Program Director (Career Connect)

OVERVIEW:

The Program Director (Career Connect) is a critical launch team member of the new the Year Up United program designed by Talent Networks. This new approach has the same goal as Year Up United's direct service program - to connect Opportunity Youth to career-track jobs, via WBLE or direct placement - and we are focused on doing this in a rapidly scalable way. The model will be a high-touch blended environment, technology-enabled throughout. In this 14 week model (6 weeks of learning & development and 8 weeks of ongoing coaching & support), we will use a streamlined staffing model to engage our young adults, focused on the critical elements of learner support and development.

Your functional expertise will be critical, but we are also looking for someone interested in bringing a new model to life. The following are team traits that will be vital to the success of this effort.

• Willingness to work in a dynamic, challenging team environment to come up with better solutions
• A growth mindset, comfortable with failing fast
• Ability to think creatively and innovatively and challenge orthodoxies, to do things differently
• Accepts change as an important part of Year Up United's culture, and inquires how their role can design, manage, drive and support change
• Commitment to engaging with technology systems and enablement strategies to improve operations
• Willingness to tackle a wide range of tasks and wear many hats to get the job done

Reporting to the Strategic Lead, the Program Director is responsible for overall program launch, delivery and outcomes for Career Connect (virtual program). The Program Director will work to lead and manage a cohesive program team that provides young adults with the skills they need and matches them to an optimal work immersion experience that ensures talent development and employer satisfaction.

To be successful in this role, you need to be tech savvy, creative, bring excellent communication, administrative, and management skills as well as the ability to create strong relationships with students. As an ideal candidate, you'll thrive in a complex start-up, entrepreneurial, fast-paced environment and enjoy leading efforts to constantly and consistently improve the site's programmatic performance. You're someone who is skilled at anticipating the needs of others and proactively takes on new challenges to support business needs.

We are open to candidates living in any of the states in which Year Up United operates https://www.yearup.org/locations.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

People Management

• Supervise and manage multiple Learning Coaches (in different locations) to support high quality, engaging virtual and in-person coaching sessions
• Supervise and manage an Online Community Manager to ensure continuous engagement from students throughout the program
• Onboard and integrate new members to the team
• Lead effective meetings and provide strong follow up
• Coordinate with different internal Year Up United teams to ensure strong execution and delivery of program including marketing, enrollment, R&E, IT, CE and others
• Identify any additional cross functional needs with the support of the launch team

Program Delivery

• Manage the day-to-day and annual operations of the primarily virtual program offering
• Supervise the delivery of online sessions on topics relevant to the essential skills curriculum
• Oversee the enrollment process including student transition into the program, coordinate orientation activities and ensure that students are acquainted with technology, resources, expectations, and staff support
• Understand Learning Community-related data and synthesize/report out on trends (ex. student performance, student community engagement, coaching participation, etc.)
• Drive the reiteration of the program with the support of the launch team for 2025 and beyond
• Capture lessons throughout the year to ensure effective delivery in the future

Drive Student Success

• Oversee student performance through the totality of the program, coordinating with other staff to ensure seamless transition from learning and development to program completion
• In partnership with Corporate Engagement, prepare students for work immersion through onboarding activities and coordinating the collection of work immersion information and manager orientation
• Collaborate with the Corporate Engagement to determine readiness for work immersion, coordinate work immersion performance management, and identify gaps in curriculum and build solutions as needed
• Balance serving individual students and ensuring the overall success of the Learning Community by making decisions that are both student-centered and in line with our Year Up United's mission, vision and values

Team Leadership

• Serve as a role model for staff and students by reflecting and maintaining Year Up United culture and embodying our values and operating principles
• Ability to speak about Career Connect at an Executive level both internally and externally
• Train, lead, support and coach the cross-functional team on Year Up United's Program model, and key elements such as facilitation, the student journey, and high support high expectations to ensure consistent, high support of students and alignment in management of performance
• Develop and maintain healthy and high functioning relationships to foster a cohesive program team ready to shape creative solutions to challenges
• Administer accounts in selected platforms, including Salesforce

