Chief Operating and Strategy Officer

Company: Excel Academy Charter Schools
Location: Chelsea
Posted on: June 1, 2025

Job Description:

Job Title: Chief Operating & Strategy Officer (COSO)Reports To: Chief Executive Officer (CEO)Location: East Boston and Chelsea, MA and Providence, RIOrganization OverviewExcel Academy is a network of 5 schools in Massachusetts and Rhode Island that prepares students in grades 5-12 to succeed in high school and college and engage productively in their communities. The majority of our 1,700 students identify as Latinx or Hispanic and will be the first in their families to graduate from college. Families choose Excel because our students consistently outperform their peers in growth and achievement and are 5x more likely to graduate from college.At Excel, we believe that every student-regardless of race, zip code, or economic status-deserves access to a free, high quality holistic education. During their middle school journey with us, students grow at a pace faster than most peers in their state. This is possible through a combination of high expectations, rigorous instruction, and individualized support. At our nationally ranked high school, students achieve at the highest level and are poised for success in their chosen college or career path.About our TeamEveryday, our team members choose to be positive, drive their own growth, uplift one another, and hold the highest possible beliefs for what students can achieve.About the RoleThe Chief Operating and Strategy Officer (COSO) will play a pivotal role in driving the strategic leadership and organizational effectiveness of Excel Academy Charter Schools, a network of high-performing charter schools in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Excel Academy is entering a period of exciting growth and change, as it more than doubles its reach in the next 10 years across two states, 8+ schools, and 3,000+ students in grades K-12. In this period of growth, the COSO will be critical to building the systems and practices necessary to achieve a successful and sustainable expansion and functioning of the organization. Reporting to the CEO, this leader will be a senior executive leader responsible for setting and managing Excel's strategy and priority projects, building management systems and practices for the effective functioning of the Network Team (NT), and driving organizational excellence at both the school and network levels. This is a new position and will oversee leaders across the following functional areas: Finance, Talent & HR, Data, and Real Estate.Salary Range: $180,000 - $210,000Your ImpactNetwork Team (NT) Management and Leadership

• Provide leadership, management, and support to the NT, fostering a strategic, coordinated, and high-performing team culture.
• Cultivate an efficient and effective organization of the NT, ensuring the staffing model, capabilities, and role definitions reflect the NT's priorities and needs.
• Establish and manage goal-setting, evaluation, and accountability frameworks for the various teams and members of the NT.
• Develop and maintain systems and routines across NT and with schools that promote collaboration, transparency, communication, and overall team effectiveness.
• Build and utilize data systems and analytics to inform organizational and cross-functional decision-making processes.
• Enhance the effectiveness of executive leadership and cross-functional team meetings by supporting thorough pre-meeting preparation, agenda creation, meeting facilitation, decision-making, and follow-up.Strategic Planning and Priority Project Implementation
  • Lead the development of an organization-wide strategic plan and annual priorities that align with the organization's mission, vision, and goals.
  • Lead our growth strategy work as we expand in Rhode Island and double our impact.
  • Develop accompanying systems and processes to ensure strong implementation of the strategic plan, including measurable goals and systems/routines for tracking progress.
  • Spearhead highly strategic, high-priority cross-functional projects, ensuring strong project management, coordination of various stakeholders, and high-quality implementation.
  • Ensure clear and proactive communication across the organization that allows all stakeholders to be on board and act in alignment with Excel's vision and strategy.People & Systems Leadership and Excellence
    • Set the vision, strategy, and systems for upholding a high bar for excellence at both the Network and the school levels.
    • Have primary responsibility for Finance, Talent & HR, Data, Real Estate; each functional area is led by a Director or Managing Director who will report to this position, to ensure alignment with organizational priorities and excellence in execution.
      • Finance (led by the Managing Director of Finance): Ensure financial strength and health in our expansion to align with organization strategy and other key functional areas in close partnership with the Managing Director of Finance.
      • Talent & HR (led by the Director of Talent): Oversee all aspects of talent at both the school and network levels (i.e., recruiting, hiring, onboarding, HR compliance, performance management/evaluation, coaching/development, compensation/benefits, etc.). Develop a comprehensive and coherent multi-year talent strategy that ensures that Excel recruits, develops, and manages the best talent. Set and oversee critical HR policies and processes to advance the organization's talent priorities and ensure compliance.
      • Data (led by the Director of Data and Assessments): Ensure strong data collection, storage, and analytics infrastructures and practices to inform, support, and advance Excel's strategy and priorities. Ensure that relevant and informative data is available at both the school and CMO levels to make informed and strategic decisions that drive towards organizational goals.
      • Real Estate (led by the Director of Real Estate and Capital Planning): Guide organization's real estate strategy and execute on multiple complex and high-stakes facility projects with the Director of Real Estate and Capital Planning that are critical to achieving Excel's growth plan.QualificationsRequired:
        • A minimum of 7 years of leadership experience and 15 years of professional experience, ideally in strategy and operations in mission-oriented contexts.
        • A commitment to and belief in all students and the mission of Excel Academy Charter Schools, including Excel's values and educational model.
        • Proven track record of successful strategic planning, goal-setting, and project management within an educational or similar organizational context.
        • Exceptional system builder with the ability to create clarity in ambiguous situations.
        • Strong ability to collaborate with senior leaders and influence decision-making that drives towards outcomes.
        • Strong experience leading and managing multiple high-performing leaders of teams, with a track record of fostering a collaborative and high-performing work environment.
        • Strong finance acumen with a proven ability to think strategically on financial matters and tell the financial story of the organization effectively to a range of audiences (staff, board members, donors, school leaders).
        • Exceptional facilitation and communication skills, with experience managing executive and cross-functional team meetings.
        • Unwavering commitment to quality programs and data-driven decision-making.
        • Ability to create clarity and structure in ambiguity and to chart a proactive/ forward-looking path with limited guidance or information.Strongly Preferred:
          • Demonstrated legal and complex risk management skill in the nonprofit sector.
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Keywords: Excel Academy Charter Schools, Medford , Chief Operating and Strategy Officer, Executive , Chelsea, Massachusetts