ABOUT THE ROLE
At New Story, we pioneer solutions to end the global housing crisis by empowering families to become land and homeowners in thriving communities. As the Director of Programs & Innovation, you will be a key driver of this critical work. In this role, you will blend strategic thinking with operational expertise to design high-impact programs, pilot innovative solutions, and expand our work into new geographies - all while forging key partnerships across the public and private sectors.

Your ability to understand the needs and desires of the families and communities we serve, and aligning these insights with donor and investor expectations, will be pivotal. Working closely with the Managing Director of Impact and the Director of Operations, you will ensure our solutions are making a meaningful difference in the communities we work.

This is an opportunity to leverage your passion for vulnerable families and your sharp strategic acumen to drive transformative change. If you're ready to tackle one of the world's most pressing challenges head-on, we encourage you to read on and learn more about this impactful role.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

Strategic Planning and Development

• Develop Tailored Strategies: Design strategies for New Story’s housing and community development as well as tailored solutions for individual projects, ensuring alignment with organizational goals and regional needs.

• Entry Strategies for New Geographies: Define and execute entry strategies for expanding into new regions, including municipalities, states, and countries, ensuring that they are aligned with local regulations, cultures, and community needs.

• Design Technical Assistance for Families: Collaborate with the Managing Director of Impact and Director of Operations to design technical assistance services and products for families, including support in finance, housing, and community development, to ensure successful participation. 

Partnerships and Stakeholder Engagement

• Strengthen Partnerships: Engage with key stakeholders to support growth, scale, and sustainability, ensuring that strategic objectives are met in alignment with both organizational goals and external partner interests. This responsibility requires that the Director of Programs & Innovation work closely with a wide range of stakeholders to foster collaboration, align efforts, and share crucial data to drive success.

Innovation and Pilot Projects

• Lead Innovation: Identify opportunities for innovation and design pilot projects to test new approaches in housing and community development.

• Standardize Learnings: Ensure that lessons learned from pilot projects are standardized and scaled across other regions, working closely with the Director of Operations to integrate learnings into ongoing operations.

Monitoring, Evaluation & Reporting

• Design M&E Systems: Collaborate with the Managing Director of Impact to develop robust Monitoring & Evaluation frameworks that assess the effectiveness of programs and strategic initiatives.

• Data-Driven Strategy Adjustments: Use M&E data and field feedback to continuously refine strategic plans, ensuring they are both effective and responsive to the needs of the communities and stakeholders.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Support Donor Engagement Efforts: Work closely with the Communications and Development teams to align program strategies with New Story’s donor engagement efforts, providing success stories, data, and insights that help tell the story of New Story’s impact.

• Partner with Operations: Work closely with the Director of Operations to ensure that strategic plans are executed effectively in the field, providing the necessary resources and adjustments as needed.

• Support Impact Reporting: Collaborate with the Managing Director of Impact, the Managing Director of Investment and the Chief Development Officer to ensure that strategic outcomes are clearly communicated to donors and investors, supporting New Story’s fundraising efforts.

WHO YOU ARE

• Bachelor's degree in Business, International Development, Architecture, Urban Development, or related field (Master's preferred), with 7-10 years of strategic planning experience in nonprofit, social enterprise, or housing development sectors

• Demonstrated success in designing and implementing participatory, long-term strategic plans across multiple regions, with proven ability to monitor KPIs and adjust strategies based on real-time data and field feedback

• Strong track record in innovation and pilot project management, supported by robust analytical skills and ability to clarify complex processes into actionable strategies

• Proven leadership experience managing cross-functional, multidisciplinary teams on large-scale regional projects

• Expert in government-civil society relations with demonstrated ability to build strategic alliances with government actors and international organizations

• Strong collaboration skills across departments (communications, resource development, operations, impact) and proven ability to align programs with donor/investor expectations and funding models

• Bilingual fluency in English and Spanish required, with willingness to travel frequently to regional project sites (50% travel required)

REPORTING STRUCTURE

This role reports to the Managing Director of Impact. This individual may also manage outside vendors and contractors.

LOCATION & COMPENSATION

This is a hybrid role based in Mexico City, Mexico. Our offer will be commensurate with experience and location.

