Head of Insights & Impact - Austin, TX

 

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation (www.dell.org) builds pathways that change lives for families around the world. Through their philanthropy and charitable vehicles, Michael and Susan Dell have committed more than $10 billion to improve education, health, and economic stability, with a focus on delivering measurable, long-term impact. With offices in Austin, New Delhi, Cape Town, Nairobi, and Tel Aviv, the foundation supports programs that advance quality public education, promote children's health, and strengthen family economic stability. Together, these efforts reflect a belief that lasting change comes from investing in people — and in the potential of every child.

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation has always believed that better that lasting change comes from investing in people – and that better outcomes are achieved when strong evidence is paired with a deep understanding of the children, families, and partners in the communities we serve. As the Foundation's portfolio grows more complex and the tools for turning data into insight evolve rapidly — from advanced analytics to AI — the opportunity to sharpen how we measure, learn, and act has never been greater.

We are seeking a Head of Insights & Impact, based in Ausin, Texas to lead and unify our enterprise Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning, Analytics, Data Science, and Enterprise Data Platform functions. This leader will report to the Head of Finance & Operations and will set the direction for the Insights & Impact function, lead a high-performing team, and ensure Programs has the evidence and infrastructure it needs to deliver measurable, long-term impact.

We are looking for someone who combines deep expertise in evaluation, analytics, and data science with the business instincts of a strategist, the follow-through of an operator, and the instincts of a human-centered leader.

 

The ideal candidate understands that data is only valuable when it helps people make better decisions, take stronger action, and improve outcomes in the communities we serve.  This person brings a customer-centric mindset, technical fluency, and leadership presence to navigate the intersection of evidence, technology, strategy and human motivation into an operating model that works at enterprise scale.

 

The Head of Insights & Impact will own the Foundation's insights and impact function end-to-end—and be responsible for evolving it based on the Foundation's needs. This is fundamentally a partnership role: Programs drives the business and sets the strategic direction; Insights & Impact partners alongside by providing expertise and leadership to build the best possible evidence, data, and tools for that direction. That means this leader and their team will get out into the field alongside Programs and their partners — understanding the environments grantees and communities operate in, so that measurement and technology genuinely serve the people using them, not just the enterprise reporting on them. Effective use of AI and analytics will be critical to Insights & Impact supporting the Foundation's next chapter. This leader will start from a clear question: what does Programs need to make, execute, and track great decisions—and how do we build an organization capable of delivering it?

 

Deep Experience in the Field: Analytics & Impact Measurement Expert. 12+ years of progressive leadership spanning analytics, impact measurement, evaluation, data science, and/or digital transformation. You have led multidisciplinary teams across Analytics, Data Science, Monitoring & Evaluation, and Enterprise Data, and you know how to build enterprise strategies that integrate all four with modern data platforms and AI.

 

Customer-Centric Partner: Understands people as much as data. You have designed KPIs and measurement systems that teams actually want to use—metrics that motivate action, not just compliance. You understand the intersection of human behavior and measurement, and you build your best work by getting close to Programs and the partners and communities they serve.

 

Strategic to Execution Thinker. You don't see insights work as starting with a dashboard and ending with a report. You think holistically about how evidence, data, human effort, and technology connect, and you have built organizations that put advanced analytical methods to work on complex challenges.

 

Proven People Leader: Builds high-functioning, multidisciplinary teams. Demonstrated success leading teams across analytics, data science, evaluation, and enterprise data. You create environments where technical experts and evaluators do their best work together, and where accountability is paired with genuine development.

 

Analytical Problem Solver: Translates complexity into decisions. Comfortable synthesizing complex information into clear priorities and action plans. You are not satisfied by analysis for its own sake—you want to know that findings actually change what the Foundation does next, for the people it serves.

 

Technology Visionary: Fluent in data, AI, and emerging technology. Strong technical fluency in data architecture, governance, cloud-based analytics platforms, and AI-enabled technologies. You understand how these tools can strengthen philanthropy, and you are equally committed to making them work in practice.

 

Mission-Driven Leader: Genuine commitment to evidence-driven impact. You bring humility, curiosity, and resilience to your work, along with a deep commitment to using evidence to create pathways out of poverty for underserved communities. Experience in public sector, technology, social impact, or management consulting is highly valued.