Executive Director

THE BASICS 

Headquarters: Brookline, MA

Supervisor: Board of Trustees 

Total Employees: 6 full time, 2 part time 

FY 2023 Budget: $1.4 MM 

Current Assets: $10 MM

FY 2022 Grants: $1.2 MM to 42 organizations

Number of funds: 25

Number of donors: 1,450+

ABOUT THE BROOKLINE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION

The Brookline Community Foundation’s (BCF) mission is to create opportunity and promote equity through the transformative power of giving. BCF’s history dates back to the late 19th century when it was founded as part of the temperance movement. Since 1998, BCF has operated as a community foundation for the town of Brookline, Massachusetts. BCF is the only foundation that addresses Brookline as a whole, spotlighting community needs, inspiring philanthropy, and awarding strategic grants to create a more vibrant, engaged, and equitable Brookline.

BCF’s research, convenings, partnerships and grantmaking are guided by their core values: lead by listening, anchored in equity, sustainable support, and community first. BCF’s role as a partner helps to identify and respond to community challenges through strategic grantmaking, research, and by convening nonprofit and town leaders, community members, and other experts to discuss pressing issues and solutions, with a particular emphasis on vulnerable children and youth, out of school time, and the town's low income residents.

Since 1999, BCF has granted more than $11.5 million to over 225 nonprofit organizations and Town departments located in or serving Brookline. Importantly, over the past 3 years, BCF has significantly increased grantmaking and awarded over $1M per year in grants, scholarships, and sponsorships combined. 

• BCF’s Scholarship Fund portfolio of over $2,000,000 makes need-based awards to approximately 30 recent Brookline High School graduates each year.

• For almost 20 years, the Community Grant Program has provided grants to nonprofits, Town government agencies, and community efforts to improve health, well-being, equity, and opportunity in Brookline.

• Since its launch in 2018, Brookline for All Grant Program supports community-led efforts to make Brookline a more welcoming and equitable place to live, learn, work, and play.

• The Racial Equity Grant Program, our newest grantmaking effort made possible through a generous donation from the Town of Brookline, employs participatory grantmaking from a committee of community members to distribute funding to efforts that will advance racial equity and justice for BIPOC community members, and uplift marginalized voices in community decision-making.

• Essentials like healthy food, safe and stable housing, and compassionate health care are crucial to ensuring everyone lives with well-being and dignity. The Safety Net Grant Program operates year-round to provide grants to increase access to community resources like healthy food, housing assistance, child care, emergency services, and more.

• Providing youth and their families with stability, opportunities, and enrichment is critical to lifelong well-being. The Youth Development Grant Program provides funding to support programming for youth and families in Brookline.

To see a full grants list, please click here.

ABOUT THE POSITION 

The Foundation seeks a community-centered leader, dynamic advocate, and experienced staff manager to serve as Executive Director.

Reporting to an engaged and dedicated Board of Directors, the Executive Director will lead programming and service delivery, ensuring fidelity to donors and the needs and interests of Brookline’s residents. They will bring a rigorous, mission-driven management style to board and staff and promote a culture of transparent financial execution and effective, supportive operations. The Executive Director will support BCF's initiatives through close collaboration with staff and community partners to ensure research, programming and services align with community priorities.

The ideal candidate will have demonstrated success in centering inclusion and belonging throughout their lived and/or professional experiences. They will build and support a team of highly motivated and skilled staff, effectively manage budgets and operations, and forge meaningful alliances with diverse constituencies. They will be skilled in community and external relations, and will draw upon emotional intelligence and political savvy in representing the wide-ranging interests and stakeholders of Brookline and the Foundation.

The Executive Director will be expected to lead in the following ways:

Community Builder, Convener, and Ambassador

• Embed yourself in a diverse, close-knit stakeholder community with authenticity, integrity, exceptional active listening skills, and a strong service-leadership orientation

• Oversee town-wide convenings and publication of reports that elevate current and new issues in town and support problem-solving and partnership building for innovative solutions
• Represent BCF in community-driven and community-centered initiatives and meetings; staying closely apprised of developments and initiatives in the Brookline area

Fundraising and Partnership Development

• Steward donor relationships, cultivating new opportunities and leveraging the Board’s time and energy to best serve and promote the mission and long-term financial health of BCF

• Connect with new sources of philanthropic support to strategize and implement plans to increase fundraising from a broader base of support and new donors, including estate gifts and an increase in direct mail support

• Focus on asset development and sustainability of the organization through working with major donors, businesses, community organizations, and the Town of Brookline

Organizational Leadership and Program Stewardship

• Lead program and service delivery, ensuring fidelity to donors and serving the needs and interests of all Brookline residents

• Manage a growing team, operationalize and coach staff to perform at their best

• Support and foster a culture that embraces teamwork, transparency, seamless communication, and high levels of morale, with collaboration as an ongoing objective

• Evaluate operational needs and work with the Board to improve organizational and staff efficiency and ensure that all federal, state, and local reporting obligations are met

• Employ high level of business acumen including successful P&L management; the ability to balance the delivery of programs against the realities of a budget; and problem solving, project management, and creative resourcefulness.

• Create a culture of forward momentum among the Board and staff to identify and respond thoughtfully to opportunities to carry out BCF’s mission

QUALIFICATIONS  

There are innumerable ways to learn, grow, and excel professionally. We respect this when we review applications and take a broad look at the experience of each applicant. We want to get to know you and the unique strengths you will bring to the work. That said, we are most likely to be interested in your candidacy if you can demonstrate the majority of the qualifications and experiences listed below:

• Senior-level leadership experience with a proven track record of successfully leading, managing, and growing a department, organization, or enterprise, preferably within the nonprofit or philanthropic sector

• Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion through continuous development, modeling inclusive behaviors, and proactively managing bias with board, staff and community

• Experience leading, supporting, and/or overseeing the expansion of donor bases at all giving levels, inclusive of a successful track record of managing a team in broad nonprofit fundraising (appeals, events, major donors, foundations); ability to retain existing and cultivate new funding sources in varied economic climates. Experience working with high net worth donors; including fund development, wealth management, and/or financial advising

• Familiarity with the fundamentals of community and asset-based philanthropy, including experience with grantee/funder relationships, fiscal management, and compliance

• Thrives in a fast-paced, highly collaborative, and entrepreneurial environment; the integrity, wisdom, persistence, and humor necessary to address the practicalities of a growing, dynamic, community-based organization

• A management style that combines respectful collaboration with disciplined productivity; the respect and team orientation to diplomatically support high-performing staff and the continued growth and direction of the organization

• Demonstrated creativity and passion for imagining and implementing new programs and strategies

• Experience in community-based organizing to address problems or issues collaboratively with stakeholders

• Excellent strategic, analytical, and problem solving skills with the ability to overcome challenges through the development of thoughtful and creative solutions

• Exceptional oral and written communication, networking and public engagement skills, including the ability to adapt style and approach to diverse local constituencies and personalities

LOCATION, COMPENSATION & BENEFITS: 

Currently BCF works in a hybrid model and carefully monitors the health and safety of our team. We are committed to continuing to offer flexible and adaptable work opportunities moving forward, including beyond the current Covid-19 crisis. This role will require onsite work in BCF’s office and active participation in the Brookline community.

BCF offers a comprehensive and generous benefits package. The starting salary for the position is $175,000, commensurate with experience.

At Brookline Community Foundation, we celebrate diversity, and our goal is to be a diverse workforce that is representative, at all job levels, of the communities we serve. As such, we are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Brookline Community Foundation is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, height, weight, or marital status in employment or the provision of services.