Director, Learning and Evaluation (BCNCF)

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of NC Foundation; Durham (NC); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation seeks a Director of Learning and Evaluation to foster a culture of learning, apply equity in data gathering, and inform decision-making. The role guides evaluation strategy, engages with partners, and builds learning tools across the organization to advance social change.

The position emphasizes collaboration with leadership, program staff, and external evaluators, with a focus on continuous improvement and telling the story of impact to

Qualifications

• 7+ years in program evaluation or development of organizational learning systems, tools, and practices.
• Experience and effectiveness in project management, evaluation methodology, and communications.
• Experience with qualitative and quantitative evaluation techniques and data analysis.
• Technical experience in program evaluation including use of data visualization software.

Responsibilities

• Manage all activities related to evaluation, learning, and performance tracking in support of the Foundation's mission and vision.
• Collaborate with leadership, program staff, grantees, and consultants to define strategies and metrics for progress and impact.
• Identify and manage partnerships with external evaluators and resources for evaluation projects.
• Support program staff in formulating theories of change and building data infrastructure for learning.
• Balance rigor and flexibility to provide timely insights for decisions on current work and future opportunities.
• Assess opportunities to improve grantee engagement and measurement practices to influence strategy and learning.

Skills

Evaluation

Learning & knowledge management

Stakeholder engagement

Data visualization

Equity focus

Project management

Communication

Tools

SQL

Tableau

Excel

R

Job description

Director, Learning and Evaluation (BCNCF)

Position Summary

The Director, Learning and Evaluation at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation is a new position created to foster a culture of learning on our growing team and to facilitate the use of data, research, and evaluation to help the Foundation and its partners understand their impact on social change. We are looking for a consultative, curious, and adaptable professional skilled at applying the principles of equity to inform data gathering, decision making, and knowledge sharing.

What You'll Do

Strategy and program support

• Manage all activities related to evaluation, learning, and performance tracking in support of the Foundation's mission and vision
• Collaborate with leadership and program staff, grantees, and consultants to define the strategies and metrics used to assess progress and impact
• Identify, cultivate, and manage partnerships with external evaluators and resources as needed to execute on evaluation projects
• Support program staff in formulating core theories of change and build the data infrastructure required for learning
• Balance the rigor and flexibility needed to provide timely insights required to make informed decisions regarding work in progress and future opportunities
• Assess opportunities to continuously improve grantee engagement and measurement practices to influence overall strategy as well as grantee, organization, and field learning

Organizational learning

• Build a culture of learning, inquiry, and experimentation with a tolerance for risk and a commitment to learn from failures
• Develop a learning agenda to build an environment of continuous improvement
• Provide consultation to program leads to develop hypotheses, learning questions, and priorities for in-depth learning and evaluation at the grant, Foundation, or field level
• Encourage ways to integrate evidence, reflective conversations, and analysis into strategic work to elevate the team's thinking

Knowledge management and field building

• Work with the Foundation team to cultivate and share lessons learned across multiple areas of impact including grantmaking, capacity building, narrative shift, convening, and policy change
• Introduce knowledge-sharing tools and processes that promote learning, dialogue, and reflection throughout the organization
• Partner with the communications team to translate and disseminate evaluation findings in ways that make the learning accessible and useful to broad audiences
• Participate in opportunities for mutual learning - sharing relevant findings and insights with, and learning from, others

Qualities We Love

• Personal commitment to equity and health
• Passion for continuous improvement, learning, and growth
• Comfort with ambiguity
• Openness to new ideas and the ability to innovate and take risks in pursuit of high-impact solutions
• Oriented to supporting the work of the team with an ability to provide mentorship in areas of expertise

Hiring Requirements

• 7 years of experience in program evaluation or in the development of organizational learning systems, tools, and practices
• Experience and effectiveness in project management, evaluation methodology, and communications
• Experience managing or conducting evaluations with a broad array of qualitative and quantitative evaluation techniques
• Technical experience in program evaluation including use of data analysis and data visualization software
• Interpersonal, change management, and consultative skills necessary to shift the organization's mindset and behavior regarding evaluation and learning
• Adaptable and flexible; able to shift, prioritize, and focus in a busy office environment
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, with an aptitude for synthesizing and presenting complex ideas to diverse audiences
• Ability to travel inside and outside of North Carolina

Additional Hiring Preferences

• Experience or knowledge of the changing landscape of health and the role of social drivers of health
• Experience working in the nonprofit or philanthropic sector
• People leadership experience
• Proficiency in using a grants/data management system and experience developing or supporting knowledge management systems

Who We Are

The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation is an independent, charitable foundation with the mission of improving the health and well-being of North Carolinians. In our grantmaking, we strive to address the key drivers of health, take a flexible approach designed to meet identified needs in partnership with the community, and focus on addressing the root causes of systemic inequities. We also work closely with our grantees, and other nonprofits, to support their growth through capacity building, technical assistance, and leadership development opportunities.