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Director, Sr Digital

This job is no longer available

Washington, D.C., USA
Full-time

The National Geographic Society is a non-profit organization that uses the power of science, exploration, education, and storytelling to illuminate and protect the wonder of our world. The Senior Director of Digital will play a critical role in bringing this vision to life by leading the digital organization in support of the programmatic, marketing, communications and brand work at the Society.

Working with stakeholders and other functions across the Society, Digital builds and implements world-class web-based software to serve our constituents, including Explorers, Educators and Students, and key influencers (e.g. foundations, policymakers, donors, etc). These products include the NGS website and associated CMS, web-based applications that serve a specific constituent audience, online platforms such as the NGS community platform and NGS learning platform, and mobile and voice-activated applications.

The Senior Director leads a practical, results-driven and customer-focused team with a mature approach to building and delivering great digital software that meets the programmatic needs of the Society. This integrated digital organization consists of requirements definition, software development, UX/UI design as well as software maintenance and support. The Senior Director ensures that all solutions are delivered on-time and on-budget, and meet the requirements defined with the direct business stakeholders.

The Senior Director is also responsible for fostering a strong product culture within the Digital team that values the importance of continuous innovation and that understands that the best solutions are built by a cross-functional team of experts that collaborate closely with the target users and business stakeholders.

As a non-profit, the National Geographic Society is cost-conscious and focuses on maximizing the impact of its investments. The Senior Director provides assistance by guiding the Digital team and business owners on how to validate assumptions at low cost before beginning development.

Areas of Responsibility: 
  • Leadership. Responsible for leading and managing a best-in-class cross-functional digital team comprised of product managers, designers, and developers. (10%)
  • Solutioning. Oversee and assist product managers and development teams to identify and translate functional and non-functional requirements into user stories needed by engineering, QA, and operational staff. Guide selection of the right solution to affect the business owner’s required outcome, ranging from straightforward webpages to interactive digital experiences to specific software products. (25%)
  • Software Development. Supervise on-shore and off-shore software development teams that deliver and enhance products and digital experiences. (20%)
  • Collaboration. Collaborate with business owners, stakeholders and the NGS Technology team to discover and align on the right digital expression of the work, tied to other systems and processes as applicable. (15%)
  • Design and User Experience. Oversee the Design team that provides User Experience (UX) and User Interface (UI) research, design and testing for NGS digital products. (15%)
  • Product Optimization. Ensure the organization is informed by insights and optimized for overall success in collaboration with the Measurement, Evaluation, and Research (MER) team (10%)
  • Budget. Responsible for overseeing the budget for the Digital team. (5%)
Educational Background: 
Bachelor's degree or equivalent in Computer Science, Information Technology or Information Systems Management, Digital/Interactive Design, or similar field desired but not required.
Skills/Experience: 
  • 8+ years of experience building enterprise-grade software with direct experience in either software engineering or software product management.
  • At least 5 or more years of management experience leading an integrated product development organization that consists of product management, design, and engineering.
  • Related education and experience will be considered.
  • A results-oriented team leader with demonstrated ability to build cross-organizational relationships and to work collaboratively with others. 
  • A strong background in software product development and leadership with experience directing and mentoring product managers.
  • A track record of building and going to market with successful software (and likely a few misses too).
  • Experience working with business owners to develop a deep understanding of customer needs and to explain how technology can be applied to support business goals.
  • Data-driven decision-maker that has experience with web software instrumentation as well as performing analysis using user analytics tools like Google Analytics.
  • Capable of managing budgets
  • Experience leading teams in how to properly devise and execute tests to validate assumptions before investing in large-scale software and product development.
  • Sufficient technical depth that enables you to earn the respect of and to lead world-class engineers.
  • Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to produce clear, concise, and compelling communication.
  • Experience with agile and iterative development methodologies such as Scrum.
Compensation/Benefits: 

National Geographic's headquarters is located in the heart of Washington, D.C. In addition to a unique and dynamic work environment, National Geographic offers its employees a comprehensive benefits package, including health and dental benefits, generous vacation and leave time, a 401(k) plan, and flexible work options. National Geographic is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Organization Info

National Geographic Society

Overview
Headquarters: 
Washington, DC, United States
Founded: 
1938
About Us
Mission: 

The National Geographic Society was founded in 1888 with a mission to "increase and diffuse geographic knowledge." As one of the world's largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations, the Society works to inspire people to care about the planet.

Listing Stats

Post Date: 
Oct 27 2019
Active Until: 
Nov 27 2019
Hiring Organization: 
National Geographic Society
industry: 
Nonprofit