Chief of Staff

About Read Ahead

Read Ahead is dedicated to helping New York City youth strengthen the literacy and social-emotional skills they need to thrive in school and beyond. Read Ahead’s vision is that our students have the opportunity to unlock their full potential through mentoring relationships based on a love of reading.

Since 1991, Read Ahead has connected public elementary school students with caring mentors from leading corporate and community partners. During weekly virtual sessions, mentors and mentees read together, discuss books and their lives, and engage in fun and educational games and activities. Read Ahead sessions are designed to help children grow their confidence, love of reading, literacy skills, and other skills essential for success. For more information, please visit readahead.org.

Following the development of our hybrid program and our anti-racism and anti-oppression commitments, Read Ahead has an opportunity to deepen our impact for students. We are committed to ongoing improvement as an organization, and are eager to take bold new steps to create better outcomes for the students, families, and schools we serve.

About the Chief of Staff

Read Ahead is seeking a strategic and critically-minded Chief of Staff (CoS) to be a force multiplier for the Executive Director, our Board of Directors and the organization. This position will act as an operational cornerstone, and serve as a key member of the Leadership Team. This role oversees day-to-day operations, and will work across all teams to implement best practices, manage financial administration and help shape organizational culture.

The CoS is a highly strategic and execution-lead role, which will be at the center of decision-making and operations. With the support of a manager, this position leads human resources, finance, and operations functions and will plan and execute operational strategies to ensure that the organization has systems in place to support the completion of key organizational objectives and priorities. The CoS will provide strategic and operational support both to the Board of Directors and across the organization, facilitating effective information sharing and organizational alignment around key decisions. The CoS serves as problem solver, project manager and thought partner to the senior leadership team.

The Chief of Staff supervises a Manager, Operations & Program Support who will support in the execution of high priority projects and day-to-day operations.

Responsibilities

Financial Oversight & Operations Management

• Oversee internal finance tracking functions to ensure that Read Ahead is compliant with relevant regulations, prepared for the annual audit process and is effectively tracking revenue and expenses.
• Lead relationship with external accounting firm to ensure organization’s finances are appropriately and transparently monitored; collaborate to develop new tracking systems and process as necessary.
  • Conduct monthly expense reconciliation to ensure that expenses are recorded and coded properly in the accountant's reports.
• Act as strategic advisor to the leadership team and Board around monthly and annual financial reporting.
• Manage all office facilities at 50 Broad Street ensuring smooth day-to-day organizational operations (liaising with building staff to ensure a safe, compliant, and productive office environment.
  • Work with the Manager, Operations & Program support on division of operational responsibilities, including supplies ordering, vendor support, and general office management.
• Lead general organization-wide operations, including managing external vendors to administer systems, reviewing engagement contracts, and assess needs continually to support remote work and internal collaboration
• Manage relationship with external IT provider to ensure all hardware and software is functional; provide basic frontline IT support to troubleshoot basic day-to-day staff needs.
  • Work with the Manager, Operations & Program on division of operational responsibilities.
• Assess performance of systems, structures, and vendors on an ongoing basis; lead the research, adoption, and implementation of new systems and vendors as needs arise.
• Support the Executive Director in determining the best strategies and tactics to move Read Ahead forward.
  • Responsible for identifying areas to transform existing policies, systems, vendors and operating models that improve Read Ahead’s operational infrastructure.

HR Administration

• Set up internal application tracking processes; lead hiring managers and hiring teams throughout the hiring and onboarding process.
• In collaboration with the Executive Director and leadership team, develop and implement organization-wide policies for annual staff handbook execution, paid time off administration and other HR policies.
• In collaboration with external vendors, manage all benefits administration for both staff benefits and organizational insurance plans, and manage payroll processing.
• Responsible for the creation and implementation of organization-wide staff meetings, planning retreats, professional development days and annual training.
• Lead all aspects of people, culture, policies, and staff engagement in collaboration with the Leadership Team and the Manager, Operations & Program Support.

