The New Zealand Program Director leads all aspects of New Zealand operations in accord with the NOLS vision and strategic goals. 

The Program Director creates vision, sets tone, and leads in day-to-day operations and into the future. The Director also works on a NOLS leadership team to steer at a school-wide level. The Director will be deeply committed to the NOLS mission and values while supporting in-town teams and field faculty to facilitate positive, life-changing experiences for NOLS students.

Key Logistical Points:

• New Zealand Citizenship or Permanent Residence is a prerequisite to be considered for this position.

• Start date: August 1, 2024

• Questions: Please contact peopleteam@nols.edu

What does the New Zealand Program Director do?

• Campus Operations

  • Create a positive working environment in service to 100+ students and 25+ field faculty per year. 

  • Provide mentorship and support to a team of 8+ seasonal in-town staff.

  • Plan operational activities including support staff structure, immediate and long-term course mix, budgets, financial projections, and other operational goals.

  • Foster a creative and flexible approach to addressing unpredictable market and enrollment trends, and show willingness to explore new courses.

• Budget Management

  • Plan and implement an approximate annual budget of NZ$2M. 

  • Innovate to increase operational efficiencies to reduce expenses.

  • Streamline course mix and maximize opportunities for increased tuition revenue.

• School-wide Leadership

  • Build and maintain positive working relationships with other NOLS departments and campuses.

  • Participate as part of the school-wide leadership team and campus director team to exchange knowledge, support, and enhance the school’s overall program, purpose and mission.

  • Advance and gather input for school-wide leadership initiatives at the local level.

  • Communicate NOLS vision and state of the school to in town staff and field faculty. 

  • Lead through organizational uncertainty and change to support direct impacts to NZ operations.

• Risk Management and Crisis Response 

  • Support, assist, and regularly lead day-to-day needs, complex evacuations, emergent issues, and crisis response. 

  • Work with student discipline and separations including intervention and family contact.

• Public and Community Relations

  • Represent NOLS to the public, including the local community, government officials, and other business contacts. 

  • Help NOLS foster and maintain a strong local presence in New Zealand. 

• Facilities Oversight

  • Work with the Operations Manager on physical plant planning, construction, and maintenance oversight as it pertains to day-to-day function as well as long term asset changes.

• Compliance 

  • Ensure the continued viability of operations by managing a Department of Conservation concession, compliance with Adventure Activity regulations, immigration requirements for any non-local staff, and necessary financial reporting responsibilities with the Internal Revenue Department. 

Please note this list is not inclusive of all duties and responsibilities, but rather covers the more frequent tasks of the role.

What makes a great NOLS New Zealand Campus Director NOLS? 

We are looking for people who share our values and are keen to learn and develop their expertise. We are looking for candidates with the skills listed below. We expect to provide training and development support in some of the areas.

• Understanding of NOLS' mission, educational philosophy, and values as a learning organization

• Experience supervising a mid to large-size team, building positive leadership environments that embody equity and inclusion for diverse teams leading in service of others. 

• Embody a growth mindset.

• Professional-level experience instructing or guiding extended backcountry expeditions in remote environments with a variety of clients, and experience supervising expeditionary field programs. New Zealand qualifications (such as NZOIA, NZMGA etc) are valued.

• Excellent prioritization skills with the ability to adequately adapt based on emergent demands, team support, and deadlines. 

• Ability to build robust relationships and communicate effectively with a variety of partners. 

• Ability to lead effectively while under stress and with limited information.

• Excellent written and oral communication in English

• Experience building and managing budgets.

• Experience navigating government processes achieving successful outcomes. 

• Desire to work in a close team in a dynamic and collaborative environment.

• Ability and willingness to maintain a flexible schedule, working some long days, weekends, and holidays. 

• Capacity to learn new software quickly and navigate complicated systems.

• In-depth knowledge of NOLS New Zealand operations and classrooms is a bonus.

  In your first 6 months, you will: 

• Gain a deep understanding of NOLS, and the NOLS New Zealand campus, engaging with our staff, operational procedures, course and classroom offerings to ensure organisational goals are reached. 

• Build relationships with field faculty and in-town staff members to gain an understanding of their experience, building trust and utilising their expertise moving forward. 

• Understand the state of finances in, and build financial projections for, the current fiscal year, and manage day-to-day expenses while working to increase net revenue to NOLS. 

• Become intimately familiar with evacuation procedures and systems in order to manage and support behavioural and medical incidents as well as emergent and crisis response from the NZ Campus.

Who are we and what can we offer you?

NOLS is a nonprofit global wilderness school that seeks to help people step forward boldly as a leader. We believe that anyone can be a leader; it is our role to provide the environment and training to help people discover their full potential. We do that in classrooms close to home and in remote wilderness areas around the world. We are an organization with heart, expertise, and wildness, and these qualities help us support powerful, authentic experiences.

NOLS really is a great place to work:

• We have locations in seven U.S. states, and six countries; and courses in all 50 U.S. states and over 10 countries.

• All employees can benefit of free outdoor equipment "Rental" at our various locations

• We have fantastic employee discounts on top outdoor gear brands

• We offer discounts on NOLS courses for you and your family

• Wellness Time for all employees

• Employee Assistance Program: Access to counsellors that are available 24/7 to assist employees with work-life balance concerns.

Next steps

At NOLS we use the Applied platform for our recruitment. Applied aims to overcome unconscious bias in recruiting. Instead of using your resume alone, we'll be asking you to answer questions to test skills needed for the role. The responses are then anonymized, and reviewed in a random order by members of our team. 

The Applied platform also asks some demographic questions before you start your application. We at NOLS never see the responses to these demographic questions with your application. We only see summary statistics to help us check if our candidate pool is balanced and if everyone has an equal chance to get hired irrespective of their background. If you prefer, you can easily opt out of answering these questions.

All you need to do is start the process by clicking on the button at the top right. 

Additional Information

• A criminal background check is required from all NOLS employees.

• Current NOLS employees please note it is NOLS policy to conduct an internal reference check with human resources and/or your current supervisor as part of the reference check process. If you have any questions or concerns about this process please contact peopleteam@nols.edu.

NOLS does not discriminate on the basis of race, colour, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, genetics information, disability unrelated to job or admission requirements, or status as a protected veteran. The school’s nondiscrimination policy applies to all phases of its employment process, its admission and financial aid programs, and to all other aspects of its educational programs and activities. Retaliation directed to any person who pursues a discrimination complaint or grievance, participates in a discrimination investigation, or otherwise opposes unlawful discrimination is prohibited.

NOLS values community and fosters a sense of belonging for our employees and applicants. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations in the workplace because they embody these values, as well as our operating principle of promoting a positive, safe, and learning environment. Reasonable accommodations may be requested for disability; limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition; religion; and domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or harassment. Reasonable accommodations may be requested at any point of the employment process, including during recruitment. Please email peopleteam@nols.edu with your request.