Partnership Relationship Manager

Voyageur Outward Bound School•Ely, MN

2d•$45,000 - $50,000•Onsite

About The Position

Voyageur Outward Bound School (VOBS) has changed lives through challenge and discovery since 1964. VOBS is one of nine not-for-profit Outward-Bound Schools nationwide, helping youth and adults discover belonging, strength, and purpose through hands-on wilderness and near-wilderness experiences. Today, VOBS delivers programs at two locations: Homeplace in Ely, MN and Twin Cities Center in Saint Paul, MN. VOBS is a charter of Outward-Bound USA, the leading provider of experiential and outdoor education for youth and adults. Each year, VOBS delivers life-changing programs for thousands of students in Minnesota and beyond. Our vision is more compassionate and resilient people, for a more compassionate and resilient world. Voyageur Outward Bound School values compassion, integrity, excellence, inclusion, and safety. VOBS is committed to improving Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), and our organization works internally to strengthen DEI in our operations and in our program delivery. This role services life cycle of partner program customer service, from sales to program debrief, to maximize satisfaction and enrollment for revenue; this is a customer service execution and process management role. The Manager is responsible for supporting partnership clients; manages partnership student enrollment, maximizing service in support of VOBS revenue goals and business development. The Partnership Manager coordinates with program teams for planning and delivery, student enrollment and program debrief. This role executes all functions in accordance with Partnership and Student Services goals and best practices. This position plays a key leadership role within the Student Services department.

Requirements

Habit of active listening and practice of responsive communication
Habit of patience and commitment to people-centered problem-solving
Ability to communicate Outward Bound mission, vision, values, educational approach, basecamp locations, course areas and activities
Comfort and curiosity in working with a diversity of students and families
Strong desire to connect with people and help them achieve success and/or satisfaction
Experience working with a team desired
Strong, consistent in-person and written communication
Ability to identify goals and structure tasks and responsibilities to meet external and internal stakeholder needs and deadlines
Ability to think creatively in response to student or stakeholder needs, and solve problems in the moment
Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
Habit of functioning independently and acting proactively
Willingness to support partner students and families at in-person enrollment events several times a year
Comfort, confidence and curiosity when working with technology and customer management tools

Nice To Haves

MS Word, Excel, Sales Force and Google experience preferred

Responsibilities

Manage the partnership customer service lifecycle
Create and update CRM partnership accounts, opportunities, and course records
Support the contract process for partnership programs in collaboration with the Director of Partnership and Program Revenue
Provide friendly, relevant, responsive, knowledgeable, and confident customer service for Community Program partner organizations, students, and families, as well as students enrolling on Open Enrollment courses as assigned
Effectively manage time and tasks across systems, apps, and platforms for efficient and timely customer service; key systems, apps, and platforms include Salesforce, course web pages, Safety and Information databases, Calendly, Gmail suite, and Microsoft suite
Conduct active listening with community stakeholders including partners, students, and families, and execute customer service with a student-centered approach for relevant and effective enrollment for program success and impact
Identify opportunities to deepen partner, family, and student relationships to build community and confidence to maximize student enrollment.
Execute accurate data entry in accordance with VOBS enrollment procedures
Create, update and disseminate partnership course information web pages for partner staff, student, and family audiences
Assemble accurate and complete information on each student for Program prior to course planning. Brief Program on relevant and necessary partner or student information (medical, dietary, cultural, historical) pre-course
Coordinate and facilitate initial program planning meetings with partners and VOBS Program staff to orient partners to Admissions’ requirements and next steps
Coordinate and facilitate in-person or virtual student/family enrollment events, engaging students and families to share information and generate interest and confidence to maximize enrollment
Coordinate with Program to address emergent partner needs and exercise judgement to internally elevate to Directors as needed
Identify opportunities for and conduct strategic partner site and field visits to gather student experience collateral (photos and testimonials) as needed
Responsible for managing post-program customer service in support of Program, Student services, and partners to maximize client retention and program quality
Reconcile invoices and track payment with VOBS Accounting
Gather, organize, distribute partner program impact materials; organize and plan internal & external debriefs for partnership programs with key stakeholders
Schedule and facilitate internal post-program debrief with Program
Schedule and facilitate external partner debrief with Program & partner
Manage partner student program data and reporting for reports and grants; serve as in-house student data management resource for VOBS CRM management and consulting
Conduct initial assessment of student medical, psychological, behavioral, and motivational readiness for Outward Bound programming using VOBS assessment guidelines and screening tools
Conduct follow-up with students, parents, doctors, and/or therapists to gather additional information as needed to further assess each applicant’s readiness for Outward Bound programming
Consult with Director of Student Services and Outward Bound’s consulting physicians as needed
Review and approve or decline enrollment applications in a timely fashion with a high standard of professionalism and sensitivity
Track student ages and identities for crew diversity to enhance group learning conditions
Participate in VOBS Emergency Response Plan as assigned, and act as liaison to partners or families in the event of a field incident as needed
Spearhead department projects on as needed basis as directed by the Director of Student Services
Support workload management of seasonal course advisors, including medical screening, and department process training in collaboration with the Director of Student Services as needed
Other duties as assigned