:

Assess: observe and evaluate their current skills and agree on what they need to learn.

Teach: explain our approach and why it matters, using real examples from our locations.

Demonstrate: model the conversation through role-play so they see what good looks like.

Shadow: sit in while they hold the real conversation with their employee, without taking over.

Give feedback: debrief right away with specific, actionable feedback and an agreed next step.

Confirm: repeat until they can lead the conversation alone, then sign off the competency.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Learning & Development

• Conduct leadership skills assessments and create development plans for managers and supervisors and report progress towards competence as outlined in the plan.
• Assess results of on the job training to confirm each person is demonstrating the skills taught.
• Research, test and recommend new learning methods, tools and AI solutions, and help us retire what isn’t working.
• Teach managers and employees our approach to performance management, coaching and difficult conversations.
• Help managers and/or employees prepare for difficult conversations: plan the message, anticipate responses and agree on next steps.
• Help build our learning program from the ground up over the next year, including competency standards, assessments and courses.
• Use AI tools and video-based training software programs such as Claude and Synthesia to draft, update and tailor course content, scenarios, quizzes and job aids quickly.
• Participate in the development of a group-wide employee information portal and HR AI agent for easy access to employee information.
• Facilitate information sessions for employees and managers on how we work, including, performance management, immigration, disability and accommodation processes, benefit renewals, and how our compensation model works.
• Train new employees and managers on our immigration pathways and processes.
• Coordinate third-party information sessions, such as RRSP or insurance.
• Conduct employee onboarding for salaried and management positions.
• Coordinate with Marketing for social content promoting L&D sessions and for professional educational materials.
• Coordinate with Operations Administrator for managing master documents and reports.

Organizational Development

• Document our Immigration Pathways Program to clearly describe how foreign workers are supported through their applications for permanent residency.
• Maintain master Org Charts & RACI documents for all companies, using MS Visio.
• Participate in development and execution of succession plans for management and key hands-on contributors.
• Assess the quality of our onboarding and probationary review processes to identify areas for improvement.
• Conduct various employee feedback surveys and develop action plans for improvement.

Compliance and audits

• Audit employer immigration certification compliance.
• Run exception reports to find gaps in required training.
• Draft memos and communications about legislative changes.
• Track each manager's competency progress, from first assessment to completion of development plans.
• Track and report on L&D initiatives, performance metrics, and people engagement and productivity KPIs.
• Create documents, tracking systems and dashboards as needed.

Relationships and culture

• Participate in internal staff events and celebrations to build relationships with employees and managers at every location.
• Attend resident events and activities to understand the experience our teams deliver and what residents value.
• Participate in community events alongside our teams.
• Use what you learn about each company's culture to shape training that fits how each team works.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Must have strong technical skills, including use of AI and automating workflows, reports and dashboards.
• Experience in human resources, adult education, organizational development or a related field.
• 2+ years of experience in learning and development, training or coaching; multi-site or seniors living is an asset.
• Ability and interest to learn Nova Scotia & Prince Edward Island employment standards, human rights, long term care standards, WCB and employer immigration requirements is an asset.
• Comfortable HRIS and learning platforms.

SKILLS & ATTRIBUTES:

• Leads with kindness by providing honest, direct, respectful feedback that is specific based on observations with clear recommendations of what to do differently where needed.
• Cares deeply about seeing people become competent, with the patience to stay with a learner until the skill sticks.
• Credible with managers and employees and is comfortable in difficult conversations.
• Handles confidential information with discretion.
• Organized and detail-oriented.
• Builds trust with employees and managers across different businesses.

WORKING CONDITIONS:

• Regular time on site at each location to observe, demonstrate and shadow managers.
• Frequent travel between locations in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island; a valid driver's licence and reliable transportation is required.
• Some early or evening sessions to reach staff on different shifts as required.