Rima Bist

Rima Bist

Current: Director of Student Success Projects at The Brilliant Club

I help mission driven organisations scale faster, deliver smarter, and be impactful

14+ Years Experience
1.2M+ Students Impacted
Strategy & Operations
Team Leadership
Education Impact
Driven by Data
Partnerships

About Me

If you knew my story, you'd know why I fiercely believe in equity. That every person, regardless of where they were born or what circumstances they face, deserves dignity, opportunity, and a fair chance to succeed.

I thought I was going to be a scientist, having studied Microbiology for 5 years. But then the Teach For India Fellowship came into my life and it felt less like a career move, and more like a calling. It gave me a path to channel something I hadn't yet named: my inner drive, my anger at social injustice, and my deep desire to do something for those who are often left behind.

Over the last 14 years, I've translated my belief into meaningful action, from running a school for children living in slums, to scaling nationwide school improvement programmes, to leading emergency interventions that improved learning. What drives all of this work is my strength as a generalist values driven leader. I thrive at the intersection of strategy and operations, turning bold visions into practical sustainable systems that work on ground.

Strategy and Operations
Scalable Programme Design
Monitoring & Evaluation
Financial Stewardship
Cross-sector Partnerships
Data-led Decision Making
Change Leadership
EdTech
DEI

Key Achievements

£
Secured strategic partnerships with the Alan Turing Institute, Allen & Overy, and Bloomsbury, driving revenue 115% above target
📚
Delivered a national tutoring programme impacting 13,000+ students across 250 schools, while maintaining unit cost efficiency at 70% of forecast
📈
Designed and implemented systems that led to a 15-20% gain in student learning outcomes across 3,000 learners
🌍
Operationalised a hybrid edtech platform reaching 200,000 students in 4 countries, and trained teachers impacting 1.2 million students
👥
Directed high-performing cross-functional teams of up to 20 employees and 200+ volunteers

Professional Experience

The Brilliant Club, UK
Nov 2020 – Present
Director of Student Success Projects
Jan 2024 – Present
Leads strategic programme design and delivery, overseeing national partnerships and revenue generation.
  • Launched new student success initiatives with sector leaders, delivering measurable improvement in student outcomes
  • Surpassed annual revenue targets and secured high value renewals with 90% partner retention
  • Embedded robust M&E frameworks, improving programme insight and funding readiness
Director, Brilliant Tutoring Programme & Make Your Mark
July 2021 – Dec 2023
Directed a national, multi-million-pound programme with 13,000+ beneficiaries and 250 school partners.
  • Doubled programme scale within two years, increasing reach without increasing cost per participant
  • Oversaw strategy, finance, delivery, team leadership, and risk management across 20+ staff
  • Managed reporting to DfE and other senior stakeholders; strengthened data integrity and insight
Head of Programme Management
Feb 2021 – July 2021
  • Took full strategic and operational oversight during a rapid national scale-up
  • Strengthened reporting, stakeholder management, and delivery team capability
  • Introduced QA systems that raised volunteer tutor performance
Programme Manager
Nov 2020 – Feb 2021
  • Developed end-to-end systems during COVID-19 tutoring surge; embedded scalable infrastructure
321 Education Foundation, India
May 2016 – Sept 2020
Associate Director
June 2020 – Sept 2020
  • Led a cross-border education technology solution, reaching 200,000 students in 400 cities
  • Trained government teachers to improve pedagogy and planning, indirectly impacting over 1 million students
  • Shaped pandemic-era remote learning strategy across Delhi and Mumbai
Programme Implementation & People Senior Manager
May 2017 – May 2020
  • Designed and implemented HR systems that enhanced organisational culture for 80+ team members
  • Managed crisis response and continuity planning during high-stakes programme pivots
  • Scaled implementation by 80% across 2 cities, with sustained performance metrics
Programme Implementation Manager
May 2016 – Apr 2017
  • Coached and led 1,500+ teachers and school leaders across cities, achieving 90%+ satisfaction rates
  • Tripled literacy and doubled numeracy outcomes in targeted schools under direct leadership
Teach For India
Fellow, Teacher and Grade Lead
May 2012 – Apr 2014
  • Co-founded a free school for children in underserved communities
  • Delivered measurable academic gains while leading school-wide initiatives for improvement

Policy & Research Experience

Young Leaders for Active Citizenship (YLAC)
Policy In Action Fellow
Sep 2019 – Oct 2019
Designed policy research on affordable housing for the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi.
  • Conducted comparative analysis of housing schemes implemented over 15 years with identification of various beneficiaries
  • Identified implementation issues through primary and secondary research followed by recommendations to mitigate challenges

Voluntary Roles

Muntham House School
Governor, Education Committee
May 2025 – Present
Providing strategic governance and oversight for educational excellence and student outcomes.

What Colleagues Say

Nitika Sahni
Nitika Sahni
Learning & Development Professional

"When I think about Rima, I am inspired to strive for excellence. Having worked with her for more than 2 years, I have witnessed her getting better, exploring different things, constantly learning and exemplifying everything that she expected all her teammates to do."

"She is a perfect balance of being objective, logical and empathetic in all her conversations and actions. Her knowledge and skills about structures, facilitation, content, managing people and projects, building relations, motivating the team, supporting them throughout is brilliant."

Harsh Swaminarayan
Harsh Swaminarayan
Mission-driven Professional & Coach

"'Excellence is a Habit' is the phrase that comes to mind when I think about Rima. I've had the privilege of working with Rima for almost 8 years now. Above all, I was impressed with Rima's ability to improve systems & structures through the consistent use of data, to create realistic & strong work, project & session plans & to execute all these plans exceptionally well."

"Rima would be a true asset for any position requiring a leader to achieve ambitious goals and comes with my heartfelt recommendation."

Kamini Ganguli
Kamini Ganguli
Learning Consultant

"Rima is great to work with, and has always provided me with a great balance of autonomy and accountability. Rima's guidance on setting goals and resolving roadblocks to meeting those goals has been imperative to the success of all projects we have worked on together. In addition, she's been a great cheerleader and supporter - motivating the team through the most stressful times."

Aayushi Chaurasia
Aayushi Chaurasia
Manager, Innovative Finance

"Rima has been an inspirational leader with excellent interpersonal skills. She has consistently improved performance of the team by setting high expectations balanced with the right amount of support. She provided a safe space to make mistakes, talk about them, and most importantly learn from them. Her passion and commitment to continuously learn, evolve, and solve problems has been a place where I have mostly drawn my inspiration from."

Laxmi Nair
Laxmi Nair
Program Design | Learning Design | M&E

"Rima brings a deep sense of care to everything she does. She's in tune with how people are feeling & doing and can leverage that to push for performance. Rima is also obsessed with getting processes right & getting to clarity which allows her to deliver well when the stakes are high. She played a pivotal role in the early years of 321 & help set up not just the processes but also the culture of the organisation. Any team would be lucky to have Rima on it!"

Rahul Subbaraman
Rahul Subbaraman
Sales Training + L&D Consulting

"Rima and I have been working together for about a year now and in that time we have collaborated on several projects together. She is program superstar and her operational skills in running projects from end to end is beyond reproach."

"From diagnosing problems accurately to extended research on arriving at solutions, from design and development of training programs to flawless execution and delivery; Rima is a committed and driven professional. She will be an asset to any role she chooses to pursue and I wish her all the best."

Let's Connect

Ready to discuss how we can work together to drive meaningful impact in education and beyond? I'd love to hear from you.