Vice President, Communities Expansion

Job Title:  Vice President, Communities Expansion

Department: Communities

Location: Remote/Virtual within the continental US

Reports to:  Executive Vice President, Chapter Impact

Anticipated Pay Range at Commencement of Employment: $128,000 - $177,000

Blue Star Families

Blue Star Families is the largest nonprofit dedicated to making military life better for families. Each year, we support over 1.5 million military- and veteran-connected family members through a national network of 300,000+ members and local chapters in communities across the country.

Our mission is simple and bold: We make military life awesome for families. We listen, share, partner, and act to deliver evidence-based, data-driven solutions that work for real people. We’re a lifestyle organization, a friend and neighbor, and a trusted partner. Our approach is collaborative, human-centered, and designed with the whole family in mind.

A Blue Star Family is one with an immediate family member — a spouse, parent, or child — actively serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, including the Guard and Reserves. These families face unique challenges, including frequent relocations, deployments, career disruptions, and isolation. We respond with research-informed programs that create connection, build resilience, and foster a true sense of belonging.

We serve with urgency but build trust over time — because change happens at the speed of trust. Whether we’re driving spouse employment, supporting caregivers, or helping communities welcome military families, we strive for upstream solutions.

Who We’re Looking For:

• Bold thinkers. Fast movers. Smart collaborators. People who want to build, lead, and drive measurable change — and who care deeply about making an impact that matters.

What You’ll Do Here:

• Solve complex challenges with data, heart, and humility
• Build cross-sector partnerships that get things done
• Help military families feel at home wherever they live

If you're ready to work in a high-performance, mission-driven environment — and to make life better for those who serve — Blue Star Families is where you belong.

As a fully remote organization, we rely on scheduled in-person gatherings to foster alignment, collaboration, and organizational culture. This role requires the ability to travel out of town overnight several times per year for staff offsites, planning retreats, and company-wide events. These gatherings are essential for connection, brainstorming, and staying strategically aligned across teams. Participation is required as a core part of the role.

General Description 

The Vice President, Communities Expansion is responsible for leading the national growth strategy of Blue Star Families through the expansion of new Chapters and new Outposts. This role develops and executes strategies to grow the organization’s presence in communities where military families live and serve.

Working closely with the Executive Vice President, Chapter Impact and other senior leaders, the Vice President identifies new markets, assesses expansion opportunities, and leads the launch of new Chapters and Outposts nationwide. The role also builds enterprise-level partnerships with funders, community leaders, and national organizations to support sustainable growth.

The Vice President establishes the strategic framework, systems, and processes that guide expansion efforts and ensure new communities are positioned for long-term success and impact. This role focuses on the strategy, assessment, and launch of new Outposts. Outposts may also be deployed within existing Chapter markets to expand reach and act as a force multiplier for community impact.

Key Job Functions

Strategic Growth & Expansion

• Lead the development and execution of a national strategy for expanding Blue Star Families’ presence through the launch of new Chapters and new Outposts, ensuring growth aligns with the organization’s long-term vision, mission impact, and operational capacity.
• Design and oversee a data-informed market expansion framework to identify, evaluate, and prioritize high-impact markets, leveraging demographic data, military community insights, partnership opportunities, and organizational readiness.
• Partner closely with the EVP, Chapter Impact to ensure expansion strategies are fully integrated with the organization’s broader strategic priorities, program delivery model, and long-term national growth objectives.
• Establish and manage annual and multi-year expansion roadmaps, including market entry sequencing, growth targets, and performance metrics to measure the success and sustainability of new locations.
• Provide executive oversight for the successful launch and early-stage development of new Chapters, ensuring strong market assessments, stakeholder engagement, partnership cultivation, and operational readiness prior to launch.
• Ensure expansion strategy includes both new market entry through Outposts and the strategic deployment of new Outposts within existing Chapter markets as a force multiplier to extend reach, engagement, and program delivery.

