We’re Hiring: Chief Strategy & Impact Officer

CHIEF STRATEGY & IMPACT OFFICER

UpStart partners with the Jewish community’s boldest leaders to expand the picture of how Jews find meaning and how we come together. Whether someone is starting a new venture, or reimagining what an existing one has to offer, UpStart gives them the entrepreneurial tools and network they need to build the Jewish community of the future.

The Chief Strategy and Impact Officer (CSIO) is an executive position responsible for assisting the Chief Executive Officer with developing, overseeing, and communicating organizational strategic initiatives.

The CSIO will share responsibility for developing the overall strategy of the organization, with specific emphasis on fulfilling the program goals while providing oversight and management of all programmatic aspects of the organization. This executive will need to be flexible and adaptable in a continually evolving environment with a highly engaged board, collaborative leadership structure, and distributed staff. The CSIO will have the unique opportunity to blend programmatic knowledge, strategic leadership, and operational experience in this new role for this nimble and dynamic organization.

Strengths in business and financial acumen, with an emphasis on social entrepreneurship and innovation, preferred. Reporting to and partnering with the CEO, the CSIO will have prior and demonstrated experience in driving change as well as leading and implementing data informed programmatic and strategic goals and projects for an organization. The CSIO will embrace, support, and model learning practices that promote openness, equity, reflection, curiosity, and a willingness to change based on evidence, employee input, and customer needs.

UpStart is seeking a strong communicator with proven management skills, this leader will bring a high degree of emotional intelligence and a collaborative leadership style to ensure the ongoing growth and development of the program team.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES

• Supports the framework for organizational plans and strategies. This includes analyzing market dynamics, market changes, program and service design and performance; and ensures that appropriate metrics are in place to measure performance and progress.
• Ensures alignment of the organization’s entrepreneurship-based programs and services and with organizational goals and standards of excellence.
• Leads the strategy team that manages UpStart’s programs and services for entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, and funders, including engagement of the Brand Strategy and Development Teams to tell the story of our impact.
• Drives project efficiency by ensuring the through-line and relationship of work across the range of programs and services of the organization, with a focus on the organization’s performance and impact.
• Communicates the organization’s objectives and strategies to all levels of the organization and to partners.
• Consistently engages with the field and our network to ensure that UpStart’s work is human-centered, agile, and maximizing impact.

REQUIRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

10+ years of experience in a relevant field.

Collaborative, Strategic Leader

• The Chief Strategy and Impact Officer will be a change agent with a creative approach toward program development and strategy. This leader will bring a fresh perspective as the organization pivots to meet market demand.
• This role will require an inspirational and an effective communicator who can excite and engage internal and external stakeholders about UpStart’s ambitious goals for the future.
• Strong leadership experience in entrepreneurship-based learning experiences that create systems-level change with social entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, and funders.

Data-Informed Decision Maker

• The Chief Strategy and Impact Officer has the ability to leverage data management and analytics to evaluate impact, while being flexible enough to respond to new opportunities as they arise.
• This leader will establish clear metrics for success in relation to new programs and initiatives and will apply a rigorous approach to evaluating the strength and impact of all UpStart programs and services.
• This leader will be able to communicate these metrics clearly to the staff and will motivate their team with clearly defined performance goals and accountability.

Exceptional People and Project Management Skills

• This executive will have excellent organizational skills, with the ability to set and juggle multiple priorities, manage organization-wide projects or initiatives, support team members, and track complex tasks across multiple stakeholders.
• This leader will have strong facilitation skills to bring together multiple stakeholders and help drive decisions and outcomes.
• This individual will have the ability to execute on deadlines and deliverables, creating systems and processes to streamline operations.

Strong Program Management

• The Chief Strategy and Impact Officer will have deep knowledge and proven experience in program management and a demonstrated ability to translate that knowledge into practical application.
• This leader will serve as a thought partner to other senior leaders, the UpStart Network, and UpStart stakeholders, and will drive organizational initiatives and change through reasoned, thoughtful due diligence and experience.

Cultivating External Relationships

• This leader will be a dynamic, outgoing, high-energy leader who can speak with any audience and successfully convey UpStart’s mission, impact, and objectives. With donors and potential partners, they will be able to share the organization’s compelling vision in a manner that generates excitement and support.
• This person will have bold ideas to contribute to the identification and cultivation of new, high-profile, mission-aligned strategic partnerships and alliances.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

The salary range for this position is from $145,000 to $175,000.

UpStart is an equal opportunity employer. All individuals are entitled to equal employment opportunities without regard to race, color, religion, age, disability, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, ancestry, genetic information, medical condition, veteran status, or any other class protected under federal, state, or local laws.

UpStart offers a comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, vision, matching 401K, FSA, commuter benefits, and an annual professional development stipend. We value the time you spend outside the office as much as we value your time spent with us, and so, our flexible scheduling and open vacation policies enable you to hold both.

HOW TO APPLY

Please submit your resume, along with a thoughtful and concise cover letter, to our hiring team at careers@upstartlab.org.

UpStart strives to model our vision of a just, vibrant, and inclusive future. As an equal opportunity employer, UpStart strongly encourages applications from candidates reflective of the communities we serve, including individuals with varied identities and backgrounds, including Sephardic and Mizrahi Jews, Jews of color, women, people with disabilities, immigrants, LGBTQIA people, and people who come from low income or working class backgrounds. This position will remain open until we have a diverse pool of candidates.

WHAT TO EXPECT

At UpStart, our Team Philosophy is to Dream with Purpose, Build the ‘What Might Be’, and Grow the Good. This philosophy underpins how we work – and how we work together. For more about UpStart’s organizational culture, check out our culture deck.

We will be openly recruiting for this position until it is filled. We will directly follow up with candidates who have advanced to our first interview round. Candidates who have been selected to advance to an initial call will be contacted directly. Due to the volume of applicants, we are unable to contact each applicant, but we still recognize and value the time and effort you’ve taken to submit your application.