Chief Programs & Impact Officer

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Chief Programs & Impact Officer is a grounded, team-first, action-oriented leader who turns strategy into daily practice. They ensure Drive Change’s programmatic efforts move forward with clarity, accountability, and care, knowing our work directly impacts justice-involved young adults, our community, and the NYC workforce.

The Chief Programs & Impact Officer supervises and develops managers, strengthens routines, builds alignment across teams, and ensures our programming reflects Drive Change’s values and our metrics are in line with our goals. They are decisive, collaborative, steady under pressure, and able to move fluidly between strategic thinking and day-to-day leadership. They communicate proactively, eliminate surprises, and support cross-team coordination so Programs, Drive Change Foods, Operations, and Development move in lockstep.

The Chief Programs & Impact Officer is responsible for program-level decisions, ensuring our work remains aligned with Drive Change’s vision, values, and program model, and that participants and staff experience consistency and care across all programs.

This person brings strong people leadership, clear and grounded communication, respect for lived experience, and deep understanding and commitment to the young adults we serve, the communities they come from and the team who supports them. They are a leader who makes impact tangible: both the visible, measurable kind reflected in outcomes and data, and the invisible, immeasurable kind reflected in trust, culture, and personal transformation.

First Year Priorities

The Chief Programs & Impact Officer will lead and support key organizational projects, including:

Refining and operationalizing Drive Change’s logic model
Strengthening data, outcomes, and evaluation routines in partnership with external evaluators
Formalizing and stabilizing our Hospitality for Social Justice (HSJ) Program, including partner expectations and internal alignment
Building structure, goals, and routines for the Alumni Program
Clarifying CARE operations within the Programs department and supporting ongoing redesign efforts in partnership with the CEO and Drive Change Foods (DCF)
Supporting strategic alignment between Programs and DCF
Embedding clear communication practices, accountability structures, and team leadership norms

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategic & Organizational Leadership

Translate Drive Change’s strategic plan into clear programmatic priorities, program design, and workplans that ensure measurable, sustainable progress and growth
Maintain organizational alignment across Programs, DCF, Operations, and Development
Strengthen internal systems that ensure clarity, accountability, and communication across teams
Partner with the CEO, COO, and CDO on cross-functional initiatives that require coordinated planning and decision-making
Oversee programmatic budgets and ensure programs operate with financial discipline and compliance
Designs program structures and systems that can scale with organizational growth while maintaining quality, equity, and consistency
Contribute to the reports to current funders and the development of completing grant proposals to prospective funders and supporters; while ensuring programs team remain in compliance with grant deliverable . Maintain streamline communication with the Development team.
Represent Drive Change at community events, workshops , trainings, conferences and other relevant meetings with external partners

Program Leadership

Lead and manage Drive Change’s program portfolio including: Fellowship, HSJ, Alumni Engagement, and oversight of CARE team and operations
Ensure programs embody Drive Change values, uphold dignity and safety, and reflect best practices in youth and workforce development
Build clear structures, tools, and routines that enable team members to execute with consistency, clarity, and confidence
Strengthen documentation, SOPs, training materials, and internal communication
Lead and support program managers during program-related crises
Reinforce safety and crisis management protocols in partnership with the COO and Workplace Safety team
Ensure programs team receives crisis management and anti-violence, training, coaching, and support
Promote a calm, values-aligned approach to crisis response

Evaluation, Data & Outcomes

Serve as the internal lead for evaluation readiness and coordination
Align internal practices, data systems, and routines with the expectations and methods of external evaluation partners
Tell the story behind the data in clear, accessible ways that illuminate progress, challenges, and impact
Disseminate data internally so all teams operate with the same up-to-date information, eliminating silos and discrepancies
Create simple, reliable systems for making program metrics readily available to staff, leadership, and stakeholders
Ensure data informs decision-making, team coaching, program improvements, and alignment across all verticals
Support team in understanding how their work contributes to outcomes and how to use data to strengthen practice
Prepare internal updates and funder-ready summaries that translate data into compelling narrative
Support timely reporting of outcomes to the CEO, COO, CDO, and key stakeholders

Cross-Team & External Coordination

Ensure alignment between Programs and DCF regarding fellow experience and expectations, communication and handoffs, alumni employment pipelines
Collaborate with Development on grant language, reporting and site visits
Intentional and focused engagement with external partners, ensuring representation aligns with Drive Change’s organizational priorities

May be assigned other responsibilities as determined by the Executive Director.

SKILLS & ATTRIBUTES NEEDED

10+ years of progressive leadership experience in nonprofit, government, and/or workforce development settings working with justice-involved and/or system-impacted young adults
7+ years at senior level, managing and supervising large teams managers and leading them through growth and change
Demonstrated ability to translate strategy into actionable, sequenced work and build systems that keep teams aligned
Experience strengthening programs, clarifying operations, and building cross-department coordination
Skilled communicator with emotional intelligence, strong judgment, and a grounded, steady presence
Experience with data use and evaluation coordination
A deep commitment to equity, dignity, lived experience, and second chances
Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial, values-driven environment
Passionate about food justice, food security, and structural inequality

SALARY & WORK SCHEDULE

This position is full-time, in person position, Monday-Friday. The general office hours are 9am-5pm. Occasional evening and weekend hours may be required, with comp time provided. The office location for this position is Brooklyn, New York.

The salary range for the Chief Programs & Impact Officer is $120,000-$130,000 per year.

BENEFITS

Competitive Medical, Dental, Vision, and Life insurance with employer contributions
Access to Employee Assistance Program, including therapy, family planning, travel and entertainment discounts, legal and financial services and more
Unlimited Paid Time Off
Parental Leave
401K plan
Stipend for professional development opportunities
Family meal provided most days

Drive Change is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without unlawful discrimination based on race, color, creed, national origin, sex, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, military status, prior record of arrest or conviction, citizenship status, or current employment status.

Drive Change values diverse experiences, including with regards to educational background and justice system involvement. We depend on a diverse staff to carry out our mission.

DRIVE CHANGE

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