Information for the post of
Director
For January or August 2027
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Job Description

Header Working
Job title:Director
Responsible for:Senior Leadership Team
Reports to:Board of Directors

Job Purpose

The Director embodies the mission of ISBerne and articulates the mission for all aspects of the school’s programme and acts as a role model. The Director reports to the Board of Directors and is responsible for the overall leadership and management of the school, and ensures that policies are put into practice in accordance with local legislation and the school’s by-laws, regulations and policies as approved by the Board.

The Director will lead ISBerne effectively ensuring high standards of academic excellence in well- rounded and holistic educational programmes, inspiring a community of life-long learners, through the leadership and management of faculty, growth and financial sustainability of the campus, and supporting ISBerne’s vision, mission and core values and strategic aims. The Director will be responsible for leading the development of the LehrPlan 21 pathway throughout the school and growing the number of Swiss students joining the school.”

Main Accountabilities

School Leadership

  • In collaboration with the ISBerne AG Board and the Senior Leadership and Education Teams, establish and implement a result-orientated strategic plan with annual goals.
  • Refine and produce succinct, inspiring, results-oriented vision and mission statements and gain faculty and student support as evidenced by School practice.
  • Provide international education vision and direction by identifying and promulgating best practice across teaching and learning in the School.
  • Establish a detailed strategy for faculty professional development, to help, lead and direct the teachers to continuously improve their performance and achieve academic excellence.

School Management

  • Serve as Head of School with direct responsibility for the management, organisation and supervision of all academic aspects.
  • Follow school administrative regulations and delegate authority where appropriate.
  • Ensure that all compliance and reporting requirements are fulfilled
  • Maintain adequate records for the school including a system of personnel, school population and scholastic records.
  • Maintain security accountability for all school and non-school functions.
  • Monitor and control use of buildings according to contractual or legal obligations.
  • Create an efficient schedule of education programs, courses, and students that maximizes learning, teacher collaboration, and smooth transitions
  • Regulate the attendance of faculty and students.
  • Act on own discretion if action is necessary in any matter not covered by Board Policy; report such action to the ISBerne AG Board as soon as practical and recommend policy in order to provide governance in the future.

School Operations

  • Attend and report to ISBerne AG Board meetings.
  • Ensure that the Board is appropriately briefed at all times on matters of policy, significant operational issues, legal exposure and other matters of concern to the school community;
  • Interpret and enforce school policies.
  • Represent the school with the general public, businesses and governmental agencies.
  • Be accountable to the ISBerne AG Board in respect of all aspects of safety at the school campus including the buildings, grounds and equipment.

Educational Programmes

  • Lead the development of the curriculum, ensuring that the process is on-going and inclusive of the concepts of assessment, learning styles and differentiation, so that the curriculum that the School offers is both international and future focused, informs, inspires, challenges and develops every child and meets the inspection, accreditation and evaluation processes of IB, NEASC and CIS.
  • Use data and the benchmarking of every child’s learning to drive instruction strategies and curriculum development, incorporating new technologies into teaching and learning.
  • Recommend specific changes and long-range plans for instructional improvement.
  • Keep informed of modern educational thought and practices by advanced study, visiting School systems elsewhere, attending educational conferences and other appropriate means.
  • Establish and maintain educational standards and practices corresponding to principles mentioned in the statutes and policies.
  • Implement educational initiatives that have significant positive effects on individual academic success.

Organisation & Personnel Management

  • Plan and allocate clear individual accountabilities, communicate, support and evaluate the work undertaken by groups, teams and individuals, ensuring the clear delegation of tasks across teachers and other academic staff so that changes and improvements in the School are delivered to time and quality.
  • Ensure high standards and continued educational developments by monitoring data and performance and working with the Principal(s) and other senior leaders to ensure good teaching practice, innovation and improvement.
  • Recruit, develop, and retain a highly qualified and diverse faculty who are personally motivated to challenge, inspire, and support our students.
  • Identify faculty for employment, promotion, re-assignment, non-renewal and termination.  Carry out terminations as required in accordance with Swiss legislation and the organizational regulations of the school.
  • Supervise academic staff including the definition of work relationships and assignments of areas of responsibility.
  • Supervise academic staff so that advanced professional study is pursued and available.
  • Approve travel for school-related activities.
  • Maintain an “open door” for all staff with specific concerns.  Provide for employee confidentiality.
  • Maintain records of training, experience, professional growth, quality of performance and other pertinent data of faculty.
  • In compliance with Swiss legislation, manage the school’s personnel policies as applicable.
  • Communicate Board policy decisions and actions to all staff and relay staff input to the ISBerne AG Board as appropriate.
  • In compliance with Swiss legislation and in accordance with school needs establish appropriate hours of work and operations for faculty.
  • Close school, cancel school activities or staff meetings according to best judgement in case of emergency conditions.

School Facilities

  • Support the Business Manager in the development and maintenance of the School’s facilities, to ensure the campus is safe and offers the best possible environment for students and staff.
  • In collaboration with the ISBerne AG Board develop long range plans for facilities and oversee the development of capital improvement projects.

Finance & Budget Control

  • In collaboration with the Business Manager establish and maintain efficient procedures and effective controls for the management of all school funds in accordance with Board Policy and sound fiscal management practice.
  • Provide recommendations to the ISBerne AG Board regarding long-range fiscal plans and strategies.
  • Monitor enrolment and inform the ISBerne AG Board of anticipated financial or other implications.
  • Recommend budget adjustments and reductions in response to changes in the enrolment or in the School’s financial status; submit a clear and detailed explanation of any proposed budget changes to the ISBerne AG Board.
  • Oversee financial integrity, working in collaboration with the Business Manager, to ensure compliance within budget parameters, audit requirements and principles of sound corporate governance at all times.
  • Work to successfully deliver projects within budget and timeline with minimum adverse instructional and organisational impact;
  • Skillfully manage the budget and finances to maximize student achievement and staff growth in collaboration with the Business Manager

Student well-being

  • Take an active interest in the daily life of all students, ensuring discipline and high standards of behaviour and attendance in the School and motivating the students to achieve high standards of academic excellence.
  • Monitor and review the range of academic, career and social/ emotional guidance services for students to ensure best practice is adopted, children’s and young people’s welfare is safe-guarded and high standards are maintained
  • Create a caring environment for the intellectual, social, emotional, and physical development of all our students.
  • Maintain an extensive co-curricular programme, including a large variety of activities and sporting teams for students, to enhance the breadth of opportunities that the School offers
  • Enforce schoolwide student-behavior standards and consequences with positive discipline, cultural competence, and sensitive handling of student issues.
  • Promote extra-curricular programmes that enrich the educational environment;
  • Determine admissibility and placement of prospective students.
  • Ensure effective methods of reporting to parents.

Communications, Marketing & Public Relations

  • Develop and maintain positive relationships with parents and the wider community to ensure that they support the School’s direction and understand the School’s ethos and approach.
  • Create a high profile for the School with a proactive public relations program which informs the community of relevant school activities and successes.
  • Develop and maintain a strong network with corporate customers, embassies and other partners. Attend functions as and when appropriate.
  • Promote student enrollment within the local community and more broadly across Switzerland and if possible on the international stage.
  • Strengthen the IS Berne brand by actively engaging internal and external stakeholders in Berne and the wider international school community.
  • Initiate and oversee marketing and growth opportunities.
  • Network with other Schools within and outside the group to contribute to the development of the education system and to create a network of contacts in local, private and international schools

General

Carry out those duties as assigned by the ISBerne AG Board in the yearly Director’s goals/objectives.