Chief Talent Placement Officer

Who We Are

The Academy Group (AG) is a mission-driven social enterprise that leverages earned revenue from financial investments to create world-class opportunities for young people from the nation’s most resilient communities. We demonstrate the promise of a new model for identifying, developing, and sustaining a diverse national pipeline of future leaders, employers, and change agents.

Our mission is simple and urgent: to prepare Black and Brown young people from resilient communities to build wealth for themselves and their communities as an act of justice and self-determination. Talent is ubiquitous. Opportunity is not. We exist to close that gap.

The Role

The Academy Group seeks a Chief Talent Placement Officer (CTO) to lead our national efforts to prepare and place AG members (7th grade through college) and Amplify Talent (justice-impacted adults) into wealth-building, career-track roles across the country.

This leader will architect the bridge between AG’s college and career development ecosystem and real economic outcomes — driving employer engagement, placement strategy, and alumni persistence across industries that shape generational wealth.

This role serves as a key driver of AG’s Five-Year Strategic Framework, with a particular focus on strong first jobs, selective career access, digital platform integration, and justice-impacted Talent pathways.

Duties and Responsibilities 

• Design and lead national placement strategy to achieve at least 200 strong first job placements annually by FY30 and expand wealth-building career pathways aligned to AG’s strategic goals.
• Center AG’s core values of justice, excellence, and determination by modeling our norms of accountability, courage, growth, and zeal in all Talent Placement work.
• Develop and maintain corporate, public, and nonprofit partnerships that generate selective, high-earning career tracks in consulting, finance, tech, and entrepreneurship.
• Screen and co-design with employers to ensure inclusive, anti-racist, advancement-minded environments that retain and promote AG members and Talent.
• Lead a team of 8–10 staff, including four directors, to deliver exceptional placement, employer partnership, and career preparation outcomes.
• Oversee the Career Preparation and Internship Program for Black and Brown young people from resilient communities, integrating labor market insights to shape curriculum and partner strategy.
• Collaborate closely with AG’s Digital Platform Team to align virtual tools, advising content, and employer pipelines with placement objectives and expand access to career resources nationwide.
• Partner with Amplify to move justice-impacted Talent into career-track roles and ownership pathways exceeding $60K annual earnings.
• Build and oversee an alumni coaching and tracking strategy to ensure persistence, advancement, and ongoing wealth-building beyond the first job.
• Use disaggregated data (race, gender, first-gen status, resilient community, justice involvement) to monitor and close placement and advancement gaps, not just track aggregate numbers.
• Develop and deliver employer-facing support — coaching, tools, and expectation-setting — to help partners retain and elevate AG Talent.
• Serve as a member of the National Leadership Team, shaping organization-wide strategy and growth.
• Manage budgets, resources, and fiscal accountability for placement operations and staff.
• Ensure compliance and quality standards across regional and national placement programs.
   

Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s preferred.
• 10 years of leadership experience in talent acquisition, workforce development, or employer relations.
• Successful experience serving Black and Latino students and communities.
• Proven record in building and scaling pipelines that lead to strong employment and wealth-building outcomes.
• Experience managing internship programs and employer partnerships across multiple sectors.
   

Core Competencies

• Deep understanding of current trends in talent placement, equity in employment, and workforce innovation.
• Exceptional strategic planning, communication, and partnership skills.
• Demonstrated history of advancing racial and economic justice in talent pipelines — including challenging inequitable practices in partner organizations when necessary.
• Strong analytical capacity to leverage data for equity-driven decision-making.
• Entrepreneurial spirit and capacity to thrive in a dynamic, evolving environment.
• Passion, integrity, idealism, positive attitude, and mission focus.
   

Location

Preferred location: Chicago, IL. Remote candidates considered provided willingness for frequent travel to Chicago and regional sites.

Compensation and Benefits

The Academy Group offers a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, vision, and 401(k) coverage. The position pay range is $160,000 - $210,000.

Salary : $160,000 - $210,000