POSITION PURPOSE AND SUMMARY:
The Chief Programs Officer drives the vision, coordination, and implementation of The Hidden Genius Project’s programming strategy, universally. This individual serves as the daily flag-bearer for quality, creativity, and integrity as the organization advances its mission to elevate Black boys and young men as dynamic leaders in their communities. The Chief Programs Officer oversees the organization’s external programming, including Catalyst events, Community Partners Programs, and various capacity-building activities. They also manage the strategy that drives effective delivery of The Hidden Genius Project’s core Intensive Immersion Program, including oversight of its national sites, as well as its holistic support services strategy. This individual also serves as a steward for learning and evaluation processes that inform the realization of programmatic goals. As the organization continues to grow, it is vital that the Chief Programs Officer continually exercises ingenuity, enthusiasm, and a deep commitment to continual learning within an exciting growth environment. Additionally, this leader will need to be agile and able to hold space for the needs of the organization as they develop. They will be required to hold a mindset that can be nimble and a skillset that can dig in as needed to demonstrate and /or hold varying levels of work depending on business needs. Finally, the Chief Programs Officer leads through collaboration as part of a dynamic, communicative, and supportive team of staff, volunteers, and Board members committed to their success.
Please speak to why you would like to do this work and serve young Black males in your cover letter.
MAJOR AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY:
Program Design
Design and integrate comprehensive offerings and processes in support of exposure-driven programming, such as Catalyst or Community Partner Programs.
Collaborate with leaders and stakeholders focused on curriculum and instruction to ensure program designs are exciting, innovative, and effective.
Identify trends and best practices pertaining to emerging technologies, general youth development, and other key themes.
Identify and cultivate strategic community relationships toward developing innovative program partnerships (both in current and prospective programming communities).
Program Oversight and Operations
Ensure processes, resources, and team capacity are in place for proper setup and effective delivery of programming (including venue, support resources, equipment, etc.) across all programmatic components.
Hold accountability for healthy and meaningful youth participant experiences.
Maintain overall programs calendar; support local sites in managing their own respective programs calendar
Develop and manage program budgets for national (and international) programming, including Catalyst and Community Partner Programming. Support site and regional management in budget management.
Partner with human resources in hiring processes for programmatic leadership roles.
Collaborate with key team leadership members to ensure The Hidden Genius Project staff and volunteers receive adequate training on relevant content and methods.
Consistently attend and support programming of various forms, to ensure quality and offer guidance to team members. This includes traveling to visit the various Hidden Genius Project sites.
External/Community Relations
When engaging young people, develop rich one-to-one connections with Hidden Geniuses and youth participants in general.
In partnership with the Strategic Initiatives leader and other key stakeholders, support processes to support onboarding and training of volunteers and partners to support programming (such as Catalyst events and/or community capacity-building activities).
Steward relationships with external stakeholders to grow capacity-building activities for partner organizations.
Serve as an energetic ambassador for The Hidden Genius Project by participating in media opportunities, conferences, panels, community events, and other opportunities to advance the visibility and credibility of the organization.
Identify and participate in relevant public advocacy opportunities related to policy issues and social causes that stand to advance the organization’s mission.
Work closely with community organizations/systems/agencies to establish partnerships centered on licensing curriculum platforms for capacity-building purposes.
Learning & Evaluation
Partner with programmatic staff members to manage effective data systems, overseeing collection, collation, cleaning, and analysis of data. Work with organizational leaders, consultants, volunteers, and other key stakeholders to manage and disseminate data analysis to support learning and effective implementation.
Collaborate with consultants and representatives of data analysis and dashboard systems (including Salesforce, UpMetrics, Smartsheet, and other tools), to ensure that data is up to date and available at regular intervals.
Maintain processes to solicit participant and parent/guardian feedback to guide responsive programmatic improvements to maximize participant enjoyment and success.
Collaborate with staff from programs, development, and operations teams to produce data and narratives to support grant reports, annual reporting, Board meetings, and other key retrospective collateral.
Other responsibilities as assigned.
QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES:
Required
Excellent leadership abilities
A minimum of eight years of social impact programs experience
At least five years of program management experience
Passionate approach to work that defies norms to elevate our mission and vision
Significant experience managing budgets (including building, tracking, and/or forecasting programs and departmental budgets)
High comfort level with technology
Entrepreneurial spirit
Excellent verbal and written communication skills
Excellent interpersonal, negotiation, and conflict resolution skills
Exceptional work ethic and professionalism
Strong systems-level thinking skills
Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
Intense commitment to the life success of Black males and boys and men of color
Ability to prioritize, organize, and delegate effectively
Ability to receive feedback and engage in continuous self-improvement
Ability to adapt to a dynamic, rapidly-changing work environment
Ability to build positive relationships across constituencies and sectors
Desired
Bachelor’s degree
Proficiency with Microsoft 365 (Office) suite and/or Google Drive suite
Experience managing STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) and/or entrepreneurship-centered youth development programming
ROLE OVERVIEW:
Role Location: Oakland, California
Reports to: Chief Executive Officer
Status: Exempt
Schedule: Full Time (minimum 40 hours per week); starting by Q1 2023 (or sooner); working evenings and weekends, as needed
BENEFITS OF THE ROLE:
Dynamic, fun work environment.
Excellent opportunity to make a significant impact in the lives of numerous young people
Entrepreneurial organization; implement your own ideas and immediately see the effects.
Opportunity to meet and interact with multifarious individuals in the technology industry.
Opportunity to play a fundamental role in building a national organization.
Opportunity to innovate in building effective models for holistic technology instruction
PHYSICAL DEMANDS:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met to successfully perform the essential functions of this job:
The employee may occasionally climb or balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl; the employee may frequently stand, walk, or sit; the employee may regularly grasp objects, talk and/ or hear.
The employee will occasionally lift up to 50 pounds; the employee will regularly lift up to 10 pounds
This job requires vision abilities that ensure safety of operating and programming spaces for all stakeholders
Travel and supervise transportation of students as needed
National (and possibly international) travel