BENEFITS

Health & Wellness. We believe in thriving communities and that starts with our team being happy and healthy. New Story currently covers 100% of Employee-Only premium costs for Major Medical Health Insurance through AXA and Life Insurance through MAPFRE. New Story will also cover 60% of premium costs for a team member's dependents. Additionally, team members are provided a Flex Benefit Card with a monthly allowance of $1,000 MXN for supermarket, food, and wellness expenses.

Aguinaldo. Team members receive a federal mandated holiday bonus equivalent to 15 days of pay on or before December 20. This amount will be pro-rated for team members within their first year at New Story.

Vacation Premium. On the first (and subsequent) work anniversary, team members will be paid their annual vacation premium bonus equivalent to the number of vacation days allotted for the year at a rate of 25%. Team members enjoy a base of 12 vacation days per year.

Unlimited Vacation after the 1st Year. We believe you should have a flexible schedule that makes space for family, wellness, and fun. For the first 12 months, you'll have 12 days of PTO, 14 paid holidays, and YOUR birthday off. After year one, you can enjoy an unlimited vacation policy. This time off is paid at the regular base rate of pay.

Summer and Winter Time Off. We believe rest is critical to getting results. We intentionally pause as a whole company twice per year. Team member enjoy July Fridays off as well as a Winter Week closure between December 24 and January 1.

5-Week Sabbatical after 5th Year. At the 5-year mark, we celebrate your hard work and dedication with a sabbatical. Team members take 5 weeks off fully paid to rest, recharge, and reflect.

Paid Parental Leave. Primary caregivers are given 12 weeks paid time off. Secondary caregivers are given 6 weeks paid time off. 

Adoption Reimbursement. For families who are willing to adopt, thank you! New Story will reimburse eligible team members up to $180,000 MXN for adoption related expenses.

Intentional Gatherings. As a remote team, we recognize how valuable and rejuvenating in-person time can be. Whether it’s an all-company Team Summit, Fun Camp for fundraisers, or spontaneous department gatherings, we set aside budget to gather in-person to have fun, reflect, and plan together.

Improve Thru Learning. We believe in always learning and leveling up our skills. Whether it's paying for a conference, an online course, or books, an internal Hackathon, a Tea(m) Talk, or a lunch and learn, we invest in each team member so they can be the best at their craft.

Trips to the Field. It’s amazing to meet the families we help and see the homes up close and personal. You'll get to visit the work first hand in either Mexico or El Salvador. Prioritization will vary by role.

ABOUT NEW STORY

At New Story, we pioneer solutions to end the global housing crisis by empowering families to become land and homeowners in thriving communities. We work with local organizations in Latin America to build thriving communities and are committed to researching and developing innovative ways to build better and faster. Our team is distributed across the US and in Mexico City, but united by our passion for social impact. Since New Story started in 2014, we have built over 38 communities across 4 countries resulting in over 14,000 lives impacted through safe housing. We have several projects across Latin America and more on the way, with the goal of helping 1M people by 2030. 

You can find us drinking coffee or bubble tea and eating churros wherever we can find them. 

ABOUT OUR CULTURE

Culture is #1 for us. We invest significant time, focus, and resources to building the best environment possible. Why? Over the course of the year we spend a large chunk of our time at work. So at New Story, we want our team to find fulfillment, autonomy, mastery, and joy at work. A workplace where you can bring your whole self.

At New Story, you can expect to find a culture that reflects our values:

Humble Pursuit Of Excellence. A combination of personal humility and intense professional will.

Express Gratitude and Empathy. How would you like to be treated? That’s how we strive to treat others. Always go above and beyond to do for others what you'd like them to do for you.

Improve Through Learning and Feedback. Learn why something worked or didn't work, then implement the learning into future actions.

Team of Founders. An extreme ownership mindset where you see a problem, take action, and go above and beyond to help the team.

Think Big, Breakdown, and Execute. Set big measurable goals, formulate a plan, then execute the plan with relentless focus.

Simplify. Do more with less. This applies to everything: marketing, design, team meetings, writing, operations, and beyond.

A WELCOMING PLACE FOR ALL

New Story strives to nurture a welcoming culture of shared values and radical candor for everyone. We welcome all applicants, regardless of background, to submit an application. Black, Indigenous, and people of color are especially encouraged to apply! We know we will only succeed if we have a team who brings a wide variety of perspectives and backgrounds. 

As an equal opportunity employer, our hiring decisions are based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs at the time of hire. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws. This policy applies to all employment practices within our organization. 

Our goal is to impact 1 million people by 2030. Join us.