POSITION SUMMARY:
Under the supervision of the Kerasotes Branch Director, the Association Youth Development Director is responsible for all aspects of youth development for multiple sites including overall program quality and delivery, budget management, program billing, and supervision of assigned staff. Specific programs include before and after school programs, summer camps, family programming, child watch, middle school drop in, and the development of new programs to meet the needs of our community. The Association Youth Development Director is also responsible for the management of the Wa-Kon-Tah camp property. The incumbent understands character development to be the guiding principle of the YMCA and personally exhibits a commitment to that goal in all YMCA operations.
OUR CULTURE:
Our mission and core values are brought to life by our culture. In the Y, we strive to live our cause of strengthening communities with purpose and intentionality every day. We are welcoming: we are open to all. We are a place where you can belong and become. We are genuine: we value you and embrace your individuality. We are hopeful: we believe in you and your potential to become a catalyst in the world. We are nurturing we support you in your journey to develop your full potential. We are determined: above all else, we are on a relentless quest to make our community stronger beginning with you.
CUSTOMER SERVICE EXPECTATIONS:
- Display a friendly, helpful, and positive disposition.
- Provide customer service that is thorough, timely, organized, and accurate.
- Help ensure the Y is meeting member and participant needs by utilizing good listening skills, attentiveness, objectivity, and patience in all situations.
- Place members and participants as the first and highest priority showing kindness and compassion at all times.
- Demonstrates the Y core values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility through all daily activities and responsibilities
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
Overarching Goal: Through their planning, actions and daily work creates and fosters a welcoming environment for all persons of all backgrounds and abilities and has a positive, nurturing relationships with members, program participants and staff, while building cooperative relationships with community organizations and program partners. Promotes and supports the potential of all and facilitates peer-to-peer connections as part of the overall YMCA experience.
- Directs and supervises programs to meet the needs of the community and fulfill YMCA objectives.
- Manages direct reports; includes part time and full-time managers.
- Recruits, hire, train and evaluate leaders in the Department through effective systems of training, coaching, supervision, one-on-one meetings and collecting employee and member feedback. Reviews and evaluates staff performance. Develops strategies to motivate staff and achieve goals.
- Establishes new program activities and expands programming within the community in accordance with strategic and operating plans.
- Hold regularly scheduled agenda-based meetings with the staff to collaborate and provide guidance in developing an environment and programs consistent with the Y mission that serve the needs of membership and the community. These should be held monthly, by session or season as applicable.
- Develop long-term goals for the Department and provide steps and resources to reach those goals.
- Oversees all program billing processes; supports the youth development billing coordinator. Maintain records for state and local subsidy programs and requirements.
- Promotes program enrollment. Coordinates with our marketing team to maximize enrollments.
- Develops and maintains collaborative relationships with community organizations and schools.
- Develops and monitors program budget to meet fiscal objectives.
- Prepares reports/audits and effectively present findings to administration, public groups and/or the Board of Directors.
- Lead assigned aspects of the annual fundraising campaign and engages in collaborative relationships with community organizations to strengthen support and build community.
- Participates in management team staff meetings and/or related meetings. Attends and leads as assigned association and professional development meetings as required.
- Models relationship-building skills in all interactions. Responds to all member and community inquiries and complaints in timely manner.
- Monitors payroll for all direct reports.
- Manage upkeep of YMCA van and bus, as well as transportation of participants on the van and bus.
- Oversee all grant-based food programs for our youth development programs.
- Manage upkeep of Wa-Kon-Tah property.
- Other duties as assigned.
CAUSE-DRIVEN LEADERSHIP DESIGNATION: MULTI-TEAM LEADER
Description: Someone who leads multiple teams, manages complex projects, or provides tactical leadership to operations.
Disciplines: a broad grouping of competencies focused on a critical area that defines a cause-driven leaders ability to advance the work of the Y.
Competency: Clusters of observable skills and behaviors needed to be successful within an organization or role.
Key Leadership competencies for this position:
- Engaging Community
- Program/Project Management
- Fiscal Management
Multi-Team Leader Discipline, Competencies and Behavioral Indicators
Discipline
Advancing Our Mission & Cause: Provide visionary leadership to the organization and to ensure that all resources are mobilized to adapt to new challenges and needs in the community.
Competencies
Change Leadership: Facilitates, co-creates, and implements equitable change for the good of the organization and/or community.
