Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Curriculum Manager

🎯 Role Definition

The Curriculum Manager leads end-to-end curriculum strategy, design, and implementation across learning programs. This role translates learning goals into coherent course sequences, aligned assessments, and scalable instructional materials; manages cross-functional teams and vendors; ensures quality, accessibility, and measurable outcomes; and continuously optimizes offerings using data and stakeholder feedback. The Curriculum Manager partners with school leaders, subject matter experts (SMEs), product teams, or training stakeholders to deliver learner-centered solutions that meet regulatory and organizational standards.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Instructional Designer or Senior Instructional Designer
Classroom Teacher, Subject Lead, or Curriculum Specialist
Learning & Development Specialist or Training Program Manager

Advancement To:

Director of Curriculum or Director of Instructional Design
Head of Learning & Development or Senior Learning Strategist
Chief Learning Officer or VP of Education/Product (for edtech)

Lateral Moves:

Program Manager (Education initiatives)
Assessment & Evaluation Manager
Product Manager for Learning Platforms

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Lead the end-to-end design, development, and continuous improvement of curriculum frameworks, course sequences, unit plans, and scope-and-sequence documents to ensure coherent progression of knowledge and skills across grade levels or program phases.
Align curriculum and instructional materials to local, state, national, and industry-specific standards (e.g., Common Core, NGSS, CTE competencies, professional certifications), maintaining rigorous compliance documentation for audits and accreditations.
Design valid, reliable formative and summative assessments, rubrics, and performance tasks that measure learning outcomes and support data-driven instructional decisions and reporting.
Manage curriculum projects from concept to launch: define scope, create timelines, allocate resources, lead cross-functional teams, track milestones, mitigate risks, and ensure on-time delivery within budget.
Collaborate with subject matter experts (SMEs), teachers/faculty, instructional designers, and multimedia developers to produce high-quality learning content, including lesson plans, teacher guides, learner activities, multimedia assets, and assessments.
Lead pilot implementations and field tests of new curriculum materials in classrooms or cohorts; gather qualitative and quantitative feedback, synthesize findings, and iterate on design to improve learning effectiveness and usability.
Establish and maintain curriculum standards, quality assurance checklists, and editorial guidelines ensuring consistency in pedagogy, learning objectives, language, and accessibility across all materials.
Develop differentiated instructional strategies, scaffolding, and interventions to support diverse learners, English language learners, students with disabilities, and various proficiency levels.
Oversee integration of technology and learning platforms (LMS, authoring tools, adaptive engines) into curriculum delivery; specify technical requirements, manage content uploads, and ensure compatibility with SCORM/xAPI and user analytics.
Build teacher and facilitator training programs, onboarding guides, and professional learning communities to ensure high-fidelity implementation of curriculum and instructional best practices.
Produce and analyze curriculum metrics and learning analytics (student outcomes, growth, engagement, usage) to identify trends, surface gaps, and prioritize curriculum enhancements aligned to KPIs.
Coordinate vendor relationships, contract scopes, and deliverables for outsourced content development, assessment design, translation/localization, and media production.
Lead continuous improvement cycles using design thinking and agile methodologies: collect stakeholder feedback, run rapid experiments, and implement iterative improvements to curriculum and assessments.
Translate research on pedagogy, cognition, and industry standards into practical classroom strategies and evidence-based instructional models that increase mastery and retention.
Manage content governance and version control processes for curriculum artifacts, ensuring clear ownership, archival policies, and transparent update workflows across teams.
Drive instructional equity initiatives by auditing materials for bias, cultural responsiveness, and representation, and implementing revisions to promote inclusive learning environments.
Prepare and present curriculum roadmaps, impact reports, and executive summaries to leadership, school boards, funders, or external partners to secure buy-in and funding for strategic initiatives.
Design competency frameworks and micro-credentials/certifications tied to curriculum outcomes, defining mastery criteria, assessment pathways, and recognition mechanisms.
Advise product and engineering teams on learning experience requirements, user flows, and assessment integrations to ensure product features support pedagogical goals and measurement needs.
Facilitate stakeholder workshops, curriculum design sprints, and co-creation sessions with teachers, employers, and higher-education partners to ensure relevance and transferability of learning outcomes.
Establish and manage budgets for curriculum development initiatives, track ROI, and recommend resource allocation to maximize learner impact and program sustainability.
Maintain knowledge of regulatory changes, accreditation requirements, emerging pedagogical trends (blended learning, competency-based education, microlearning), and share insights to inform long-term curriculum strategy.
Mentor and develop a team of instructional designers, curriculum specialists, and content developers—conduct performance reviews, set development plans, and cultivate a collaborative design culture.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc curriculum research requests, literature reviews, and whitepapers that inform strategic initiatives and content decisions.
Produce teacher-facing analytics dashboards and reports that synthesize classroom performance and highlight instructional levers for improvement.
Contribute to the organization’s learning analytics strategy by identifying key metrics, designing data collection protocols, and ensuring assessment validity and reliability.
Collaborate with marketing and enrollment teams to create curriculum summaries, program outlines, and promotional content that accurately reflect learning outcomes and competitive differentiators.
Participate in grant writing, proposal development, and partnerships that extend curriculum reach or fund pilot programs.
Ensure all curriculum materials meet accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1) and inclusive design principles through routine audits and remediation workflows.
Coordinate professional development calendars, webinars, and certification courses that build educator capacity for new curriculum adoption.
Advise on classroom scheduling, pacing guides, and resource planning to support seamless program rollout and operational logistics.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Curriculum design and mapping: mastery of backward design, scope and sequence, unit planning, and learning objective articulation.
Standards alignment: demonstrated experience aligning instruction to academic standards, industry frameworks, or competency models.
Assessment design and psychometrics: ability to create formative and summative assessments, rubrics, item banks, and analyze item-level data for validity and reliability.
Learning Management Systems (LMS) administration: experience with Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle, Schoology, D2L, or enterprise LMS platforms.
Authoring tools and multimedia creation: proficiency with Articulate Storyline, Rise, Adobe Captivate, Canva, or equivalent course-authoring and media tools.
Data literacy and analytics: strong skills with Excel, Google Sheets, Tableau, Power BI, or learning analytics dashboards to interpret learner data and generate insights.
Standards and compliance: knowledge of accreditation processes, curriculum certification, and regulatory reporting requirements (K‑12, higher ed, or corporate).
SCORM/xAPI and content interoperability: familiarity with SCORM packaging, xAPI/Tin Can, LTI integrations, and basic content deployment workflows.
Project management: experience with Agile/Scrum or traditional project plans using Jira, Asana, MS Project, or similar tools.
Accessibility and inclusive design: working knowledge of WCAG, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and strategies for ELLs and students with special needs.
Curriculum authoring and version control: experience with content management systems, editorial workflows, and documentation standards.
Budgeting and vendor management: ability to scope vendor work, manage contracts, and monitor development budgets.

