Director Data Operations Lead Jobs in Minnesota (NOW HIRING)

Description

WHO WE ARE

In 2020, 11.6 million children in the U.S.—16% of all children nationwide—lived in poverty, and those children were disproportionately children of color. Students living in poverty often have physical and mental health, social-emotional, cognitive, and identity development needs that schools are not equipped to support. Rooted in community for more than 45 years, Communities In Schools (CIS) strides to bring community resources inside public schools, where they are accessible, coordinated, and accountable. CIS Co-Founder Bill Milliken said, “It’s relationships, not programs, that transform children. A great program simply creates the environment for healthy relationships to form between adults and children.”

Bill Milliken’s vision is alive through a strong network of trained CIS staff imbedded in schools nationwide building support and relationships inside schools. Today, CIS serves more than 3,500 schools, the overwhelming majority are Title I-eligible schools across two channels: (1) independent affiliates and (2) licensed partnerships. Grounded in the power of transformative relationships to unlock a young person’s potential, CIS has a national, research-based history of delivering local results that support improved student relationships with adults, better-quality relationships with peers, and increased engagement and sense of belonging. These outcomes lead to improved attendance, improved academic success, and improved on-time high school graduation rates.

MISSION AND VALUES

Communities In Schools (CIS) is “all-in” for kids. It is our passion—it is our mission. At the National Office, CIS collaborates with local affiliate organizations to provide resources and create communities of caring adults who work hand-in-hand with educators to make sure young people have the tools they need to stay in school and achieve in life. We are the nation’s largest dropout prevention organization, and we achieve our mission by hiring bright, creative, and innovative team members who demonstrate a passion for what they do.

‘Within the national office, we foster a culture inspired by our mission, our values of integrity, accountability, equity, collaboration, and excellence, and a commitment to Equity, and Inclusion. Our culture is centered on three core tenants:

• We acknowledge contributions and perspectives.
• We collaborate across roles and departments.
• We honor a whole-person approach and encourage balance.

We aim to create a psychologically safe environment where relationships matter, and mutual respect is paramount.

ABOUT THE ROLE Do you thrive at the intersection of data, people, and technology—helping teams build confidence in the information they use every day?

The Director, Data Quality & Adoption, reports directly to the Sr. Director, Data Quality, Platform & Product, and provides leadership for the stewardship, adoption, verification, and effective use of the CIS Data Management (CISDM) platform across the CIS network. The Director ensures consistent data practices, strengthens user adoption, and leads initiatives that improve data quality, user support, and continuous improvement.

The Director leads a team responsible for data operations, training, verification, and user support while fostering a collaborative and accountable data culture. Serving as the primary bridge between platform leadership, program operations, and end users, this role ensures that staff have the knowledge, resources, and operational support needed to maintain high-quality data while providing insights from day-to-day operations that inform continuous improvement.

PRIMARY DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES Lead Data Quality & Reporting Readiness

• Lead annual End-of-Year (EOY) verification and ongoing data review processes, coordinating issue resolution and identifying opportunities to improve data quality.
• Support consistent implementation of data standards, reporting guidance, and verification practices across the CIS network.
• Lead the operational coordination and data readiness activities supporting annual reporting, data publications, and other strategic reporting initiatives.

Lead the Team

• Lead, coach, and develop a team responsible for data operations, verification, training and resource development, support, and stewardship.
• Establish team priorities, workflows, service standards, and performance expectations while ensuring responsive, high-quality support across the CIS network.

Drive Adoption & Continuous Improvement

• Lead initiatives that strengthen adoption of the CISDM platform through training, documentation, office hours, onboarding, and user support.
• Lead the development and growth of the CIS Connect virtual community, fostering peer collaboration, knowledge sharing, and continuous learning among CISDM data administrators.
• Lead Help Desk operations, using user feedback, adoption metrics, and operational trends to improve support, enhance the user experience, and drive continuous improvement.

Partner Across the Organization

• Serve as the primary liaison between users, program teams, and platform leadership, translating operational needs and user feedback into system enhancements and process improvements.
• Partner with product and technology teams to support testing, validation, release readiness, and implementation of new functionality.
• Coordinate data requests, reporting questions, and recurring support needs while aligning workflows, reporting practices, and user guidance across the organization.

Other Duties as Assigned

• Contribute to continuous improvement of systems and processes to better serve affiliates and strengthen the network.
• Participate in organization-wide initiatives and special projects.

Requirements SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATES ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE THE FOLLOWING SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable differently-abled individuals to perform the essential functions.

Required skills & qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Information Systems, Data Analytics, Public Administration, Education, Organizational Leadership, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 8–10 years of experience in data quality, data stewardship, program operations, user enablement, training and technical assistance, customer success, reporting and analytics, or related fields.
• 3–5 years of experience leading high-performing teams, with demonstrated success in performance management, coaching, mentoring, and staff development.
• Demonstrated success leading complex operational initiatives, coordinating cross-functional stakeholders, and driving projects from planning through implementation.
• Experience overseeing data quality processes, including data validation, reconciliation, quality assurance, and continuous improvement to promote accurate, reliable, and consistent data.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and organizational skills, with the ability to prioritize competing priorities and translate business needs into operational and technical solutions, including supporting User Acceptance Testing (UAT).
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills, with the ability to build relationships, deliver training, and communicate effectively with technical and non-technical audiences.
• Experience working with or within a network of affiliates or distributed organizations, ideally in a national or regional capacity.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, Power Query, and Microsoft Office Suite, with experience using technology to analyze data, improve processes, and support operational decision-making.
• Demonstrated commitment to customer service, operational excellence, continuous improvement, and fostering a collaborative, learning-oriented culture.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with Power BI or Tableau.
• Experience using SQL to extract and analyze data.
• Experience supporting enterprise systems, user adoption, or change management initiatives.

TRAVEL

Travel up to 25% may be required including travel in the domestic United States with occasional overnight stay(s).

ABOUT US

CIS staff continue to work in a virtual environment; however, the national office is open and available for staff to use as appropriate.

To ensure the health and safety of staff and job applicants, all interviews will be conducted by phone and/or video conference.

BENEFITS & PERKS

Work that makes a difference—the opportunity to contribute to an important mission!

Competitive and comprehensive compensation and benefits package, including:

• Five weeks of Paid Time Off
• Generous 403b Retirement Savings Plan contribution
• 10 Paid Holidays
• 90% of employee health care premiums paid by the organization
• Summer Work Schedule and Winter Break
• Employer-paid short-term and long-term income replacement programs, and much, much more!

Communities In Schools is committed to a workforce that is representative of the varied communities we are privileged to serve. We provide a work environment that does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, gender, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, mental or physical disability, genetic information or any other basis protected by applicable law. CIS prohibits harassment of applicants or employees based on any of these protected categories. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

For more information on Communities In Schools please visit our website.