We're Hiring an Executive Director!

Keeping Forests is seeking applications for an experienced leader to serve as Executive Director. This leader will be focused on leveraging the power of collaboration to create new and innovative pathways for forest conservation in the southern United States. The deadline for applications is July 15.

CONTEXT:

The mission of Keeping Forests is to create the enabling conditions to conserve the 245 million acres of southern forests and the values they provide. The partnership takes a systems-based approach to meet the challenges, complexity, and dynamic issues that affect private landowners’ ability to retain and responsibly manage their land. With over 40 partners engaged in this effort, there are a diversity of perspectives that ensure that Keeping Forests is implementing strategies that create impact across the entire Southern region.

ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW:

Keeping Forests is powered by the voluntary efforts of cross-sector partners that range from environmental NGOs to Fortune 500 companies, business leaders in the forest products industry, federal and state government agencies, regional collaboratives, and universities. We are a partnership that convenes, catalyzes, and facilitates initiatives that are largely market-driven and can be scaled across the South. We are unique in that we focus on non-traditional approaches and interventions that can only be implemented through collaborative efforts on a landscape level. The goal is to fill gaps in strategy and knowledge that no single organization or existing collaboration can tackle on their own.

The Executive Director leads a core group of 4-6 contractors who provide ongoing strategy, communications, and implementation support. Partners participate as advisors in working groups (Workstreams) aligned with Keeping Forests three highly leveraged opportunities for change. Financial oversight and sponsorship are guided by the USDA Forest Service and the U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities. The Executive Director’s duties and responsibilities will be guided by the Keeping Forests Executive Committee.

POSITION OVERVIEW:

Keeping Forests is seeking a passionate and entrepreneurial Director. They will be a visionary and systems-thinking leader who can guide the core contractors, grow relationships with and between partners, facilitate the collective success of this regional effort, and serve as a public ambassador for the partnership. They will drive internal and external functions including annual and multi-year strategic planning, strategy development and implementation, budget management, fundraising, and contractor oversight.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

Key responsibilities include:

Leadership

• Providing visionary, adaptive leadership, modeling Keeping Forests’ guiding values at all times and fostering a culture that reflects them;

• Establishing, facilitating, and executing effective and open relationships with core contractors, particularly related to internal decisions and strategy;

• Developing systems to share organizational decisions with the Executive Committee, partners, and core staff;

• Identifying capacity gaps and creating plans that acknowledge the possibility for organizational change.

Strategic Coherence

• Identifying current implementation challenges and developing comprehensive solutions to address them;

• Providing direction and support to partner organizations in aligning their work to the Common Agenda of Keeping Forests (e.g. identifying opportunities for partners’ work to support specific Keeping Forests goals and vice versa);

• Developing outreach priorities and coordinating any supporting activities of partners;

• Building and maintaining relationships with all partners, including the Executive Committee, Workstream partner leads, and Workstream members

• Coordinating with other conservation/restoration projects and coalitions to maintain a full understanding of the current landscape of activities, and integrating their work (when possible) into the Workstream processes;

• Overseeing the development and implementation of a shared measurement system that will track common outcomes and indicators across the partnership and use results to inform learning and continuous improvement.

Fund development

• Identifying potential funding sources to support Keeping Forests’ goals and priorities:

• Providing support and guidance to partner organizations in aligning resources to Keeping Forests’ Common Agenda (e.g. supporting identification of grant opportunities that align to Keeping Forests’ goals);

• Tracking all Keeping Forests’ funding, including funds from partner organizations;

• Developing relationships with potential funders while participating in relevant networks.

Communications

• Communicating the objectives of Keeping Forests to partners, potential partners, and the broader community

• Facilitating communication among Keeping Forests partners;

• Working with communications contractors to develop content, materials, web and social media strategies, press strategies, etc.

Facilitation and Partner Management

• Building the identity of Keeping Forests as a respected, neutral convener among a broad spectrum of partners;

• Cultivating excellent working relationships with advocates and allies of forest conservation in a way that inspires collective action without formal authority;

• Ensuring effective facilitation of all meetings;

• Help identify and recruit cross-sector partners to participate in Keeping Forests.

Managing Internal Systems

• Selecting and overseeing work of consultants as appropriate;

• Monitoring and reporting on operational issues, opportunities, and achievements within agreed formats and timelines;

• Identifying improvements in the use of data-driven decision-making and ensuring that data is collected, integrated, and communicated effectively across the partnership.

• Coordinating measurements and indicator refinement at the partnership and Workstream level;

REQUISITE QUALIFICATIONS:

• At least 10 years of relevant work experience, including at least 3 years managing collaborative teams in a government, non-profit, or social enterprise;

• The executive presence to inspire confidence and passion in both internal and external audiences;

• Advanced strategy and planning skills, including an ability to think strategically on both organizational and systemic levels over multi-year horizons;

• Fundraising experience and demonstrated success in cultivating fundraiser relationships;

• Strong data acumen and ability to oversee complex shared-measurement systems;

• Strong facilitation and presentation skills before multiple types of audiences;

• Experience with complex project management and partner management;

• Existing relationships with, or ability to build relationships with, a cross-sectoral range of partners and stakeholders in the Southern U.S., including senior executives;

• A track record of leading, inspiring, and developing high-performance teams;

• Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build authentic relationships with a diverse set of high-profile partners and community leaders.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Advanced degree in forestry, natural resources, conservation, environmental studies, sustainability, or related field;

• Experience working with multi-sector collaborations to unite under a common vision and agenda for change;

• Experience working in the South on forestry issues and/or issues that align or intersect with forest conservation;

• Familiarity with forest markets, inclusive of emerging markets (e.g. payment for ecosystem services) and traditional forest markets (e.g. timber, pulp, paper and packaging, and other traditional forest products);

• Familiarity with the Collective Impact model and ability to implement (or willingness to learn to implement) the five conditions for success

COMPENSATION:

Compensation for the position is competitive and commensurate with experience. This is a contract, non-salaried position that does not include benefits.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS:

The Search Committee is soliciting nominations and expressions of interest immediately. Applications should be submitted by July 15, 2022. Nominations or applications should include a letter of interest, current resume, and compensation requirements. Application packets should be sent electronically to peter@usendowment.org.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

For information on the application process please contact Peter Stangel at peter@usendowment.org or 404-915-2763.

For information on roles, responsibilities and expectations please contact Daniel McInnis at daniel.mcinnis@usda.gov or 404-695-6376.