POSITION: Chief People Officer 

LOCATION: DSST: Home Office

SALARY RANGE: $170,000-$190,000

STATUS/CLASSIFICATION: Full time, benefits eligible, exempt, in-person position (Denver, CO) 

REPORTS TO: President of DSST 

START: November 2024

WHO WE ARE:

At DSST Public Schools, we are proud to be the largest and highest-performing network of public charter schools in Denver and Aurora with 100% of our students having been accepted into college or post secondary programs since our inception in 2004. When you join DSST, you play a part in ensuring all students at our 16 schools have access to a transformational and joyful education. We encourage you to visit our website to learn more about why we’ve been selected as the 2018 Broad Prize Winner and as a Denver Post “Top Place to Work”. 

WHAT YOU’LL DO: 

The DSST Chief People Officer (CPO) will lead and execute an innovative people-first strategy in alignment with our 2028 Strategic Plan that results in transformational talent who work to achieve the DSST mission. The executive leader will cast an inspired vision for the people and talent work of DSST that addresses our biggest challenges, and sets the organization’s people up as the source of our strength. The CPO is a champion for all things people at DSST, collaborating and aligning with teammates to protect and advance the employee value proposition of the organization. 

In the first year, the Chief People Officer (CPO) will be expected to:

• Execute against the DSST Big 5 Outcome of retaining 80% of transformational talent by aligning rewards, recognition and incentives 

• Develop a talent strategy to achieve the initiatives in the DSST Strategic Plan 

• Create and execute against a strategy to diversify the talent pipeline of DSST  

• Ensure DSST remains close to 100% staffed 

• Lead equity driven hiring, onboarding, and retention practices

• Pursue network clarity DSST Human Resources systems, policies, and procedures and that they are equitable and reduce risk 

• Serve as a collaborative team member to the DSST Senior Leadership Team 

• Lead and ensure the strength of the Human Capital Team: a team of high performing talent leaders that oversee Talent Acquisition, Human Resources, People Data, and Total Rewards.

In the longer-term, the Chief People Officer will be expected to:

•  Lead Talent Human Resources (HR) Systems (35%)

  • Promotes high quality HR service  delivery aligned with policies,  procedures, and regulations

  • Manages complex employee relations cases 

  • Serves as executive sponsor for HR and talent related vendor contracts

  • Acts as organizational representative on complex personnel situations,  resolving equitably in partnership with legal counsel

  • Promotes development of competitive benefit and  compensation programs aligned with organization’s talent strategy and culture 

  • Guides leadership team in designing and managing benefit and  compensation programs to drive retention

•  Lead the Network Retention and Recruitment Strategy (30%)

  • Cast a transformational talent vision that establishes DSST as an  educational employer of choice in the Denver metro area to achieve our goals

  • Deeply know our talent needs across the organization and integrate those needs into a comprehensive strategy 

  • Champion the DSST talent strategy as an organization wide priority in which all participate

  • Actively contributes to K-12 charter sector talent field, leveraging an external network  to surface and share practices  for attracting, developing and  retaining talent

  • Lead succession planning for executive and senior leadership level roles 

• Foster an Inclusive Culture (20%)

  • Serve as the culture carrier of the organization

  • Incorporate ongoing feedback to ensure all voices are heard and needs are elevated, and improve communication and connections between the home office and school sites

  • Model our Core Values, Commitment to the Human Condition, and our commitment to equity as a Leader within the Network

  • Promote culture and activity that celebrates and recognizes DSST staff formally and informally

  • Ensures programs adhere to current policies and regulations,  and, in partnership with CFO,  are financially viable 

  • Lead and support the execution of Home Office & Network-wide events

• Build Career Pathways (15%)

  • Build a performance evaluation system that achieves standards and clarity for high performance across the organization at every level

  • Build a suite of talent metrics that guide awareness and decision making in alignment with organization-wide performance management approach 

Find more information about this role here. 

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: 

• 10 years+ of professional experience

• 5-8 years+ of professional experience in people strategy development including deep expertise in:

  • recruitment, learning and development, and/or human resources;

  • Experience in the education sector is strongly preferred;

  • Track record of successfully building, managing, developing, and supporting inclusive, high-performing, diverse teams;

• 5-8 years+ of demonstrated success working across multiple teams/stakeholders (both internal and external)

• Successful experience creating, codifying, and improving talent systems to support change;

• Experience leveraging technology to gain insight and increase efficiency;

• A Bachelor’s degree from an accredited, four-year university required

Not interested right now but might be in the future, or want to learn about other positions? Complete our Interest Form to connect with a member of our Talent Team.

WHO WE ARE

At DSST Public Schools, we are proud to be the largest and highest-performing network of public charter schools in Denver and Aurora with 100% of our students having been accepted into college or post secondary programs since our inception in 2004. When you join DSST, you play a part in ensuring ALL students at our 16 schools have access to a transformational and joyful education. We encourage you to visit our website to learn more about why we’ve been selected as the 2018 Broad Prize Winner and as a Denver Post “Top Place to Work”. 

INTERVIEW EXPECTATIONS

For most of our positions, we hire on a rolling basis. Therefore, we recommend that you submit your application as soon as you are able! You can learn more about what to expect in our interview process here. 

TOTAL REWARDS

At DSST, we know that our people are the greatest asset we have in reaching our mission of eliminating educational inequity. We work hard to build a work culture that allows our staff to not only feel fulfilled by the work they do but also feel supported to live a joyful, healthy life. We want this work to be your life’s work. Check out our website and benefits highlight guide to learn how we deliver on our commitment to the human condition. 

Some Highlights:

• Excellent Healthcare Plan: We encourage you to check out our benefits guide to see the ways we are committed to the wellness of our staff. We are always looking to improve how we care and, through staff feedback, we’ve been able to implement innovative new benefits such as Fertility Benefits as well as staffing a Mental Health Counselor that is dedicated solely to DSST Staff. 

• Time Off: DSST Staff enjoy 11+ weeks off per year + paid PTO (from Day 1!)

• Career Development: In addition to weekly coaching from a designated coach, you’ll have access to internal training and development pathways designed by our Professional Development & Training Team as well as external development opportunities. 

REFERRAL

Know someone who would be a great fit? Refer them here! Anyone can refer a candidate and we offer a $500 referral bonus for every successful referral. 

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY AND DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION

DSST Public Schools is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not exclude participation in, deny benefits to or discriminate on the basis of, race, color, religion, National origin, sex (including pregnancy and related conditions, sexual orientation, or gender identity), Age (40 and older), Disability, Genetic information (including employer requests for, or purchase, use, or disclosure of genetic tests, genetic services, or family medical history), retaliation for filing a charge, reasonably opposing discrimination, or participating in a discrimination lawsuit, investigation, or proceeding in admission or access to, or treatment or employment in its programs and activities. 

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 job. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk and hear. This position is active and may require standing, walking, bending, kneeling, stooping, and crouching throughout the day. The employee must lift and/or move items up to 30 pounds. The employee must have sufficient hand, arm, and finger dexterity to operate a computer keyboard and other office equipment. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.