At Rocketship Public Schools, we believe in the infinite possibility of human potential. We believe that every student deserves the right to dream, to discover, and to develop their unique potential and it is our responsibility and our privilege to unleash the potential inside every Rocketeer we serve. Our non-profit network of public elementary charter schools propels student achievement, develops exceptional educators, and partners with parents who enable high-quality public schools to thrive in their community. We are a collective of parents, teachers, leaders, and students working together to transform the future for underserved communities across our country. At Rocketship Public Schools, we are unleashing potential.
Position Summary
The Senior Director of Organizational Effectiveness leads people strategies and practices that help Rocketship build strong teams, develop talent, and deliver a consistent, supportive employee experience. This leader connects employee feedback, performance management, succession planning, and workforce strategy to strengthen organizational effectiveness and advance Rocketship’s mission.
The Sr. Director partners closely with Regional Talent Leads to support consistent people practices across regions and serves as a strategic advisor to Network Support Team (NeST) managers and leaders. As needed, this role also supports regional and school leaders in addressing team effectiveness, employee relations, and organizational change.
This role directly manages and develops the Associate Director of Employee Relations and the Pre-Boarding Specialist, establishing clear priorities, accountability, and coordination across their areas of responsibility. In partnership with Talent Operations, Recruitment, Finance, and Legal, the Sr. Director uses data and organizational insights to improve employee experience, strengthen leadership capacity, and guide thoughtful people decisions.
The ideal candidate combines strategic talent leadership with strong HR judgment, operational discipline, and the ability to influence across teams. They bring experience building practical systems that support employee growth, fair and consistent practices, and organizational accountability.
The following are essential functions related to the position:
Voice of the Employee and Employee Life Cycle
- Lead strategies that strengthen employee experience, belonging, engagement, and retention across Rocketship’s regions and NeST.
- Oversee employee listening efforts, including engagement surveys and employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS), and translate findings into organizational and regional action plans.
- Partner with Regional Talent Leads and Talent Operations to improve key employee life cycle experiences, including onboarding, development, internal transitions, and offboarding.
- Analyze employee feedback, retention trends, and organizational health data to identify priorities, recommend improvements, and monitor progress.
- Equip leaders to strengthen inclusive team cultures and embed belonging into everyday management and people practices.
Performance Management and Employee Relations
- Lead the implementation and continuous improvement of performance management practices that establish clear expectations, encourage meaningful feedback, and support employee development and accountability.
- Equip managers and Regional Talent Leads with tools, training, and coaching to assess performance, address concerns, document decisions, and support employee growth.
- Serve as a senior escalation point for complex employee relations matters, partnering with the Associate Director of Employee Relations, Regional Talent Leads, and Legal to support fair, timely, and well-documented resolutions.
- Oversee or conduct investigations as needed and advise leaders on conflict resolution, corrective action, employment decisions, and separations.
- Establish consistent expectations for responsive case handling and accurate, confidential documentation of performance and employee relations matters.
- Identify patterns in performance and employee relations data and recommend proactive improvements to manager practices, policies, training, and systems.
Session Planning and Talent Review
- Design and facilitate talent review and succession planning processes in partnership with Regional Talent Leads and organizational leaders.
- Establish consistent criteria and tools for assessing performance, leadership potential, readiness for expanded responsibilities, and development needs.
- Partner with leaders to identify critical roles, assess succession readiness, and build plans that strengthen leadership continuity.
- Translate talent review findings into development plans, coaching priorities, and internal mobility opportunities, supporting equitable access to growth and advancement.
- Partner across the Talent team to strengthen internal talent pipelines and monitor progress on succession and development plans.
Workforce Planning
- Partner with Regional Talent Leads, Recruitment, Finance, and organizational leaders to align workforce plans with organizational priorities, staffing needs, and available resources.
- Coordinate cross-functional planning for end-of-year staffing, anticipated vacancies, internal movement, and organizational changes.
- Analyze turnover, retention, staffing trends, and internal talent availability to identify workforce gaps and inform staffing decisions.
- Advise leaders on organizational structure, role clarity, team capacity, and staffing models that support effective and sustainable operations.
- Connect workforce planning with succession planning and recruitment priorities to support timely, coordinated staffing decisions.
Organizational Effectiveness and Compliance
- Partner with leaders to diagnose and address team challenges, including unclear responsibilities, communication breakdowns, manager effectiveness concerns, and barriers to collaboration.
- Lead change management and communication strategies that support organizational transitions and the effective implementation of Talent initiatives.
- Manage, coach, and develop the Associate Director of Employee Relations and the Pre-Boarding Specialist, establishing clear goals, ownership, service expectations, and opportunities for professional growth.
- Build Regional Talent Leads’ capability through consultation, shared tools, learning opportunities, and consistent approaches to people practices.
- Establish scalable systems, knowledge-sharing practices, and service standards that strengthen Talent execution across regions and NeST.
- Provide strategic oversight of HR compliance work led by the Associate Director of Employee Relations, including mandatory training, personnel records audits, and coordination of reporting and compliance requests; partner with Legal and Talent Operations to maintain clear and consistent policies and practices.
- Partner on job description review, classification, compensation practices, and policy implementation; translate relevant employment requirements and policy changes into practical guidance for leaders.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree.
Eight or more years of progressive experience in human resources, talent management, or organizational development, including leadership responsibility in a complex or multisite organization.
- Demonstrated experience managing and developing staff and leading cross-functional people initiatives.
- Experience designing or strengthening performance management, talent review, succession planning, and employee engagement practices.
- Strong employee relations judgment, including experience advising leaders on investigations, performance concerns, and complex employment decisions.
- Strong knowledge of employment law and HR practices, with the ability to partner effectively with legal counsel and translate requirements into practical guidance.
- Experience supporting organizational change, manager development, and workforce or organizational planning.
- Ability to analyze workforce and employee experience data, identify root causes, and translate findings into actionable strategies.
- Strong communication, coaching, and relationship-building skills, with the ability to influence leaders and collaborate across teams and regions.
- Ability to balance empathy, accountability, confidentiality, and sound judgment while managing competing priorities.
- Proficiency with HR information systems and Google Workspace.
- Deep commitment to Rocketship’s mission, educational equity, belonging, and a positive employee experience.
Preferred Qualifications
- Degree in Human Resources, Organizational Development, Business, Labor Relations, Education, or a related field.
- SHRM-SCP, SPHR, SHRM-CP, or PHR certification.
- California employment law experience strongly preferred.
- Experience using Workday.
Physical Demands:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions. While performing the duties of this position, the employee is regularly required to talk, hear, and communicate with both adults and children. The employee frequently is required to use hands or fingers, handle or feel objects, tools, or controls. The employee is frequently required to stand; walk; sit; and reach with hands and arms. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds and occasionally climb ladders. Specific vision abilities required by this position include close vision, distance vision, and the ability to adjust focus. The noise level in the work environment is moderate to high.
Compensation:
Commensurate with qualifications and experience, plus excellent health and wellness benefits, 403b retirement plan, flexible spending account (FSA), and generous paid time off.
Rocketship Public Schools provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, amnesty, or status as a covered veteran in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws. Rocketship Public Schools complies with applicable state and local laws governing non-discrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.
Rocketship Public Schools expressly prohibits any form of unlawful employee harassment based on race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, genetic information, disability, or veteran status. Improper interference with the ability of Rocketship Public Schools’ employees to perform their expected job duties is absolutely not tolerated. Click here for our Sexual Harassment Policy. For questions, concerns, or complaints, please contact Human Resources.
