Chief Impact & Strategy Officer

Lead Transformational Change Across the Mid-South

United Way of the Mid-South (UWMS) is seeking a visionary, collaborative, and strategic leader to serve as our Chief Impact & Strategy Officer (CISO).

Reporting directly to the President & CEO and serving as a member of the Executive Leadership Team, this role offers a unique opportunity to help shape the future of economic mobility, family stability, and community well-being across the eight counties we serve throughout the Mid-South.

As Chief Impact & Strategy Officer, you will lead a talented Community Impact team while expanding United Way of the Mid-South’s regional presence, partnerships, and influence. You will work across nonprofit, business, government, education, healthcare, and philanthropic sectors to align resources, strengthen systems, and create measurable change for individuals and families throughout the region.

This is more than a leadership position. It’s an opportunity to build partnerships, influence systems, and help create lasting solutions to some of our region's most pressing challenges.

Why This Role Matters

United Way of the Mid-South is evolving into a leading backbone organization and catalyst for collective impact. The Chief Impact & Strategy Officer will play a critical role in translating vision into action by connecting partners, leveraging data, guiding investments, and leading collaborative strategies that improve lives at scale.

You will oversee the organization's Community Impact function, provide leadership to a high-performing team, and expand engagement across our eight-county footprint to ensure communities throughout the region have a voice in shaping solutions and accessing opportunities.

What You Will Lead

• Community Impact team leadership, coaching, and development
• Strategic implementation of UWMS community impact vision
• Regional outreach and stakeholder engagement across the Mid-South
• Collective impact and systems-change initiatives
• Driving The Dream® and other transformational community strategies
• Economic mobility programs, including free tax preparation services
• Cross-sector partnerships with nonprofit, corporate, philanthropic, education, healthcare, and government leaders
• Community investments and nonprofit capacity-building efforts
• Maintain communication with UWMS peer organizations
• Data, learning, and shared measurement systems that drive accountability and results

The Leader We Are Seeking

Successful candidates will bring a unique combination of leadership, relationship-building, and strategic thinking.

We're looking for someone who:

• Inspires and develops high-performing teams
• Builds trust and credibility with diverse stakeholders
• Thinks strategically while remaining focused on execution and results
• Understands how systems work and can identify opportunities for meaningful change
• Navigates complexity with confidence and collaboration
• Communicates effectively with community leaders, funders, public officials, board members, and partners
• Brings a passion for creating opportunities that help individuals, families, and communities thrive

The ideal candidate is a systems thinker, a skilled people leader, and a collaborative executive who can bring diverse groups together around a shared vision for regional impact.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred in public policy, nonprofit management, public administration, social work, business, education, or related field.
• Minimum of 15 years of progressively responsible leadership experience in nonprofit, philanthropy, education, government, public systems, community development, collective impact, or related sectors.
• Demonstrated success leading cross-sector partnerships and complex community initiatives.
• Strong understanding of systems-change, collective impact, economic mobility, and community development strategies
• Experience managing and leading teams, budgets, grants, contracts, and strategic partnerships.
• Experience using data, evaluation, and performance measurement to drive decision making and organizational learning.
• Exceptional communication, facilitation, relationship-building, and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Demonstrated success collaborating with executive leaders, funders, government officials, and community stakeholders.
• Experience within the United Way network or comparable intermediary organizations.
• Ability for 20% travel throughout the UWMS region.

Preferred Qualifications

• Background in building or supporting backbone organizations, collective impact initiatives, or place-based strategies.
• Knowledge of ALICE populations, economic mobility, and anti-poverty initiatives.
• Demonstrated success overseeing community investment and grantmaking processes.
• Familiarity with shared measurement systems, referral infrastructure, and data-sharing partnerships.

Why United Way of the Mid-South

For more than 100 years, United Way of the Mid-South has been bringing people, organizations, and resources together to strengthen communities and create opportunities for individuals and families to thrive.

Today, UWMS serves eight counties across Tennessee, Mississippi, and Arkansas and is focused on advancing economic mobility, financial stability, and community well-being. Through strategic investments, innovative partnerships, and initiatives such as Driving The Dream®, the organization is helping create coordinated solutions to some of the region's most complex challenges.

As Chief Impact & Strategy Officer, you'll join a respected organization with a rich legacy and a bold vision for the future. You'll lead a talented Community Impact team, expand regional partnerships, and help drive strategies that create measurable change for thousands of families across the Mid-South.

If you're passionate about developing people, building partnerships, and creating lasting community impact, this is an opportunity to help shape the future of our region.

Benefits

• Hybrid work schedule
• Health, Dental, Vision Insurance
• Short-Term Disability, Long-Term Disability
• Employee Assistance Program
• 14 Paid Holidays
• Paid Time Off
• 403(b) Plan
• FLAP (voluntary)