Chief Program Officer

Description

• Project Hospitality seeks a seasoned, strategic, and mission-driven Chief Program Officer to provide executive
• leadership, alignment, and accountability across the organization’s program portfolio.
• Reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer and serving as a member of the Executive Leadership Team, the Chief
• Program Officer will directly supervise the Deputy Chief Program Officers and the Community Impact Officer. Through
• these senior leaders, the Chief Program Officer will provide oversight of Project Hospitality’s broad range of programs
• and services, ensuring program excellence, contract performance, service quality, operational alignment, and mission
• impact.
• This is a critical senior leadership position responsible for strengthening program infrastructure, improving cross-
• program coordination, supporting senior program leaders, advancing client-centered service delivery, and ensuring that
• Project Hospitality’s programs remain aligned with the organization’s mission, strategic priorities, funder expectations,
• and long-term sustainability.

About Project Hospitality

• For more than 40 years, Project Hospitality has served Staten Island individuals and families experiencing homelessness,
• food insecurity, poverty, behavioral health challenges, recovery needs, and other complex life circumstances. Through a
• comprehensive network of programs and services, Project Hospitality works to create pathways toward stability,
• healing, and hope.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide executive leadership and strategic oversight for Project Hospitality’s program portfolio through direct supervision of the Deputy Chief Program Officers and the Community Impact Officer.
• Ensure that program leaders are aligned, supported, accountable, and working collaboratively across departments.
• Serve as the senior executive responsible for program performance, service quality, program alignment, and mission impact.
• Partner closely with the CEO, COO, CFO, Chief Advancement Officer, Chief of Staff, and other executive leaders to strengthen organizational performance and sustainability.
• Provide clear analysis, recommendations, and solutions to the CEO regarding program risks, opportunities, staffing needs, service gaps, funding alignment, and operational priorities.
• Strengthen communication, coordination, and consistency across program areas.
• Supervision of Senior Program Leaders
• Directly supervise the Deputy Chief Program Officers and the Community Impact Officer.
• Clarify expectations, priorities, decision-making authority, and accountability across the senior program leadership structure.
• Support senior program leaders in managing their respective portfolios, teams, contracts, partnerships, outcomes, and service delivery responsibilities.
• Provide coaching, guidance, and executive-level problem-solving support to senior program leaders.
• Foster a culture of shared accountability, collaboration, respect, and performance excellence.
• Ensure that senior program leaders are effectively managing the programs, directors, staff, and services within their areas of responsibility.

Program Quality, Performance, and Accountability

• Ensure that programs operate in alignment with contractual, regulatory, licensing, compliance, quality, and funder expectations.
• Monitor program performance through senior program leaders, dashboards, reports, outcomes, audits, corrective action plans, and key performance indicators.
• Identify programmatic risks, service gaps, staffing challenges, contract concerns, and areas requiring executive attention.
• Ensure timely and accurate program information is available for executive decision-making, board reporting, funder engagement, and strategic planning.
• Promote a culture of program excellence, accountability, compassion, and continuous improvement.
• Cross-Program Coordination and Service Alignment
• Strengthen coordination among program divisions to improve client pathways, reduce silos, and support integrated service delivery.
• Work with senior program leaders to ensure consistency in communication, referrals, documentation, service standards, and client-centered practices.
• Identify opportunities to improve systems, workflows, policies, procedures, and program infrastructure.
• Support alignment between housing, food and nutrition, wellness, recovery, youth, care management, community initiatives, and other program areas.
• Ensure program operations reflect trauma-informed, culturally responsive, client-centered, and community-based practices.

Contract, Budget, and Funder Alignment

• Partner with Finance, Operations, Advancement, and senior program leaders to ensure program budgets, staffing models, contract deliverables, and service expectations are aligned.
• Review program performance in relation to funding requirements, staffing capacity, service goals, and organizational sustainability.
• Support the development, renewal, and implementation of government, foundation, and private funding opportunities in partnership with Advancement and Finance.
• Ensure program input for proposals, renewals, reports, site visits, audits, and funder communications is timely, accurate, and strong.
• Identify risks related to underperformance, contract compliance, funding gaps, staffing vacancies, or operational barriers.

Leadership, Culture, and Staff Capacity

• Support senior program leaders in strengthening team performance, supervision, communication, morale, and accountability.
• Help build leadership capacity among program executives, area directors, and emerging leaders.
• Promote a culture rooted in dignity, service excellence, collaboration, healing, and respect.
• Ensure program leaders are equipped to lead through change, manage complexity, and uphold Project Hospitality’s mission and values.

External Representation and Partnership

• Represent Project Hospitality with government agencies, funders, community partners, provider networks, coalitions, elected officials, faith communities, and other stakeholders as assigned.
• Support the CEO in strengthening strategic partnerships and advancing Project Hospitality’s role as a leading human services provider on Staten Island.
• Participate in funder meetings, site visits, public forums, and community conversations related to programs, client needs, service gaps, and community impact.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s degree required; master’s degree strongly preferred in social work, public administration, nonprofit management, human services, public health, or a related field.
• Minimum of 10 years of progressively responsible senior leadership experience in nonprofit, human services, public sector, healthcare, housing, behavioral health, or community-based programs.
• Demonstrated experience supervising senior program leaders and overseeing complex, multi-program portfolios.
• Strong knowledge of contract management, program operations, compliance, quality assurance, performance metrics, and program budgeting.
• Experience leading programs funded by government, foundation, or institutional funders.
• Strong executive presence, communication skills, judgment, and ability to work closely with a CEO and executive leadership team.
• Demonstrated ability to strengthen systems, build accountability, manage change, and lead through complexity.
• Commitment to serving vulnerable communities with dignity, compassion, cultural responsiveness, and respect.

Preferred

• Licensed clinical, social work, public health, or human services background.