Job Description
Chief Program Officer
Organization Profile
Room to Read's mission is to provide under-privileged children with an opportunity to gain the lifelong gift of education. The organization was founded on the belief that education is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty and taking control of ones own life. We currently work in Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and Zambia – countries with a desperate lack of resources to educate their children. In 2007, we began our expansion into Bangladesh.
Room to Read is a results-driven organization that seeks to intervene early in a child's life to provide ongoing educational opportunities in their communities. We are non-governmental, non-religious and work with many local NGOs and community based organizations to implement our programs. We have developed a successful approach to building educational infrastructure and opportunities which consists of:
- Partnering with communities to build schools through challenge grants
- Establishing bi-lingual libraries
- Publishing local language children's books
- Establishing computer and language labs
- Providing long-term scholarships to girls
Since our inception, Room to Read's worldwide team has impacted over 1.7 million children by constructing more than 440 schools, establishing over 5,100 libraries, publishing 226 new children's book titles in 11 local languages, and putting over 4,000 girls onto long-term, holistic scholarships. We are one of ten non-profits to have won the Fast Company / Monitor Group Social Capitalist award five years in a row and have been featured in a variety of media including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, CNN, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and PBS.
Room to Read has an annual budget of approximately US$22 million, and our global staff numbers over 175; both of these figures will continue to grow rapidly in 2008. Our global headquarters is located in San Francisco, our Asia Regional Office is located in New Delhi, and we have program offices in Colombo, Ho Chi Minh City, Kathmandu, Lusaka, New Delhi, Pretoria, Phnom Penh, and Vientiane. Our long-term goal is to help 10 million children to gain the lifelong gift of education.
Position Overview
This position is part of the senior management team. The Chief Program Officer (CPO) is responsible for leadership and management of the headquarters-based programs team, which, in collaboration with the Regional Offices, provides guidance and technical assistance to Room to Read's Country Offices. This position will directly and indirectly manage headquarters-based program staff and interact frequently with regional and country office program staff. The position will report directly to the Chief Operating Officer and will have regular interactions with the Board of Directors and the international management team of Room to Read.
Duties & Responsibilities
- Collaborate with Regional teams to set overall educational program strategy for Room to Read across our five programs and all countries
- Manage staff including two Regional Directors and two Global Office (Headquarters) Directors
- Oversee Room to Read's global programmatic work to assist in setting and meeting budget and programmatic goals annually
- Be a part of the management team to set strategic direction for the rapid growth and expansion of the organization worldwide
- Oversee the design and maintenance of the Room to Read Resource Guides that serves as the guideline for managing our programs and in country operations
- Work with program team to codify best practices for Room to Read's programs so that they can be shared across existing countries of operation and rolled out in new ones
- In collaboration with Global Program Team, Regional staff and Country Directors, design, implement and analyze monitoring and evaluation projects for all of Room to Read's programs
- Recommend improvements to our global program officers, regional and country teams to more efficiently and effectively manage programs
- Oversee the annual program team conferences for country directors and program officers, which serves as our annual opportunity for training and idea sharing
- Work closely with the management team to make recommendations for and manage our geographic expansion strategy
- Manage the flow of information from the program team to the development team to assist in foundation, corporate and individual reporting requirements
- Design and facilitate in-house training workshops with programs team to ensure all employees understand Room to Read's work
- Keep management team, Board of Directors and staff up to date on all program related information
- Stay informed about research and trends in the area of international education and recommend improvements to our systems accordingly
- Network with other non-profits running similar programs to find areas of collaboration and knowledge sharing
- Represent Room to Read by attending and speaking at different forums and advocate the importance of our educational work in the developing world
Qualifications
Required
- A master's degree or Ph.D. in a related field of study, e.g., MA or MPA in International Education, International Relations, or Nonprofit Management
- Prior experience living and/or working in a developing country
- A minimum of fifteen years of professional experience, with a minimum of 8+ years in a senior management capacity
- Prior success working closely with and building relationships with staff, partnerships, donors and a Board of Directors
- Experience in successful implementation of a wide range of tasks
- Experience in developing and implementing improvements
- Prior success working closely and building relationships with diverse groups of people
- Ability and desire to travel frequently internationally
- Effectiveness in working in a non-profit organization that is focused on maintaining high quality work and low overhead
- Prior experience in a fast-paced, growth-oriented global or regional organization
- Proven track record of achieving results
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English
- Ability to juggle multiple priorities simultaneously and take initiative
To be successful as a member of the Room to Read team, you will also:
- Have a passion for our mission and a strong desire to impact an up-and-coming non-profit organization
- Be an innovative and creative thinker - you are not afraid to try something new and inspire others to do so
- Have a very high level of personal and professional integrity and trustworthiness
- Have a strong work ethic, take initiative, and require minimal direction
- Work well independently as well as part of a team
- Thrive in a fast-paced and fun environment
Compensation
Room to Read offers a competitive salary with excellent benefits. Benefits include health, dental, vision, long-term disability insurance, and a 401K match. The non-monetary compensation includes a unique opportunity to be part of an innovative, meaningful, fun, and rapidly growing organization that is changing the world through the lifelong gift of education.
Application Procedure
Please send a cover letter and resume by email with "Chief Program Officer" in the subject line (no letters, calls, faxes, or drop-ins) to hiring@roomtoread.org. Due to high applicant volume, you may not receive a response from Room to Read.
Room to Read is an equal opportunity employer committed to identifying and developing the skills and leadership of people from diverse backgrounds.
