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Our client is a national, education not-for-profit organization founded by teachers that helps school districts and states fulfill the promise of public education by ensuring that all students—especially those from high-need communities—get excellent teachers. The organization recognizes that although teachers matter more than any other school factor in student success, the nation’s education systems are not aligned with the goal of an effective teacher in every classroom. In response, our client develops customized programs and policy interventions that enable education leaders to diagnose their teacher quality challenges and find, develop and keep great teachers.

Since its inception in 1997, the organization has recruited or trained approximately 33,000 teachers—mainly through its highly selective Teaching Fellows™ programs—benefiting an estimated 4.8 million students. It has also released a series of acclaimed studies of the policies and practices that affect the quality of the nation’s teacher workforce, most recently including The Widget Effect: Our National Failure to Acknowledge and Act on Differences in Teacher Effectiveness (2009). Today, our client is active in more than 25 cities, including Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, New Orleans, New York and Oakland.

Our client is currently seeking a Senior Partner for its Policy business line. The Policy business line works to remove the policy barriers to achieving the goal of putting an effective teacher in every classroom. The Senior Partner will lead a comprehensive human capital strategy initiative within the organization's partner district, Houston Independent School District (HISD). This position will be based in the school district office in Houston and will need to be on-site at least 4 days out of the week. This position is available immediately.

The Senior Partner leads an engagement with Houston ISD to design and implement a comprehensive human capital strategy focused on teacher effectiveness. He or she leads a team of approximately ten of our client's staff members that provide consulting, technical assistance and operational capacity around key human capital priorities.

He or she reports to the Vice President of Policy and is ultimately accountable for a successful consulting contract with that district.

Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Managing the contract to ensure its success

   • Oversee the successful launch of the engagement
   • Manage overall project day to day
   • Ensure contract goals are met by utilizing long term planning and forecasting, collecting and analyzing data and implementing other necessary quality controls
   • Manage overall program design, program messaging and contract implementation at a global level
   • Interact with district superintendent and senior leadership team on a day to day basis (i.e., frame issues, drive consensus and decision making, resolve roadblocks)
   • Oversee the design and implementation of new human capital policies and processes
   • Ensure fiscal stability of contract by projecting start-up and program maintenance costs, managing start-up funding and managing the contract’s operating budget

2. Crafting and executing a district-wide communication and client investment strategy to ensure local investment and support

   • Manage high-level client relationships to ensure client investment and support of work
   • Invest board members and actively cultivate and maintain board investment
   • Plan and execute a stakeholder management plan around the strategy that will build local investment, galvanize leaders to make hard decisions, invest teachers in the success of the initiative and help generate political capital to maintain investment in the work
   • Build relationships with state, district, union and school district personnel to understand and resolve issues

3. Hiring and managing staff members within an engagement team

   • Hire, manage, develop and evaluate staff members who will develop and deliver the comprehensive human capital strategy for that district
   • Ensure staff are positioned for success by:
     • Establishing clear roles and responsibilities
     • Implementing a robust orientation program
     • Providing regular feedback and evaluations of staff performance
     • Providing opportunities for appropriate, meaningful staff development
     • When applicable, equipping lead contract staff to manage contract-based staff
   • Build staff connection to and investment in the greater work of the business line and the organization

4. Shaping the growth and success of the Policy business line as part of the business line management team

   • Work with business line management team to develop and implement strategy and culture for business line and achieve business line goals
   • Serve as a resource to the Vice President of Policy as needed

5. Contributing to the success of the organization

   • Represent our client in a professional manner in all settings
   • Proactively contribute to the knowledge base
   • Respond to the constantly changing environment and requirements of the organization

Our client is seeking an exceptional leader who is motivated by its mission and has a record of high achievement. The organization seeks candidates who are independent and focused self-starters with exceptional strategic and generative thinking skills. Successful candidates will also demonstrate:

• Experience driving change in a large enterprise, or experience solving complex, large-scale organizational challenges
• Experience managing the investment and alignment of multiple stakeholders in high stakes situations
• Strong interpersonal skills and experience building and maintaining relationships at both the senior and junior ends of a large organization; the ability to effectively engage and motivate clients at all levels of a school district
• Quantitative and data analysis skills
• Exceptional project management skills and at least 5 years of project management experience
• The ability to effectively manage and develop staff talent
• Excellent communication skills
• A willingness to work non-standard hours and weekends, as needed
• Prior experience working in under-performing schools and/or school districts is preferred
• Prior experience working on human capital issues (recruitment, selection, evaluation, compensation, motivation, etc.)

Competitive compensation commensurate with experience