Director, Special Projects

The College Board • New York, NY

281d • $80,000 - $125,000

About The Position

The Director, Special Projects will play a critical role in ensuring the success of the State and District Partnerships division as it serves tens of thousands of schools and millions of students each year in pursuit of expanding opportunity for all students. You will lead the division's goal setting, performance-driving and culture-building efforts, tackle special initiatives, drive the Senior Vice President's internal and public-facing agenda, and represent the Senior Vice President and the division in a variety of settings, including among other senior leaders at the organization. In this role, the Director will make executive, strategic and operational level decisions at a complex mission-driven organization and be a critical partner in helping the Senior Vice President manage priorities and maximize effectiveness across the division and the College Board. The Director will partner with all teams in SDP including the Business Planning and Operations team, serving as a communications and organization conduit between the Senior Vice President and his team. The Director will also be a member of the Senior Vice President's leadership team, will partner with the Senior Vice President to ensure that the work of the SDP division is well planned and executed and will work with the Senior Vice President to maximize his effectiveness across multiple verticals, people, and mission-critical initiatives.

Requirements

• Minimum 8-10+ years professional experience including, ideally, several years of managerial experience in a strategic operations role and experience working with a senior executive.
• A Bachelor's degree, though an MBA/Master's is a plus.
• An outstanding record of professional achievement and leadership.
• A passion for supporting educational and career opportunities for millions of students.
• Experience managing projects, people and teams, with exceptional project management skills and experience in leading multiple projects simultaneously, with attention to detail and command of project specifications.
• Adept problem-solving skills, including using data to inform decisions and actions.
• Excellent judgement and ability to engage with, influence, and make recommendations to senior leaders across the organization.
• Strong verbal and written communications skills, including facilitating meetings and presenting remotely and in-person to groups of 40 or more.
• A commitment to and experience with building high-performing, highly-engaged teams where excellence and culture are key.
• Comfort taking on new and complex projects and driving them to success in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong ability to work collaboratively across many teams and skill in relationship building.
• Comfort with ambiguity and an expert level ability to creatively solve problems for which the answers aren't obvious.
• Experience leading effective meetings and driving follow-through and progress tracking.
• Comfort with quarterly travel, particularly to New York City.

Nice To Haves

• MBA/Master's degree.

Responsibilities

• Serve as Chief of Staff to and manage planning, execution, and support of the Senior Vice President's work with SDP and adjacent teams.
• Act as proxy to support day to day management and oversight of some of the SVP's direct reports to ensure work that does not rise to level of SVP is actioned and moved forward.
• Represent the Senior Vice President in internal working groups and meetings making recommendations and decisions on behalf of SVP and our program.
• Build effective systems and structures to support the SVP and SDP especially as it relates to monthly priorities.
• Draft, proofread, and edit mission critical correspondence, emails, and presentations for the Senior Vice President, representing the entire division and the College Board.
• Serve as a member of the SDP leadership team, while providing sound counsel and professional discretion.
• Plan and facilitate leadership meetings and retreats, including setting objectives and preparing agendas in collaboration with the SVP.
• Perform a variety of project management tasks that focus on tracking, and sometimes managing, key initiatives on behalf of the SVP.
• Drive the development and execution of strategic initiatives to advance SDP's critical priorities.
• Ensure SDP initiatives are appropriately resourced and on-track, focusing on coordination of cross-functional work streams within the College Board and management of key external events.
• Track and support teams to meet key milestones, including supporting quarterly review process with the CEO and regional leadership teams.
• Review employee engagement data and support the development of division wide engagement plan in consultation with SVP, leadership and BP&O team.
• Lead the preparation, coordination, and review of all division wide town halls, including agendas, communications and preparation.
• Partner with Business Planning & Operations (BP&O) team to ensure alignment, support communication across the division and elevate critical issues as needed.
• Independently manage planning and logistics in consultation with SVP for Superintendent Advisory Council.
• Plan, lead, and execute multiple special projects by developing innovative solutions that require attention to detail, cross-organizational leadership, strong analytical and communications skills, and masterful follow-through.

Benefits

• Health, dental, and vision insurance.
• Generous paid time off.
• Paid parental leave.
• Fertility benefits.
• Pet insurance.
• Tuition assistance.
• Retirement benefits.
• Recognition of exceptional performance through annual bonuses.
• Salary growth over time through market increases.
• Opportunities for merit raises and promotions based on increased scope of responsibility.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Industry: Educational Services
• Education Level: Bachelor's degree