Chief Executive Officer

Girls Inc. of Greater Santa Barbara seeks a strategic and visionary executive leader, skilled organizational manager, and experienced community builder, fundraiser, and advocate who can successfully advance our vision of empowered girls in an equitable society.

Girls Inc. is the leading national expert on girls’ issues and stands for gender and social equity and justice. We inspire all girls to be strong, smart, and bold through direct service and advocacy. As one of 83 nonprofit affiliates in the Girls Inc. Network, Girls Inc. of Greater Santa Barbara is an established and respected member of our local community since 1958. We annually serve more than 1,300 girls, ages 5-18, through remote school day learning support programs, after-school and summer camp enrichment programs, a dedicated teen center and teen outreach programming, and a recreational-to-competitive gymnastics program. Our staff of 35 serves a nearly 70% Latina population. We are governed by a 12-member Board of Directors, with a $2.8 million annual budget.

Girls Inc.’s comprehensive approach to whole-person development equips girls, teens and those who identify as female to navigate gender, economic, and social barriers and grow up healthy, educated, and independent, prepared to lead the next generation. Informed by girls, teens, and their families, we also advocate for legislation and policies to increase opportunities for all girls.

Position Overview

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) provides strategic leadership of the organization and oversight of all Girls Inc. programming and advocacy. The CEO manages staff and program administration, and interfaces with the National Girls Inc. organization. They partner with the Board of Directors to ensure long-term planning; strong fund development success; and representation of Girls Inc. in the community – all in support of sustainable growth.

The CEO has primary responsibility for executing upon the board’s Statement of Direction. They build partnerships with schools, government and community organizations, foundation officers, corporate, and individual donors. They ensure the prudent management of finances; develop and reward an effective culturally competent staff; assure that nonprofit/legal requirements are met; advocate for the rights and needs of all girls and inspire staff and volunteers to motivate girls to grow up healthy, educated, and independent. This full-time position reports to the Board of Directors, and is located onsite in Santa Barbara, CA.

The successful candidate:

• Is a self-aware, authentic, inspiring, and confident leader, who leads with vision, energy, and optimism.
• Shares a deep belief in the Girls Inc. mission and vision and is an effective advocate for youth and for those working to support them.
• Is committed to youth development and gender and racial equity.
• Inspires and connects with Girls Inc. girls, staff, and the community, is also inspired by these constituents, and effectively articulates this inspiration and impact.
• Relates well to all kinds of people in a variety of situations; uses diplomacy and tact and has high levels of emotional intelligence and cultural competence.
• Thoughtfully takes on a challenge, considers input from team members, and embraces mistakes as learning opportunities.
• Exhibits integrity and trust, adheres to Girls Inc.’s core values and always acts ethically.
• Works collaboratively and inclusively and acts with composure and clarity.
• Actively embodies Strong, Smart, and Bold for staff, girls, and the community.

Essential Functions and Competencies

Executing on and Advocating for the Vision and Mission

The CEO is committed to advancing Girls Inc. of Greater Santa Barbara’s values and mission with the desire and ability to continually evolve to meet the needs of girls and teens. They possess an understanding of Girls Inc.’s policy and advocacy efforts and effectively position and represent the organization at the local, regional, and state levels with government officials, policy, and advocacy partners. The CEO understands youth development principles and is current on girls’ issues, and actively works to dismantle systemic gender inequity, racism, and other biases that impact the rights and opportunities for girls and teens. They connect with the lived experiences and unique challenges of girls and teens across Santa Barbara County and leverage opportunities to expand services and impact.

Developing, Leading, and Managing People

The CEO sets clear direction and successfully develops, energizes, and equips a team that brings a high level of leadership and expertise to their work. They inspire staff, supporters, and community members to work together toward a shared vision, and they align the relationships and resources needed to fulfill organizational goals. The CEO provides exceptional staff management and team-building skills, and cultivates a thriving culture of trust, professionalism, respect, collaboration, listening, responsiveness, and improvement at all levels of the organization. They create a partnership of mutual respect and collaboration with staff and with the board, fostering an inclusive environment guided by diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Strategizing and Managing Change

The CEO confidently leads the organization through a formal, stakeholder-driven strategic planning process, implementation, and evaluation. They model and implement change management strategies for staff and board towards creating capacity-building initiatives around people, programs, processes, and systems to achieve greater efficiencies and advancement of mission and vision. The CEO possesses high emotional intelligence; listens to feedback from all stakeholders, and adapts plans to ensure success. They make sound decisions in a timely manner based on data and research in the best interest of the organization and the girls served.

Demonstrating Business Acumen

The CEO has a strong understanding of nonprofit operations and financial management, public and private grant management, leading multi-disciplinary teams, and engaging with sophisticated donors. They identify measurable goals, timelines, and measurements of success and effectively articulate progress and challenges. They are innovative in their approach to position Girls Inc. as the leading community expert on girls’ issues while expanding its reputation as a well-managed, high-impact organization that invests donor and grant funds effectively to advance its mission. The CEO understands the functional and technical knowledge and skills necessary for strong performance in finance, human resources, technology, data, legal compliance, and risk management.

Directing Fund Development

The CEO works with a talented development team to prioritize effective and innovative fundraising strategies and oversee a strong fund development program. They help cultivate and steward donor relationships and navigate Santa Barbara’s philanthropic community with respect while building strong relationships. The CEO develops a diverse portfolio of revenue sources, and reimagines Girls Inc.’s business, programming, and funding models toward a fiscally secure and sustainable future. They strategically build and maintain donor relationships through innovation, resilience, effective storytelling, and ensuring mission-alignment.

Building Partnerships and Working Collaboratively

The CEO guides Girls Inc.’s overall partnership strategy, building and maintaining relationships with community constituents and supporting staff in doing the same. Key constituent groups include Girls Inc. families and girls, municipal and state government agencies and officials, local and regional community members, social services agencies, school superintendents and administrators, nonprofit organizations, foundations, individual and corporate donors, and the business community. They foster collaboration among diverse stakeholders and inspire support of an inclusive shared vision for empowered girls in an equitable society. They build long-term, mission-focused community relationships with enthusiasm and establish and maintain trust with all partners. The CEO promotes diversity, equity, and inclusion in all facets of programming and community partnerships.

Experience and Qualifications

Girls Inc. of Greater Santa Barbara is an equal opportunity employer and strongly encourages applications from any candidate whose skills match the listed qualifications.

A track record of success in nonprofit, public sector, and/or business leadership roles, demonstrating the ability to set a strategic vision and develop and inspire a team to achieve ambitious goals.

Exceptional EQ and communication skills, and the ability to confidently articulate a feminist-focused messages to stakeholders across a variety of platforms.

Demonstrated passion for advocating for and advancing gender and racial justice.

Demonstrated knowledge of youth development concepts and of the legal and developmental basis for single gender programming.

Demonstrated success in fundraising and fund development.

Professional experience in relationship management, staff, and youth development, and/or cultivation of clients/donors within a nonprofit or business environment.

A bachelor’s degree preferred.

Nonprofit management or other public sector experience preferred.

Language and cultural competencies that reflect the Santa Barbara Community highly desirable.

A high level of awareness of current communication platforms and tools and the most effective methods to reach a variety of diverse audiences.

Must pass a background check, health screening and drug test; Must comply with vaccination requirements per licensing compliance.

Compensation

Salary is commensurate with experience. Girls Inc. of Greater Santa Barbara offers a competitive benefits package.

Applications will be accepted until May 14, 2021. For more information and to apply, please visit girlsincsb.org/executivesearch.