Program Manager, TED-Ed Programs

Company Description

TED is on a mission to discover and spread ideas that spark imagination, embrace possibility and catalyze impact. Our organization is devoted to curiosity, reason, wonder and the pursuit of knowledge — without an agenda. We welcome people from every discipline and culture who seek a deeper understanding of the world and connection with others, and we invite everyone to engage with ideas and activate them in your community.

ABOUT TED-ED

TED-Ed is TED’s youth and education initiative. Our mission is to spark and celebrate the ideas of students and educators worldwide by providing free, high-quality educational content and resources. The TED-Ed Programs team designs and manages global initiatives that equip educators and students with the tools to develop and share their ideas in powerful ways. Our work fosters creativity, public speaking, and leadership skills while providing a global platform for powerful educational ideas.

Through successful programs like TED-Ed Student Talks and TED-Ed Educator Talks, we have reached millions of students and educators around the world. As part of our ongoing efforts to have an even broader and greater impact, we now are launching a new, ambitious professional development program for educators that will empower school communities to elevate educator and student voices in even greater ways.

APPLICANT INSTRUCTIONS

We are excited to welcome a passionate and driven Program Manager to our TED-Ed team! If you’re eager to make a lasting impact on educators and students around the world, we encourage you to apply. The application window for this role closes on Monday, April 7, so don’t miss this opportunity to be part of a dynamic team. Apply today and help bring powerful ideas to life!

Job Description

POSITION OVERVIEW

TED-Ed is seeking an experienced Program Manager to lead and grow the TED-Ed Student Talks program. This individual will own the entire program lifecycle, from strategic direction to execution, ensuring smooth operations, continuous process improvements, and meaningful engagement with our global community of educators and students. The Program Manager will also supervise a Program Coordinator and be responsible for effectively delegating several operational and administrative tasks while concurrently focusing on high-level strategy, innovation, and program expansion. 

This role requires a resourceful and adaptable leader with a passion for education, the ability to optimize systems, and the creativity to elevate and scale the program’s impact. The ideal candidate is a team player, highly organized, data-driven, and thrives in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.

Program Strategy & Execution

• Define and execute TED-Ed Student Talks program strategy, ensuring alignment with TED-Ed’s mission and goals. 

• Manage and mentor a Program Coordinator, delegating many operational responsibilities while maintaining oversight of program execution. 

• Oversee day-to-day program operations, managing workflows, improving processes, and ensuring program efficiency.

• Lead the full application lifecycle which includes reviewing educator submissions, refining selection criteria, communicating with applicants and maintaining accurate records in CRM systems such as AirTable.

• Identify process improvements throughout the entire program lifecycle based on user feedback and data and proactively present potential solutions to TED-Ed leadership. 

• Troubleshoot occasional technical errors within the Student Talks database and coordinate fixes with internal and external tech teams.

Community Engagement 

• Develop and lead the online engagement strategy for thousands of global educators facilitating TED-Ed Student Talks. Design discussion prompts, foster peer networking, and strengthen connections between educators and the TED-Ed team.

• Define key community metrics, track engagement trends, and continuously identify opportunities for improvement.

• Manage the relationship with Mighty Networks (community platform vendor), overseeing platform updates, troubleshooting issues, and optimizing its use for the TED-Ed Student Talks community.

Customer Support

• Lead the customer support strategy, ensuring timely and effective responses to educators and students. 

• Manage the rollout and ongoing maintenance of a new AI-powered chatbot that will improve efficiency of customer service responses. 

• Oversee and improve templated responses to educator and student inquiries via customer support platforms: Zendesk and Mighty Networks.

Event Planning  

• Develop and execute the strategy for TED-Ed’s virtual and in-person events, ensuring alignment with program goals.

• Lead planning and delivery of TED-Ed Connect Weeks, twice annual online student meet ups that build presentation literacy and cultural awareness skills. 

• Oversee and grow TED-Ed’s annual in-person presence at TEDNext, managing event strategy, budget, logistics and on-the-ground team coordination. 

• Ensure seamless support team training, scheduling and communication workflows for all events.

Data Analysis & Continuous Program Improvement 

• Track and analyze key TED-Ed Student Talks program performance metrics across platforms such as Mixpanel, Google Analytics, and Airtable to assess program impact.

• Lead monthly data reviews, presenting insights to the team, tracking progress towards key goals and making data-driven recommendations for improvement. 

• Generate clear, actionable reports that inform strategic decisions and enhance program effectiveness.

• Optimize workflows, automation and documentation to improve overall program efficiency and scalability. 

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience in program or project management, preferably in education, non-profits, or community engagement.

• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple projects and priorities simultaneously.

• Tech-savvy, with experience using Airtable, Google Workspace, Zendesk, Mighty Networks, Mixpanel, and email marketing tools (or willingness to learn).

• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with experience developing training materials and community resources.

• Ability to analyze data and generate insights to improve program performance.

• Comfortable troubleshooting technology and working with developers to resolve issues.

• Experience in event planning, workshop facilitation, or educator engagement is a plus.

• Passion for TED’s mission and education initiatives.

Additional Information

Salary Range: 85-95k  USD 

BENEFITS

• Full health benefits (medical, dental, vision) 

• Paid family leave

• Work-life balance is encouraged through our flexible paid time off 

• Free OneMedical and SpringHealth membership for you and your dependents to address physical and mental well-being 

• 401k with match

OUR TEAM & CULTURE

The TED-Ed Programs team is small but mighty. We are entrepreneurial, fast-paced, data-driven, and deeply committed to teamwork and collaboration. We are passionate about helping students and teachers achieve the best learning outcomes. We seek a candidate who thrives in ambiguity, takes initiative, and is excited to help build a sustainable education program with global reach and lasting impact.

TED Conferences LLC is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We invite all qualified candidates to apply online with their resume.