Chief Executive Officer

Start Date: January 3, 2027
Location: Dhaka-based; national and international travel required
Application Deadline: July 5, 2026
Reporting To: Bangladesh-based Board of Trustees and U.S.-based Board of Directors

About Teach For Bangladesh

Teach For Bangladesh (TFB) is building a movement of leaders committed to ensuring that every child in Bangladesh knows their inherent power and worth, and has the knowledge, skills, and agency to thrive.

Bangladesh has achieved near-universal primary enrolment and sustained gender parity in education. These are hard-won gains. But enrollment has not translated into learning. The National Student Assessment found that only half of Grade 5 students meet grade-level standards in Bangla, and fewer than one in three do so in Mathematics. This learning crisis is not evenly shared: children who are poor, rural, or marginalized by language, disability, or displacement face the steepest barriers. The education system, as it stands, too often reproduces the very inequities it should be dismantling.

TFB is working to change this reality. TFB was founded in 2012, registered as a not-for-profit Trust in Bangladesh and as a 501(c)3 in the United States. Since then, it has placed 659 Fellows in under-resourced schools across Dhaka, Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, and Rangpur, directly supporting the learning and growth of over 125,000 children. TFB has built a growing alumni community of nearly 400 leaders now working across education, government, business, and civil society–carrying forward a shared commitment to equity and to the children and communities they serve.

Vision & Approach

TFB envisions a Bangladesh where all children know their inherent power and worth, and have the knowledge, skills, and agency to thrive–nurturing the wellbeing of themselves, their communities, and the planet. We imagine classrooms as spaces of love, safety, and joy. We see a society built on equity, care, and shared responsibility, where systems and institutions work together so that every child can learn, heal, grow, and shape a just, sustainable future.

TFB’s approach is grounded in the belief that educational inequity is sustained by a complex system of interconnected causes–from underfunded classrooms and overstretched teachers to entrenched mindsets, fragmented governance, and the long shadow of historical inequality. No single actor or intervention can dismantle this alone. What it requires is a critical mass of leaders across the system–in schools, communities, institutions, and policy–who hold an unshakeable belief in every child’s potential and who work collectively toward a shared vision of equity.

• Short term: TFB recruits and develops promising leaders to teach in under-resourced schools, creating classrooms where children can learn, grow, and experience their own dignity and agency.
• Medium term: Fellows join a growing alumni community working across sectors–education, government, business, civil society–united by a shared, enduring commitment to children and equity.
• Long term: This collective, values-driven leadership challenges limiting mindsets, shifts practice, and builds the coalitions needed to transform an education system–and a society–where all children can thrive.

Teach For Bangladesh is a partner of Teach For All, a global network of 60+ independent organizations around the world that are working to address educational inequity in their own country contexts, while sharing a commitment to a set of unifying principles.

The Opportunity

Bangladesh is living through a period of profound change–political, social, and economic. Institutions are being tested. Social contracts are being renegotiated. Long-suppressed questions about justice, equity, and who belongs are surfacing with new urgency. Alongside this, the country faces complex global pressures: shifting geopolitics, economic headwinds, the accelerating consequences of climate change, and a rapidly evolving landscape for international development and philanthropy. The inequities visible in classrooms are inseparable from those shaping society more broadly–and the leaders who emerge from this moment will help determine the kind of country Bangladesh becomes. TFB’s work has never been more urgent or more relevant.

TFB itself is at a critical juncture. Having established its model and demonstrated meaningful early impact over more than a decade, the organization must now make a decisive shift–toward greater financial resilience, deeper programmatic impact, and stronger institutional credibility. This is a moment that calls for focused, disciplined execution.

This context shapes TFB’s immediate challenges in concrete ways:

• A more constrained and competitive funding landscape–globally and nationally–as international philanthropy and development aid priorities continue to shift
• A domestic environment of institutional flux and social change that requires TFB to build and maintain trust carefully–across government, civil society, communities, and funders
• The rapid rise of artificial intelligence, which is reshaping what teaching, learning, and knowledge work look like across every sector–creating both urgent risk and genuine opportunity for organizations committed to educational equity

The next CEO will lead TFB through this chapter–rebuilding a resilient funding base, deepening the organization’s impact with children and communities, strengthening the team and culture, and continuing to grow TFB’s standing as a trusted and distinctive voice in Bangladesh’s education ecosystem–while laying the foundation for sustainable, mission-driven growth.

The Role

The CEO is responsible for the overall leadership, strategy, and performance of TFB. The role is primarily externally facing, with approximately 50–60% of time dedicated to fundraising, stakeholder engagement, and external positioning. The CEO serves as TFB’s primary ambassador–building the relationships across government, philanthropy, and the private sector that generate the resources and political capital the organization needs to sustain and grow its work.

Internally, the CEO focuses on:

• Building a high-performing, values-based culture and a cohesive Senior Leadership Team (SLT) – one that models the kind of leadership TFB seeks to cultivate in Fellows and alumni
• Ensuring organizational stability, financial health, and operational discipline
• Directly line managing the vertical heads responsible for TFB’s core program functions–Fellow Recruitment, Training & Leadership Development, and Alumni Impact–as well as enabling functions including Monitoring & Evaluation, Partnership Development, and Finance & Administration; driving strong management practice and a culture of accountability across the organization

The CEO reports jointly to the Bangladesh-based Board of Trustees (6 members) and the U.S.-based Board of Directors (4 members).

