Program Director, VIA Journeys & Innovation

Servant; Marion (NC); On-site; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) invites applicants for the Program Director of VIA Journeys to lead a flagship initiative within the Strategic Innovations unit. You will drive entrepreneurial leadership, technical fluency, and execution discipline to move ideas into functioning pilots, platforms, and participant experiences.

The role focuses on delivery, experimentation, and learning within strategic guardrails, coordinating with internal teams and external partners to scale impactful programs

Qualifications

• Master's degree or other advanced degree strongly preferred.
• 10+ years of demonstrated experience launching, scaling, and leading programs, products, platforms, or strategic initiatives from concept through execution.
• Ability to operate effectively in ambiguity, build from zero to launch, and drive measurable outcomes.
• Exceptional project and program management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and cross-functional initiatives.
• Experience managing ~30 external partners and influencing diverse stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end launch of VIA Journeys, including pilots, operational workflows, and participant experiences.
• Translate strategy into executable plans, timelines, milestones, and deliverables.
• Ensure VIA Journeys moves from idea to active implementation with momentum and clarity.
• Design and manage pilots to validate value, feasibility, and program design.
• Build repeatable processes that support early scaling while preserving quality and trust.
• Coordinate technical and platform work as the primary program lead with internal/external teams.
• Support integration with Lantern and Seminary systems, ensuring usability and data integrity.
• Engage partners, churches, advisors, and ministry leaders; gather feedback for improvement.
• Define and track operational, learning, and pilot metrics; report insights to leadership.
• Supervise any personnel assigned to the VIA Journeys initiative.

Skills

Program leadership

Technical fluency

Project management

Stakeholder management

Ambiguity tolerance

Education

Master's degree or other advanced degree

Job description

Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) invites applicants for the Program Director of VIA Journeys to lead a flagship initiative within the Strategic Innovations unit. You will drive entrepreneurial leadership, technical fluency, and execution discipline to move ideas into functioning pilots, platforms, and participant experiences.

The role focuses on delivery, experimentation, and learning within strategic guardrails, coordinating with internal teams and external partners to scale impactful programs