Governance & Reporting

• Lead on scheduling and organizing all Board of Directors quarterly meetings, including agenda recommendations, presentation templates and logistics.
• Lead the Board’s Finance Committee and Governance & Nominations Committee: schedules and facilitates meetings, manages communication and flow of information, providing feedback loops for the Board Members and leading the reporting process at quarterly board meetings.
• Collaborate as a member of the senior leadership team to develop organizational and Operations team department goals, including the evaluation program strategies and staff

Preferred Qualifications

Position-specific Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in a nonprofit role.
• Preference for someone with a strong background in financial management (in conjunction with an external accountant) and operations.
• Highly organized administrator with flexibility, strong attention to detail, the ability to both create and improve processes and systems, project-management skills and a love of problem-solving.
• Experience in managing board committees and Board meetings.
• 5+ years of people management, with the ability to grow less seasoned team members
• A servant leader mindset, with high levels of enthusiasm for creating organization culture, systems, and processes that advance Read Ahead’s organizational and DEIB goals and support the entire staff team.
• Ability to learn & leverage technology. Prior experience with Google Suite, Quickbooks, and project management tools (monday.com) a strong plus.
• Commitment to anti-racism and equity in your work and communications
• Practices a growth mindset, along with a deep commitment to genuine learning and self-improvement for self and others

Salary and Benefits

$110,000 / year. Competitive benefits package:

• 90% health and 100% dental care coverage
• $3,000 annual employer-funded HRA
• Eligibility to contribute to 403(b) with up to a 3% match by Read Ahead for all employees who are employed on the last day of the calendar year (e.g. 12/31/2021)
• Eligibility to participate in pre-tax My Commuter Check program
• Pre-tax FSA and Vision Plans offered
• Vacation day accrual based upon employment anniversary date; 20 days per year
• 10 sick days and 3 personal days per year
• The Read Ahead office is closed between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day each year, and for all federal holidays

We seek to build a diverse staff representative of the communities we serve. Even successful candidates may not have all of the preferred qualifications indicated above; if you are excited about the role, believe you can successfully fulfill its responsibilities, and don’t have every single preferred qualification, we encourage you to apply anyway.

Read Ahead does not negotiate salary offers; instead, each salary offer is determined carefully using external and internal benchmarking. You will have an opportunity to discuss benefits in more detail during the hiring process.

Hybrid Work Policy

As an organization that partners with New York City public schools, afterschool service providers, families, corporate partners, and other stakeholders, Read Ahead recognizes that in-person work is required to achieve our mission.

The CoS will typically work approximately 2-3 days/week in person to perform essential job responsibilities but may work up to 5 days/week in person during busy times of the year, with a schedule determined by organizational needs and approved by the Executive Director. Essential in-person responsibilities for this role include, but are not limited to: meetings, regularly scheduled in-office days, and events.

In addition to the essential in-person job responsibilities described above, this role also includes other essential functions which may be performed remotely.

Read Ahead provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, alienage, citizenship or immigration disability, pregnancy, marital and civil partnership/union status, familial status, military or veteran status, genetic information, genetic predisposition or carrier status, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual violence or stalking, arrest or conviction record to the extent required by applicable law, sexual and reproductive health decisions, caregiver status, unemployment status, credit history, height, weight or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, and local law.

Read Ahead's competitive benefits package includes:

• 90% health and 100% dental care coverage
• $3,000 annual employer-funded HRA
• Eligibility to contribute to 403(b) with up to a 3% match by Read Ahead for all employees who are employed on the last day of the calendar year (e.g. 12/31/2025)
• Eligibility to participate in pre-tax transit program
• Pre-tax FSA and Vision Plans offered
• Vacation accrual based upon employment anniversary date; 4 weeks (20 days) per year
• 10 sick days and 3 personal days per year
• The Read Ahead office is closed between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day each year, and for all federal holidays