Outpost Expansion Strategy & Launch

• Design and execute the strategy to launch new Outposts in communities where Blue Star Families is expanding, where a full Chapter is not yet established, and within existing Chapter markets where Outposts serve as a force multiplier to extend reach, engagement, and program delivery.
• Identify and support opportunities for new Outposts within existing Chapter markets to extend capacity, deepen community engagement, and serve as a force multiplier for Chapter impact.
• Support the evolution and scaling of Outpost infrastructure, including partnership with Development and Applied Research on grant management tools, application processes, and tracking systems that enable new Outpost launches.
• Ensure newly launched Outposts are positioned for strong startup, community connection, and operational readiness.
• Monitor and evaluate early-stage performance of new Outpost launches and identify opportunities for sustainability, growth, or transition to Chapter model.

Partnerships & External Engagement

• Build and maintain executive-level relationships with national, regional, and local partners that support expansion efforts.
• Collaborate with the Development team to secure funding commitments from corporate partners, foundations, and community stakeholders to support new Chapter and new Outpost launches.
• Serve as a key external representative of Blue Star Families in prospective markets, engaging community leaders, partners, and stakeholders.
• Maintain strong relationships with partner and funder organizations to support sustainable growth.

Organizational Leadership & Collaboration

• Ensure expansion strategies align with programmatic goals, member experience, and impact measurement efforts.
• Support high-profile events and initiatives in new or expanding markets as needed.

Operational Oversight & Systems Development

• Establish scalable systems, policies, and processes that support efficient and consistent expansion across the organization.
• Develop metrics, dashboards, and reporting tools to track expansion progress, launch readiness, and early-stage success of new communities.
• Oversee expansion-related budgets and contracts in collaboration with the EVP, Chapter Impact.

Leadership & Team Management

• Lead and manage staff responsible for Chapter expansion and new Outpost launch initiatives.
• Foster a collaborative and mission-driven team environment focused on growth, accountability, and impact.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Required Experience, Skills, Background

• Bachelor's degree or relevant experience
• At least seven (7) years of industry-related experience including five (5) years in upper management. 
• Demonstrated success leading large-scale program, chapter, or organizational expansion initiatives.
• Experience developing and executing strategic growth plans in a nonprofit or mission-driven organization.
• Proven ability to build and maintain executive-level partnerships and secure funding support for expansion initiatives.
• Strong leadership and team management experience with the ability to inspire, coach, and develop high-performing teams.
• Exceptional project management and organizational skills with the ability to oversee complex initiatives across multiple locations.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including public speaking and executive presentations.
• Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills with the ability to translate vision into actionable plans.
• Exceptional internal and external customer service orientation.
• Must have demonstrated computer skills, including Google Suite, and be familiar with entering data into online systems. Proficiency with Salesforce is a plus.
• May be required to work nights, weekends, and holidays as necessary to carry out key job functions.
• Some travel is required to attend meetings, training, events, etc.
• Ability to lift and carry supplies and equipment up to 30 lbs.

Desired Experience, Skills, Background

• Experience with Customer Relationship Management (CRM) database systems (ex. Salesforce), strongly preferred.
• Experience with Project management platforms.
• Experience with a virtual organization/working remotely.
• Familiarity with the military community.

More About Blue Star Families

Blue Star Families empowers military and Veteran families to thrive by connecting them with their civilian neighbors — both people and organizations — to create strong communities of mutual support. We believe we're all stronger when we take care of one another.

Our groundbreaking research is raising the nation's awareness of the unique challenges of military family life. With the help of neighbors across the country, Blue Star Families is overcoming the isolation and alienation of frequent moves, deployments, and reduced support from the government. Our innovative programs are solving specific challenges for military families, including fighting economic insecurity with resources that foster spouse career development, creating family strength with rich family programming, and providing critical peer support for caregivers, whose numbers are only increasing.

Blue Star Families is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. 

EEO Policy

Blue Star Families is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, age, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.