Community Engagement Manager

Organization Profile: 

Founded in 1999, BUILD’s mission is to use entrepreneurship to ignite the power of youth in under-resourced communities to build Career success, Entrepreneurial mindsets, and Opportunity. We help students become the CEO of their own lives

BUILD’s unique program offers students a four-year entrepreneurship experience designed to develop 21st Century Skills and motivate student engagement in school. Starting in 9th grade, BUILD students work with their peers and community mentors to develop business ideas, pitch to funders and launch real businesses. As students journey through high school and continue to grow their businesses, BUILD helps them explore college and career options, and assists students with the college application process. Entrepreneurship is the spark – college, career, and life success are the goals.

We recently launched and completed a $15M growth campaign called BUILDing Gen E to inspire a diverse new generation of entrepreneurial leaders and changemakers across America.  Our BUILDing Gen E Campaign includes three core pillars:

• Digital Acceleration:  reaching more students and educators with greater impact

• Geographic Expansion: bringing our work to new communities nationwide

• Systemic Change: making entrepreneurship a foundational course in under-resourced schools

BUILD’s core program currently serves approximately 2,000 high school students annually at programs located in our Regional Hubs in the San Francisco Bay Area, Washington DC, New York City, and Boston and with satellite offices in Los Angeles and Pittsburgh. Our new digital offerings are reaching over 6,000 students in 50 cities, and growing fast. In the next two years, we aim to serve 24,000 youth and eventually build a vibrant 100,000 person community including BUILD students, alumni, educators, mentors, and volunteers. For more information, please visit www.build.org. 

Our Culture:

BUILD is made up of a diverse, results driven and passionate team who believe in the potential of every student and the power of entrepreneurship to transform the education landscape. We work in a collaborative environment where perseverance, flexibility, and an entrepreneurial spirit are encouraged and celebrated. Our culture thrives by embracing diversity, equity and inclusion, including cross-cultural understanding. Kindness, empathy and respect are at the forefront of the way we treat each other, our students, our teachers and our supporters. We believe in the potential of every student and are dedicated to breaking down the educational, economic and social barriers that stand in the way of their long-term success.  The remarkable young men and women whom we serve are at the center of everything we do. We are intentional about our culture so that we can best support them. 

Position Summary:

Reporting to the California Director of Strategic Partnerships, the Bay Area Community Engagement Manager sets California’s strategy and implementation best practices for our mentor and volunteer programs and ensures excellence in execution. Mentoring students and providing them with access to social capital is at the core of our program and theory of change. The Community Engagement Manager therefore plays a leadership role in building a critically needed diverse, inclusive, healthy and high performing volunteer workforce of caring adults in service to our students.

The Community Engagement Manager is responsible for volunteer and mentor recruitment, training, stewardship and retention. They develop and implement research-based training, tools, and interventions for mentors used by the Bay Area region and shared with other regions as best practices. The Community Engagement Manager will closely collaborate with regional and national program and development teams to ensure that BUILD California is meeting its mentor and partnership goals.  

The Community Engagement Manager should care deeply about the students we serve and be able to speak compellingly with broad external audiences, including business and community leaders, about the value of mentorship to students, mentors, and organizations/companies. The ideal candidate has experience in DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) work and in non-profit and youth development. This position requires the ability and desire to operate in a high-energy, entrepreneurial environment where innovation, collaboration and creativity are valued and expected.

Position Responsibilities:

• Utilizing a youth development lens, develop the strategy for and oversee the organizational volunteer and mentor life cycle including recruitment, training, safety protocols, placement, performance, support, and engagement; share best practices with national cohort of community engagement colleagues 

• Build a diverse, equitable and inclusive mentor community that supports our students in their BUILD journey. 

• Develop the training and tools needed for BUILD volunteers and mentors to successfully support our students; implement support practices to provide volunteers and mentors with feedback and opportunities for them to develop their skills in service to our students 

• Lead the vision and implementation for creating a robust mentor base through scalable systems; present the BUILD mentor opportunity at corporate, funder and community based organizations

• Codify best practices to leverage strategic partners to build a pipeline for mentors and potential donors and to steward those individuals

• Inform best practices for successful execution of skills-based workshops for students coordinated by our Director of Strategic Partnerships and hosted by our partner companies and nonprofit organizations. E.g., mock interviews, pitch practices, financial literacy, career panels

• Develop and lead execution of systems for accurate mentor data entry and tracking in Salesforce database; utilize data to understand and articulate mentor experience, impact and make decisions about recruitment and engagement strategies

