Director, Solutions Lab

Position Summary: The Director, Solutions Lab is a senior innovation and portfolio leader responsible for supporting the SVP to set direction and overseeing an integrated portfolio across four streams: Future of Aging, Future of Care, Future of Work and Future of Impact. Reporting to the Senior Vice President, Social Impact & Global Initiatives, the Director leads a team of 4-5 direct reports and mobilizes multiple cross-functional teams, partners and resources to move priority opportunities from discovery and co-design through testing, evaluation, transition and scale.

The role connects enterprise strategy with disciplined execution. It ensures the Lab is focused on consequential problems, applies a consistent innovation and evidence approach, builds strong internal and external partnerships, and produces decision-ready recommendations on where SE Health should invest, adapt, scale, transition or stop. The Director balances experimentation with governance, financial stewardship, operational feasibility and measurable outcomes for clients, families, staff, communities and the health system.

This is an opportunity to lead a distinctive enterprise portfolio at the intersection of innovation, care transformation, workforce change, aging and social impact. The Director will help SE Health turn complex challenges into practical solutions, strengthen the organization’s capacity to test and learn, and create measurable value for people, communities and the health system. Primary Accountabilities: Strategy, Portfolio Direction & Prioritization: Set and refresh the Solutions Lab strategy, portfolio architecture and annual priorities across the four work streams, aligned with SE Health strategy and emerging needs.

Establish clear criteria for opportunity selection, sequencing, investment, stage-gate decisions, transition and scale. Maintain an enterprise-level portfolio view of scope, progress, dependencies, capacity, risks, benefits and decision requirements. Translate complex internal and external signals into investment options, business cases, roadmaps and executive recommendations. Ensure the four streams operate as a coherent portfolio, identifying shared capabilities and opportunities for integration.

Recommend which portfolio initiatives to initiate, continue, adapt, pause, transition or scale, supported by evidence and resource implications. Provide executive-ready advice on emerging opportunities and investments, clearly addressing value, feasibility, risk and impact. Advance priority initiatives through defined stages with clear evidence, decision points, ownership and resource discipline. Innovation, Design, Evaluation & Scale: Oversee the end-to-end innovation lifecycle: needs assessment, discovery, co-design, prototyping, pilot implementation, evaluation, knowledge translation, transition and spread or scale.

Champion human-centred and equity-informed design, ensuring people closest to the problem shape solutions and evaluation. Require clear hypotheses, success measures, evidence plans, financial implications and decision points for major initiatives. Ensure promising solutions demonstrate measurable client, staff, organizational, system and social impact, including financial or operational value where applicable. Create conditions for responsible experimentation while maintaining appropriate clinical, privacy, legal, security, ethical and operational safeguards.

Convert lessons from pilots into reusable methods, standards and organizational capability. Establish credible pathways for successful innovations to achieve adoption, sustainable ownership, transition and scale. People Leadership & Lab Operations: Lead, coach and develop 4-5 direct reports, with clear accountabilities, goals, feedback, growth plans and succession considerations. Hold portfolio leads accountable for outcomes, quality, timelines, stewardship and effective stakeholder engagement.

Build an interdisciplinary, high-performing team culture grounded in curiosity, accountability, inclusion, collaboration and learning. Align people and resources to priorities, manage workload and capacity, and address barriers to delivery. Allocate approved Lab resources and team capacity across the four streams within established budgets and authorities. Oversee the Lab operating model, budget, contracts, consultants, project governance, reporting and risk management.

Escalate clinical, financial, privacy, legal, security, reputational or delivery risks through appropriate governance channels. Foster an engaged, accountable team with the capacity and capabilities to deliver across a complex portfolio. Create consistent delivery disciplines while preserving the agility required for emerging and ambiguous work. Enterprise Transformation & Cross-Functional Leadership: Works collaboratively with Clinical Lead Innovation and Future Care in setting direction, supporting enterprise priorities and engaging cross functional teams.

Partner with clinical, operational, digital, data, professional practice, people, finance, legal, privacy, communications and business leaders to advance shared priorities. Lead through influence across organizational boundaries, clarify decision rights and create effective governance for complex initiatives. Enable hand-off and adoption by engaging future owners early, defining readiness requirements and supporting change management.

Partnerships, Funding & Thought Leadership: Build and steward strategic relationships with community organizations, health-system partners, funders, academic institutions, innovators, vendors and governments. Identify and pursue external funding, sponsorship, research and co-investment opportunities that extend SE Health capacity and impact. Negotiate clear partnership outcomes, roles, deliverables, governance and value exchange in collaboration with relevant corporate functions.

Position SE Health as a credible innovation and social impact partner through presentations, publications, convening and knowledge exchange. Strengthen the Lab’s ability to attract high-value partners, external funding and talent while advancing SE Health’s reputation for practical, responsible innovation. Qualifications & Experience: Master's Degree in Health administration, business administration, health sciences, social innovation, public policy, or a related field required Minimum 8–10 years of progressive experience Equivalent combinations of education, leadership experience and demonstrated capability will be considered.

Additional training in innovation, design, evaluation, implementation science, project or portfolio management, or responsible AI is an asset. Demonstrated people leadership experience, including leading managers or senior professionals and building high-performing teams. Experience designing, implementing and evaluating pilots, new models, programs, products or services and moving successful work toward adoption or scale.

Experience developing business cases, executive recommendations, funding proposals, partnerships and outcome frameworks. Experience in healthcare, home and community care, aging, workforce innovation, digital health, social impact or a related regulated environment is strongly preferred. Proven success influencing senior stakeholders and leading across functions without relying solely on formal authority. Why join SE Health?

Competitive Total Rewards So much more than a paycheque! Enjoy comprehensive benefits, pension, flexible pay options, car-loan support, housing solutions and exclusive staff perks. Flexibility & Belonging Thrive with hybrid work, flexible scheduling and a supportive, inclusive culture that puts people first. Innovative At SE, we are always looking for new, innovative ways to improve. You’ll be encouraged and supported to identify and make improvements to the way we do our work.

As a social enterprise, we support research into Senior’s Health and Aging. Purpose & Impact Join a national social enterprise where your voice matters. Every role helps advance health, spark innovation and strengthen communities across Canada. Growth That Meets Your Ambition Access tuition support, training and meaningful career pathways across a growing, future-focused organization. About SE Health SE Health is a not-for-profit social enterprise advancing health with heart.

With 115+ years of impact, we bring hope, happiness and exceptional care to people and communities across Canada. We lead with empathy, dignity and purpose while building a future where everyone can realize their full health and well-being potential. We’re also an inclusive, supportive workplace offering competitive compensation, strong benefits and real opportunities to grow. We’re All In Together. Accessibility : If you require accommodations due to illness or disability, please contact Talent Acquisition at [email protected] .

AI and compensation details: We use AI to take notes during our interview. All applications and interviews are reviewed by our Talent Acquisition team. This role is a new addition. The total target compensation for this position is $116,000 - $145,000. The compensation offered is determined based on the successful candidate’s relevant experience, skills, and competencies, taking into consideration internal equity.