Chief Strategy and Partnerships Officer

JOB SUMMARY

The Chief Strategy and Partnerships Officer (CSPO) is a senior executive responsible for the quality and consistency of Throughline Learning's program delivery, including managing and continuously improving the implementation of all Throughline Learning grants and contract partnerships. The CSPO will cultivate strong, lasting relationships with district, non-profit, and for-profit partners, expanding Throughline's reach and deepening service implementation year over year. The CSPO also serves as a senior practitioner who delivers Throughline's work directly in the field, building firsthand expertise and partner-side credibility that strengthens organizational capacity and informs continuous program improvement. As a Chief-level member of the executive team, the CSPO works in close partnership with the Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) to define and uphold quality standards across all program delivery, with the Chief Operating Officer (COO) to ensure that internal systems support accountability and consistency, and with the Partnerships Manager to surface relationship-driven sales leads. The CSPO is Throughline's primary external face for active district partners and the organizational lead for all program delivery contractors.

RELATIONSHIPS

Reports to: Executive Director

Positions Reporting to this Role: Full-time and part-time program managers, coaches and all 1099 contractors who implement our programmatic work in the field

Internal Contacts: Chief Operating Officer, Chief Innovation Officer, Partnerships Manager, all Throughline Learning staff

External Contacts: District leaders, school building administrators, state and grant agency partners, referred prospects as needed in collaboration with the Partnerships Manager

REPRESENTATIVE JOB DUTIES

Grant and Contract Management

  • Manage the full lifecycle of all contracts and grants from execution through closeout, including deliverable tracking, milestone reporting, and compliance
  • Determine how hours are allocated across each grant and contract and ensure every deliverable is assigned to a named staff member or contractor
  • Work with the COO and finance function to maintain clear budget visibility per grant and contract, including hours expended versus hours budgeted
  • Serve as the primary internal point of accountability for whether grant and contract obligations are being met on time and with quality
  • Ensure that grant and contract management follow consistent processes regardless of funding source

Contractor Oversight and Team Management

  • Directly manage program delivery contractors at any given time, including onboarding, role clarity, expectations-setting, and performance accountability
  • Build contractor management structures during the first quarter of employment, with systems and processes ready for full implementation at the start of program cycles
  • Ensure that every contractor working on a Throughline program understands what quality delivery looks like, what they are responsible for, and how their work connects to partner outcomes
  • Identify and address inconsistencies in contractor performance or process adherence before they become external partner-facing problems
  • Work with the CIO to translate Throughline's pedagogical frameworks and quality standards into clear, observable expectations for contractors in the field
  • Conduct formal performance evaluations for coaches and contractors, providing specific pedagogical and engagement feedback that supports professional growth and holds individuals to Throughline's quality standards

Direct Service Delivery and Senior Implementation

  • Deliver Throughline's programs directly in the field alongside contractors and staff, dedicating no more than four days per month to direct delivery commitments so that this work enriches the role without crowding out broader strategic and operational responsibilities
  • Facilitate and manage adaptive implementation work at the district cabinet and leadership team level, including with superintendents, deputy superintendents, and state-level leaders
  • Take on targeted senior implementation assignments to add capacity at the highest-complexity engagements and to model what excellent delivery looks like for the broader contractor team
  • Bring firsthand field observations to ongoing program iteration conversations with the CIO, contributing a practitioner's perspective to decisions about implementation quality and approach
  • Identify gaps in contractor coverage or quality at the senior implementation level and step in as needed to maintain partner confidence and delivery integrity

Systems and Operational Accountability

  • Maintain accurate, current data across Throughline's project management systems (including Wrike), CRM, and contract tracking tools within the CSPO's scope of responsibility
  • Ensure that hours allocation, deliverable status, and contract data within the CSPO's scope are always up to date so that the COO and finance function can make sound resource decisions without having to chase information
  • Raise concerns about system gaps, inconsistencies, or adoption challenges with the COO promptly, serving as a reliable field signal for where infrastructure is and is not working, while leaving system ownership and resolution with the COO

