Director, Evidence for Outcomes

Job Title: Director, Evidence for Outcomes

Reports to: Senior Director

Salary: $130,000 - $140,000

Role Type: Full Time

Location: Boston, hybrid. Weekly in-office attendance is required.

FLSA Status: Exempt

POSITION SUMMARY

At a pivotal moment for the team, we are seeking a people-centered, operationally strong, & entrepreneurial leader who can steward complex client work, strengthen internal systems, & help evolve our service delivery model, particularly through the thoughtful integration of digital tools that enhance learning, insight generation, & impact.

The Director, Evidence for Outcomes will be responsible for delivering client engagements, business development & practice, & staff management to ensure excellence for the nonprofits & funders we serve. Reporting to the Senior Director, the Director will be responsible for leading successful client engagements through extraordinary client relations, delivering high quality work on time & within budget, & managing a team of staff & contractors to deliver against these goals.

As a leader on the Evidence for Outcomes team, this role is critical to advancing Project Evident’s mission to help funders & nonprofits better plan, implement measurement, evaluation, & learning (MEL) strategy in service of better, more meaningful & equitable outcomes. The Director will oversee a portfolio of client engagements spanning direct service nonprofit organizations & foundations. This leader will manage & mentor a team of Associate Directors & Associates delivering high-quality, capacity-building support across diverse projects, ensuring both strong execution & a cohesive team culture. In addition, the Director will contribute to Project Evident’s thought leadership by leading research, developing field-facing tools & frameworks, & producing high-quality, shareable content that advances evidence-building practice across the sector.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES

Project & Client Relationship Management (70%)

• Accurately scope engagements & lead project teams, ensuring strong project management, clear client communication, effective facilitation, & alignment across concurrent projects.
• Lead & manage critical aspects of 1:1 & 1:some engagements: creating & managing project plans; facilitating learning & discussion, leveraging full team & consultant expertise; deploying existing tools, resources, & frameworks to ensure effective content; & providing actionable feedback to client & project team members.
• Build, manage, & sustain strong relationships with clients working across the education & workforce sectors. Strong people & facilitation skills are a must. Serve as primary relationship manager for engagements, ensuring on-time, on-budget, high-quality (NPS score >.70) delivery.
• Lead & steward engagements with nonprofits & philanthropic clients focused on building or strengthening evidence & MEL functions, serving as a trusted advisor to leadership & translating strategy into practical systems, tools, & implementation supports.
• Develop content for in-person & virtual meetings/working sessions, training sessions, &/or workshops or platforms that is clear & actionable & aligned with existing practices.
• Collaborate with colleagues to develop appropriate tools to facilitate efficient & effective delivery of services & build field knowledge. 
• Drive quality control, including reviewing, editing, & providing meaningful & actionable feedback on deliverables.
• Oversee research & analytical components of engagements, ensuring rigorous design, clear synthesis of findings, & production of high-quality reports & publications for client & field audiences.

Business Development (15%)

• Build & maintain a robust pipeline of prospective clients & partners—including funders, policymakers, education & workforce leaders, nonprofits, & strategic collaborators—sufficient to meet annual revenue goals & support long-term practice sustainability.
• Independently secure new engagements & resources aligned with individual & team revenue targets, including leading or supporting proposal development, grant submissions, & scope development through to close.
• Represent Project Evident at conferences, convenings, & external forums to strengthen brand presence, cultivate strategic partnerships, & generate new business opportunities.

Practice Leadership (15%)

• Identify & complete tasks that strengthen Evidence for Outcomes practice & drive practice efficiencies through process design, accountability management, & internal learning.
• Works with the team & consultants to codify tools & product innovations to support repeat execution across multiple engagements. Develops internal training resources to advance team skills & build consistency.
• Attract, develop, coach, supervise, & retain high-performing team members, give & receive actionable & productive feedback, & empower others to elevate their level of responsibility, span of control, & performance. Will follow all Project Evident people processes effectively & on time.
• Contribute to Project Evident’s thought leadership by producing field-facing content (e.g., reports, tools, frameworks, briefs), leading or contributing to research initiatives, & representing the organization in sector conversations to advance evidence-building practice.
• Embody Project Evident’s values & performance behaviors to help build & strengthen a culture of belonging & accountability. 
• Contribute to strategy development & implementation for Project Evident overall & the Evidence for Outcomes team.
• Actively contribute to Project Evident’s management team.

