Dir Product Enablement

HMH is a learning technology company committed to delivering connected solutions that engage learners, empower educators and improve student outcomes. As a leading provider of K-12 core curriculum, supplemental and intervention solutions, and professional learning services, HMH partners with educators and school districts to uncover solutions that unlock students' potential and extend teachers' capabilities.

HMH serves more than 50 million students and 4 million educators in 150 countries. For more information, visit www.hmhco.com

Director, Multilingual Learner Enablement

Remote (this job may be performed from any state in the U.S.)

The Director is responsible for developing strategy for the implementation of ML best practices across lines of business developed by ML Council and VP for Sourcing and ML Content Enablement including the resourcing and execution strategy for translations projects. The Director oversees the multilingual learner content enablement team and translations team and ultimately responsible for their success. The Director is responsible for leading, motivating, mentoring and managing the ML Enablement team and the Translations Vendor Management team in achieving their goals. The DMLCE works collaboratively with their SVP and across the full organization, prioritizing needs/requests and then management of the necessary resources, including budgets, staff, supplier relations, etc. The DMLCE is a people leader who is responsible for a team with varying degrees of experience and skills in sourcing print and digital projects. The DMLCE ensures that team members are trained, coached, and given development opportunities and project assignments that meet professional and personal development needs as well as organizational and business needs. The DMLCE has an excellent understanding of the product development process, both print and digital, including the intricacies of educational publishing. The DMLCE develops new and maintains ongoing relationships with vendors working on projects, strategic partners internally and externally, and contingent labor business contacts.

Responsibilities

Strategic Direction

• In collaboration with the VP of SMLE, supports the team with understanding the long-term vision and strategy for multilingual learner supports and translations work.
• Meets regularly with functional teams to communicate strategy and implementation.
• Proactively supports team in understanding the ever changing multilingual learner education landscape and brings most up to date innovations and trends to the team so that they can remain innovative and responsive to needs of customers and internal stakeholders.

Stakeholder Enablement

• Oversees and manages high stakes multilingual learner content enablement or translations projects and/or projects during high demand translations or multilingual learner content enablement period. Develops capacity building workflows to support internal stakeholders and acts as a strategic partner with teams to ensure the on time and quality delivery of multilingual learner supports within products and high-quality translation projects.
• Has a proven track record of collaboration and breaking down complex ideas into simple steps to support the increased capacity of stakeholders to plan for quality translations and ML supports across the organization
• Partners with strategic sourcing to bring partnerships that will enhance the quality of translations and multilingual supports and communicates strengths and weaknesses of vendors, consultants etc.

Focus on Results

• Oversees team deliverables and ensures that status, risks, and issues are managed and communicated, and that there is compliance to reporting requirements.
• Supports translation and ML Enablement teams to meet their goals of adhering to program budgets, schedule, communication, and quality.
• Identifies improvement areas internally and with suppliers and prepares recommendations and solutions.
• Identifies and implements continuously enhanced efficiencies associated with project completion and documentation and tracking of activities.

Manages People and Performance

• Oversees and manages personal and career development for a team of translation and ML Enablement professionals by conducting performance reviews and regular check-ins with his/her functional team.
• Experienced in leading, building, and managing a high-performance team through coaching and mentorship.
• Exhibits strong people-leading skills, with the ability to develop, coach, and provide feedback effectively in a strong-matrix environment.
• Works to ensure that the training and skills development needs of the team are met.
• Provides necessary resources or helps remove obstacles to group accomplishments.

Customer Focus

• Responsible for translation and multilingual enablement projects under functional area.
• Uses functional expertise, best practice communication, and leadership skills to manage complex relationships and influence positive change.
• Resolves escalated supplier-related issues and/or escalates them to VP as needed.
• Drives the importance of quality and accuracy with the stakeholders at every stage of project workflow.
• Clearly conveys information and ideas through a variety of media to individuals or groups in a manner that engages the audience and helps them understand and retain the message.