Impact Measurement and Learning

  • Work with the CIO to design and refine Throughline's impact measures and survey questions. And, work with the COO to improve impact measurement systems, including the structure and cadence of partner satisfaction surveys, post-session feedback tools, and mid-engagement check-ins
  • Communicate survey timelines and completion expectations to coaches and contractors well in advance of each data collection window, and follow up as needed to ensure response rates are high enough to give the organization reliable evaluation data
  • Train and support coaches and contractors in reviewing site-level survey data and implementation feedback, building their capacity to identify patterns, adapt their delivery, and share findings with district partners in a credible way
  • Monitor aggregate trends across active programs at the organizational level and flag systemic patterns in partner satisfaction or implementation quality to the executive team; site-level data analysis is the responsibility of coaches and contractors, not the CSPO
  • Work with the CIO to design and implement light-touch evaluation approaches for program pilots that generate meaningful organizational learning without creating undue administrative burden on partners, coaches, or staff

Partnership Quality and Relationship Management

  • Serve as the primary external-facing representative of Throughline Learning for active district and organizational partners, maintaining regular and substantive communication throughout the engagement lifecycle
  • Build deep, trust-based relationships with district leaders, school administrators, school board members, and community stakeholders that reflect Throughline's commitment to culturally responsive, student-centered practice
  • Attend partner sites regularly in-person (no more than three visits per month) and virtually (as needed) to observe implementation, provide feedback to contractors, and maintain firsthand understanding of how the work is landing
  • Identify signs of relationship strain, delivery inconsistency, or unmet partner needs early and address them proactively before they affect retention
  • Recognize and surface relationship-driven sales leads to the Partnerships Manager, including signals of partner readiness to expand, renew, or refer new engagements
  • Participate in select prospect conversations as a delivery credibility resource when requested by the Partnerships Manager
  • Represent Throughline Learning in funder meetings, state agency convenings, and policy-adjacent spaces where organizational presence strengthens credibility and positions Throughline as a trusted field voice

District Partnership Expansion

  • Serve as Throughline's primary relationship holder for deepening and expanding current district partnerships, proactively identifying opportunities for partners to invest more deeply in Throughline's services
  • Cultivate a forward-looking narrative with active district leaders about where the work could go, helping them see the connection between expanded investment and meaningful outcomes for educators and students
  • Identify budget cycles, leadership transitions, and strategic planning moments within partner districts that create natural openings to deepen or expand the scope of Throughline's work
  • Work in close coordination with the Partnerships Manager to ensure that relationship intelligence from the field informs outreach strategy and proposal framing for expansion conversations
  • Track expansion pipeline activity for active partners using Throughline's CRM, ensuring momentum in these relationships is documented and followed through

Provider Partnerships

  • Identify AI-enabled education providers already working within Throughline's district partner network and build working relationships with those providers in support of coordinated implementation, pursuing this alongside other responsibilities as opportunities arise
  • Serve as an active steward of Throughline's independence and credibility in all provider-adjacent work, ensuring that district leaders consistently experience Throughline as a neutral, district-centered partner regardless of which provider relationships are present in a given engagement
  • Share on-the-ground observations about delivery quality and partner experience in provider-adjacent engagements with the CIO and Partnerships Manager on a regular basis; the CIO holds primary accountability for synthesizing this intelligence and making decisions about program evolution and provider strategy
  • Represent Throughline Learning in district stakeholder environments that extend beyond administrative leadership, including school board meetings and community forums where constituents are asking hard questions about AI adoption, governance, and educator readiness
  • Support the CIO in the operational delivery of provider partnership pilots by contributing field-level observations and surfacing implementation concerns early; the CIO retains lead accountability for pilot design, evaluation strategy, and decisions about whether an approach is ready to scale

Internal Executive Leadership

  • Serve as a member of Throughline's executive leadership team, contributing to organizational strategy, priority-setting, and annual planning
  • Serve as external face for active district partners and the project manager and organizational lead for all program contractors
  • Contribute to the design of accountability structures that ensure quality and consistency across every engagement, regardless of which contractor or staff member is delivering
  • Lead or co-lead the design and delivery of some internal staff convenings, all-hands meetings, and board or staff retreats, bringing the same intentionality to internal culture that Throughline brings to its work with districts
  • Lead or co-lead the planning and delivery of in-person partner events and conference presentations, serving as an organizational ambassador in professional learning spaces where Throughline's presence matters
  • Bring state and national field intelligence into executive team planning conversations, surfacing emerging policy shifts and unmet sector needs that Throughline is positioned to address
  • Contribute to Throughline's thought leadership by representing the organization at national conferences, sector convenings, and field spaces where credibility and relationship presence advance organizational positioning

