Associate Marketing Manager II, Programs & Pilots

About hand2mind:

We bring learning to life! Trusted by teachers for more than 55+ years, hand2mind creates engaging, classroom-tested materials that empower children to learn by doing. We are a 150-person strong, family-owned company that's been voted one of the Chicago Tribune's Top Workplaces for the last four consecutive years. In addition to building high-quality, hands-on learning materials for the classroom like VersaTiles® and Cuisenaire® Rods, we also develop educational toys for the home that make learning math, reading, social-emotional learning, and STEM fun and interactive. As a company, we are committed to our employee’s personal and professional development. That’s why we offer a competitive benefits package, a supportive culture, and a variety of training and development opportunities. We are looking for professionals who are truly just kids at heart! We hope you’ll come join our award-winning team today!

Team & Position Description: 

We are currently seeking an Associate Marketing Manager II, Programs & Pilots, to join our Field Marketing Team. Our dynamic team collaborates cross-functionally to support the Marketing and Sales teams through strategic regional marketing plans, campaigns, and field events.

The Associate Marketing Manager II, Programs & Pilots will manage strategic partnership initiatives for our pilot program(s), ensuring seamless execution of field-based marketing activities. A key aspect of your responsibility will be to support Educational Sales Consultants by aligning marketing efforts to bolster sales strategies and outcomes through the pilot program. You will also play a pivotal role in facilitating the transition of successful pilot programs into scalable sales opportunities. This position is central to collecting and leveraging field data and customer feedback to enhance marketing strategies, develop impactful digital and traditional marketing assets, and deliver measurable outcomes. Reporting to the Director of Field Marketing, you will collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure all efforts align with organizational goals and support the overall sales funnel.

What we’re looking for (Key Performance Objectives): 

• Streamline Piloting Process: Fully implement project management software (Monday.com) within the first 30 days, ensuring 100% of campaigns are tracked using Gantt charts and workflows.
• Pilot Program Customer Support: Create strategic pilot onboarding, rollout, and implementation plan within the first 30 days, deliverables (email, video, landing page, etc.) for this pilot support journey by the end of two months, and fully implement pilots in classrooms within 3 months, achieving 50% participation from pilot participants.
• Develop Teacher Ambassador Program: Design and implement a Teacher Ambassador Program to recruit and onboard 10 qualified teacher ambassadors (from pilot participants) within the first six months. Scale to at least 15 within 12 months. Provide comprehensive training to all participants, equipping them to represent the brand at conferences, webinars, and industry events. Achieve a 90% satisfaction rate among ambassadors regarding training and support, and measure program success through a 10% increase in brand engagement metrics (e.g., event attendance, conference session attendees, webinar session registrations, etc.) within the first year.
• Marketing Asset Contribution: Deliver 10+ high-quality digital pilot program assets quarterly (e.g., white papers, print collateral, testimonials, etc.), sharing resources with and providing training for both marketing and sales teams on a quarterly basis.
• Pilot Feedback Implementation: Develop monthly pilot program feedback surveys within 1 month, ready to deploy with new pilot kickoff beginning Q2. Provide actionable insights from monthly feedback surveys and field visits within 1 week of survey completion, analyzing results to improve program effectiveness, with goal of achieving a 95% satisfaction rate among participants.
• Performance Metrics and Reporting: Collect and analyze pilot performance data on a weekly, monthly, and quarterly basis. Deliver monthly and quarterly reports on pilot performance, demonstrating actionable insights, and advancing pilots through higher level opportunity stages, with at least 10% of all pilots converting to sales by end of year.

Requirements/Ideal Attributes: 

• Education: Bachelor's degree in marketing, or relevant area
• Experience: 3+ years in a similar role with proven success in partnership management and field engagement.
• Data-Driven Decision Maker: Demonstrated ability to measure program effectiveness using KPIs and other performance metrics.
• Excellent Communication Skills: Strong written and verbal communication, with a track record of managing diverse stakeholders effectively.
• Proactive and Strategic Thinker: Capable of anticipating challenges and proposing innovative solutions that align with organizational goals.
• Tech-Savvy and Adaptable: Skilled in Microsoft Office Suite, Canva, GoToWebinar, and CRM platforms (e.g., Microsoft D365).
• Team-Oriented and Collaborative: Proven ability to work cross-functionally, fostering strong relationships to drive collective success.
• Travel: Some travel (up to 20%) will be required to attend and manage field events on national level.

We are a drug-free workplace and an EEO employer.

Please note: This role will be filled by our internal recruitment team, so no assistance is needed from any outside staffing agency at this time.

Compensation Range: $75,000 – $85,000 annual salary – Actual compensation may vary due to other factors such as: years of experience, skill set or location. Total compensation includes profit sharing bonus potential, 401k matching, and a variety of other benefits (details can be found here). 

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