Strategic Initiatives Manager

JobID: 4248

Position Type:
Project Staff/Strategic Initiatives Manager

Date Posted:
3/19/2026

Location:
ESC

Closing Date:
04/03/2026

The Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU) currently has a vacancy for a Strategic Initiatives Manager within the Executive Directors Office of the Chester County Intermediate Unit. This is a 260-day position, based out of the Educational Service Center in Downingtown, PA.

Are you motivated to create brighter futures for students, families, and the entire community? If so, we want you on Team CCIU! At the CCIU, we pride ourselves on the creativity, dedication, and collaborative spirit that our employees bring to their work every day, and we know that achieving success together takes a team approach!

We strive to hire exceptional and passionate individuals that help us achieve our vision of acting as educational leaders who contribute to a better Chester County and beyond. If you are looking for an exciting, challenging opportunity to grow your career, don't wait apply today to make Team CCIU even stronger tomorrow!

Summary of Position:
The Strategic Initiatives Manager serves as a primary force multiplier for the Executive Office and Cabinet. Operating at the intersection of high-level strategy and organizational experience, this cross-divisional coordinator ensures that major initiatives move forward with clarity, accountability, and momentum. This role exists to enhance the effectiveness of leadership by providing project infrastructure, facilitating coordination across divisions, and maintaining visibility into the status and health of critical organizational priorities.

Quick Facts:
Location: Based out of our Educational Services Center (ESC) at 455 Boot Road in Downingtown, PA
Benefits Eligible: Yes
Schedule: Monday Friday
Work Hours: 8 AM - 4 PM, 7.5 work hours + 30 minute unpaid lunch
Exempt Status: Exempt position
Salaried or Hourly: Salary

Qualifications:

Education and Experience
- Bachelor's degree required
- Master's Degree preferred but not required in one of the following areas:
  - Educational Leadership or Administration
  - Organizational Leadership
  - Public Administration (MPA)
  - Business Administration (MBA)
  - Organizational Development
  - Systems Leadership or Strategic Leadership
- Professional Certifications and Micro-Credentials (Preferred)- Candidate must be willing to acquire certifications and micro-credentials at the direction of the Executive Office.
  - Project Management Professional (PMP) Project Management Institute
  - Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)
  - Agile Project Management Certification (PMI-ACP or equivalent)
  - Certified Scrum Master (CSM) or comparable Agile certification
  - Organizational Behavior Management (OBM) certification, coursework, or graduate-level training
  - Change Management Certification (Prosci or equivalent)
  - Strategy execution or strategic implementation certification
  - Systems thinking, improvement science, or design thinking micro-credentials
  - Executive facilitation or leadership team facilitation training
- 7-10 years administrative/project management experience or equivalent required. K-12 or higher education experience highly preferred.

Essential Job Responsibilities:

