Career Stage: Director

Organizational Summary

Upstream USA is a fast-growing, national nonprofit working to expand opportunity by reducing unplanned pregnancy across the U.S. Upstream partners with states to provide training and technical assistance to health centers, increasing equitable access to the full range of contraceptive options. Our transformative approach empowers patients to decide when and if they want to become pregnant, a critical step towards improving outcomes for parents and children.

Upstream is growing rapidly and is on track to achieve nationwide impact. After launching our first statewide initiative in Delaware in 2014, we have since launched projects in Washington state, Massachusetts, North Carolina and Rhode Island. By 2023, Upstream will have partnered with health centers that serve over one million women of reproductive age annually across these states.

Upstream is funded primarily through philanthropic individuals and foundations, and does not accept funding from pharmaceutical companies. Upstream’s budget has grown from $1.7 million just four years ago to approximately $51 million in 2021. Upstream’s work has also garnered attention from many leading publications including The New York Times, Washington Post, The Atlantic, CNN, Vox, Forbes, and Marie Claire.

Position Summary

Upstream is seeking an accomplished Learning & Development leader with deep expertise in creating and executing end-to-end scalable programs for the training and development of employees at all levels of an organization. Reporting to our Chief Program Officer, the Director of Learning and Development (DoL+D) is responsible for developing and implementing the core training program for program implementation staff to ensure they have the necessary knowledge and skills to perform their jobs. The successful candidate will be responsible for developing and continually improving best in class, innovative learning programs that enable the retention, attraction and success of exceptional talent.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Embrace a rapid development and just-in-time approach to learning, leveraging bite-sized bursts of learning to accelerate adoption and improve performance, on balance with more long term formal learning strategies and processes.
• Build overall L + D strategy for implementation staff, leveraging multiple modalities and bichronous learning.
• Design and implement effective on-boarding plans for implementation staff that blends necessary didactic content and on-the-job (OTJ) experience.
• Design and implement effective ongoing learning opportunities for program staff throughout career in implementation
• Design and implement training to non-implementation staff to ensure they understand program fundamentals to the degree that is necessary to their job function (example, providing basic training to Go-To-Market (GTM) team on how to describe program elements) ; Partner across multiple functions to ensure content aligns with approach and appropriate Subject Matter Expert (SME) leveraged to design curriculum.
• Continue to assess employees’ training needs in relation to the organization’s goals, including conducting focus groups with managers, supervisors, and line staff. Revise training resources to meet the existing and emerging training needs of the workforce.
• Develops the infrastructure for all learning and development programs by establishing standardized methods and procedures for delivery, evaluation, measurement, and reporting.
• Develop and maintain organizational communication strategies to inform employees of training and development events and resources.
• Build a small but high-performing learning & development team aligned with the business that delivers innovative learning programs and content; lead a team that inspires an organization-wide culture of learning, growth and belonging.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Chief Program Officer.

Required Education, Experience, Knowledge, Skills and Ability:

• 8-10 years of experience in training, instructional design, or organizational development; experience in health care and/or contraceptive care preferred.
• Workplace based training and education experience is a must, including knowledge of organizational development practices and ability to use knowledge and skills to plan effective organizational interventions
• Passionate about cultivating talent and their ability to achieve greatness; deep knowledge of how people learn/change behaviors
• Knowledge of Adult Learning Principles and the effectiveness of instructing methods such as classroom training, simulations, demonstrations, on-the-job training, meetings, conferences, coaching sessions, peer learning forums, workshops and online learning tools; Ability to tailor approaches to nuances of business with offices across the country.
• Strong and engaging leader that can develop and motivate staff; a culture carrier of the highest caliber
• Internal representative and relationship builder; high emotional intelligence; Establish credibility throughout the organization as an effective listener and problem solver
• Superior communication skills, excellent verbal capacity and strong writing skills; a master facilitator
• Delights in building highly impactful, innovative and engaging learning experiences; possesses the convictions and ability to bring others along on the journey.
• Nimble, collaborative, and results-oriented servant leader
• Demonstrates commitment to Upstream core values and EDI goals; mission-driven and aligned
• Proficiency with Office and Google Suite
• Familiarity with Docebo or other LMS platforms
• Familiarity with Rise360 and Storyline or other eLearning content tools
• Able to attend work related in-person meetings and functions as needed (Upstream employees are required to be fully vaccinated to attend in-person work-related activities.  Reasonable Accommodations will be made for individuals with a sincerely held religious belief or disability who are not vaccinated)
• In our hybrid work environments, there is a basic expectation that our Upstreamers will ensure that their work from home setups will have reliable access to phone and Internet to ensure connectivity to their teams.
• At Upstream we gather for moments that matter for training, teaming and connection. Our teams come together for occasional in person meetings and organizational retreats. As part of our hybrid work practices, this travel expectation will be applicable for all Upstreamers, even those based remotely. 

Upstream Benefits

Upstream USA offers a comprehensive benefit package including medical, dental, vision, life insurance, long and short term disability, 401K with a match, generous vacation, personal, sick and holiday time off, parental leave, professional development and a fitness and cell phone allowance for all full time employees and part time employees who work a minimum of 24 hours per week.  

Upstream Careers

At Upstream, we embrace diversity. We nurture it and we thrive on it because it benefits our organization, our partners, and our community. Our goal is to attract, develop and retain exceptional people, and to creating a work environment that is dynamic, rewarding and enables each of us to realize our potential.  Upstream is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, genetic information, gender identity or Veteran status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know. Learn more  about working at Upstream, our values, and our commitment to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. Upstream USA participates in E-Verify.

Upstream Headquarters:

2 Oliver Street, Suite 402, Boston, MA 02109

Be advised that we do not ever conduct hiring interviews via text or email. Please protect yourself by learning more about our hiring practices and common red flags to look out for.