Chief Program Officer (CPO)

Description

About Healthy Kids Programs

Healthy Kids Programs is a rapidly growing, multi-state for-profit provider of Early Learning, Before & After School, and Summer Camp programs serving early learning and K–8 students across 125+ locations. We are one of Inc. 5000’s fastest-growing companies, generating $12M in annual revenue with a clear path to $20M+.

After years of expansion, Healthy Kids is entering the next phase of professionalization—strengthening leadership, building operational systems, and scaling processes that ensure program quality, operational excellence, and sustainable growth. As a certified Benefit Corporation, we are on a mission to reinvent accessible, high-quality childcare while providing meaningful career pathways for our teams.

The Opportunity

Responsibilities

The Chief Program Officer (CPO) is a high-impact, strategic, and hands-on executive responsible for the quality, consistency, and operational performance of all Healthy Kids programs. Reporting to the CEO, the CPO will:

• Make program quality and social-emotional learning outcomes the primary organizational focus.
• Lead operational execution across 125+ sites, ensuring systems, accountability, and standardized processes drive performance.
• Manage payroll and labor, Healthy Kids’ largest cost line, with an eye toward efficiency and margin improvement.
• Drive enrollment growth, retention, and new site openings while maintaining program standards.
• Foster family and school district engagement, strengthening Healthy Kids’ reputation and partnerships.
• Build and mentor a strong leadership team including Regional Directors, Area Managers, and site leaders.
• Act as a trusted partner to the CEO, absorbing day-to-day operational responsibility and creating predictable execution across all departments.
  
  

This role can be fully remote, with frequent travel to sites across multiple states.

Key Responsibilities

Program Quality & SEL Outcomes

• Implement and maintain a comprehensive Program Quality Framework emphasizing social-emotional learning, engagement, and child safety.
• Ensure consistent curriculum delivery and enrichment programs across all sites.
• Monitor quality through data, observations, and audits to continuously improve outcomes.
  
  

Operational Leadership & Systems Building

• Lead day-to-day operations across multiple states, standardizing SOPs, KPIs, dashboards, and accountability systems.
• Build scalable operational systems for training, compliance, reporting, and communication flow.
• Improve operational efficiency and reduce variability across sites.
  
  

Payroll, Staffing & Margin Management

• Oversee payroll management to balance cost, quality, and compliance.
• Implement staffing models that maintain ratios, ensure quality, and improve margins.
• Monitor labor data and dashboards to drive operational discipline.
  
  

Enrollment & Growth

• Develop strategies to increase enrollment, optimize occupancy, and retain families.
• Support opening and scaling of new locations, ensuring consistent program quality from day one.
  
  

Family & School District Engagement

• Maintain strong, collaborative relationships with families and district leaders.
• Ensure programs meet or exceed district expectations and contractual requirements.
  
  

Culture & Leadership Development

• Stabilize and strengthen the leadership team, fostering accountability, clarity, and ownership.
• Develop middle management and site leaders, building a robust talent pipeline.
  
  

CEO Partnership

• Serve as the CEO’s operational and programmatic partner.
• Reduce CEO daily operational involvement by 40–60% while ensuring alignment and predictable execution.
  
  

Requirements

Required Experience & Skills

• 10+ years in senior operational leadership roles in multi-site organizations, managing 40+ locations
• Proven ability to improve margins via staffing, labor, and payroll discipline
• History of building operational systems in fast-growth, founder-led, or for-profit organizations
• Experience leading geographically distributed teams
• Exceptional leadership, communication, and analytical skills
  
  

Preferred Backgrounds: After-school/childcare, education, franchise operations, behavioral health, healthcare staffing, hospitality, or other high-volume service industries.

Core Competencies: Calm and emotionally intelligent, hands-on operator, execution-oriented, builder of scalable systems, strong with data, KPIs, and staffing models.

Success Metrics – First 12 Months

• Measurable improvement in program quality and SEL outcomes across all sites
• Payroll and staffing models optimized, with margins improved 2–6%
• Accountability systems fully operational at all levels of management
• Enrollment growth achieved across existing and new locations
• Family and district satisfaction measurably improved
• CEO daily operational load reduced 40–60%
• Healthy Kids operating with consistent discipline, quality, and scalability
  
  

Benefits

• Medical Insurance
• Vision Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• AFLAC Supplemental Plans
• 401(k) for eligible employees
• Paid Holidays
• Paid Time Off (PTO)
• Paid Sick Time Off
• On-Demand Pay
  
  

Next Steps

If you’re a seasoned operator driven by quality, accountability, and mission, we’d love to meet you. Join Healthy Kids and help build the systems, teams, and outcomes that will define our next phase of growth.