Budget Management

• Works with VP to ensure team meets departmental revenue and process goals.
• Ensures team meets an overall 100% adherence to budget by encouraging participation in CAP, budget, and project status meetings.
• Ensures there is a resourcing strategy across the board for a variety of projects and brings new and innovative resourcing strategies as needed.

What You'll Need:

• BA or BS in education or related discipline
• Bilingual (English/Spanish)

• 10+ years of proven people management experience, multilingual learner expertise, experience in school/district leadership or educational publishing experience.
• Must understand multilingual learner pedagogy and how it applies to the publishing world, effective translation management and team management.

Technical Skills

• Project Management: Possesses a compelling "track record" of managing successful, complex assignments. Oversees department deliverables in conjunction with senior management. Ensures that status, risks and issues are escalated, resolved,and communicated. Directs initiatives focused on vetting, implementing, and onboarding suppliers.

• Decision Making and Emotional Intelligence: Establishes and sustains trusting relationships by accurately perceiving and interpreting one's own and others' emotions and behavior in the context of the political environment. Leverages insights to effectively manage one's own responses and reactions. Creates and executes influence strategies that persuade key stakeholders to take action that will advance shared interests and business goals. Takes action that is consistent with available facts, constraints, and probable outcomes.

• Collaboration and Building Partnerships: Works effectively and cooperatively with others and helps lead team by example. Establishes and maintains good working relationships across diverse groups. Offers to help others achieve goals. Identifies opportunities and takes action to build strategic relationships between suppliers and HMH to help achieve business goals. Supports need to explore expansion across new business lines.

• Innovative and Continuous Improvement: Drives the team to ideate innovative solutions in work situations. Simplifies and streamlines best practices, application usage, and procedures, including eliminating unnecessary processes and workflows. Targets important areas for innovation, identifying improvement opportunities for work conditions and processes, generating ideas, and implementing solutions. Supports training efforts to increase effective redundancies in areas of responsibilities as appropriate.

• Change Management: Identifies, drives, and promotes organizational and cultural changes needed to adapt strategically to changing market demands, technology, and internal initiatives. Catalyzes new approaches to improve results by transforming organizational culture, systems, or products/services. Encourages others to seek opportunities for different and innovative approaches to addressing problems and opportunities.

• Technical/Professional Knowledge and Skills: Exhibits a very high level of technical and professional skill or knowledge in multilingual learner and translation research and pedogogy. Deep understanding of product development tool sets required. Keeps up with current developments and trends in areas of expertise. Participate in requirements gathering, development, and UAT of Enterprise tools.

• Strategic Direction: Guides and motivates others to take action that support the vision and values of the Business. Takes action, makes decisions, and shapes the team or group priorities to support that direction. Recognizes staff and team contributions toward business and group goals. Recognizes and rewards actions that support the organization's vision and values.

• Coaching and Developing Others: Uses appropriate methods and interpersonal styles to motivate and guide the sourcing team to attain successful outcomes and business objectives. Communicates high expectations; checks for understanding of and commitment to performance and development goals.

Physical Requirements:

• Mightbeinastationarypositionfor aconsiderabletime (sittingand/orstanding).
• Constantly operates a computer and other officeproductivitymachinery,such as acalculator,copymachine,and computer printer.
• Must beabletocollaboratewithcolleaguesvia face to face,conferencecalls,andonlinemeeting

Salary: $110K - $130K (bonus eligible)

Application Deadline:The application window for this position is anticipated to close on July 10th, 2025. We encourage you to apply as soon as possible. The posting may be available past this date but is not guaranteed.

HMH is fully committed to Equal Employment Opportunity and to attracting, retaining, developing and promoting the most qualified employees without regard to race, gender, color, religion, sexual orientation, family status, marital status, pregnancy, gender identity, ethnic/national origin, ancestry, age, disability, military status, genetic predisposition, citizenship status, status as a disabled veteran, recently separated veteran, Armed Forces service medal veteran, other covered veteran, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. We are dedicated to providing a work environment free from discrimination and harassment, and where employees are treated with respect and dignity. We actively participate in E-Verify.