Behavioral Indicators
Initiates changes to improve the Y, meet community needs, and maximize impact.
Creates a sense of urgency to support change initiatives.
Manages implementation of change by understanding and addressing the impact of change on cultures, systems, and people.
Aligns time and resources to allow new approaches to catch on, evolve, and thrive.
Plans for resistance as part of the change process and develops strategies to help adapt and accept change initiatives.
Engaging Community: Builds bridges with others in the community to ensure the Ys work is community-focused and welcoming of all, providing community benefit.
Behavioral Indicators
Stewards the Y cause, promoting and protecting the brand and reputation as a global, inclusive organization within the community.
Effectively communicates community benefit and the Ys impact for all stakeholders (e.g., staff, volunteers, members, community leaders).
Builds bridges within the community so that all segments of society have access to the Y.
Philanthropy: Secures resources and support to advance the Ys work.
Behavioral Indicators
Engages staff, volunteers, and members in fundraising activities and strategies.
Organizes philanthropic activity and strategies to successfully raise necessary funds.
Reports the sources, uses, and management of donated funds to constituents in order to preserve and enhance confidence in the organization.
Volunteerism: Engages volunteers and promotes social responsibility at all levels of the organization.
Behavioral Indicators
Maintains diverse advisory councils that actively support the Ys goals and strategic plans.
Clarifies and reinforces the division of roles and responsibilities between corporate boards, management or advisory boards, staff, and general volunteers.
Discipline
Building Relationships: Connect people to the Ys cause by developing inclusive relationships, partnerships, and collaborations so that Ys can co-create solutions to pressing social needs.
Competencies
Collaboration: Creates sustainable relationships within the Y and with other organizations in service to the community.
Behavioral Indicators
Builds strong, strategic relationships with current and prospective partners inside and outside the Y.
Recruits key organizational partners with diverse perspectives and talents to better meet community needs and identified critical social issues.
Engages in collaborations with openness and desire to share leadership.
Creates processes to identify and manage collaborations effectively.
Communication & Influence Listens and expresses self effectively and, in a way, that engages, inspires, and builds commitment to the Ys cause.
Behavioral Indicators
Uses effective and persuasive communication skills to represent the Y as a thought leader in the community.
Proactively communicates during critical and important situations, such as crisis or disaster situations.
Gets things done through others by effectively reading and interpreting the culture, decisions, networks, and politics in the organization.
Inclusion: Values all people for their unique talents and takes an active role in promoting practices that support diversity, inclusion, and global work, as well as cultural competence.
Behavioral Indicators
Leads efforts that deepen the Ys connections to underserved communities and the global Y movement.
Discipline
Leading Operations: Ensure relevance, effectiveness, and sustainability of the organization so that we can continue to fulfill our promise to the community.
Competencies
Critical Thinking & Decision Making: Makes informed decisions based on logic, data, and sound judgment.
Behavioral Indicators
Challenges conventional thinking to improve processes or experiences.
Navigates differing stakeholder perspectives or ambiguous information when making decisions.
Fiscal Management: Manages the Ys resources responsibly and sustains the Ys nonprofit business model.
Behavioral Indicators
Manages the budgeting process so that resources are devoted to top priorities and strategic objectives.
Institutes sound accounting procedures, investment policies, and financial controls.
Uses data to analyze financial trends and forecast future financial progress for the organization.
Functional Expertise: Executes superior technical skills for the role.
Behavioral Indicators
Has the functional and technical knowledge and skills to do the job at a high level of accomplishment.
Uses best practices, guidelines, and industry standards as a framework to improve performance.
Demonstrates up-to-date knowledge and skills in the technology associated with the job.
Serves with purpose and passion.
Innovation: Creates and implements new and relevant approaches and activities that improve and expand the Ys work and impact in the community.
Behavioral Indicators
Demonstrates courageous and intelligent risk taking with awareness of societal, economic, and political issues and their impact on the strategic direction of the organization.
Rewards and recognizes new and relevant ideas and approaches even if not successful.
Program/Project Management
Program/Project Management: Ensures program or project goals are met and intended impact occurs.
Behavioral Indicators
Designs practices, processes, and procedures for strong project management (e.g., project charter, risk mitigation).
Organizes people and activities for efficiencies and effectiveness.
Measures progress against strategic goals and ensures continuous improvement.
Continually evaluates progress, impact, and outcomes; makes process improvements and adjustments as needed.