Key Priorities

The CEO’s work falls into four interconnected priorities:

1. Build a Sustainable Funding Base

• Lead a diversified, multi-year fundraising strategy targeting government, foundations, private sector, and diaspora; personally own the annual fundraising goal (~$1–2M and growing)
• Cultivate, steward, and close key funder relationships directly–this is a hands-on fundraising role, not just an oversight function
• Unlock funding channels TFB has not yet fully developed, including corporate philanthropy and Bangladeshi diaspora networks
• Build and strengthen a development function that works in partnership with the CEO and can grow over time to operate with greater independence

2. Build Purposeful Partnerships & External Credibility

• Build and maintain strong, non-partisan relationships with government–at national and district levels–that protect TFB’s access, legitimacy, and ability to operate
• Develop government co-funding, policy partnerships, and official recognition that deepen TFB’s sustainability and reach
• Position TFB as a trusted and distinctive partner within Bangladesh’s education and development ecosystem–grounded in TFB’s values and theory of change
• Actively engage both Boards–keeping Trustees and Directors aligned on strategy, fundraising, and organizational direction; drawing on their networks and counsel

3. Build a Healthy, Thriving, and Enduring Organization

• Ensure trust and cohesion across the Senior Leadership Team (SLT); establish clear accountability, shared values, and a performance culture rooted in TFB’s core commitments
• Directly manage the SLT–holding regular check-ins, providing coaching and honest feedback, overseeing performance evaluation, and investing in the professional growth and leadership development of each team member
• Lead with a values-based approach that retains and motivates high-performing staff through a demanding period–including through inclusive hiring and onboarding, meaningful team-building, and creating the conditions for people to do their best work; modelling the kind of leadership TFB seeks to foster at every level
• Ensure sound financial management, disciplined resource allocation, and operational rigor
• Strengthen internal systems and structures–for coordination, communication, and accountability–so that the team can work together effectively toward shared goals
• Make clear, prioritized choices–on regions, cohort size, and program scope–that protect depth of impact during the consolidation phase

4. Deepen Impact with Children and Communities

• Lead and develop the heads of Fellow Recruitment, Training & Leadership Development, and Alumni Impact, ensuring TFB’s programmatic work continues to strengthen in quality and depth
• Support the development of a rigorous, holistic approach to measuring and improving student learning and wellbeing outcomes
• Strengthen Fellow recruitment and selection, so that TFB reaches some of the country’s most talented, driven, and values-aligned young leaders

Reinvigorate TFB’s alumni strategy as a core lever for building the collective leadership the theory of change requires

Candidate Profile

TFB is looking for a leader who combines deep conviction about equity with the drive, relationships, and practical skill to raise money, build coalitions, and lead with integrity in a complex and demanding environment. This is not a role for someone who needs a stable platform–it is a role for someone energized by the challenge of building one, and grounded enough to do it with care and humility.

What We’re Looking For

• Mission conviction and equity orientation: A genuine, personal commitment to educational equity in Bangladesh–rooted in a belief in every child’s inherent worth and potential. Understands the structural and historical drivers of inequity, and sees communities and children as inherently powerful, not as problems to be solved.
• Motivating and persuasive: Able to articulate a compelling vision for TFB and for children’s futures, and to inspire a wide range of people–donors, government officials, staff, Fellows, and communities–to act in support of it. Moves people through the clarity and conviction of the case they make.
• Entrepreneurial grit: Scrappy, resourceful, and adaptive. Comfortable navigating ambiguity and building in resource-constrained environments. Finds a way through–creatively and with perseverance–without waiting for ideal conditions.
• Integrity and humility: Honest under pressure, open to challenge, and secure enough to build trust across stakeholders with very different interests. Approaches power and leadership with self-awareness and a genuine commitment to shared ownership.
• Resilience: The emotional and psychological durability to lead an organization through difficulty without burning out or burning others out. Recovers fast. Sustains hope and momentum in others even in hard moments.

Experience

• At least 10–15 years of professional experience, including 5+ years in a senior leadership role with significant external-facing and/or revenue-generating responsibility
• Demonstrated track record in fundraising, sales, business development, or resource mobilization–in any sector
• Experience managing and developing senior teams, ideally through a period of organizational transition or difficulty
• Background in education, social impact, or the public sector is an advantage; it is not a requirement
• Significant professional experience in Bangladesh and/or developing country contexts is strongly preferred
• Fluency in both Bangla and English–written and spoken–is a meaningful asset; bilingual candidates are preferred

How To Apply

Teach For Bangladesh is committed to building a diverse and inclusive leadership team that reflects the communities we serve. We strongly encourage applications from those who come from historically-marginalized identities, and from leaders across sectors who may not have previously considered a role like this.

TFB alumni, staff-alumni, and alumni or staff-alumni of other Teach For All network organizations who are Bangladeshi citizens or of Bangladeshi heritage are strongly encouraged to apply. Exceptionally strong candidates from outside Bangladesh with significant experience in a developing country context will also be considered.

To apply, please send your resume and a cover letter explaining your interest in the role to ceohiring@teachforbangladesh.org by no later than July 5, 2026.