Director of Capacity Building & Learning - YDRC
About The Position
The Youth Development Resource Center (YDRC) is seeking a Director of Capacity Building & Learning, a senior leadership role focused on strengthening the youth development ecosystem in Metro Detroit and Southeast Michigan. YDRC supports youth-serving organizations through various means including capacity building, professional learning, technical assistance, leadership development, and field-wide coordination. The organization works with over 200 youth-serving organizations to enhance program quality, leadership pipelines, and equitable opportunities for young people. YDRC acts as a convener, capacity builder, data steward, and advocate for equitable policy and investment, utilizing learning cohorts, workshops, coaching, and continuous quality improvement to help organizations strengthen internal systems, improve practices, and expand their impact. The Director of Capacity Building & Learning will lead YDRC’s strategy and implementation of capacity-building initiatives, overseeing professional learning programs, organizational capacity support, and leadership development. This role involves designing and managing learning initiatives to improve organizational systems, program quality, leadership capacity, and understanding of policy issues affecting out-of-school-time programs. The successful candidate will be an experienced facilitator, strategist, and capacity builder skilled in translating best practices in youth development, organizational learning, and equity-centered systems change into practical support. Strong program leadership, excellent facilitation skills, and the ability to lead staff, consultants, trainers, and coaches are essential.
Requirements
- Minimum of 7-10 years of experience in youth development, nonprofit leadership, organizational development, or a related field.
- Experience designing and facilitating professional learning, leadership development, or capacity-building initiatives.
- Strong understanding of youth development best practices and program quality standards.
- Strong facilitation, training, and group learning skills.
- Experience managing programs, consultants, trainers, coaches, or cross-sector initiatives.
- Ability to translate research, data, and best practices into practical tools, learning experiences, and organizational supports.
- Demonstrated ability to manage budgets, timelines, deliverables, and program outcomes.
- Excellent communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills.
Nice To Haves
- Familiarity with out-of-school-time programs and the youth development ecosystem in Metro Detroit or Southeast Michigan.
- Commitment to equity and strengthening opportunities for young people across the region.
- Experience supporting organizational learning, continuous quality improvement, or systems change.
- Ability to build trust with nonprofit leaders, practitioners, consultants, funders, and community partners.
- Comfort working in a dynamic environment where priorities, partnerships, and learning needs may evolve.
- Strong relationship-building skills and the ability to foster collaboration across diverse organizations and stakeholders.
Responsibilities
- Lead the design and implementation of YDRC’s capacity-building initiatives focused on organizational development, program quality improvement, and leadership development.
- Facilitate and oversee learning cohorts, workshops, and professional learning opportunities for youth development leaders and practitioners.
- Ensure YDRC’s capacity-building initiatives reflect best practices in youth development, organizational learning, and equity-centered systems change.
- Support youth-serving organizations in improving program quality practices, youth engagement strategies, and organizational systems.
- Integrate research and best practices from the youth development field into training and technical assistance offerings.
- Identify capacity-building needs across youth-serving organizations to inform learning initiatives and training opportunities.
- Partner with Program Consultants to design and implement leadership pipelines within youth-serving organizations, particularly for emerging and mid-career leaders.
- Support professional development and peer learning opportunities that build management quality practices across the youth development workforce.
- Facilitate communities of practice and learning environments that support leadership growth and organizational learning.
- Develop learning opportunities that strengthen understanding of policy issues affecting out-of-school-time programs and youth development systems.
- Work with YDRC leadership to integrate policy awareness and advocacy capacity into capacity-building initiatives.
- Support youth-serving organizations in understanding how local and regional policies influence program sustainability and youth access to opportunities.
- Lead a team that designs and delivers workshops and training opportunities that contribute to YDRC’s contractual opportunities and professional learning strategy.
- Support the development of professional learning opportunities that expand YDRC’s training and capacity-building offerings.
- Ensure training offerings maintain high quality and relevance to the needs of youth-serving organizations.
- Supervise program staff, consultants, trainers, and coaches supporting YDRC’s capacity-building initiatives.
- Manage program budgets, timelines, deliverables, and outcomes.
- Support evaluation and learning processes to continuously improve YDRC’s capacity-building work.
Benefits
- Competitive benefits package, including professional development and wellness benefits.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
Education Level
No Education Listed