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE

Minimum Requirements: 

• Bachelor’s degree required; master’s degree preferred.
• 10 years of experience in education, workforce development, philanthropy, nonprofit leadership, evaluation, strategy consulting, or related fields, including:
• 4-6 years of consulting/client services experience with external stakeholders. 
• Demonstrated success selling & leading complex, multi-client engagements with executive-level stakeholders in measurement, evaluation, & learning (MEL), evidence building, strategy development, or organizational capacity building.
• 5–7 years of people management experience, including managing & developing managers, in a consulting practice context that requires systems improvement, innovating on service delivery models, preferably with technology.
• Ability to serve as a collaborative partner across teams within the department & across the organization while leveraging the senior director to expand the department. 

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, & ABILITIES

We are also looking for candidates who have demonstrated experience: 

• Managing clients & client projects, including working effectively with multiple stakeholders who may have evolving priorities.
• Managing projects, processes, & teams & proven ability to work under tight timelines, accurately assess problems, & develop solutions.
• Creating & effectively executing work plans, processes, & documentation that helps to streamline & codify existing practices.
• Developing/designing curriculum/workshop content & providing successful training sessions, coaching, & implementation support.
• Working independently & collaboratively in a fast-paced environment on multiple projects, effectively prioritizing time & tasks. 
• Translating data & evidence into action & sharing the information in an understandable & actionable manner with external stakeholders, which requires an understanding of evidence-based practices.
• Attracting, developing, supervising, coaching, retaining high-performance team members, giving & receiving actionable & productive feedback, & empowering others to elevate their level of responsibility, span of control, & performance.

Candidates should also have:

• Demonstrated ability to serve as a trusted advisor to executive-level stakeholders (e.g., foundation leadership, nonprofit CEOs, senior policymakers), translating strategy into practical systems & organizational action.
• Demonstrated ability to work both independently & collaboratively on multiple projects in a fast-paced environment.
• Proven ability to work under tight timelines, accurately assess problems, & develop solutions; ability to effectively prioritize time & tasks.
• Experience working effectively with multiple stakeholders who may have evolving priorities.
• Comfort with ambiguity & ability to respond adeptly to rapidly changing priorities, comfortable in an entrepreneurial environment with fast deadlines.
• Problem solver & active listener who seeks clarification, asks questions, & surfaces solutions. 
• Ability to read & interpret data visualizations.
• Self-starter attitude to independently research & consolidate information, including technical documentation/policy.
• Excellent oral & written communication skills, with a proven ability to write clear & concise memos.
• Commitment to a high-performance culture, participation in giving & receiving feedback, & belief in continuous self-improvement.
• Interest in the social & education sectors. Knowledge of evidence-based policy/practice, nonprofit evaluation, & performance management disciplines is a plus.
• High degree of proficiency with Google, Microsoft, Asana, SalesForce.
• Familiarity with group collaboration tools (Slack, Google Drive, Zoom) or willingness to learn.
• Impeccable attention to detail & extremely high standards for accuracy.
• Proficient in using technology & curious about learning new systems.
• Comfortable in a virtual, distributed environment with fast deadlines.
• Experience working with diverse communities & a deep commitment to learning, performance, racial equity, & building a culture of belonging. Excellent oral & written communication skills, with a proven ability to write & copy-edit clear & concise narratives & presentations.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

• Ability to work with a virtual team.
• Expected to work 40-50 hours per week, but could fluctuate. Core availability between 10:00-4:00(ET). 
• Travel is required to meet client & organizational needs.
• Hybrid position with regular presence in Boston.