itrek
Chief Program Officer
New York (Hybrid)
Salary: $185,000 - $215,000
BACKGROUND
The Organization
itrek brings influential people to Israel for immersive, educational experiences. We’re a nonprofit that helps both rising and established leaders from many fields connect with Israel in a meaningful way—experiencing its culture, diversity, and complexity firsthand.
Since 2011, over 25,000 graduate students from 130 countries have joined our programs. In the last three years, we’ve grown to include itrek Launchpad and REALITY, expanding our reach to professional networks through partnerships with institutions and individuals. Headquartered in New York City, itrek operates as a fast-moving and nimble organization. We love exploring new ideas and collaborating as a team to push ourselves and our thinking.
The Position
The Chief Program Officer (CPO) will serve as the senior leader responsible for overseeing and unifying itrek’s full programmatic portfolio, including Graduate, Launchpad, Reality, Alumni, and Israel-based initiatives. Reporting to the CEO and working closely with the executive team, the CPO will ensure that all programs are strategically aligned, operationally sound, and consistently delivered with excellence. The CPO will be an integral part of bringing itrek’s bold 10-year vision to bring 10,000 participants to Israel every year into reality by leading a high-impact program team that can scale reach and engagement while always providing the absolute highest standard of programming.
As both a strategist and a team builder, the CPO will lead a large team of directors and staff across geographies, with a particular focus on fostering a cohesive, high-performance culture. The CPO will serve as a translator between the day-to-day realities of program delivery and the strategic priorities of executive leadership—ensuring that vision and operations remain closely connected. They will also play a vital role in cross-functional collaboration, working with finance, development, operations, and marketing to align resources and messaging in support of itrek’s goals.
ROLE OVERVIEW
Strategic Alignment
The CPO will ensure all programmatic efforts ladder up to itrek’s long-term goals and 10-year vision.
• Unify and align Graduate, Launchpad, Reality, Alumni, and Israel Ops teams under one cohesive strategic framework.
• Operationalize structured planning cycles and shared priorities across teams.
• Translate executive vision and organizational strategy into actionable program plans and timelines.
• Monitor and adjust programming in response to progress toward scaling to 10,000 annual participants.
Team Leadership, Development & Management
The CPO will cultivate a strong, mission-aligned, and collaborative program team by developing talent, reinforcing shared norms, and modeling values-based leadership.
• Lead and support 4+ direct reports, fostering high-performing, outcomes-driven teams across all programmatic verticals.
• Coach and develop program directors with a focus on accountability, continuous learning, and trust-building.
• Proactively address burnout and morale challenges through thoughtful change leadership and clear performance expectations.
• Cultivate a culture of collaboration by encouraging open communication, shared problem-solving, and team-wide alignment around goals and values.
Program Oversight & Operational Excellence
The CPO will be responsible for managing the delivery, quality, and infrastructure of all programs.
• Lead the full program portfolio, ensuring consistency, excellence, and mission alignment across all experiences.
• Facilitate cross-program coordination and shared learning to eliminate silos and increase cohesion.
• Coordinate program calendar, staffing, and resource planning in sync with capacity and budget.
• Manage program budgets in collaboration with finance and ensure responsible fiscal stewardship.
Organizational Communication & Executive Integration
The CPO will serve as a crucial bridge between executive leadership and program teams.
• Represent program staff perspectives in executive conversations and strategic planning.
• Clearly convey executive priorities and decisions to directors and staff with transparency and context.
• Foster alignment between program and internal teams (development, marketing, operations) for shared success.
• Serve as a thought partner to the CEO and peers on institutional planning, program evolution, and innovation.
Innovation, Growth & Future-Readiness
The CPO will lead itrek into its next phase by designing scalable, future-oriented solutions.
• Reimagine alumni engagement as a strategic asset supporting leadership and impact.
• Define a streamlined, modern education model that supports quality without overstaffing.
• Champion the adoption of tools like AI and other innovations that boost capacity and quality.
• Lead adaptive strategy in response to geopolitical instabilities, campus climates, and participant needs.
Founded Total Staff / Direct Reports Served Annually
2011 32 / 4+ 1000+
THE IDEAL CANDIDATE
The ideal candidate for the Chief Program Officer role at itrek is an experienced leader who builds effective, high-performing teams and inspires a culture of trust, accountability, and shared purpose. They drive results by aligning vision with execution, making sound decisions, and setting clear priorities across a complex and evolving program portfolio. An organized planner, the ideal candidate models and fosters collaboration. They work seamlessly across departments and levels to ensure clear alignment and operational excellence. With exceptional communication skills, they serve as a translator between the executive team and program staff—ensuring clarity, cohesion, and desired outcomes.
The ideal candidate for the Chief Program Officer position possesses the following competencies:
Additional Qualifications
• Strong track record of managing and mentoring mid- and senior-level staff; ability to build middle management capacity and lead high-performing teams.
• Proven experience overseeing complex, multi-vertical program portfolios, ideally in a mission-driven, educational, or leadership development organization.
• Experience leading teams through growth; able to reinforce team norms and foster psychological safety and accountability.
• Ability to work collaboratively across departments; work closely with operations, development, marketing, and external partners to integrate programs with broader organizational goals.
• Fluency in managing program calendars, budgets, performance metrics, and cross-functional planning in a fast-paced environment.
• Data-Driven and Outcome-Oriented -Comfort with program evaluation tools, KPIs, and impact measurement to drive decisions and communicate success internally and externally.
• Comfort with emerging tools (e.g., AI), openness to new ideas, and ability to foster a culture of experimentation and learning.
Work Environment
itrek is a hybrid work environment with a minimum of two days per week in the office.
itrek is an Equal Opportunity employer. Personnel are chosen on the basis of ability without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, marital status or sexual orientation, in accordance with federal and state law.
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
Salary: $185,000-$215,000
Benefits: itrek provides a generous benefits package including but not limited to:
• Generous vacation time package including Jewish and American holidays and the ability to leave early for Shabbat and Jewish holidays
• Opportunity for travel to Israel
• Work from Anywhere weeks and a wellness stipend
• Paid sick leave and parental leave
• High quality Medical, Vision and Dental Plans available
• 5% company match on retirement savings in company 401k
TIMELINE AND NEXT STEPS
If you are interested in this position, please click here. All applicants will receive an email confirming receipt of their application.
We encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply even if you do not meet all of the qualifications outlined above. If you are selected to move forward for an initial screening call, you will hear back soon.
Nina Cogan
Talent Consultant
ncogan@drgtalent.com
Ami Abramson
Senior Partner
aabramson@drgtalent.com
Submit an application HERE.