Project Infrastructure & Framework Development
- Partner with division directors to design project management frameworks tailored to their specific initiatives, including timelines, benchmarks, and accountability measures
- Develop and maintain project management tools and processes to track progress and manage deliverables
- Bring curiosity about the work of each division to inform practical, relevant project structures rather than imposing one-size-fits-all approaches
- Establish consistent practices for project documentation, status reporting, and risk identification across the organization
- Initiative Design: Serve as a "thinking partner" on the design, sequencing, and rollout of initiatives to ensure decisions land effectively with staff and partners.
- Mission Integration: Ensure a tight loop between the organization's mission/vision and day-to-day departmental work.
- Facilitation & Design: Support the coordination of senior leadership development efforts through strategic framing and expert facilitation.
Strategic Foresight & Risk Mitigation
- Anticipate challenges and "what-ifs" that division directors may not have bandwidth to consider, expanding thinking around project planning
- Apply project management best practices to help leaders avoid common pitfalls and execute more effectively
- Identify when the organization is at risk of initiative overload and provide recommendations about prioritization
- Bring an enterprise perspective to help division leaders see how their projects connect to broader organizational goals
- Strategic Oversight: Maintain high-level visibility into timelines and interdependencies of initiatives across the organization without micromanaging daily tasks.
- Risk Mitigation: Identify potential overlaps, capacity concerns, or "initiative overload" early to protect organizational health.
- Prioritization Support: Assist the Executive Office in ranking work based on impact, ensuring resources are directed toward the most coherent goals.
Cross-Divisional Coordination, Professional Development & Integration
- Facilitate coordination meetings for major initiatives that span multiple divisions, ensuring all stakeholders understand dependencies and timelines
- Serve as the central point of contact for cross-divisional projects, maintaining visibility into how different workstreams connect and impact one another
- Identify potential conflicts, resource constraints, or timeline issues early and implement strategies to resolve them
- Ensure division leaders have the information they need from other parts of the organization to move their work forward
- Project Management Mentorship: Lead professional development sessions for team members across departments on modern project management frameworks and tools.
- Strategic Implementation: Train staff on how to operationalize the Strategic Plan, moving from high-level goals to measurable departmental actions.
- Skill Standardization: Develop and facilitate workshops on "Visible Thinking," effective meeting design, and organizational initiative workflows to create a shared language of execution.
Timeline & Deliverable Management
- Track timelines and deliverables for major organizational initiatives, providing regular status updates to the Executive Office and cabinet
- Make informed recommendations about project sequencing and resource allocation based on organizational capacity and strategic priorities
- Hold division leaders accountable to agreed-upon deadlines and benchmarks through consistent follow-up and status monitoring
- Flag risks, delays, or emerging issues to leadership with sufficient lead time to course-correct
Cross-Department Integration & Communication
- Partner in Clarity: Act as a connector between departments to ensure a shared understanding of executive intent.
- Leadership Proxy: Serve as a trusted representative of the Executive Office, reinforcing messaging and decision-making in the absence of the Executive Director.
- Bridge Building: Navigate different departmental perspectives to resolve gaps and build organizational momentum.
- Human-First Lens: Apply an equity-centered lens to initiatives, ensuring employee wellbeing and family priorities are reflected in organizational expectations.
- Trust Monitoring: Act as an early indicator for leadership when misalignment or trust erosion may be occurring.
Executive Office Support
- Provide the Executive Director with clear visibility into the status and health of major initiatives across the organization
- Prepare briefings and status reports that allow leadership to make informed decisions about priorities and resource allocation
- Serve as a thought partner to the Executive Office on project design and implementation approaches for new initiatives
- Support the translation of strategic priorities into actionable project plans with clear ownership and timelines

Essential Job Skills:

Language Skills
- Strong organizational, time management, and administrative abilities with attention to detail.
- Ability to write routine reports and correspondence.
- Ability to speak effectively before groups of customers or employees of the organization.
Mathematical Skills
- Ability to manage financial data and reporting.
Reasoning Ability
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with high level of integrity and ability to maintain confidentiality.
- Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out instructions furnished in writing, oral or diagram form.
- Ability to deal with problems involving several concrete variables in standardized situations
Other Skills and Abilities
- Proficiency in Microsoft office suite of products
- Deep knowledge of project management frameworks, tools and best practices with ability to adapt them to education contexts.
- Translates complex project information into clear status updates; facilitates productive coordination conversations.
- Ability to develop effective working relationships with staff.
- Ability to communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing.
- Ability to perform duties with awareness of all district requirements and Board of Education policies.

Salary Range

Project Staff, Level 16, Exempt, Salary

2025-2026
- $87,037 - $108,796 annually
2026-2027
- $90,083 - $112,604 annually

*Placement on level is based upon experience in a similar position*

Project Staff Benefits:

Excellent medical, prescription, vision and dental coverage at minimal cost to employee
If medical, prescription, vision and dental coverage is not needed, generous opt-out payments available
1.5% of annual salary flexible benefit cash payment
Life insurance in amount of 2.5x annual salary paid by CCIU
Long-term disability insurance effective 31st day of illness/injury
Retirement through PSERS, PA's Public School Employees Retirement System
Worker's Compensation

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Equal Opportunity Employer
Chester County Intermediate Unit is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Chester County Intermediate Unit ensures equal employment opportunities regardless of race, creed, gender, color, national origin, religion, age, sexual orientation or disability. Chester County Intermediate Unit has a policy of active recruitment of qualified minority teachers and non-certified employees. Any individual needing assistance in making application for any opening should contact the Department of Human Resources at 484-237-5085.

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