Managing Director, Knowledge
Primary Location : Flexible (anywhere in the U.S.) CA-Bay Area, NY-New York City
Team : Growth, Development, & Partnerships
Description
Position Summary
The managing director, knowledge will play a key role on the Growth, Development, and Partnership (GDP) team and thus in Teach For America's mission to end educational inequity. Leading a knowledge team of two, the managing director will take the lead in identifying, analyzing, and developing solutions for the critical issues impacting Teach For America's efforts to grow its funding and corps both nationally and regionally, and to build meaningful and fruitful partnerships with key constituents and partners. The managing director will also lead the initiative to disseminate the solutions it develops across our matrix of regions and national functions and to develop the mechanism for that dissemination. A successful knowledge team will not just improve but rather transform the way that GDP staff operate and collaborate; it will not just maximize the impact of our staff but rather redefine our potential.
The managing director of the knowledge team will report to the executive vice president of growth, development and partnerships.
Team Overview
The Growth, Development & Partnerships team mission is to build an ever-expanding and increasingly diverse movement of leaders in the private and public sectors committed to educational excellence and opportunity for all children. The team is responsible for enabling and accelerating Teach For America's impact by 1) building partnerships with schools, districts, supporters, government, community organizations, and other education institutions; 2) developing and executing the optimum growth and corps member placement strategy to increase the teacher corps in existing and new sites; and 3) raising financial support to enable our growth and operations.
Qualifications
Responsibilities
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
Set vision for the strategy, direction, methods and processes of the knowledge team.
Develop a deep understanding of the GDP "business," including strategies, challenges, and initiatives at play in individual regions, across regions, and nationally
Identify and prioritize areas of inquiry, ensuring that the knowledge team is addressing the highest priority and highest impact needs at all times
Oversee the identification, codification, and ongoing revision of best practices, and work with other Learning & Operations sub-teams to disseminate those best practices across regions
Develop analysis, white papers, presentations and other materials to explain findings and solutions
Oversee the creation, maintenance, and growth of a knowledge management website dedicated to GDP and the staff we support in regions
Liaise with the Learning team to ensure the proper translation of findings into trainings and learning events
Develop a strong network and profile within and across regional staff to allow your team the access and cooperation necessary to do their jobs
Establish a strong network with development and partnerships of other non-profits, and in this way serve as a conduit for inspiration and best practices from external sources
Manage two directors
Regular travel and regional site visits required
Candidate Profile and Experience Prerequisites
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
Minimum 7-10 years of work experience
Knowledge of non-profit development and partner-building, or else a demonstrated ability to rapidly and deeply understand a new industry
Previous experience and success in learning & development or best-practice identification and dissemination
Stellar writing, verbal, and presentation skills
Exceptional and demonstrated ability to size up a landscape or situation and identify challenges, opportunities, potential strategic directions, and priorities
Deep understanding of data analysis and explanation
Proven ability to build strong relationships with a variety of constituents
Demonstrated success aligning diverse stakeholders around a common vision or objective
Strong organizational and project management skills
Adaptable to growing, fast-paced, diverse, results oriented culture
Understanding of the principles, possibilities, and pitfalls of learning management, and delight in learning and exploring what's possible in developing new online learning management features
Application Requirements and Process
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Please submit your resume and one-page cover letter with your application.
To link directly to this job listing, please use the following address http://teachforamerica.taleo.net/careersection/01/jobdetail.ftl?&job=12068
Benefits and Salary
Salary for this position is competitive and depends on prior experience. In addition, a comprehensive benefits package is included.
Anti-Discrimination Policy and Commitment to Diversity
Teach For America seeks individuals of all ethnic and racial backgrounds to apply for this position. We are committed to maximizing the diversity of our organization, as we want to engage all those who can contribute to this effort.
About Teach For America
Teach For America is the national corps of top college graduates and professionals who commit to teach for two years in urban and rural public schools and become lifelong leaders in the effort to expand educational opportunity. Our mission is to build the movement to eliminate educational inequity by enlisting the nation's most promising future leaders in the effort.
At the start of the 2011-2012 school year, more than 9,000 first- and second-year Teach For America corps members began teaching in 43 regions across the United States. Since 1990, Teach For America corps members have reached more than three million students. Nearly 24,000 Teach For America alumni are working in education and many other fields, where they continue to advocate for students and families in low-income communities. While only one in six corps members was interested in the teaching profession before joining Teach For America, nearly two-thirds of its alumni remain in the field of education.
Teach For America's culture and work is grounded in and guided by a deep commitment to pursuing true transformational change for students growing up in low-income communities. It is a leadership development organization - committed to fostering staff members, corps members and alumni who establish a clear and bold vision for the future, set measurable and ambitious goals, work purposefully and strategically to achieve that vision, always operate with a deep sense of possibility and with perseverance, and define broadly what is within its control to solve. It is an organization committed to its people, to diversity and inclusion, and to operating with respect and humility toward the other important people and organizations working to advance the cause of educational excellence for all children.
90% of the students our corps members teach are African American and Latino and come from low-income backgrounds. Since the academic achievement gap in our country is largely drawn along lines of race and class, we know that it's particularly important to foster the leadership of individuals - at all levels - who share the racial and economic backgrounds of our students. Our staff is diverse and we are thrilled to have staff members representing all racial backgrounds working here. For more information about our commitment to diversity, visit: http://www.teachforamerica.org/our-organization/diversity
We are a high-growth, outcomes-oriented organization, with a $220 million budget and over 1,500 staff. In 2011 and 2012, we were named a Fortune 100 Best Company to Work For. We operate in an entrepreneurial environment, maintain focus on quantitative measures, and are committed to continuous improvement.
See: https://teachforamerica.taleo.net/careersection
