Managing Director, Explore Hub

About the Role

Britebound is a national nonprofit changing the way kids learn about careers and prepare for their futures through access to career-readiness information and experiences. We fulfill our mission through free digital-first direct experiences, philanthropy, advocacy, thought leadership, groundbreaking research, and impact investing. We believe that exploring career possibilities as early as middle school, and providing access to education-to-career pathways aligned with one’s passions and goals, will result in greater confidence and long-term success for all students.

About The Explore Impact Hub

Young people are not consistently taught how to explore their aptitudes or interests and how that could inform their future choices. There are limited exploration opportunities for young people in K-12, and when opportunities are available, they are inconsistent across geography, quality, and type. Exploration activities are often siloed from core academics and the broader scope and sequence of education.

We’re launching the Explore Impact Hub to change that. The Explore Impact Hub is a new national center of excellence dedicated to transforming how young people, ages 11-14, engage in self-discovery and early career exploration. The Hub will focus on early adolescence, one of the most important and often overlooked developmental stages in a young person's journey. The Explore Impact Hub exists to answer a critical question: how can we help young adolescents better understand themselves and their future possibilities in ways that meaningfully influence their long-term educational and career trajectories?

To answer this question, the Hub will identify, design, test, evaluate, and scale innovative approaches that help young people explore their interests, strengths, values, identities, and aspirations. We believe that when we foster the enabling conditions for young people to explore themselves, their interests, and their strengths, they gain the knowledge and confidence to make informed, empowered decisions about the next step in their educational and career journey. By generating evidence, supporting innovation, and building partnerships across sectors, the Explore Impact Hub aims to drive lasting systems change in middle school career exploration nationwide.

Responsibilities

• Strategic Vision and Leadership
  • Define and steward the Hub's strategic direction, theory of change, and long-term goals in partnership with Britebound’s leadership and key stakeholders.
  • Develop a rigorous framework for identifying, designing, and selecting initiatives that help young adolescents develop self-knowledge, explore interests, and build a foundation for future pathways.
  • In collaboration with the Britebound research team, stay at the leading edge of research on early adolescent development, interest formation, and the landscape of programs and experiences serving this age group.
  • In collaboration with the Britebound policy team, shape a policy agenda for how young learners experience career exploration and self-identity both in school and during out-of-school time.
• Portfolio Development and Management
  • Build and manage a diverse portfolio of initiatives — from partnerships and early-stage pilots to scaling investments — spanning a range of approaches and delivery contexts.
  • Work with partners to strengthen program design, define learning agendas, and set measurable milestones.
  • Apply clear decision-making frameworks for investing in, continuing, scaling, or sunsetting initiatives based on evidence and learning.
• Delivery Model & Design
  • Investigate and determine the most effective mechanisms for delivering self-discovery and exploration experiences to young adolescents — whether in school, after-school and summer programs, community-based organizations, digital platforms, employer and community partnerships, or entirely new models.
  • Design and test a range of delivery approaches (internally or in partnership with external organizations), remaining open to unconventional solutions and building the evidence base to understand which contexts and modalities work best for which young people.
  • Where school-based delivery emerges as effective, support partners in building that capacity — but treat it as one option among many, not a default.
• Partnership & Field Building
  • Cultivate a robust national network of youth-serving organizations, community partners, researchers, policymakers, and funders committed to supporting young adolescents in this critical developmental window.
  • Represent Britebound and the Hub at national convenings and in thought leadership platforms.
  • Build conditions for the field to adopt, adapt, and sustain promising models beyond the Hub's direct investment.
  • In collaboration with the Britebound comms team, shape the Hub’s thought leadership and communications strategy to drive impact.
• Team & Operations
  • Recruit, develop, and lead a high-performing, mission-aligned team.

Requirements

• 12+ years of progressively responsible leadership experience in youth development, education, program design, education policy, research, philanthropy, workforce development, or a related field.
• Demonstrated success designing, launching, and managing complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives.
• Deep understanding of early adolescent development and the experiences that support them to figure out who they are, what they care about, and what’s next.
• Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills, including the ability to interpret data, evaluate evidence, and make informed decisions.
• Experience commissioning, overseeing, or utilizing research and evaluation to guide strategy decisions.
• Exceptional written, verbal, and presentation communication skills.
• Proven ability to build trust and influence across diverse stakeholder groups.
• Track record of building, leading, and developing high-performing teams.
• Experience managing significant budgets and organizational resources.
• Demonstrated commitment to educational equity and expanding opportunities for young people.

Preferred Qualifications

• Existing relationships within youth development, career-connected learning, middle grades education, out-of-school learning, philanthropy, or workforce development ecosystems.
• Experience leading innovation, research, investment, or field-building initiatives.
• Experience working across nonprofit, philanthropic, public-sector, and private-sector partnerships.
• Graduate degree in Education, Adolescent Development, Public Policy, Organizational Leadership, Social Sciences, or a related field — or equivalent professional experience.
• National-level visibility as a thought leader in youth development, education, or workforce pathways.

Leadership Competencies

• Visionary Leadership
• Strategic Thinking
• Entrepreneurial Mindset
• Systems Thinking
• Research and Evidence Orientation
• Partnership Development
• Influence Without Authority
• Change Management
• Talent Development
• Financial Stewardship
• Communication Excellence
• Commitment to Equity and Inclusion

Why Join Britebound?

This is an opportunity to lead a nationally significant initiative and help shape the future of career exploration for millions of young people. As Managing Director, you will:

• Influence the future direction of middle school career exploration and youth development.
• Partner with leading researchers, innovators, educators, funders, and policymakers.
• Lead a high-performing team and portfolio of programs.
• Generate evidence and solutions that can drive lasting systems change.
• Help young people discover their strengths, interests, and future possibilities at a critical stage of development.

Location & Travel

This is a full-time hybrid position. The Managing Director will be expected to travel periodically for partner meetings, conferences, site visits, and field-building activities.

Pay

Salary Range: $220,000 – $280,000. Britebound is committed to fair and transparent pay. In determining compensation, we consider a variety of job-related factors, including prior experience, certifications and licenses, skills and expertise, geographic location, and internal equity. We take a total compensation approach, meaning we look beyond salary alone to support, reward, and recognize the whole individual. Depending on role eligibility, your offer may also include a bonus, 403(b) retirement plan participation, generous paid time off, and comprehensive health and life insurance benefits.

Benefits

• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision healthcare plans.
• Retirement plan (plus match).
• Weekly lunches, commuter benefits, and tuition reimbursement.
• Generous PTO options, Summer Fridays (every Friday off between Memorial Day and Labor Day), and a company holiday break between December 25th and January 1st.
• Hybrid schedule: 2 days a week in our Boston HQ.