Discipline
Developing & Inspiring People: Support the holistic development of self and others so that everyone can embrace the Ys cause, sustain the Ys culture, and inspire others to take individual and collective action to further our impact.
Competencies
Developing Self & Others: Develops self and supports others (e.g., staff, volunteers, members, program participants), both formally and informally, to achieve their highest potential.
Behavioral Indicators
Holds others accountable for equitable staff hiring, promotion, and development.
Creates a learning environment that supports and promotes the acquisition, application, and sharing of new knowledge.
Guides others on how to strengthen knowledge, skills, and competencies that improve organizational performance.
Develops the feedback and coaching skills of others.
Engages in and champions ongoing feedback, coaching, and opportunities for
informal and formal learning at all levels.
Emotional Maturity: Demonstrates ability to understand and manage emotions effectively in all situations.
Behavioral Indicators
Creates an environment of trust and respect by empowering others and sharing authority.
QUALIFICATIONS:
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
- A Bachelors Degree from an accredited university preferred
- 3-5 years required related experience with prior success in: managing staff, customer service, education, recreation, camp
- Must have proven success in program management, fiscal management, fundraising, staff development and community collaboration and enjoy a high degree of public contact.
- Must have the ability to make sound, independent decisions.
- Must be at least 21 years of age.
- YMCA Multi-Team Leader Certification preferred, or the willingness to obtain within an agreed upon timeline.
- Proficient in Microsoft Office products.
- Experience working in diverse communities preferred.
- Embrace diversity and inclusion as integral to our YMCA culture.
- Highly motivated, self-starter with a willingness to learn and become familiar with health and wellness.
- Have leadership competencies in the identified key areas
- Ability to learn quickly.
- Ability to work with integrity, discretion, and a professional approach.
- Prefer knowledge of, and previous experience with, diverse populations (language, culture, race, physical ability, sexual orientation, etc.).
- Ability to complete all required trainings within 60 days of employment, including but not limited to CPR, first aid, Living Our Cause, DCFS Mandated Report, IL Gateway Registry Modules and to maintain these certifications as current as outlined by regulations or requirements.
WORK ENVIRONMENT & PHYSICAL DEMANDS:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
- Ability to speak concisely and effectively communicate. Be able to communicate using a computer and phone/smart device.
- The employee frequently is required to sit and reach and must be able to move around the work environment.
- Visual and auditory ability to respond to critical situations ability to act swiftly in an emergency.
Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, and the ability to adjust.
- May require physical effort while reaching with hands and arms, stooping, kneeling, crouching, standing, walking, balancing, bending, leaning, kneeling, walking, and climbing.
- Specifically,
- Walking up and down stairs multiple times a day.
- Carrying supplies to and from work locations, normally lifting less than 25lbs.
- The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.
SAFETY & COMPLIANCE
Child Abuse Policies & Prevention
The YMCA enforces its policies and practices to prevent child abuse.
Allegations or suspicions of child abuse are taken very seriously at the YMCA and will be reported to the proper authorities for investigation. We have abuse reporting procedures, there are unscheduled visits from supervisors, we have an open door for parents, and we have a code of conduct for staff. We minimize opportunities for abuse to occur and we talk with children about personal safety and touching limits. We screen carefully to prevent abusers from being hired. We provide child abuse prevention training to staff including how to conduct yourself for safe practices and termination of employment for employees who fail to report suspicion or failure to follow policies.
Employees who failure to support, actively engage in prevention and be forthcoming about concerns or violations of this policy will be subject to discipline, up to and including immediate termination of employment.
Background Check: A background check, criminal, work, and reference checks, will be required of any employee at hire and may be repeated during the course of their employment. A barred report, negative report or discovery of false information will result in immediate termination.
Alert & Focused: Use of illegal drugs, alcohol, prescribed or over the counter medications and lack of sleep can impact a persons ability to be alert and focused while on duty. Used illegally or inappropriately while off duty may affect employment status. Responsibility, respect, caring, and honesty are core values of the YMCA. Employees involved in any injury found to be work related may be required to submit for a screening for drug and alcohol use. Suspicious behaviors observed while working or in the YMCA or at a YMCA program where the employee would be perceived by others as an employee may also be subject to alcohol and drug screening. Positive results of a drug or alcohol screening will result in termination of employment. Behaviors which are perceived to be unbecoming a YMCA employee may be subject to discipline up to and including immediate termination of employment.
