Director of Operations, Meetings, Training and Member Services

Organization Overview

Located in Arlington, VA, the NTL Institute (National Training Laboratories Institute) delivers powerful learning solutions for organizations, leaders and practitioners who have a clear stake in accelerating individual, team and organizational effectiveness. For 65 years, NTL Institute has provided training and learning to tens of thousands of individuals and organizations around the world. Our NTL global member faculty includes over 350 members who are leading consultants, practitioners and researchers at the forefront of innovation in organization and leadership development, interpersonal skills and human development, group dynamics, and diversity and inclusion. 

Our members deliver training programs, certificate programs, and customized solutions. Our programs are designed for organizational leaders, trainers and change agents.

NTL’s approach is experiential learning at its best.  Our training focuses on personal growth and leadership development and is based on Applied Behavioral Science (ABS) techniques, highly interactive programs where becoming proficient in interpersonal dynamics requires doing much more than simply reading a book or attending a lecture. All programs are designed and delivered by NTL Institute members who must meet rigid NTL standards, including academic rigor and consultative experience.

Executive Overview

As the Director of Operations, Meetings, Training and Member Services, you will report to the President and work as an active part of the Executive Leadership Team to lead the strategy and execution of our training programs. Working in close collaboration with the President, you will be involved in every aspect of running the Institute, with specific and immediate focus on bringing continuity to our operational processes, enhancing our training delivery and programs, and growing the organization.  We have an annual budget of about $2M, and a total staff of eight.  You will oversee two people – a Program Coordinator and a Program Associate.  Because we are a small team, you will enjoy a broad scope of responsibilities.   

You will be responsible for rebuilding our systems and processes.  You will provide leadership, guidance and direction to NTL leadership and staff regarding all administrative and operational functions of NTL (including office operations, member services, training logistics and management, personnel, technology and overall knowledge management for the organization).  We will rely on your operational and systems expertise to assess our current processes and systems and implement systems that cut down on replication, increase efficiencies, advance our productivity and support the growth of the organization. 

Your work will include overseeing training operations and meeting logistics.  You will be responsible for ensuring the smooth delivery of about 50-60 training programs delivered at pre-set training locations throughout the country each year (and you will work closely with the Director of Business Development as we look to ramp back up to 150 training programs annually and expand training sites across the country).  In this role you will ensure that all training logistics are in place to support the needs of the attendees (a typical class includes 20-40 attendees and runs for 3-6 days of training) and you will ensure logistics are handled so that member trainers can simply show up and deliver the programs.

You will also work with the President to identify and expand Strategic Partnerships. As we continue to develop and enhance our growing learning community, we will look to you to identify organizations that have a common set of values and promote experiential learning and development to bring the best in leadership and change management.

Historical Overview of NTL

NTL has transformed the field of Applied Behavioral Science and has contributed to the professional advancement of tens of thousands of individuals and organizations.  NTL's programs are the most popular, the most replicated, and simply the most effective programs for changing human attitudes and behaviors.

NTL's history began with the vision of Kurt Lewin, founder of modern social psychology.  In 1946, Lewin, then Director of MIT's Research Center for Group Dynamics, concluded from his experiences that increased awareness of self and others could be accomplished through facilitated group dialogue in Training Groups (or T-Groups) that advocates open-minded appreciation and inclusion of differences.

Believing that change could more readily occur if the learning took place some distance from the participant's home environment, Lewin chose Bethel, Maine as the site or "cultural island" for the first NTL experiential human relations conference in 1947.  The success of this first 1947 conference and the potential of the new methodology drew some of the best and brightest in social psychology to NTL, including Paul Sheats, R. Freed Bales, Kurt Back, Morton Deutsch, Henry Reicken, and Stanley Schacter.

From this early success, NTL grew and received a major grant from the Carnegie Foundation and numerous in-kind services from several major universities.  By 1949, NTL expanded its staff to include scientists and educators from a wide variety of groups and occupations.  Similarly, research around the T-Groups was conducted at multiple levels, paralleling this variety of disciplines.  The concept of sensitivity training emerged as a version of the T-Group, and NTL became a quasi-independent organization operating under the aegis of NEA, eventually offering many different program offerings beyond the T-Group.

Key Responsibilities

In this role, you will:

Senior Leadership Team

• Provide overall leadership toward the health, wellness, growth and success of NTL business, membership and employees.
• Work seamlessly with peer leadership team and President in representing NTL operation.
• Understand the key functioning of the NTL business.
• Identify and develop key customer relationships and understand their needs.
• Provide support, coaching and personnel management for NTL employees.
• Invest in and assume responsibility for the work of NTL with our Stakeholders. 

Member Management

• Provide for the growth, development, and caretaking for NTL membership.
• Work with the BOD membership committee and member engagement project leader to execute strategies.
• Coordinate activities for the NTL membership to achieve its goals, objectives, and standards of the association.
• Coordinate with Stewards to evaluate services, recommend new programs for membership, or promote member related activity and NTL member association.
• Plan, develop, and implement new programs and ideas based on evaluation of current programs.
• Direct and coordinate member related functions, such as conventions, exhibits, and local or regional workshops or meetings.
• Direct surveys and compilation of membership data, such as average income, benefits, standards, or common problems.
• Advise members regarding financial, organizational, growth, or membership problems.
• Analyze factors affecting membership, such as legislation or economic conditions and trends. 

