Interim NYC Executive Director

STRIVE; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 190,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model

Harlem office on-site

Job summary

STRIVE NYC is seeking an experienced Interim Executive Director to provide steady, hands-on leadership during a pivotal transition. You will guide day-to-day operations, report to the President & CEO, and set clear priorities for the NYC team to ensure continuity and momentum.

In collaboration with finance, development, and program leaders, you will address immediate operational needs, strengthen cross-program collaboration, and prepare for a permanent successor while upholding STRIVE's mission

Qualifications

• Mission-driven executive with strong judgment and strategic problem-solving.
• Experience leading complex nonprofit programs and teams.
• Ability to manage budgets, contracts, and fundraising collaborations.

Responsibilities

• Provide overall executive leadership for STRIVE NYC during transition.
• Develop clear priorities and ensure staff understand roles and expectations.
• Strengthen cross-program collaboration and accountability.
• Lead FY2027 planning, budgets, staffing, and performance goals.
• Partner with finance, development, and program teams; engage external stakeholders.

Skills

Executive leadership

Staff coaching

Budgeting

Contract compliance

Strategic planning

Job description

BACKGROUND

The Organization

Since 1984, STRIVE has helped individuals facing significant barriers to employment gain access to meaningful careers, economic mobility, and long‑term opportunity. Through its proven Five‑Pillar Model, STRIVE combines career readiness, occupational skills training, career coaching, job placement assistance, and lifetime support to help participants secure and sustain employment. Over four decades, STRIVE and its affiliates have served more than 90,000 individuals nationwide.

Today, STRIVE operates direct‑service sites in New York City, Atlanta, Birmingham, New Orleans, and Northern New Jersey, and plans to open a new site in Houston in spring 2027. STRIVE also supports a growing network of partner‑operated programs across the country. The organization has earned national recognition for achieving strong outcomes while serving individuals who face some of the greatest barriers to employment, including housing instability, justice‑system involvement, and substance use recovery.

STRIVE is now embarking on an ambitious next chapter. Guided by a multi‑year growth plan, developed with the support of The Bridgespan Group, the organization aims to serve 20,000 individuals annually by 2036 through a growing network of direct‑operated and partner‑operated sites, positioning STRIVE as the nation's leading employment partner for highly barriered jobseekers. Over the next decade, STRIVE expects to serve approximately 110,000 individuals, generating an estimated $1.5 billion in wage gains and transforming economic opportunity for families and communities across the country.

To learn more about STRIVE, please visit www.strive.org.

The Position

STRIVE NYC is preparing for an executive leadership transition following the departure of its Executive Director. STRIVE is seeking an experienced Interim Executive Director to provide steady, hands‑on leadership during this important transition as it prepares to launch a search for a permanent Executive Director.

Reporting to STRIVE's President and CEO, the Interim Executive Director will lead the day‑to‑day operations of the NYC site and prepare the team for the arrival of the permanent Executive Director. The Interim Executive Director will provide centralized leadership for the team, including: setting clearer expectations, strengthening cross‑program collaboration, identifying challenges in achieving desired program outcomes, implementing solutions to improve program outcomes, and ensuring focused attention to contractual commitments.

The Interim Executive Director will work closely with the CEO, NYC program leaders, STRIVE's finance and development teams, Executive Directors in other markets, government and philanthropic partners, employer partners, and community stakeholders.

This is an opportunity for an accomplished interim nonprofit executive to bring structure, focus, and sound judgment to a complex, high‑impact operation. The successful candidate will be equally comfortable assessing systems, coaching senior staff, reviewing budgets and contracts, and rolling up their sleeves to address immediate operational needs.

ROLE OVERVIEW

Executive and Transitional Leadership

• Provide overall executive leadership for STRIVE NYC and maintain stability, continuity, and momentum throughout the transition.
• Quickly develop an understanding of STRIVE NYC's people, programs, contracts, finances, partnerships, and operating environment.
• Establish clear organizational priorities and ensure that staff understand their roles, responsibilities, decision‑making authority, and performance expectations.
• Identify which issues require action during the interim period and which should be reserved for the CEO or incoming permanent Executive Director.
• Preserve institutional knowledge and maintain clear documentation of key decisions, systems, relationships, risks, and priorities for the permanent Executive Director.

Team Management and Coaching

• Foster greater collaboration across programs and reinforce a shared identity as one STRIVE NYC team.
• Create consistent channels for communication, coordination, and problem‑solving across the Harlem and Brooklyn locations.
• Supervise and support senior NYC staff and serve as a coach and thought partner to the Interim Program Director as they assume broader responsibility for the NYC program portfolio.
• Establish a culture of accountability, ownership, respectful communication, and follow‑through.
• Recommend focused improvements to roles, reporting relationships, structure, and communication.
• Support program leaders in developing their management capabilities and providing clearer direction, feedback, and supervision to staff.

FY 2027 Planning

• Lead the development of STRIVE NYC's FY 2027 program plans, budgets, staffing assumptions, cohort schedules, and performance goals.
• Work closely with finance and program staff to monitor spending, address variances, and align resources with contractual and programmatic priorities.
• Help program leaders understand their budgets and make informed decisions about underspending, overspending, restricted funds, and contract requirements.
• Ensure that budget decisions reflect realistic program needs, staffing capacity, and expected revenue.
• Partner closely with STRIVE's development team to maintain momentum across institutional, corporate, individual, and public funding relationships.
• Serve as a visible and credible external representative of STRIVE NYC during the leadership transition.
• Ensure that the development team has timely access to accurate program information, outcome data, budgets, and participant impact stories for proposals and reports.
• Provide programmatic input into funding proposals and help evaluate the feasibility and strategic alignment of prospective opportunities.

Additional Qualifications

• Mission‑driven executive who thrives in dynamic, growth‑oriented environments and brings sound judgment, adaptability, and strategic problem‑solving to evolving challenges.
• Strong operational skills, including experience assessing staffing models, organizational structures, systems, and processes.
• Skilled people leader with experience supporting senior staff, maintaining continuity through change, and fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration, and results.
• Experience partnering with development teams, with the ability to assess fundraising approaches and help shape a development plan for programs.
• Strong financial acumen, including revenue forecasting, budgeting, grant compliance, cash flow management, and long‑range planning.
• Proven ability to influence and build trust across complex organizations, aligning diverse stakeholders around shared goals and priorities.
• Ability to distinguish immediate transition needs from longer‑term decisions that should be left to the CEO and incoming permanent leader.
• Workforce development experience is a plus.

COMPENSATION AND TERMS

Salary & Benefits: $200,000 annualized, prorated for the duration of the engagement. The selected candidate may be engaged as either a W-2 employee or a 1099 contractor and will also receive a prorated benefits stipend during the engagement.

Time Commitment: The role is expected to begin as early as November and continue for 5-6 months, with the possibility of an extension based on organizational and team needs.

This hybrid role will be based at STRIVE's Harlem office and will typically require 3-4 working days per week, with a minimum of two days onsite to support effectiveness and achievement of goals. Site visits to the Brooklyn location will be required as needed.

TIMELINE AND NEXT STEPS

We encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply even if you do not meet all of the qualifications outlined above. If you are selected to move forward for an initial screening call, we expect you to hear from us by the end of October.