Site Director - Waltham

More Than Words • Waltham, MA

2d • Onsite

About The Position

More Than Words (MTW) is a social enterprise that empowers youth, ages 16-24, who are in the foster care system, court involved, homeless, or out of school to take charge of their lives by taking charge of a business. By working as a team to manage their own retail and online used book business and community space, youth develop the employment skills, leadership, and self-confidence they need to successfully transition to adulthood.
MTW is an exemplary organization that has continually held up a mirror to identify areas for improvement and accountability; that ethic is part of the culture and fabric of MTW, and it extends to our commitment to ensuring our staff and board reflect the racial and ethnic diversity and lived experiences of the young adults we are privileged to serve. People of color are highly encouraged to apply.
More Than Words (MTW) seeks an inspiring leader who combines a strong background in youth development, with experience working directly with opportunity youth and a proven track record of motivating teams to meet and exceed goals.
The Site Director is responsible for cultivating an empowering culture that ensures successful outcomes for youth, fidelity to the MTW model, and organizational alignment. Specifically, the Site Director provides strategic leadership, as well as day-to-day oversight of youth and social enterprise programming and serves as a role model and professional resource for youth.
This Site Director reports dually to the EVP/Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Chief of Social Enterprise (CSE), and in partnership with the Waltham Site Leadership Team (3), adult staff (8) and numerous volunteers to serve ~300 youth each year in the core social enterprise and graduate programs. The Site Director directly supervises 3 staff: the Associate Director of Operations, the Associate Director of Youth Development, and the Career Services Manager. As MTW’s enterprise operates 7 days per week, including evenings, this position offers a flexible 5-day per week schedule with the need to be available to support staff and youth during evenings and weekends, as needed.
The Waltham Site Director role will encompass four key areas: 1) MTW Model Implementation 2) Youth Focused Leadership 3) Team Leadership, Staff Development and Culture Building, and 4) Site Administration.

Requirements

• An ideal candidate will enjoy being in a position of significant responsibility and will have the experience and background necessary to provide leadership, consensus-building, decision-making and inspiration to teams of adults and youth in a fast-paced work environment.
• The candidate should be a highly organized project manager with strong planning and follow-through skills, an outstanding communicator and enjoy working with youth in a collaborative setting.
• Deep alignment with the mission and values of More Than Words, including a demonstrated commitment to advancing racial equity and developing youth as leaders.
• 8+ years of progressive leadership experience, including building and leading high-performing, outcomes-driven teams in complex environments.
• Strong operational, financial, and data acumen, with experience leveraging systems (e.g., Salesforce), interpreting financial statements, and driving strategic, cross-functional alignment.
• Significant experience working with system-involved young people—preferably in education or workforce development—along with sound crisis judgment and flexibility to meet organizational needs, including evenings and weekends as required.

Responsibilities

• In partnership with the executive team, develop the strategic direction for the Waltham site and delivery of the MTW mission while creating an inclusive environment that reflects MTWs commitment to race, equity and inclusion in program delivery and community advocacy as youth seek outcomes in employment and education.
• Ensure consistent alignment among all components of the MTW model, including integrating the business enterprise model with the youth services programs and defined outcome expectations.
• Monitor and lead continuous improvement strategies to ensure MTW is effectively moving youth through the model and on to measurable, positive outcomes.
• In collaboration with the Chief of Learning and Evaluation, effectively collect, audit and utilize data around program and youth performance for the purpose of refining service delivery, informing management decisions and strengthening youth outcomes.
• Foster a youth-led culture and serve as a professional role model and resource for youth – modeling an entrepreneurial spirit, empowerment through goal setting and compassionate accountability.
• Utilize data to inform strategies around youth recruitment, persistence, re-engagement, and graduation outcomes in education, employment and attaining a pathway to a living wage.
• Lead consensus building and decision making through dotted line leadership with the Site Leadership Team and adult staff to uphold youth policies, trouble shoot youth barriers, and manage disciplinary matters and crises as needed.
• Provide a strong day-to-day leadership presence, cultivate an entrepreneurial and collaborative environment, fostering a strong culture of pride among youth, adult staff, and volunteers that upholds the core, integrated principles of More Than Words.
• Lead site advisory council (a collective group of staff representing different departments) to set out culture building calendar, site retreats and youth graduations.
• Work in partnership with the Site Leadership Team to develop high performing teams that are accountable for hitting outcomes and key performance indicators through strong recruitment, hiring and training.
• Provide ongoing coaching to staff to identify and implement professional growth and development strategies to maximize talent retention and strengthen MTW’s leadership pipeline.
• In collaboration with the executive team, represent MTW and the Waltham Site to create an engaged community of volunteers, donors, and brand ambassadors.
• Ensure site safety and facility management is a top priority; monitor security systems and implement risk management protocols to keep youth, staff and site safe at all times.
• In collaboration with the CFO, manage $1.2m site specific budget; overseeing site spending in the areas for youth stipends, youth support, events, supplies, vehicles, maintenance and occupancy.
• Oversee youth scheduling in partnership with department heads and execute bi-weekly youth and Coordinator payroll in compliance with internal standards and external regulations and requirements.

Benefits

• Medical and Dental Insurance
• 401K with up to 3.5% Employer Match
• Optional tax saving Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) for health, dental, dependent care, transportation and parking
• Generous paid vacation and sick time
• Significant growth opportunities and professional development
• Employee Discounts

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: No Education Listed