The College Board · 5 hours ago
Executive Director, CEO Initiatives
New York, NY
Full-time
Hybrid
Director/Executive
$190K/yr - $220K/yr
10+ years expThe College Board is a nonprofit organization that aims to expand educational opportunities. The Executive Director, CEO Initiatives serves as the CEO’s deputy, responsible for translating enterprise priorities into effective leadership and managing the CEO's engagements and decisions.
Education Management
Responsibilities
Act as a primary thought partner to the CEO on strategic, operational, and reputational matters, particularly when the CEO is directly engaged. Help frame issues, develop options, pressure-test thinking, and recommend paths forward
Directly supervise senior leaders reporting into the CEO’s office, including SVPs and their VP and Executive Director teams across Communications and Marketing, Government Relations and Policy, External Relations, Sales, Higher Education, Membership, and Advocacy. Set priorities, drive decisions, and hold leaders accountable for execution aligned to CEO direction
Ensure the CEO is consistently prepared, well-briefed, and focused on the most consequential decisions, conversations, and external engagements. Shape agendas, pre-reads, and framing so the CEO’s time is spent on the highest-value work
Represent the CEO in meetings and decision-making as appropriate, ensuring that direction given, decisions made, and commitments taken on reinforce enterprise priorities, leadership expectations, and the College Board’s external credibility—coordinating closely with the Chief of Staff
Staff CEO meetings, senior leader syncs, and priority forums to ensure clear objectives, productive discussion, and strong follow-through. Track decisions, risks, and interdependencies and ensure momentum continues after the meeting ends
Oversee the CEO’s external engagement portfolio across education, policy, philanthropy, higher education, government, business, and the faith-based community. Ensure outreach looks beyond siloes, advances the organization’s strategic priorities, strengthens key relationships over time, and reinforces the enterprise narrative. Partner with the Chief of Staff to ensure external commitments accelerate and inform the organization’s agenda
Develop and maintain a disciplined approach to tracking external relationships, engagements, and outcomes, including goals, follow-up actions, and impact. Use this information to continuously refine where the CEO invests time and attention
Maintain visibility into the CEO’s key external relationships across highly diverse groups and stakeholders, including university and business leaders, elected officials, artists, and others. Ensure relationships are actively managed, supported, and leveraged appropriately over time
In close partnership with the VP of Communications, shape the CEO’s voice across speeches, remarks, talking points, and external messaging. Ensure consistency, clarity, and alignment with College Board’s priorities and values
Ensure the CEO is thoroughly prepared for external meetings and appearances and that commitments, insights, and next steps are captured and acted upon internally
Lead the Office of the CEO as a high-functioning team, setting clear roles, expectations, and operating norms. Build and steward technology-forward systems to ensure the office manages daily workflow, correspondence, and coordination with precision and discretion
Formally manage three direct reports, providing clear direction, feedback, and development. Set a strong standard for how the office represents the CEO and interacts with senior leaders across the organization
Ensure the CEO’s calendar is strategically staged and actively managed to reflect priorities, energy management, and preparation needs, not just meeting volume
Partner closely with the Office of the President to ensure alignment, effective collaboration, and clear ownership of shared issues. Structure regular touchpoints, surface issues early, and support productive joint decision-making
Convene and coordinate senior leaders in response to emerging issues or crises that pose reputational, operational, or strategic risk. Ensure clear leadership, rapid alignment, and effective communication
Serve as a key point of contact for the General Counsel and Chief Risk and Legal Officer on sensitive or high-impact matters involving the CEO
Support media engagement, Board interactions, and other critical communications or relationship-driven efforts requiring senior-level judgment and coordination
Lead or support special projects as identified by the CEO and Chief of Staff
Qualification
Required
10–15+ years of experience operating in complex, high-stakes environments alongside senior executives
Proven success supervising senior leaders and setting direction across multiple functions
Demonstrated ability to bring order, focus, and momentum to ambiguous or fast-moving situations
Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to convey complex ideas clearly and concisely
Experience managing external relationships and engagements with intention and measurable impact
Excellent organizational, prioritization, and project management skills
Strong problem-solving skills, including the ability to use data and judgment to inform decisions
Ability to build trust, influence outcomes
Ability to navigate sensitive dynamics as well as private and confidential matters with the utmost discretion
A leadership style that sets clear expectations, develops talent, and models inclusive, values-driven behavior
Willingness to travel 5–10 times per year on College Board business
Proficiency in PowerPoint, Word, and Excel
Bachelor's degree required
A passion for expanding educational and career opportunities and mission-driven work
Curiosity and enthusiasm for emerging technologies, with a willingness to experiment with and adopt new AI-driven solutions and comfort with learning and applying new digital tools independently and proactively
A learner's mindset and a commitment to growth: welcoming diverse perspectives, giving and receiving timely, respectful feedback, and continuously improving through iterative learning and user input
A drive for impact and excellence: solving complex problems, making data-informed decisions, prioritizing what matters most, and continuously improving through learning, user input, and external benchmarking
A collaborative and empathetic approach: working across differences, fostering trust, and contributing to a culture of shared success
Authorization to work in the United States
Preferred
MBA preferred
Benefits
A meaningful career
A supportive team
A comprehensive package designed to help you thrive
Company
The College Board
College Board is a not-for-profit organization that clears a path for all students to own their future through the Advanced Placement Program, the SAT, Official SAT Practice on Khan Academy, BigFuture, and more.
1001-5000 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageLeadership Team
David Coleman
Chief Executive Officer
Daniela Berger Pollack
Chief Financial Officer
Recent News
2024-04-10
2023-02-15
2022-01-26
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