Chief Program Officer

Reporting To: Chief Executive Officer
Start Date: Immediately
Location: Dhaka, with some with some travel within the country
Employment Type: Full-time, Paid
Application Deadline: Rolling

About Teach For Bangladesh

Teach For Bangladesh (TFB) believes that every child in Bangladesh – regardless of socio-economic circumstance – deserves the opportunity for an excellent education. Our mission is to launch a movement of capable, committed, and compassionate leaders who share the vision of an equitable Bangladesh and are working tirelessly inside and outside the nation’s classrooms to expand educational opportunities for all children.

Our flagship Fellowship program enlists highly talented graduates to spend two years teaching full-time in low-income schools. During that time, we train and support Fellows as they drive the academic and non-academic development of their students. The program also prepares Fellows to become lifelong leaders who will spearhead systemic change in Bangladesh, particularly in the education sector.

Learn more about us at: www.teachforbangladesh.org

Learn more about the global network Teach For All at: www.teachforall.org

Position Summary

Since its inception in 2012, Teach For Bangladesh has successfully established a leadership development model where thousands of graduates and young professionals compete for the privilege of teaching full-time in the country’s most underserved schools—a previously unthinkable phenomenon. To date, we have raised close to $8 million from diverse funders to support our mission.

We are currently transitioning from our Founder-CEO to the next generation of leadership. During this phase, our key focus is on consolidating our learnings, strengthening core programs, and enhancing our organizational culture. Moving forward, scaling and innovation will be top priorities in the next phase as we continue to drive impact and catalyze collective leadership for change.

Teach For Bangladesh seeks a Chief Program Officer to lead our programmatic continuum, including recruitment and selection of new Fellows, pre-service training, pastoral support and professional development, and post-program alumni support. In partnership with the CEO and other members of the senior team, the CPO will oversee the organization’s transition from the Founder-CEO. During this important transitory phase, the CPO will strengthen core programs, building deeper programmatic coherence and enhancing institutional capacity, setting Teach For Bangladesh on the path to broader impact and scale.

The ideal candidate has strong skills in strategic thinking/planning and in leading and managing people, and has demonstrated success in running major operations and driving toward ambitious goals. The Chief Program Officer will report directly to the CEO and will serve on the Senior Leadership Team. This is an exciting and challenging opportunity for an experienced professional from the Teach For All network with significant coaching and leadership experience who wants to make a lasting impact on the lives of children and communities in Bangladesh.

Major Responsibilities

The Chief Program Officer will lead our program continuum, empowering Teach For Bangladesh’s programmatic teams to achieve their vision and goals. The CPO will:

• Manage and coach the functional heads of our Recruitment, Selection, Training, and Alumni Impact verticals and develop their individual and collective capabilities to lead their teams to successful outcomes. 
• Build high-performing teams, at the level of the team leaders listed above, and driving teams to deliver on the mission and vision of the organization:
  • The Recruitment and Selection team to attract and mobilize high-quality applications to the Teach For Bangladesh Fellowship in order to meet the organization’s growth targets and  ensure that the most committed candidates make it through to the 2-year Fellowship. 
  • The Training and Support Team, internally known as the Leadership Development Team, to facilitate a high-quality training experience for Fellows and to continuously monitor and provide feedback on the impact our Fellows have in their classrooms. 
  • The Alumni Impact team to design and implement strategies to engage our Alumni and catalyze a broader movement for education reform across the country. 
  • The Data & Impact Team to effectively own data systems that execute data collection, verification, interpretation, visualization, and analysis across Teach For Bangladesh and respond efficiently to requests for data from internal teams
• Facilitate cross-team collaboration among program teams, including ensuring alignment across teams, optimizing strategies and resource allocation across teams, and sharing best practices
• Work with the Senior Leadership Team to help create organization-wide strategies around growth, scale, sustainability, impact and long-term areas of focus.

Senior Leadership Responsibilities

All senior leaders at Teach For Bangladesh are expected to lead by example to uphold our mission, values, culture and standard of performance. Senior leaders collaborate with one another and other leaders within the organizational cohesion and mission alignment. They act as spokespeople for the organization and brand to a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, including but not limited to members of the Board, current and future donors, government, etc.

We see our Chief Program Officer as a steward of the organization, contributing to strategy and key decision-making. In addition, a small group of senior leaders are invited by the CEO to join the Senior Leadership Team, which will meet on a regular basis to address these and other issues, and provide decision-making support to the CEO. New leaders are eligible to be invited to the SLT only after successfully completing their probation period in their role.

Key Skills & Competencies

• Strong conviction that every child in Bangladesh, regardless of socioeconomic background, can learn and achieve high results
• Deep understanding of and alignment to our mission, vision, culture, and core values 
• Technical expertise in leadership development, curriculum, student impact, and classroom teaching-learning 
• Strong understanding of monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) practices to effectively measure and improve programmatic outcomes
• Experience managing multiple layers, using strong management practices to effectively coach and build skills in others, and cultivating a positive team culture
• Able to effectively interact, work, and develop meaningful relationships with people of diverse cultural backgrounds
• Experience in helping organizations develop and strengthen their systems and capacity
• Project management and organizational skills and ability to juggle multiple projects 
• Ability to see and communicate the big picture in an inspiring way to diverse stakeholders
• Ability to operate effectively independently and as part of a team in a high-intensity environment
• Ability to travel to Bangladesh; flexibility to work occasional evenings and weekends

Educational Qualifications, Language Requirements, & Experience

• 8-12 years of progressively responsible experience
• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline from a reputable local or foreign university
• Postgraduate degree is preferred but not essential
• Fluency in written and spoken English
• Proficiency in written and spoken Bangla useful but not required

Information for International Candidates 

The Chief Program Officer position is based in Dhaka, Bangladesh. We are able to assist with the appropriate visa and work permit procurement, as well as transitional housing, to help the CPO transition to their on-site work in Bangladesh. 

However, it’s important to note that securing a visa to travel to Bangladesh can take time, so we encourage non-Bangladeshi candidates to apply early to ensure that there is enough time to complete the necessary arrangements.

Compensation & Other Benefits                                                                                                            

Salary is competitive in the Bangladeshi context. There is plenty of opportunity for professional development within the organization. Benefits include opportunities for training and travel. 

We seek to make Teach For Bangladesh one of the best experiences of your working life where you thrive in your own journey towards creating lasting change. Together, we seek to build a high performing team that is dedicated to our vision for educational equity for all children. Benefits include:

• An organizational culture that strives to be horizontal: we exchange and explore ideas with passion and with the goal of arriving at the best ideas for our mission 
• Opportunity for continuous professional development: potential for local and international travel and constant practice of leadership with consciousness for which we bring specialists to contribute to your training
• The work is demanding but provides an incredible opportunity to learn, grow continuously, and add value to the team and everyone around you. 

How to Apply 

Email your resume and a one-page cover letter to careers@teachforbangladesh.org. Please indicate the position applied for in the subject line of your email. Your cover letter should be no longer than one page and answer the following questions: 

• Why are you interested in Teach For Bangladesh? 
• What compelled you to consider this specific position? 
• What strengths/experience would you bring to this position?

Please note that only short-listed candidates will be contacted.