The International Youth Foundation in Baltimore, Maryland, has retained Slesinger Management Services to recruit a seasoned leader and manager to serve as vice president for education. This is an exceptional opportunity for an individual with strong experience in formal and non-formal education to build and enhance initiatives serving youth around the world, and to serve as part of IYF’s senior management team. Applications will be accepted until this search is completed.

The Organization

The International Youth Foundation is a nonprofit organization that envisions a world where all young people achieve their full potential and shape the future with power and confidence. IYF prepares young people to be healthy, productive, and engaged citizens. Half of the world’s population is made up of people under the age of 25, and a significant number of these young people live in poverty. Over the next ten years, a billion children will be born, almost all in the developing world, where hunger, illiteracy, drug use, and economic exploitation of children persist.

To meet these challenges, IYF mobilizes global companies, foundations, governments, and non-governmental organizations to understand the importance of youth development, and to design and fund innovative programs that will give children and youth better prospects for living healthy, responsible, and successful lives.

IYF also works throughout the world to increase global awareness of youth issues, strengthen the organizational skills of youth program leaders, and increase international philanthropy in support of children and youth. It currently carries out programs in four major areas:

1. Employability: Building young people’s employment and entrepreneurial skills so they can secure jobs and livelihoods in which they find dignity and earn an income that meets their needs.
2. Health: Preparing children and youth to lead healthy lives by equipping them with the knowledge and skills to make informed, healthy choices.
3. Leadership and Engagement: Promoting opportunities for young people to exercise their full leadership potential in order to effect positive social change in their communities.
4. Education: Ensuring children and youth, both in and out of school, have access to quality education and increased opportunities to learn.

The Education Center program currently consists of the following projects:

• Education and Livelihood Skills Alliance (ELSA), which will benefit young people ages 30 and under on the conflict-affected southern island of Mindanao, Philippines.
• Bridge IT, which increases school achievement by boys and girls in Tanzania through innovative uses of cell phone and digital technology.

• The Global Fund for Youth, a three-year program that provides grants to strengthen and expand effective youth programs on leadership and life skills, technology education, employment skills and entrepreneurship, education reform, training and supporting teachers, and alternative educational opportunities.
• Preparate, a program in Peru to prevent child labor by improving the quality, availability, and relevancy of formal and informal education for young people.

A cornerstone of IYF’s work is the partnerships it has developed with national operating foundations and NGOs in countries such as Mexico, Ecuador, Brazil, Ireland, Slovakia, Poland, Germany, South Africa, India, Thailand, the Philippines, and China. IYF and its partners identify, strengthen, and expand programs that have been proven effective in meeting young people’s needs. IYF currently operates through such working relationships in 70 countries around the world.

IYF was founded in 1990 with the largest commitment ever from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, providing $67 million in support over ten years. The organization is now funded by a variety of private foundations, corporations, and governments. Its 2008 operating budget is $31 million, about half of which is disbursed as grants to its national partners. Major funders of the education programs include the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the U.S. Department of Labor, Nokia, and the Alcatel-Lucent Foundation.

IYF has a staff of 90 people, including 60 at its headquarters in Baltimore, and 30 in field offices in Peru, the Philippines, India, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Zambia, and Tanzania.

For more information about IYF, please go to http://www.iyfnet.org.

The Position and its Principal Responsibilities

The vice president for education, who reports to Peter Shiras, IYF’s executive vice president for programs, is an integral part of the senior management team as well as the key person in building the organization’s education program.

Key responsibilities include:

1. Developing an overall strategy to guide the Education Center over the next 3-5 years. Key issues include what types of programs to emphasize, e.g. formal education vs. non-formal education, girls’ education, technology for educational enrichment, and high school reform; which countries offer the best opportunities to make meaningful contributions to youth development; how best to measure results; and how to finance these projects.
2. Overseeing the successful delivery of each project within the Education Center. The vice president will work with Center staff to ensure solid program performance, the development and implementation of annual operating plans and budgets, and strong donor relationships.
3. Leading the effort to raise money for new education projects consistent with the Education Center strategy and IYF’s 5-year growth strategy. The vice president of education is expected to work closely with the business development department and to take the lead in conceptualizing initiatives and marketing IYF’s potential to global corporations, multilateral development institutions, governments, and private foundations committed to youth development around the world.
4. Building a strong team. The Education Center currently has 6 staff (in the United States, plus staff overseas) responsible for the delivery of its programs. The vice president will be expected to guide and mentor staff and insure that they have the resources needed to carry out their work, that they are working collaboratively with each other and with staff in other units at IYF, and that they have opportunities for career development.
5. As part of the IYF senior management team, contributing to the development and implementation of strategies that affect the entire organization. The senior management team is made up of the president and CEO, the executive vice president for programs, the four vice presidents of the program areas listed above, and the three vice presidents for business development, finance and administration, and strategic planning and outreach.

Desired Skills and Characteristics

The ideal vice president for education should be:

1. Genuinely interested in—if not passionate about—the work of IYF and highly supportive of its mission.
2. Deeply knowledgeable about proven methods to bring innovation and excellence to programs and systems that foster quality education to youth around the world, especially in Asia, Africa, Latin America, or the Middle East.
3. A skilled manager, capable of working effectively in an organization where close collaboration among department vice presidents and other senior staff is essential.
4. A strategic, dynamic, and creative thinker, who knows how to engage potential funding and programmatic partners in IYF’s work. IYF’s culture is well-suited for a person who is at heart an entrepreneur, capable of seeing opportunities before they are apparent to others, and can then turn innovative ideas into successful activities that are based on new partnerships and support.
5. Fully comfortable in raising money of significant amounts, i.e. at least $1 million per transaction, from global corporations, multilateral institutions, foundations, and government development agencies (such as the U.S. Agency for International Development and European agencies).
6. Capable of providing guidance, support, and leadership to the staff who report directly to this position.
7. A superb communicator, especially when explaining IYF’s mission, programs, and accomplishments to current and potential funding and programmatic partners.
8. A person with the maturity, confidence, and presence to be able to work effectively with board members who come from significant leadership positions around the world.
9. Collegial. The vice president for education must have a personality and work style that ensures the internal atmosphere will remain open and collaborative.

Desired Experience

The ideal vice president for education will have the following experience:

1. A successful track record in conceiving and running education programs in multiple countries around the world. Experience as a funder, education policy-maker, teacher, or administrator in an educational setting is highly desirable, as is expertise in the use of technology in education, girls’ education, and teacher training.
2. At least 10 years of senior management experience in international development.
3. Experience at rapidly-growing, entrepreneurially-oriented organizations with revenues of at least $15 million.
4. Experience interacting with people from multiple countries and cultures as a result of significant work, study, residency, or travel opportunities. Fluency in at least one major language other than English is highly desirable.

Compensation

Salary will be commensurate with experience and qualifications. IYF offers a generous benefits package.

To Apply

Please e-mail:

1. cover letter that explains why you’re interested and qualified,
2. resume, and
3. three-year salary history (which will be held in strict confidence)

This job announcement can also be found at http://www.slesingermanagement.com/announcements/IYF-VP.pdf.