Executive Director

Background

Known nationwide for innovation and advocacy, West Side Campaign Against Hunger’s (WSCAH) mission is to alleviate hunger and create a culture that promotes self-reliance. Located on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, WSCAH provides 1,690,595 pounds of food per year to 112,796 hungry New Yorkers from all over the City and changes perceptions of hungry people by working in partnership with them, providing food with dignity, and empowering customers to find solutions.

The supermarket-style food pantry is the gateway to many social service programs. On-site, WSCAH counselors provide:

• Assistance with SNAP and health insurance enrollment.
• Financial and legal services.
• Nutrition and exercise classes.
• A 12-week Chef Training Program, which helps customers learn to prepare healthy meals for their families and provides job-readiness skills.

Additionally, WSCAH counselors connect clients to partner agencies throughout the city.

WSCAH operates with a paid staff of 21 and hundreds of customer-volunteers. The organization has an annual budget of $3.5 million. For more information, please visit their website at http://www.wscah.org/

Position

Over the past several years, West Side Campaign Against Hunger has seen incredible growth in its services and impact. Building upon this expansion, WSCAH is seeking their next Executive Director (ED), who will serve as the chief visionary, advocate, leader, and fundraiser for the organization. The ED will capitalize on WSCAH’s stature as one of New York’s leading nonprofits and its unique platform of direct-service delivery to expand its impact, operations, and financial base.

The ED will manage and direct the overall organization, while leading an expansion of WSCAH’s operations via a mobile pantry, advocacy, and extended hours. Reporting to an active and engaged Board of Directors and overseeing a strong executive team, the ED will ensure that the organization is fiscally and administratively sound and that its operations, communications, and fundraising efforts are coordinated, innovative, and support the organization’s strategic plan.

The ED will build on WSCAH’s already strong reputation as one of the most innovative and effective emergency food pantries in New York City. Fundamentally, the ED will help move the institution forward in meeting customer needs with dignity and respect, and will increase the depth and breadth of relevant social services.

The ED will be a strong leader, with humility and a sense of humor, able successfully to manage WSCAH today, while providing a vision for the future, that is, someone able to conceptualize and express ideas and anticipate and act on events that create opportunities for WSCAH tomorrow. The Board looks forward to working with the new ED on WSCAH’s continuing innovation and growth.

Responsibilities:

Strategic Vision, Leadership, and Executive Management

• Lead and inspire the Board, staff, donors, and community stakeholders in supporting the vision, goals, and objectives established in WSCAH’s strategic plan.
• Execute and implement strategies and programs that carry out the shared vision, including a plan to increase adult attendance to levels comparable to other institutions.
• Recruit, lead, motivate, supervise, and evaluate professional staff that can effectively carry out the primary programs and mission of WSCAH. Provide on-going supervision, mentoring, professional development and growth to WSCAH professionals.
• Ensure that WSCAH’s human resources, operations, and technology are aligned to effectively meet its goals and expectations.
• Provide leadership in the management of the volunteer workforce, fundraising, partnerships, and Board diversity.
• Provide sound fiscal leadership and fiduciary oversight. Manage and execute the process for developing the annual budget for Board approval, with participation of senior leadership. Present clear, concise and timely financial reports to the board.

Operations

• Oversee all agency operations, including acquisition, storage, and transfer of food inventories and the maintenance and security of the food pantry, kitchen, office facilities, and equipment.
• Ensure the tracking and reporting of food and customer metrics and work with the Board and program staff using metrics for planning and trouble-shooting.
• Supervise and participate in community food drives, including the Thousand Turkey Challenge.
• With the Board, ensure compliance with applicable government laws and regulations.

Community Relations

• Represent WSCAH in the community and with related organizations as primary point of contact.
• Act as lead advocate and provide expertise on community outreach issues.
• Elevate WSCAH’s profile in the media, government, and advocacy community.
• Expand the visibility of the organization’s presence and develop relationships that seek and garner new business and fundraising opportunities.

Fundraising

• Develop new sources of funding and assure a growing, diversified revenue stream.
• Collaborate with the Board and Development Director in developing and implementing an annual fundraising plan, oversee fundraising events and programs, and establish personal relationships with key donors to encourage ongoing support.
  • Cultivate foundations, corporate sponsors, individual donors, and volunteers; pursue federal, state, and county government grants and contracts; and seek strategic alliances and partnerships for programs in concert with the Board.

Board Relations

• Engage with the Board of Directors, Board Chairperson, and others to develop, refine, and communicate WSCAH’s vision and strategy.
• Work with Board leadership to create a dynamic, collaborative partnership between the organization’s Board of Directors and senior management to advance short and long-term objectives, with particular emphasis on community outreach and fundraising activities.
• Develop a capital expenditures schedule for Board approval; monitor schedule and update Board.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Keen interest in WSCAH’s mission and programs, and a demonstrated commitment to serving a low-income population.
• Experience and knowledge of issues and key people in the anti-hunger/food insecurity space is a plus.
• Prior “hands-on” management experience and strategic capability to run a dynamic, complex, multi-faceted service-oriented institution.
• Ten or more years of professional experience with direct service delivery in a social service organization or comparable setting.
• Experience in community and press relations, including public speaking.
• Good understanding of fundraising principles and process.
• Experience using data to make decisions, tell a story, and drive a point.
• Superior interpersonal skills and an inclusive leadership style.
• Experience scaling programs and operations.
• Cross-cultural competency, respect for diversity, and comfortable working with non-English speaking and culturally-diverse customers.
• Spanish-speaker strongly preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree required. Master’s degree in relevant field preferred. 

Compensation

An attractive and competitive package, commensurate with level of experience

For More Information, Please Contact:

Sue Waterbury, Vice President

Kelsey Blagdon, Senior Associate

DRG – Executive Search Consultants

275 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016

To apply or to nominate a candidate

please submit a résumé and letter of interest to:

Email: [email protected]

Fax: (212) 983-1687

Visit us: www.drgnyc.com 

WSCAH is an EEO employer. No relocation assistance is available for this position.

Due to the volume of interest, it may be possible only to contact those who will be interviewed.