Operations Management

• Ensure smooth operations of various processes that contribute to the production of goods and services for the NTL Institute.
• Use technology and outreach partners to achieve operation related tasks and goals throughout the NTL system.
• Oversee NTL production.  Coordinate and monitor the work of business sections involved in production and inventory.  Monitor NTL’s performance and oversee implementation of improvements.  Ensure quality of products.  Provide technical support where necessary. 
• Partner with Business Development team.  Support marketing production.
• Oversee best practices.  Improve processes and policies in support of organizational goals.  Formulate and implement departmental and organizational policies and procedures to maximize output.  Monitor and bring attention to adherence to rules, regulations and procedures.
• Oversee NTL communications.  Coordinate, monitor, manage and improve the efficiency of communication with our members, customers, Stewards, and the BOD. 

Strategic Partnerships

• Support NTL in providing the best partner-sources for delivering on our value proposition.
• Work with President and Stewards to identify future partnership / alliance opportunities that meet NTL goals and objectives.
• Develop, negotiate, and conclude strategic partnerships and contract agreements.
• Oversee NTL, partner branding and co-branding relationships.
• Coordinate mutual marketing program to maximize relationship.
• Manage portfolio of strategic partnerships / alliances and corporate relationships.
• Maintain accurate and consistent documentation of partnership agreements.
• Develop goals and strategies for stakeholder relationships. 

Management and Organizational Leadership Responsibilities

• Plan, direct, support and coordinate human capital in achieving NTL business goals.
• Provide guidance, leadership, feedback, coaching and development for direct reports.
• Nurture the creativity of employees, members as contractors, and outsource/vendors to achieve the best possible scenarios in service of meeting business goals and member needs.
• Develop metrics for employees, members as contractors, and outsource/vendor relationships to ensure effectiveness and growth.           

Essential Experience, Skills, and Competencies

This position requires the following:

• Successful track record of developing and implementing training programs with measurable results.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Ability to travel domestically as required, including on weekends.
• Commitment to a team-oriented office environment.
• Ability to think and act strategically.
• Internet savvy and skilled with computer technology, in order to organize and effectively maintain records and ongoing communication. 
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Outlook, Excel. 

Education and Experience:

• Four-year college degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• Three or more years of proven supervisory and organizational leadership.
• Experience managing the operations of a small office or department.
• Exceptional project management skills, including overseeing, tracking, and ensuring the smooth delivery of multiple training programs.
• Ability to work as a change agent with a successful, productive staff, and to take the organization to new levels.
• Experience integrating administrative tasks; you will need to decrease replication of behind the scenes activities so training activities can be paramount.
• Proven experience in developing a budget and tracking and measuring results. 

Attributes of a Successful Director of Operations, Trainings and Member Services 

• Leadership:  You pick up the ball. You can drive the discussion and you can give credit to others. You also have the confidence to seek and receive advice. Your ego takes a back seat as you remain professional at all times and build effective relationships.
• Seasoned communicator, collaborative work style:  You have a collaborative and inclusive work style.  You share information and coordinate effectively at all levels throughout the organization.  You work cooperatively, are able to seek out relevant information, decide the appropriate steps, and facilitate to get the desired results.  You are known for your poise, tact, and diplomacy. 
• Process-oriented:  You thrive on efficiency.  You are always looking for ways to improve, and you implement processes that enhance productivity.
• Problem solver:  You take things from start to finish.  You’re intellectually curious and you work with a sense of urgency. 
• Accountable:  You are known for how you “get things done.”  You have everyone’s best interests in mind.  You earn trust by your actions and faithfully keep your promises.  You are seen as an “honest broker.”
• Flexible:  You are able to easily shift gears, reprioritize and stay focused on key priorities.
• Service-driven. You are member-focused and committed to providing the highest level of service while remaining aligned with the mission of the organization.
• Detail-oriented. You are detail-oriented, but you can also see the big picture and understand how the details relate to the overall mission of the organization. You get it right the first time and accurately keep track of all the moving parts. You have command of both the process and the details. You follow a consistent course of action while considering the different nuances. 

What’s Attractive to the Right Candidate?    

• You have the opportunity to take an established organization with a strong reputation in training field and implement a strategy for growth and long-term success.  Your experience, opinions, and expertise are valued.
• What you bring to the table is vital to our success.  It is your diligence and expertise that will ensure the ongoing success and continued growth of the Institute.
• You will be a part of an innovative organization with staff that is extremely focused and intent on creating long-term value.  Your colleagues are professional and committed to their work and respectful and responsive to each other.
• You will enjoy a close working relationship with the President, who is accessible and supportive, but won’t micromanage. 

Employee Benefits

NTL Institute offers a comprehensive compensation package that includes ten holidays, fifteen days of paid time off (PTO) in the first year and twenty days in the second year, employer paid health insurance, employer paid vision, employer paid life insurance, short term disability, 403(b) retirement plan, parking or metro assistance, and professional development.

To Apply for the Director of Operations, Meetings, Training and Member Services

The fastest way to apply for this position is to create a profile through the link at the top of this page. 

If you prefer, simply email a Word version of your resume and cover letter to Jennie Kinsfather atresumes@staffingadvisors.com with “NTL Institute-Director of Operations/2012-1510” in the subject line of the email.