Chief Operating Officer

Chief Operating Officer

The American Council on Education (ACE) is a membership organization that leads higher education with a united vision for the future. They galvanize their members to make change and collaborate across the sector to design solutions for today's challenges, serve the needs of a diverse student population, and shape effective public policy. As the major coordinating body for the nation's colleges and universities, ACE's strength lies in their diverse membership of more than 1,600 colleges and universities, related associations, and other organizations in the United States and abroad. ACE is the only major higher education association to represent all types of U.S. accredited, degree-granting colleges and universities. Their members educate two out of every three students in all accredited, degree-granting U.S. institutions.

ACE seeks a Chief Operating Officer (COO) at a key inflection point in its more than 100-year history. The COO serves as a key executive leader, reporting directly to the President and guiding the strategic and tactical direction of ACE's Finance, Human Resources, and Information Technology functions, as well as overseeing administration and operations at One Dupont Circle. Significantly, they will also provide executive and operational leadership for the division that advances the future of higher education through two mission-aligned, entrepreneurial signature ventures which are critical to ACE, institutions of higher education and post-secondary learners (jointly referred to as One Dupont Ventures, or ODV) :

• Learning Evaluations (LE) ACE's national credit evaluation services for exams, courses, occupations, apprenticeships, and learning platforms, including the ACE Military Guide, the ACE National Guide, and the ACE Credit Exchange
• GED Testing Service (GEDTS) ACE's joint venture with Pearson, formed in 2011 to expand access to the high school equivalency assessment developed and owned by ACE since 1942, which has enabled over 20 million individuals to earn a high school credential.

This role oversees roughly half of the staff at ACE and collaborates with senior leadership and a team of professionals to develop and implement strategies that drive the organization's success and identify new sources of earned revenue. As a member of the Executive Leadership Team, the COO serves as a primary strategic partner with ACE's leadership to achieve organizational goals and objectives effectively. They will lead the organization's drive to adopt the best-in-class operations, procedural efficiencies, and decision-making practices needed to be agile and able to meet the moment and support its members at this critically important moment for higher education.

Essential Job Duties or Tasks :

Education / Experience / Specialized Knowledge and Competency Requirements :

Working Conditions / Physical Effort :

This is an onsite position, with four days per week in the office and one telework day available in coordination with the team.

Targeted salary range : $325,000 - 375,000.

Benefits Overview :

For a full summary of our benefits, please reach out to the Recruiting Team.

Russell Reynolds Associates has been exclusively retained for this search and prospective candidates are invited to contact Russell Reynolds Associates directly at acecoo@russellreynolds.com . All inquiries and discussions will be considered strictly confidential.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Protected Veterans / Individuals with Disabilities This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.