Managing Director, Employment and Economic Opportunity Program

AIR is seeking a Managing Director to join our Employment and Economic Opportunity Program (EEOP) Program. EEOP focuses on the full employment cycle in the U.S. including workforce readiness, recruitment, selection, performance management, training, and improving employment and life outcomes for all people, with special attention to underserved populations. We apply the best available evidence to develop the knowledge, systems, programs, processes, and tools needed to maximize human and organizational potential for federal, state, regional, and local agencies; leading foundations; post-secondary institutions; school districts, workforce agencies, and other community-based organizations; private businesses; and professional associations. Our evidence-building, systemic improvement, and change management efforts always aim to contribute to economic vitality, future-readiness, and resiliency for all people and communities.

The Managing Director will serve as a senior thought leader who shapes strategy, leads and grows cross-sector education‑to‑career and human services research, drives business development and funder relationships, ensures high‑quality project execution, mentors staff, and elevates organizational visibility through research leadership and external engagement.

This position has the flexibility to work remotely within the United States (U.S.) or from one of AIR’s U.S. office locations. This does not include U.S. territories. 

About AIR:

Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, the American Institutes for Research (AIR) is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance to address some of the most pressing challenges in the United States and globally. We generate evidence and apply data-driven solutions that expand opportunities and improve lives for all.

Responsibilities:

Working as a thought leader and content expert across public programs spanning education-to-career pathways and human service supports, including:

• contributing to the vision for AIR’s future work, knowing trends and market opportunities, and working with other division leaders to create and execute a plan to grow new work with federal, state, local, and foundation clients.
• leading work as a principal investigator/project director and supporting other leads in conceptualizing research studies, ensuring high quality implementation, and defining and measuring outcomes for cross-market research at the federal, state, and local levels.

Working with AIR’s program and corporate leadership to create business development strategy for established areas and specific new areas of growth identify new opportunities, including:

• coordinating pursuit plans and pipelines across a set of federal, state, local, and foundation funders of education-to-career and human service-focused research.
• contributing to and making bid/no-bid decisions in collaboration with program leadership teams.
• leading and supporting pursuits of new opportunities, conceptualizing bid strategy and research plans, contributing to proposal writing, and conducting critical technical reviews of major proposals.
• nurturing relationships with potential partners and existing funders and building new funder relationships.
• monitoring existing work with those clients and funders, to ensure that the right capabilities are brought to bear on new pursuits and to have a sense of strengths and potential challenges.
• monitoring staff capacity to work on projects and new pursuits with those clients and funders.
• mentoring staff in business development strategy and proposal development.

Leading research studies and mentoring staff to successfully lead and contribute to education research studies as a Project Director, Principal Investigator, advisor, and/or Quality Assurance reviewer, including:

• integrating effective project management and quality methods to manage complex projects, including effective management of budget, quality, client, and project staff.
• mentoring staff to integrate effective project management and quality methods.
• communicating regularly with clients and internal team members to gather feedback, sustain project momentum, and respond to needs.
• conducting quality reviews of p