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Ascension is seeking an experienced Program Manager / Executive Coaching Program Director to lead the implementation, administration, coordination, quality oversight, and performance management of a Department-wide executive coaching program supporting the U.S. Department of Transportation.

The Program Manager will serve as Ascension’s primary program-level interface with DOT and will be responsible for ensuring that executive coaching services are delivered consistently, confidentially, efficiently, and in accordance with contractual requirements across DOT’s 11 Operating Administrations.

This position is designed for a senior program management professional who understands the Federal Government environment and can successfully manage a high-visibility leadership development program involving Senior Executive Service members and other designated senior leaders.

The ideal candidate combines strong Federal program management experience with an understanding of executive leadership development, human capital programs, professional coaching operations, stakeholder engagement, contractor management, performance reporting, quality assurance, and confidential information management.

This is primarily a program leadership and management role rather than an executive coach position. ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC) or Master Certified Coach (MCC) certification is therefore not required unless the individual will also personally deliver executive or team coaching services.

2. Summary of the Contractor Role

The Program Manager / Executive Coaching Program Director will provide overall management and oversight of Ascension’s delivery of DOT’s Executive Coaching Program.

The individual will serve as the primary point of coordination with the DOT Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR), Department Program Manager, executive coaching personnel, subcontractors or consultants, and other stakeholders supporting the program.

The Program Manager will oversee the full coaching service lifecycle, including:

• Program implementation and governance;
• Coaching request intake and administration;
• Coach-client matching and reassignment processes;
• Scheduling and engagement coordination;
• Coaching agreement administration;
• Individual and team coaching delivery oversight;
• Leadership assessment coordination;
• Program communications and outreach;
• Participant engagement;
• Development resources;
• Confidentiality and data protection;
• Quality assurance;
• Staffing and coaching capacity;
• Risk and issue management;
• Monthly and annual reporting; and
• Continuous program improvement.

The successful candidate must be highly organized, responsive, diplomatic, analytical, and comfortable managing multiple priorities in an environment involving senior Federal executives.

The individual should be self-directed and capable of identifying potential schedule, staffing, quality, confidentiality, or performance problems before they affect program delivery. The Program Manager will be expected to develop practical solutions, coordinate corrective action, and maintain timely communication with Government stakeholders.

The position requires the ability to maintain appropriate boundaries between program administration and confidential coaching content. The Program Manager must understand that individual coaching conversations, assessments, and sensitive leadership information require strict confidentiality and cannot be handled like ordinary project-status information.

3. Primary Responsibilities and Day-to-Day Activities

The Program Manager / Executive Coaching Program Director will:

• SERVE as Ascension’s primary program-level point of contact with DOT’s COR, Department Program Manager, and other authorized Government stakeholders.
• LEAD program implementation following issuance of applicable BPA calls/orders.
• PLAN and facilitate kickoff meetings to establish objectives, responsibilities, communication protocols, reporting expectations, timelines, and operating procedures.
• DEVELOP and maintain the program implementation approach, including schedules, processes, responsibilities, service-delivery procedures, communications strategies, and performance controls.
• OVERSEE performance across Tasks 1 through 9 of the DOT Executive Coaching Program.
• COORDINATE coaching-service requests and ensure requests are received, reviewed, documented, tracked, assigned, and addressed within required timelines.
• MANAGE the coach-client matching process using participant objectives, coach qualifications, subject-matter expertise, Federal and executive experience, availability, and participant preferences.
• COORDINATE coach reassignment when requested while minimizing disruption to the executive’s coaching engagement.
• MONITOR the availability, workload, utilization, and capacity of proposed coaches and supporting personnel.
• MANAGE coach and subcontractor performance, including scheduling, deliverable compliance, availability, quality expectations, and contract requirements.
• OVERSEE the development, execution, documentation, and maintenance of required coaching agreements prior to initiation of coaching services.
• ENSURE required DOT language and provisions are incorporated into applicable coaching agreements and program materials.
• COORDINATE leadership assessment administration, assessment documentation, participant scheduling, and development-planning activities performed by qualified coaching personnel.
• MONITOR individual and team coaching engagements for administrative performance, schedule, hours delivered, completion status, and contractual compliance without intruding upon confidential coaching discussions.
• MAINTAIN appropriate separation between confidential coach-client communications and information required for Government program administration and reporting.
• IMPLEMENT quality assurance processes for coaching administration, communications, reporting, staffing, scheduling, and contractual deliverables.
• IDENTIFY program risks, participant-engagement barriers, capacity issues, scheduling conflicts, performance problems, and other conditions that could affect service delivery.
• DEVELOP corrective actions and mitigation strategies for identified program issues.
• ESCALATE significant risks or performance concerns to Ascension leadership and authorized DOT stakeholders when appropriate.
• COORDINATE development of DOT-approved program communications, onboarding materials, information sessions, outreach products, reminders, coaching resources, and participant communications.
• ENSURE Government review and approval of applicable communications and materials before distribution.
• OVERSEE administration of Ascension’s coaching platform or digital portal used for service requests, participant management, coach matching, engagement tracking, scheduling, reporting, and Government program oversight.
• MAINTAIN accurate program records covering active, completed, inactive, pending, cancelled, discontinued, and re-enrolled coaching engagements.
• TRACK coaching hours, client-to-coach assignments, participant status, inactive participants, re-enrollments, and other contractual performance information.
• PREPARE or oversee preparation of monthly coaching status reports.
• ANALYZE coaching participation, utilization, engagement, operational trends, risks, and program-performance data.
• PREPARE annual summary reports containing program activity, participation trends, outcomes, lessons learned, continuous-improvement opportunities, and leadership-development recommendations.
• CONDUCT annual program reviews and recommend improvements to service delivery, participant experience, operational efficiency, reporting, or resource utilization.
• MAINTAIN confidentiality and data-protection controls for participant information, leadership assessments, coaching records, and other sensitive information.
• ENSURE coaching operations align with applicable International Coaching Federation ethical standards.
• MAINTAIN program documentation, schedules, trackers, risk and issue logs, action-item logs, meeting records, quality records, and other required management artifacts.
• FACILITATE meetings with Government stakeholders, coaches, subcontractors, program administrators, and Ascension leadership.
• BRIEF DOT and Ascension leadership on program status, performance, capacity, risks, issues, accomplishments, and recommended actions.
• SUPPORT staffing, succession planning, coach onboarding, surge planning, and capacity management to maintain service continuity throughout the contract.

4. Expected Tools and Processes

The Program Manager should be comfortable managing programs using modern digital collaboration, reporting, and workflow-management tools.

Expected tools and processes may include:

• Executive coaching platform / digital participant-management portal;
• Microsoft Teams;
• Microsoft Outlook;
• Microsoft Word;
• Microsoft Excel;
• Microsoft PowerPoint;
• Microsoft SharePoint;
• Microsoft 365 collaboration tools;
• Program schedules and milestone trackers;
• Risk and issue registers;
• Action-item trackers;
• Staffing and capacity trackers;
• Quality-control checklists;
• Standard operating procedures and process workflows;
• Monthly and annual performance reporting;
• Participant and coach utilization tracking; and
• Continuous-improvement and lessons-learned processes.

Experience with Power BI, Power Automate, CRM systems, Learning Management Systems, coaching-management platforms, or similar participant-management technologies is beneficial.