Director, Programs at North Texas Food Bank – Plano, Texas

PRIMARY PURPOSE: The Director of Programs provides strategic and operational leadership for the North Texas Food Bank’s (NTFB) neighbor-facing programs, ensuring high-quality, compliant, and impactful service delivery across the feeding network. This role oversees program managers and teams, drives continuous improvement, and partners cross-functionally to expand equitable food access across NTFB’s 12-county service area. The Director balances day-to-day program excellence with longer-term strategy, growth, and optimization in alignment with the organization’s strategic plan.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in business, management, social services, public health, or a related field; Master’s degree preferred or equivalent combination of education and experience

Special Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

• Proven ability to lead and oversee a team, including allocating resources effectively to achieve program goals
• Self-directed, motivated, and detail-oriented
• Proactive and solution-focused, with the ability to anticipate challenges and implement tailored strategies
• Excellent analytical and business modeling skills; strong writing skills; comfortable with public speaking; and an effective communicator with co-workers, managers, partners and neighbors
• Demonstrated ability to establish, maintain and strengthen community relationships, with knowledge of record-keeping and stewardship systems that support successful programming
• Advanced proficiency with MS Office applications; experience with a CRM system (e.g., Oasis, Salesforce, Blackbaud) is a plus

Experience:

• Seven years of progressive experience in program management, human services, community-based work, or related fields
• Five years of people management experience, including coaching and performance management
• Experience with program compliance, monitoring, and audit readiness (e.g., USDA, TDA, HHSC, Feeding America)
• Knowledge of or experience in food banking, food pantry operations, or direct neighbor-facing services preferred

PRINCIPLE DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Provide leadership and oversight for NTFB’s neighbor-facing programs, ensuring alignment with organizational strategy and community needs
2. Lead, mentor, and develop program managers and staff while fostering a high-performing, inclusive, and accountable culture
3. Ensure effective day-to-day program operations, including quality management, documentation, and compliance
4. Maintain audit readiness and adherence to all applicable legal, regulatory, and contractual requirements
5. Collaborate with Community Partner Relations and cross-functional teams to support partner success and network optimization
6. Oversee program performance measurement, data collection, and reporting, including key performance indicators
7. Strategic thinking in researching and developing pilot programs and/or new and innovative ways of meeting the needs of our neighbors
8. Leverage data insights to inform decision-making, prioritize investments, and address underserved areas
9. Represent NTFB in the community as an ambassador of its mission, values, and programs
10. Support budgeting, work planning, and resource allocation related to programs

• Perform other tasks and duties as assigned

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Oversee a team of approximately 13-15 staff, including 3 direct reports, with accountability for overall team performance, engagement, and development

MENTAL DEMANDS:

• Adapt effectively to workplace stressors, including customer concerns, compliance requirements, meeting deadlines and competing priorities essential to team success
• Analyze and interpret complex data to make informed decisions that significantly impact team performance and organizational outcomes

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to stand, walk, sit, use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools or controls; reach with hands and arms; climb stairs; balance; stoop; kneel, crouch or crawl; talk, hear.
• Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth vision, and the ability to adjust focus.
• The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.

ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS:

• Moderate noise (i.e., business office with open floor plan with computers, phone, and printers, light traffic)
• Some travel is required within our 12-county service area

The mental and physical demands and work environment described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

This is not necessarily an exhaustive list of all skills, duties, responsibilities, efforts, requirements, or working conditions associated with the job. While this is intended to be an accurate reflection of the current job, NTFB reserves the right to revise the job or to require other or different tasks be performed as assigned. The final title will be based upon the candidate’s level of experience and their demonstrated knowledge, skills and abilities as related to this role.

The North Texas Food Bank is an equal opportunity employer.