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES REQUIRED

  • Demonstrated experience managing district or school-level partnerships through the full contract lifecycle, including deliverable tracking and relationship management
  • Experience directly managing contractors or program staff, with proven ability to set clear expectations and hold people accountable
  • Familiarity with grant management processes, including hours allocation, deliverable tracking, and funder reporting
  • Active competency with CRM platforms, project management tools (Wrike or equivalent), and budget tracking systems
  • Deep understanding of school culture, instructional coaching, and the conditions that support sustainable educator professional growth
  • Ability to translate pedagogical quality standards into practical, observable expectations for diverse contractors working across different partner contexts
  • Genuine relationship-building skills; earns trust with district leaders, school administrators, school board members, and community stakeholders through consistency, follow-through, and care
  • Ability to identify problems early and communicate them clearly across the executive team before they escalate
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills; comfort acting as an organizational representative at the district, community, and state level
  • Commitment to equity and culturally responsive practice, and fluency in how systemic inequities show up in school systems and professional learning contexts
  • Track record of leading and managing large, senior teams of practitioners, including direct experience providing pedagogical and engagement quality feedback with rigor and specificity
  • Deep service orientation; approaches partner relationships with genuine curiosity about their needs, adapts Throughline's work accordingly, and remains effective and grounded in the face of ambiguity, shifting priorities, or incomplete information
  • Highly organized, with a demonstrated ability to build systems and structures in environments where those do not yet fully exist; approaches that process as an opportunity rather than a frustration and remains open to constructive feedback about what is and is not working
  • Strong data literacy, including the ability to use student achievement data, district-level performance data, and implementation feedback to identify patterns, drive decisions, and communicate findings clearly to diverse audiences
  • Skilled facilitator and presenter, with demonstrated ability to lead professional development sessions, present organizational work compellingly, and engage diverse audiences in both virtual and in-person settings
  • Strategic understanding of the national education landscape, including the ability to identify where state and district needs align with Throughline's unique positioning and to articulate that story for partners, funders, and field audiences
  • Nationally connected and credible in the education field, with a meaningful network of relationships across districts, states, and sector organizations that advances Throughline's visibility and opens doors to new geographic markets

QUALIFICATIONS

  • Bachelor's degree in Education or related field required; Master's degree preferred
  • At least 7 years of experience in education, including direct classroom or coaching experience
  • At least 3 years of experience in a program management, partnership management, or organizational leadership role
  • Experience with High Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) implementation strongly preferred; candidates who understand the classroom-level complexities of curriculum adoption and educator readiness will be prioritized
  • Experience delivering or managing work at the district cabinet or leadership team level, including facilitation with or in support of superintendents, deputy superintendents, or state agency leaders
  • Sales, lead generation, or business development experience is a plus; candidates who have successfully expanded relationships with existing clients or moved partnerships from pilot to full engagement are especially encouraged to apply
  • Demonstrated national presence in the education sector through speaking engagements, published work, professional network leadership, or recognized expertise in instructional quality, professional learning, or education technology implementation
  • Hybrid role requiring regular partner site visits and some national travel

COMPENSATION

  • $150,000 to $170,000 annually, commensurate with experience

A Note on Location   Throughline Learning is a fully virtual organization. This role does not require you to live in or near Providence, RI or anywhere in the Northeast. That said, there are three layers of in-person expectation worth knowing upfront. First, staff members within an hour of Providence gather in person once a month; those living further away join virtually, as our CIO in New York City does. Second, the full team convenes for an annual retreat each June in Providence or a central location nearby. Third, the work itself involves periodic on-the-ground presence with coaches, contractors, and district partners in the field, and the majority of our current engagements are concentrated in the Northeast. A candidate already living in this region would be well-positioned to engage fully from day one. We are open to the right person in another part of the country and will work through logistics together, with the understanding that regular travel to partner sites and participation in team convenings is a genuine and ongoing part of how we work.

DISCLAIMER   This description is not intended to be a complete statement of job content; rather, it is a guide to the essential functions performed. The Executive Director and Governing Board retains the discretion to add to or change the duties of the position at any time.

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