Soft Skills

Strong written and verbal communication, with the ability to translate pedagogy into clear teacher-facing materials and executive summaries.
Leadership and people management: proven ability to lead cross-functional teams, mentor staff, and influence stakeholders without direct authority.
Stakeholder collaboration: aptitude for co-designing with teachers, administrators, SMEs, product, and assessment teams to reconcile competing priorities.
Analytical thinking and problem solving: comfort working with complex data sets to make actionable curriculum decisions.
Facilitation and training: skilled at designing and delivering professional learning and workshops for adult learners.
Attention to detail and editorial precision in content design, rubrics, and standards documentation.
Change management and implementation coaching: capacity to drive adoption, manage resistance, and support continuous improvement.
Creative and learner-centered mindset: develops engaging, research-based learning experiences that balance rigor and relevance.
Time management and prioritization: ability to manage multiple curriculum initiatives and deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
Empathy and cultural competency: designs inclusive curricula that reflect diverse perspectives and learning needs.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor’s degree in Education, Curriculum & Instruction, Instructional Design, Educational Technology, or a closely related field.

Preferred Education:

Master’s degree or higher in Curriculum & Instruction, Instructional Design, Educational Leadership, Adult Learning, or Education Technology.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Curriculum & Instruction
Instructional Design & Educational Technology
Education Leadership or Administration
Psychology, Cognitive Science, or Learning Sciences
Subject-area degrees (Math, Science, Literacy) with pedagogical training

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 3–7 years of progressive experience in curriculum design, instructional design, or education program management; or equivalent teaching experience with curriculum leadership.

Preferred: 5+ years leading curriculum development initiatives, experience managing teams, proven outcomes in improving learner achievement or program metrics, and prior work with LMS, assessment design, or accreditation processes.