• Working with regional leadership, ensure all mentors have met necessary screening requirements and/or administrative requirements to be in contact with our students as mandated by our organization and school districts

• Set the strategy and implement the plan for strategic partnerships that yield sustainable pipelines of mentors 

Position Details:

• Status: Full Time/Exempt

• Location: Redwood City/Oakland, CA; this is a hybrid role in that you will be expected to work in person as needed, visit partners located in Oakland and on the Peninsula, and attend regional activities on average 1-2 times/week. Otherwise, you can remotely work as needed or desired

• Travel: Ability to travel throughout the Bay Area; periodic travel to other locations in the country for full organizational retreats

• Evening and weekend hours periodically required 

• Frequent travel between local sites is required so employees should have their own vehicle for transportation (valid proof of insurance required). Mileage for work-related travel beyond the normal commute will be reimbursed at the stipulated IRS rate.

• Occasional travel is required during the year for college tours and visits to BUILD sites and gatherings nationally.

Skills and Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree required, or transferable life experience; 4+ years professional experience

• Proven success in recruiting, managing, and stewarding volunteers

• 5+ years’ professional experience in successfully developing and implementing adult volunteer programs serving under-resourced communities; experience with high school students  a plus

• Proven success in managing single day volunteer events

• Ability to effectively communicate to and gain buy-in from a broad and diverse set of external constituents, including corporate employees and executives and community-based organization leaders

• Familiarity with Salesforce or other CRM databases

Successful candidates will demonstrate the following competencies through a combination of previous education/work experiences: 

BUILD’s Core Values:

• Keep Students at the Center - As BUILDers, we hold an unwavering passionate commitment and belief in the power and potential of youth. Our organization exists to serve students. We seize each opportunity to contribute to the foundation of knowledge, skills, and networks from which students can build extraordinary lives. Our operating principles and decisions focus on what is in the best interest of our students.

• Bring the Spark - As BUILDers, we excel in the entrepreneurial Spark Skills that we teach our students - Communication, Collaboration, Problem Solving, Innovation, Grit and Self-Management. We communicate through transparent and honest dialogue. We cherish teamwork, tenacity, and thinking outside the box. We demonstrate a relentless pursuit of excellence and approach work with a positive can do attitude. When we bring the spark we achieve great things together, and we model the way for our students.

• Bridge Communities - As BUILDers, we develop and foster relationships in service of creating access and opportunities for our students, staff, and stakeholders. We value all who come to the table as partners to maximize our collective impact. By connecting the communities in which we work, we build empathy, equity, and social capital.

• Promote Diversity and Social Action - As BUILDers, we understand that Diversity, Equity and Inclusion matters, but what matters even more is Action. We strive to create equity of voice, access, influence and power across lines of difference – both in and beyond BUILD, specifically for groups that have been historically denied social and economic justice. If we are not part of the solution, then we are part of the problem. We welcome, celebrate, and embrace the unique expressions and contributions of us all – our backgrounds, race, ethnicity, gender, language, sexual orientation, and social class.

Role Specific Competencies:

• Customer Service Orientation—anticipate and respond promptly and professionally to requests and needs from all key stakeholders and set clear expectations while taking other perspectives into account. 

• Leadership: Influence, inspire, guide, and direct a project or group of people towards a defined vision or goal.

• Project Management—identifies and thinks through all necessary steps of a project, sets appropriate deadlines, moves seamlessly between prioritized tasks, identifies required participants and holds self and others accountable to outcomes and deadlines

• Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis—reviews quantitative and/or qualitative data sets in order to recognize patterns, identifies additional information or data needed, and draws conclusions

• Strategic Thinking—takes into account and analyzes various points of view and data to form a perspective appropriate to a particular context; includes identifying or anticipating problems and implementing solutions

Compensation:

The salary for the Community Engagement Manager ranges from $65-75k in accordance with BUILD’s equity focused salary bands.  BUILD offers a competitive benefits package for eligible employees.  This includes employer paid medical, dental & vision coverage, flexible spending accounts (FSA), employer paid life insurance, and a 403(b) plan with match.  In addition, eligible BUILD employees qualify for generous vacation, sick, paid Federal holidays, and December 24 through January 1 off, a flexible work environment, professional development and additional stipends for stretch projects.

Application Instructions:

To apply for this position, please submit a cover letter and resume.  BUILD is an Equal Opportunity Employer and encourages candidates of all backgrounds to apply for this position.