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Minimum 6-7 years of experience in workforce preferred
• 3-5 years of relevant management experience in a growing nonprofit
• Youth development experience required; teaching, academic management, and/or workforce development experience preferred
• Extensive work with Year Up United's target population (Opportunity Youth, 18-25) in high stakes environments with clear performance outcome measures
• An engaging leadership style with a demonstrated use of collaborative/servant leadership style to manage individuals and direct the overall vision of team
• Interest in working a fast-paced, dynamic, complex start-up and/or entrepreneurial environment
• Stellar project management skills with an ability to organize and develop processes to ensure deadlines are met and goals achieved
• Proven ability to juggle competing priorities in a deadline-driven environment, delegating as needed
• Technologically savvy: demonstrated ability to learn to use new technology; experience with online learning - tracking and communication, facilitation of meetings/sessions in a virtual environment, a plus
• Demonstrated knowledge managing a CRM; Salesforce.com experience strongly preferred
• Proven ability to make good, proactive decisions in the absence of complete clarity; comfortable taking risks
• Ability and high comfort level in having one-on-one coaching conversations with staff and students alike
• Sound judgment, maturity and the ability to handle sensitive and confidential information with discretion
• Ability to handle a large volume of wide-ranging student requests
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• A passion for working with young adults, an unshakable belief in their potential and a strong commitment to the mission of Year Up United
• Commitment to diversity and inclusion
• Understanding of the Opportunity Divide and its drivers

Salary Range- $80,000 - $117,000
#LI-Hybrid

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS:

• Year Up United has established salary ranges for each of our sites, which allows us to pay employees competitively, equitably and consistently in different geographic markets. For roles in which the location is listed as flexible, the range displayed reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations. Salary offers take into account a candidate's skills, experience, and location. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your location during the hiring process.
• Benefits: Comprehensive healthcare options and dental coverage; 401(k) match for eligible participants.
• Vacation: Earn three weeks paid vacation in first year of employment; four weeks after initial year.
• Professional Development: Funds available to support staff in achieving career objectives ($2,500 per year)

** This is an exempt role (paid on a salaried basis). **

ORGANIZATION DESCRIPTION:

Year Up United is a national 501(c)3 workforce development organization committed to ensuring equitable access to economic opportunity, education, and justice for all young adults-no matter their background, income, or zip code. Employers face a growing need for talent while millions of talented young adults lack access to meaningful careers. These inequities only further perpetuate the opportunity gap that exists in our country-a gap that Year Up United is determined and positioned to close through three interconnected strategies: providing targeted skills training and connections to livable-wage employment for students and alumni; empowering others to serve and support young adults, and changing systems that perpetuate the opportunity gap. Year Up United's intensive training program utilizes a high expectations, high support model where students learn in-demand technical and professional skills and apply them during a corporate internship. Year Up United has directly served more than 40,000 young adults since its founding in 2000. Year Up United's nationwide presence includes Arizona, Austin, Bay Area, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, Greater Atlanta, Greater Boston, Greater Philadelphia, Jacksonville, Los Angeles, the National Capital Region, New York City/Jersey City, Pittsburgh, Puget Sound, Rhode Island, South Florida, Tampa Bay, and Wilmington.

Voted one of the Best Nonprofits to Work For in the country by The NonProfit Times, Year Up United is a rewarding and impactful place to work. Our staff is passionate, supportive, mission-driven, and committed to positive change and continuous learning. We set high standards for both ourselves and our students and live by a set of core values that reflect an unshakable belief in the talent and potential of our young people. The work we do is life-changing, and we know that our team is the greatest asset in achieving our mission.

COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY:

Year Up United embraces diversity and equal opportunity in a serious way. All aspects of employment, including the decision to hire, promote, discharge, or discipline, are based on meritocracy. We do not permit discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristics protected by federal, state, or local laws. Learn more about our commitment to diversity: http://www.yearup.org/about-us/careers/commitment-to-diversity/

Year Up United is also committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. Your recruiter can provide details regarding the expected work environment and any physical requirements. Please let our hiring team know if you need an accommodation at any point during the interview process. Information received relating to accommodation will be addressed confidentially.

TO APPLY:

Please submit a thoughtful cover letter and resume through our website.

Note that applications without a cover letter will not be considered. We respectfully request no phone calls.