Associate Vice President of Program Management

ABOUT UNDUE

Undue Medical Debt (formerly RIP Medical Debt) is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose purpose is to strengthen communities by erasing financially burdensome medical debt. Founded in 2014, Undue Medical Debt is one of the leading charitable organizations that addresses medical bills. We work tirelessly to end medical debt and ensure a future where everyone can access healthcare without fear.

How does it work? Undue utilizes donations to buy large bundles of medical debt and then relieves that debt with no tax consequences to recipients. The results have been spectacular— more than $14 billion in medical debts eradicated so far, providing financial relief for over 9 million individuals and families. We strive to be a source of justice in an unjust healthcare finance system; an innovative solution for patient-centered healthcare providers; and a moral force for systemic change.

ABOUT THE POSITION

This role will focus primarily on helping to build our community partner work and supporting our Constituent Services team. We are in search of the right person with a strategic mind and start-up energy as we more deliberately connect with on-the-ground partners who are integral to increasing visibility of medical debt and its harms. All of our partnership work is in service up driving upstream policy change.

​Reporting to the Vice President of Policy & Program Management, the AVP will lead and support a small team executing a portfolio of programmatic work integral to our mission, service delivery model and our efforts to influence upstream changes to policy. The AVP will be a strategic thinker, knowledgeable about organizational structures and cultures among community-based organizations; they will also have deep knowledge about advocacy, strategic communications, campaigns and the political landscapes that are key to developing savvy strategies and helpful tools for our partners. Critically, the AVP will be a thoughtful facilitator across diverging viewpoints and help usher pragmatic and forward-thinking solutions that center patients. The AVP will join a seasoned team who are adept at “building the airplane while flying it.” The Programs team includes a Constituent Engagement Manager, Constituent Liaison and Program Managers for Community Engagement and for Student Engagement. In addition, the Department includes a Policy Analyst and several expert consultants. The AVP will collaborate with these colleagues as well as teams across the organization.

We are seeking an AVP who will:

• Communicate effectively with internal and external stakeholders, including community-based organizations and public health leaders, policymakers and their staff, and the Undue team
• Foster and uphold an organizational culture of teamwork and collaboration
• Inspire the trust and confidence of Undue’s leadership, board, staff, and external partners
• Demonstrate an adaptive work style that is decisive, creative, responsive, and solution-oriented
• Have an intuitive and confident sense of when and how to nudge and encourage stakeholders to work together to achieve shared goals while balancing the success of our service model
• Stay current with the health policy and community organizing landscape at multiple levels.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES​

Support and Supervision

• Report to and support the Vice President of Policy and Program Management and act as a strategic thought partner, aligning various teams with our Program Management with Policy and Research work.​
• Supervise and support the Constituent Services team in tracking and monitoring their progress to goals in achieving organization goals and serving as lead facilitator in ‘problem solving’ across internal processes and departments.​
• Supervise and support the Program Manager for Community-Based Partnerships to clarify how our community-partners can increase visibility of abolishment in local jurisdictions and/or elevate the issue of medical debt in their communities to build momentum for abolishment and policy change.

Project Management and Process Improvements​

• Track and test a variety of tactics that deepen our community level footprint that lead to shifts in narrative and how people receive news of medical debt relief in collaboration with the Community Partnerships Program Manager. This includes strategic communications work in collaboration with multiple teams and the production of toolkits for partners wanting to elevate the issue of medical debt.
• Support the Constituent team in monitoring iterative workflows to improve systems for constituents and help amplify their work across the organization, and also to help the team connect the dots from abolishment to stories in the media and upstream solutions.
• Support improvements in internal workflow across a complex set of systems that abolish and elevate debt relief. This includes cross-departmental coordination with the Government Initiatives team and Communications and Marketing and other teams engaged in abolishment work.

Partner with VP of Policy and Program Management​

• Be a creative thought partner to the VP of Policy and Program Management in formalizing programmatic work and ensuring connection across various department activities that result in elevating the organization’s thought leadership
• Support the VP of Policy and Program Management in day-to-day work and long-term planning including the implementation of a research agenda. Strengthen the evaluative work of the department in coordination with other senior staff focused on metrics.

QUALIFICATIONS

Required: ​

• Exceptional written and verbal communications skills and ability to be a persuasive ambassador and trusted colleague. ​
• Able to foster and uphold an organizational culture of teamwork and collaboration
• Passion regarding Undue’s mission, integrity, and a sense of humor
• Savvy about political environments and varying roles and positions of key stakeholders
• Able to demonstrate an adaptive work style that is decisive, creative, responsive, and solution-oriented
• Strong presentation skills and comfort level speaking to groups of decision makers and community members
• Highly organized and detail oriented​

Preferred:

• Experience with Asana (project management), Excel, MailChimp, Lucid charts, and exposure to qualitative research
• The ability to travel from time to time for all-hands and team meetings as well as partner events
• Knowledge of health policy and health systems – Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, private insurance and hospital finance, including financial assistance
• Experience with developing campaigns and straddling diverse sets of stakeholders

Key Competencies

• Ability to work in a highly collaborative, transparent work environment in which providing and receiving feedback is common practice
• Outstanding interpersonal skills; comfortable in an external facing role; creative and innovative.
• Excellent and compelling verbal and written communication skills; high attention to detail and follow-up, and excellent organizational skills
• Meticulous project management skills and ability to plan, prioritize and organize a diversified workload; must meet deadlines
• Ability to receive, prioritize, and follow-up with requests from various stakeholders
• Keen analytical skills
• An exceptional work ethic and track record of personal initiative; collegial and collaborative
• Passion for Undue Medical Debt’s mission and eagerness to become well-versed in our work
• Willingness to learn about the inequities of healthcare/various national healthcare systems
• Strong ability to perform in a fast-paced and high-volume environment
• Flexibility and adaptability to new processes in an emerging and changing environment
• Humble

MINIMUM EDUCATION, TRAINING, AND EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree preferred, focused on policy, public health

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

• Base annual salary $​94,000​-​135,000​ for candidates located in the NYC area, commensurate with experience.
• Hybrid work environment (office work 3 days a week).
• 4 weeks PTO (with additional days granted upon 3rd and 5th anniversaries).
• Fully paid medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• Employee-paid life insurance, short-term and long-term disability.
• 403(b) retirement plan matching.
• Employee Assistance Program

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER STATEMENT

Undue Medical Debt is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws. This policy applies to all employment practices within our organization, including hiring, recruiting, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, leave of absence, compensation, benefits, training, and apprenticeship. Undue Medical Debt makes hiring decisions based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs at the time.