Chief Talent Officer

Chief Talent OfficerMission: IDEA Public Schools seeks a Chief Talent Officer (CTO) to design and lead our national human capital strategybuilding the systems, culture, and leadership pipelines that enable every scholar to achieve excellence. Reporting to the President and serving as a key member of the Executive Team, the CTO will oversee IDEA's comprehensive Talent Engine for 10,000+ employees. This includes the divisions of Talent Acquisition, Talent Development, Staff Experience, Human Resources, and Compensation & Benefits. As a forward-thinking and people-centered leader, the CTO will ensure IDEA remains a destination for the best educators and staff in the nation, cultivating a workplace where belonging, growth, and excellence thrive. The ideal candidate combines strategic vision with operational discipline, balancing compliance and risk management with innovation and a belief thatwith the right systems, coaching, and supportanyone can become an exceptional teacher or leader.Supervisory Responsibilities: The CTO is directly responsible for the supervision and oversight of all aspects of talent and human resources work and will lead a six-person leadership team:Vice President Talent AcquisitionVice President of Human ResourcesVice President of Compensation & BenefitsVice President of Staff ExperienceChief of StaffDirector of Human Resources Quality AssuranceLocation: This is a fully remote position allowing for residency anywhere in the state of Texas, with preference for candidates already living in or willing to relocate to one of our seven Texas regions: Austin, Dallas-Ft. Worth, El Paso, Houston, Permian Basin (Midland/Odessa), Rio Grande Valley, and San Antonio.Travel Expectations: Up to 30% of the time in the busiest months of the year with many weeks requiring no travel at all.What You'll Do AccountabilitiesEssential Duties:Develop and execute a bold, organization-wide Talent Strategy aligned to IDEA's mission, core values, and long-term goals.Champion IDEA's philosophy that talent is the most powerful driver of student success, linking every people system to scholar outcomes.Serve as a thought partner to the President, CEO/Superintendent, and Executive Team, shaping long-range strategy through a human-capital lens.Lead with an innovation mindsetcontinuously modernizing processes, policies, and tools that empower leaders to focus on development, not bureaucracy.Ensure IDEA scales its diverse leadership pipeline to meet future growth while protecting organizational culture and mission fidelity.Talent DevelopmentOversee IDEA's professional learning and leadership pipelines, including teacher career pathways, principal residencies, and executive leadership development programs.Build systems that guarantee every team memberteacher, leader, or HQ professionalhas access to world-class coaching and growth opportunities.Align development programs with measurable performance outcomes, ensuring professional growth translates directly to student achievement.Champion a culture of learning and feedback that reinforces IDEA's belief that great educators are developed, not found.Partner with regional and national teams to identify, prepare, and retain top talent for future leadership roles.Talent Acquisition and StaffingLead design and execution of large-scale recruitment and hiring strategies to attract diverse, high-quality educators, leaders, and support staff across multiple states with annual attainment of 100% staffing levels by the state of each academic year.Build proactive, data-driven pipelines for critical and emerging roles to meet growth targets and reduce vacancy rates.Ensure IDEA's brand as an employer of choice reflects its mission and values through authentic storytelling, digital presence, and strategic partnerships.Integrate technology, predictive analytics, and talent forecasting into recruitment planning to improve precision and speed.Partner with senior leaders to align staffing strategy with budget, academic priorities, and regional expansion.Staff Experience and CultureFoster an organization-wide culture of belonging, engagement, and purpose.Oversee IDEA's staff culture surveys, recognition programs, and engagement initiatives, ensuring every employee feels valued and connected to the mission.Create systems that identify early warning signs of disengagement and build proactive interventions to strengthen retention.Ensure IDEA continues to earn recognition as a "Best Place to Work" by prioritizing trust, transparency, and consistent feedback loops.Partner with leaders across all departments to embed experience design principles that make IDEA a joyful, equitable, and high-performance workplace.Human ResourcesDirect HR operations across multiple states and authorizers, ensuring compliance with all federal, state, and local employment laws.Oversee employee relations, investigations, risk management, and policy development grounded in fairness, accountability, and IDEA's values.Champion the implementation of modern HR systems and processes that enhance service delivery, reduce manual burden, and improve employee experience.Develop data-governance protocols and ensure high-quality HR analytics drive continuous improvement.Maintain the balance between compliance and empowermentensuring HR policies protect both people and mission.Compensation and BenefitsLead design, governance, and continuous improvement of competitive, sustainable compensation and benefits structures.Implement performance-based pay and recognition systems that reward excellence while ensuring fiscal responsibility.Partner with Finance and Executive leadership to model long-term affordability and equity in compensation strategy.Ensure benefits offerings reflect the diverse needs of IDEA's workforcesupporting health, family, and financial well-being.Regularly assess IDEA's compensation positioning against market benchmarks to remain an employer of choice.Organizational Leadership and People ManagementServe as a core member of the Executive Team, providing strategic counsel to the President, CEO/Superintendent, and multiple Boards of Directors.Oversee a high-performing leadership team of Vice Presidents or Managing Directors across all Talent divisions.Employ disciplined prioritization and clear performance management systems to ensure alignment and accountability across teams.Monitor and report key Talent metrics and KPIs, identifying gaps and driving data-informed action.Foster a culture of collaboration, inclusion, and excellencedeveloping leaders who embody IDEA's mission and values.Model transparency, self-reflection, and continuous improvement, inviting feedback and learning to strengthen organizational outcomes.Additional Duties and Responsibilities as assignedWhat You Bring CompetenciesMake strategic decisions This team member embodies IDEA's mission and values in decision-making, balancing bold vision with ethical and operational rigor. They establish governance frameworks that ensure consistency and accountability organization-wide, while applying systems thinking to break down silos and drive data-informed continuous improvement.Manage work and teams This team member designs scalable systems that anticipate future organizational needs, driving sustainable impact through cross-functional collaboration and strategic problem-solving. They foster a culture of ownership and accountability, lead change with clarity and purpose, and balance hands-on leadership with empowering others to build capacity and achieve long-term success.Grow self and others This team member embeds development priorities into strategic planning, ensuring organization-wide systems and resources support continuous learning. They build and empower senior leadership teams to drive performance, innovation, and inclusivity, while executing a comprehensive talent strategy that spans the full employee lifecycle and cultivates a culture of lifelong growth.Build a culture of trust This team member exemplifies IDEA's values and ethical standards through integrity, transparency, and responsible stewardship. By openly sharing decision rationale and fostering curiosity and inclusion, they build trust across the organization and create a culture where diverse perspectives are valued.Communicate deliberately This team member sets and upholds communication standards across the organization, ensuring clarity and trust, especially during times of change or crisis. They lead major initiatives with strategic, context-rich messaging, proactively shaping narratives that address challenges, foster resilience, and align stakeholder perception with organizational impact.Additional Skills:Deep knowledge and expertise with regard to all talent and human resource labor laws, statutory obligations, and regulatory requirementsAbility to design, evaluate, and improve existing policies, procedures, and systems at scale to ensure maximum effectiveness and efficiencyAble