Director of Search – Boulder, CO

Overview of Watson Institute

Watson Institute is built on the belief that to solve the toughest challenges facing the world, we must equip the next generation with the necessary tools, network, mindset, and courage to unleash a lifetime of impact.

Watson Institute is a reimagined model of education for next-generation innovators and social entrepreneurs. At Watson Institute, promising young leaders from around the world convene to launch and advance solutions to the world’s most urgent social, economic, and environmental challenges.

Watson Scholars can earn a bachelor’s degree in social entrepreneurship from Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida, by ‘majoring in their mission’ and leading impactful, successful careers. They can also take part in our 4-month semester accelerator program or join our 2-month summer accelerator program in Boulder, Colorado, to focus on launching social ventures and projects.

The 167 Watson alumni from 52 countries have raised $77.2 million for the initiatives they help lead, created 572 part or full time jobs, and impacted over 150,000 people through their work. Watson alumni have been selected to the Echoing Green Fellowship and Forbes’ 30 under 30 list, and continued their education at Harvard University, New York University, and Princeton University, among others.

Director of Search Mission Statement

The Director of Search will lead our global search for the 80 promising next-generation leaders and social entrepreneurs for the Watson Accelerator that runs three times per year in Boulder, Colorado.

• Recruitment of 30 students per year for the Watson Institute Fall Semester Accelerator in Boulder, Colorado.
• Recruitment of 30 students per year for the Watson Institute Spring Semester Accelerator in Boulder, Colorado.
• Recruitment of 20 students per year for Watson Institute’s Summer Accelerator in Boulder, Colorado.

The Director of Search will leverage partnerships with nominators[1], high schools, colleges and universities, current students, and alumni to search for future Watson students. Watson Institute currently receives approximately 850 applications per year for 60 slots, and we expect this individual's strategy to increase applications to over 1,125 per year for 80 slots.

[1]Nominators: Partner organizations, institutions, and schools working with students and young entrepreneurs that could be prospective Watson Scholars. Watson currently has a network of over 350 nominators across the world.

The Director Role

Nominator Partnerships

Watson Institute’s network of over 350 nominators are the primary way in which strong prospective applicants find out about the Watson Institute. This individual will lead the process of strengthening and building relationships with new and existing nominators. The elements of the nominator process include:

• Identifying strong prospective nominators: Through research and recommendations from current nominators, the Director identifies strong prospective nominators. This individual should expect to reach out to 10 new prospective nominators each week.
• Building new nominator partnerships: Once strong prospects are identified, the Director leads the process of setting up calls and meetings to bring on board new nominators. This individual should plan to meet with at least 5 nominators each week during recruitment season. Meetings with nominators are usually done over the phone or video conference unless they are local.
• Strengthening existing nominator partnerships: Through research and learning conversations, the Director identifies and implements a strategy to better engage and build a community for our existing nominators.
• High school and university partners: In addition to nominators, the Director identifies and builds relationships with aligned high schools globally whose alumni could be strong candidates for the Watson Institute. This will include school visits, webinars, and in-person presentations. The Director should expect to meet with at least 5 schools per month. School visits are typically done via phone call; however, traveling may be considered on special cases.
• Identifying Maverick Scholarship partners: The Maverick Scholarship is for nominating partners who exhibit the understanding and importance of social impact. Students nominated from these institutions will receive a $10,000 scholarship for Watson Institute at Lynn University and a $5,000 scholarship for the Watson Accelerator from Watson Institute501(c)(3) on top of any additional merit-based and need-based scholarships that they may receive.
• Documenting each nominator relationship: The Director carefully leads all documentation for new and prospective nominators and school partners through the Watson Institute Salesforce system. This individual will recommend and implement best practices for all nominator documentation.

Scholar Search

• Communication & Campus Visit Experience for prospective students: The Director will support communication with interested students for the Watson Accelerator and will follow up on strong leads. If a student and/or parent(s) show interest in visiting the Watson Accelerator, this individual will invite the student and/or parent(s) and facilitate our Campus Visit Experience.
• Communication with Lynn University students interested in joining the Watson Accelerator: Lynn University students who attend the Watson Accelerator in Boulder, Colorado may be eligible to earn credits toward a minor in social entrepreneurship. The Director will support the Director of Search in South Florida by scheduling conversations with any Lynn University students who may be interested in joining the Watson Accelerator.
• Support Watson Institute’s Selection Process: This individual will work closely with Watson Institute’s Director of Admission to review applications.

Search Strategy, Implementation and Financial Goals

• Analysis of most effective Search Strategy: This individual will begin by doing an analysis of the most effective recruiting sources from previous years. Sources to be analyzed include: nominators, students and alumni, conferences, social media, and media.
• Refine Search Strategy: Based on the results of the analysis, the individual will refine Watson Institute’s search strategy aimed at finding the world’s most promising next-generation leaders and entrepreneurs.
• Search Strategy Implementation: The Director of Search will lead the implementation of our refined global search strategy for the 80 promising next-generation leaders and social entrepreneurs selected each year for the Watson Accelerator.
• Data Analysis: This individual will be number-driven and accountable for the following goals alongside the Search Team: number of applications (current: 850, goal: 1,125), analyzing and documenting which channels are best for Search conversion, and analyzing best practices for documenting these Search channels across the organization.
• Tuition Revenue Goals: The Director of Search will be guided by Watson Institute’s Director of Admission to achieve the tuition revenue goals needed to power each of Watson Institute’s locations.
• Search Process Documentation: The Director of Search will be responsible for documenting all student leads and applicants in the Watson Institute Salesforce CRM system. This person will utilize Salesforce as a powerful tool to capture, organize, and engage all student leads and applicants in order to stay on top of goals.

Alumni Network

• Oversee Watson’s Alumni Facebook Group: The Director will be responsible for onboarding new alumni into the group and sharing relevant opportunities to the network.
• Manage Venture Opportunities Guide: The Director will be responsible for documenting new opportunities in the guide for current students and alumni. Examples of these opportunities include fellowships, competitions, funding, etc.
• Organizing Watson’s Alumni Survey: This individual will organize our Annual Alumni Survey, compiling and analyzing data, and creating an annual impact report.
• Assisting Alumni Engagement: The Director will assist with implementing new engagement strategies to keep alumni involved and support new student referrals.

https://watson.is/careers/