Chief Executive Officer for the Online Learning Consortium

The Online Learning Consortium is looking for a dynamic visionary leader to build upon and advance its established leadership role in online and blended education. For over twenty years, the OLC has been the premier professional association in online and blended education across the higher education community. Originally funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, OLC (formerly Sloan-C) is now a non-profit, 501 (c) (3), member-sustained organization. The OLC’s primary role is to lead higher education in meeting learner needs for affordable access, quality innovations, and teaching and learning excellence.

OLC helps higher education institutions and other learning organizations continually improve quality, scale, and breadth of their online and blended programs according to their own distinctive missions, so that education will become embedded in everyday life, accessible and affordable for anyone, anywhere, at any time, in a wide variety of disciplines. OLC supports communities of practice and the collaborative sharing of knowledge and effective practices to improve online, blended and digital education in learning effectiveness, access, affordability for learners and providers, and student and faculty satisfaction.

The OLC hosts face-to-face and virtual conferences, professional development workshops, leadership programs and symposia to help implement and improve online programs; publishes OLC Today, the Online Learning Journal (OLJ), maintains an effective practices database; conducts research and forums to inform academic, government and private sector audiences; and provides speakers and consultants to help institutions develop their online, blended and digital learning strategic initiatives. The OLC also offers an awards program to demonstrate, recognize, and share expertise in the field.

In addition, OLC is known for its expertise and knowledge in the field by generating products, services and standards for the online learning industry, and seeks to assist members in collaborative educational ventures. OLC members include (1) private and public universities and colleges, community colleges and other accredited course and degree providers, and (2) K-12 institutions; (3) non-profit associations; and (4) organizations, companies, and suppliers of services, equipment, and tools in the online learning industry.

Job Description

Most importantly, the incumbent will set, lead and guide the vision and strategic directions for OLC to achieve the organization’s vision, mission, strategy, and its annual goals and objectives in consultation with its board of directors; position the organization as the premier online higher education professional association; assure that OLC and its mission, programs, products, and services consistently reflect a high standard and level of quality to its relevant stakeholders; represent OLC with the public and various external stakeholders; develop and enhance academic and research collaborative efforts and partnerships; manage the overall OLC budget with integrity and sound fiscal practices; generate and develop resources for the organization to grow through increased membership, and fiscal support from federal agencies, foundations, and private sector organizations; serve as a liaison and public policy advocate to state and national agencies and other private and public agencies related to online and blended education; create a positive and engaging organizational employee culture; lead and manage a virtual professional team in order to reach performance goals and organizational metrics; set and build membership goals; and, attract and foster relationships with volunteers.

The incumbent leader will have the opportunity to work with the OLC Board of Directors to drive and shape the future of the organization. There are key opportunities for advocacy and visibility in the field and representing the organization. There are also challenges in generating resources and maturing the organization as a membership-driven organization.

Requirements

• Senior leadership experience in a non-profit or higher education organization
• Track record of increasing responsibility and proven results and outcomes
• Experience in developing and leading an organizational vision
• Human and fiscal resource management experience, including demonstration of generating resources through external means and aligning activity, expenditures and personnel to achieve organizational and fiscal goals
• Deep understanding of online, blended, and digital learning, including key issues of policy and accreditation, institutional priorities and challenges, quality and standards, infrastructure and scale, and emerging trends
• Experience working with boards of directors and or effective governance structures
• Experience in building partnerships with institutions or non-profit associations, domestically and internationally
• Ability to represent and articulate the priorities and values of the organization to external constituents
• Skill to conduct formal and informal environmental scans to assess relevant new trends, challenges, and opportunities
• Knowledge of and experience with technology and systems to enable management and delivery through a virtual organization
• Ability to manage and prioritize across multiple projects, strategic priorities, and issues.
• Ability to evaluate the attractiveness of new opportunities – has an entrepreneurial, creative, and resourceful mindset with appropriate fiscal foundations.
• Highly organized and detail-oriented self-starter who is also able to work in a virtual team environment with effective cross-departmental team-building skills. Demonstrate the ability to work independently and collaboratively with a variety of personalities and leadership styles.
• Natural leader with excellent verbal/communication skills and a thoughtful, persuasive personal style (e.g., diplomacy, negotiation, conflict resolution, group planning).
• Success as a clear, persuasive public speaker with a reputation for producing written reports that are clearly written, data-focused and lead to responsible decision-making. Work well in a fast-paced environment; treat others with respect and consideration; accept responsibility for own actions.
• Knowledge of procedures, operations, organizational structures and principles of higher education institutions.
• Proven record of hiring, developing, and leading staff and volunteers
• Demonstrated ability in maintaining a climate which attracts, retains, and motivates a diverse, high-quality staff
• Capability to manage a virtual professional team, and work with a distributed board
• Capability to build broad capacity for volunteer engagement
• Knowledge of opportunities for appropriate outsourcing, sharing or leveraging functions of the organization to promote greater efficient use of resources
• Minimum of a Master’s degree (Doctorate preferred, but significant related experience may be substituted.)

Other Relevant Expertise

• Candidates may also bring specific expertise in one or more of the following areas of professional associations or online learning:
• Membership, marketing, affiliations, and sponsorships
• Academic publishing, organizational communications
• Managing conferences, virtual events, workshops, certificates or other learning activities
• Professional association operations and management
• Online teaching, learning, instructional design, and research
• Online academic administration
• Educational technology and social network tools
• Reports to the President of the OLC who is chair of the Board of Directors.

If you are interested in being a candidate for this position please review the information on our website and submit materials to OLCCEOSearch@onlinelearning-c.org

Candidates with questions about OLC organization and structure, including employee benefits should contact Roberta Vigliani at roberta.vigliani@onlinelearning-c.org Chief Financial Officer, OLC.

WORKING CONDITIONS:

Home office environment.

APPLICATION DEADLINE:

December 14, 2019