Director of Strategic Initiatives

The Rome Group; St. Louis (MO); On-site; USD 70,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

Gateway Global is seeking a Director of Strategic Initiatives to lead planning, development, implementation, and continuous improvement of key education and workforce initiatives.

The role requires strategic thinking with strong execution, coordinating with universities, employers, government agencies, and other institutional partners. Reports to the Senior Vice President of Operations and is primarily on-site in St. Louis.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required; master's preferred in education, workforce development, business, public administration, or related field.
• Approximately 5+ years of progressively responsible experience in education, workforce development, program leadership or strategic initiatives.
• Experience leading complex projects with multiple stakeholders and independent execution.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic initiatives from concept through implementation and outcomes.
• Translate priorities into clear plans, timelines and measurable results.
• Coordinate with schools, universities, employers, and government agencies.
• Oversee curriculum, credentials, instructional models, and student experiences.

Skills

Self-directed

Strategic thinking

Execution oriented

Problem solving

Strong communication

Cross-stakeholder collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree preferred

Job description

Director of Strategic Initiatives

Gateway Global American Youth & Business Alliance Academies

Location: St. Louis, Missouri | Primarily On Site
Position: Full Time
Reports To: Senior Vice President of Operations
Salary: $70,000-$80,000 /commensurate with experience
Travel: Some local and national travel required

About Gateway Global

Gateway Global is a technology based education and workforce development organization headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. We develop education, workforce, credentialing, and talent development pathways designed to prepare young people and adults for industries shaping the future of the American economy.

Our work spans geospatial intelligence and GIS, data, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, robotics, emerging technologies, higher education partnerships, industry recognized credentials, and innovative workforce development models.

We are a growing organization with an entrepreneurial culture. Our team members are expected to be self directed, solutions oriented, highly accountable, and comfortable turning ideas into execution. The original leadership model established these expectations around self motivation, innovation, high performance, and independent work, and they remain central to this position.

Role Overview

Gateway Global is seeking a Director of Strategic Initiatives to lead the planning, development, implementation, and continuous improvement of key education and workforce initiatives.

This is not a role for someone who requires extensive day-to-day direction. The Director must be able to take an organizational priority, understand the desired outcome, develop the plan, identify what is needed, coordinate the appropriate people and resources, anticipate challenges, and move the work forward.

The successful candidate will combine strategic thinking with strong execution and will be expected to represent Gateway Global professionally with universities, employers, government agencies, schools, funders, instructors, and other institutional partners.

Core Responsibilities

Strategic Initiative Leadership

• Lead assigned strategic education, workforce, and academic initiatives from concept through implementation.
• Translate organizational priorities into clear work plans, timelines, deliverables, and measurable outcomes.
• Identify opportunities for innovation, improvement, expansion, and replication.
• Anticipate problems and recommend solutions rather than waiting for direction.

Programs & Academics

• Provide leadership and oversight for assigned workforce education and academic programming.
• Support development, implementation, and continuous improvement of curriculum, credentials, instructional models, and student experiences.
• Ensure programming remains aligned with relevant industry standards and workforce needs.
• Monitor program quality, student outcomes, instructor performance, and implementation effectiveness.

Workforce & Strategic Partnerships

• Coordinate initiatives involving schools, colleges and universities, employers, government agencies, instructors, and community partners.
• Support the development and expansion of technology focused workforce programs and career pathways.
• Build and maintain productive relationships with institutional partners.
• Represent Gateway Global in external meetings, presentations, planning sessions, and partner engagements.

Team & Project Leadership

• Lead and coordinate staff, instructors, consultants, and project teams assigned to strategic initiatives.
• Establish expectations, monitor progress, address performance or execution gaps, and maintain accountability for results.
• Work collaboratively across departments while taking clear ownership of assigned initiatives.
• Prepare leadership, partners, and stakeholders for important meetings, launches, events, and deliverables.

Performance, Data & Compliance

• Establish and monitor program goals, outcomes, milestones, and performance measures.
• Maintain accurate program information, documentation, reporting, and records.
• Support compliance with applicable grant, education, workforce, credentialing, contractual, and partnership requirements.
• Use data and feedback to recommend program improvements and guide decision making.

Growth & Innovation

• Work with the SVP of Operations and CEO to develop and implement new initiatives that support Gateway Global's continued growth.
• Research emerging workforce, education, technology, and credentialing trends.
• Help develop models that can be standardized, scaled, and implemented across multiple institutional partners and markets.
• Contribute to proposals, presentations, partnerships, funding opportunities, and other strategic growth efforts as needed.
• The scope intentionally reflects the original position’s responsibility for curriculum, program delivery, workforce initiatives, external relationships, standards, staff leadership, and organizational growth without transferring routine administrative tasks into the Director role.

What We Are Looking For

The strongest candidate will be someone who naturally takes ownership.

We are looking for a professional who is:

• Highly self directed and self motivated
• Able to move from strategy to execution without constant supervision
• An independent thinker and strong problem solver
• Comfortable making sound decisions within established authority
• Organized, prepared, responsive, and dependable
• Able to anticipate needs and act proactively
• Innovative and willing to challenge conventional approaches
• Comfortable managing multiple high level initiatives and deadlines
• A strong communicator with professional executive presence
• Capable of building relationships across education, industry, government, and community sectors
• Accountable for both the quality of the work and the final result
• Does not use ChatGPT, Claude, or other AI applications for workload and instead continuously uses critical thinking and own personal abilities to solve problems and execute

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required; master's degree preferred in education, workforce development, business, public administration, organizational leadership, technology, or a related field.
• Approximately 5+ years of progressively responsible experience in education, workforce development, program leadership, strategic initiatives, project management, or a related environment.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex projects or programs involving multiple stakeholders.
• Strong record of independent execution, leadership, and problem solving.
• Experience working with educational institutions, workforce programs, employers, government, or technology related initiatives strongly preferred.
• Excellent written, verbal, presentation, organizational, and relationship management skills.
• Ability to operate effectively in a growing, fast moving organization where priorities require initiative, adaptability, and sound judgment.

The Standard

Gateway Global is building initiatives intended to grow well beyond a single program or location. This position requires someone who sees a responsibility and owns it –someone who comes prepared, follows through, solves problems, develops people, protects the quality of the organization, and continuously looks for ways to make the work stronger.

The Director of Strategic Initiatives will have meaningful responsibility and significant room to lead and innovate, while operating within the strategy and accountability structure established by the Senior Vice President of Operations and executive leadership.

Equal Opportunity

Gateway Global is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination or harassment on the basis of any characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. Employment is subject to applicable background screening and organizational requirements.