Board member position available

Auberges de jeunesse du St-Laurent Inc.

Auberges de jeunesse du St-Laurent is seeking a bilingual individual (French/English) with strong knowledge of the Canadian commercial real estate market (ideally with experience in the Toronto market) and experience in real estate project management to join its Board of Directors. This appointment aims to broaden the range of expertise represented on the Board and to bring new perspectives to the discussions and developments presented at Board meetings. The selected candidate must be able to communicate fluently in French.

Auberges de jeunesse du St-Laurent particularly encourages women and members of visible and ethnocultural minorities to apply.

As a social economy enterprise, Auberges de jeunesse du St-Laurent Inc., headquartered in Montréal, operates three youth hostels located in Toronto, Montréal, and Ottawa, and markets three additional hostels in the provinces of Québec and Ontario. The organization also operates a philanthropic program through the Saintlo Youth Tourism Foundation.

In addition to providing affordable accommodation to young travelers, our mission—to create positive encounters between local communities and people from around the world—also seeks to promote the discovery of our territory. The management of youth hostels operates within a competitive market environment and requires close control of operating costs, supported by sufficient revenues; this represents the business dimension of our activities. The philanthropic dimension aims to enable as many young people as possible to grow and discover themselves by engaging with new environments and diverse cultures.

Auberges de jeunesse du St-Laurent promotes strong social values aligned with its mission and objectives:

SOCIABLE

We foster connections between people from here and elsewhere.

Our hostels are designed to encourage sharing, discovery of others, and social interaction.

YOUYHFUL

We are dedicated to youth and remain young at heart. We embrace the values of today’s youth and support their ideals.

LOCAL

We contribute to the visibility of our destinations and promote their discovery.

We develop networks of local partners and encourage nearby businesses.

CARING

We promote more responsible ways of traveling and celebrate diversity.

We work continuously to reduce our environmental footprint and to make our offerings as accessible as possible.

VIBRANT

Like the world and the youth we represent, we continuously adapt and evolve.

Our brand is flexible, scalable, and readily adapts to changing contexts and to the variety of platforms on which it is expressed.

Our Governance Model:

The governance model guiding Auberges de jeunesse du St-Laurent is known as stewardship. This model is rooted in a human-relations perspective and assumes that elected directors and management work in partnership for the benefit of the organization. It is based on the belief that leaders will act as responsible stewards of the organization’s resources. The primary role of the Board of Directors is not to monitor management, but rather to enhance organizational performance. The Board’s role is therefore primarily strategic and, through its collaborative partnership with management, seeks to add value to the organization’s strategic decision-making.

Responsibilities of the Board of Directors:

In collaboration with executive management, the Board of Directors is responsible for:

• Developing and adopting a strategic vision to guide the organization’s actions
• Identifying and assessing internal and external issues that may impact the organization
• Adopting policies to govern the organization’s operations
• Ensuring the use of sound administrative and financial practices
• Ensuring compliance with all applicable laws related to taxation and payroll deductions
• Monitoring ongoing operations based on reports provided by executive management
• Advising executive management on certain legal and administrative matters

Responsabilities of Individual Board Members:

• Preparing for and attending regular Board meetings
• Demonstrating commitment to the mission and vision of the organization
• Representing the organization in a positive and professional manner
• Contributing their expertise to organizational decision-making and seeking to identify and cultivate relationships and opportunities that advance the organization’s work

Time Commitment : 5 hours per month for Board activities, including:

• Preparation for Board meetings (1–2 hours per month)
• Participation in monthly Board meetings (3 hours)
• Optional participation in a committee (e.g., Toronto expansion committee, governance committee, audit committee, etc.), approximately 15 hours per year

About you:

• You are motivated to make a meaningful impact with your work and your time, and you are passionate about addressing future challenges through collective action
• You are engaged in social and environmental causes
• You are based in Ontario or Québec and are able to participate in meetings in person or virtually
• You have a strong knowledge of the Canadian commercial real estate market (ideally with experience in the Toronto market)

Annual General Meeting:

Each year, in February, members are invited to attend the Annual General Meeting. During this meeting, we present our annual report, report on our activities, outline upcoming projects, and, most importantly, elect the members who will serve on the Board of Directors.

You are interested in contributing your expertise to a mission-driven organization whose purpose is to create positive encounters between people from here and around the world, while promoting the discovery of our territory. Let’s talk.

For more information or to express your interest, please contact us directly here or by email at [email protected].