The Role:
The President and CEO will report directly to Clarke’s Board of Trustees, an elected group of volunteer members with connections to the hearing loss community and an unwavering commitment to Clarke’s mission. The President and CEO is responsible for Clarke’s continued success and world class reputation, ensuring operational excellence and program impact, overseeing fundraising efforts to ensure Clarke’s long-term sustainability, and maintaining and extending Clarke’s standing in the field of education for children who are deaf or hard of hearing. The President and CEO is responsible for the following direct reports: Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”), Chief Program Officer (“CPO”), and Chief Communications Officer (“CCO”), among other positions. Fundraising and institutional development are two of the primary focuses of the role in addition to the financial sustainability and operational success.
The position is remote and can be filled by a candidate in any area reasonably accessible to the Clarke campuses, which are located along the East Coast from Boston, MA to Jacksonville, FL. Due to the work-force being located exclusively in the EDT time zone, candidates in the EDT and CDT time zones will be given primary consideration.
The President and CEO is an experienced non-profit, relationship centered leader who gracefully combines operational and financial expertise with visionary leadership and partners proactively and productively with the Board, the organization’s leadership team, and key external constituents.
Expectations for and aspects of this role:
- Provide motivational leadership that will allow the CPO and Program Directors and staff to execute their best work.
- Build and lead sustainable fundraising efforts that supports both programmatic and unrestricted philanthropic support for the broad base of Clarke services.
- Advance the business discipline and operational expertise necessary to secure Clarke’s long-term sustainability, including setting organizational goals, actively measuring results, and maintaining accountability.
- Model and intentionally nurture a mission driven culture of deep caring, trust and belonging, excellence, authenticity, courageous leadership, and mutual accountability.
- Guide coalitions, lobbying and other activities related to maximizing public funding.
- Lead the organization through a new five-year strategic plan focused on building a solid foundation to support future organization-wide growth. Goals for the strategic plan will include and not be limited to:
- Move toward program standardization and alignment of child/family needs and offerings.
- Align the Clarke culture, operations, and infrastructure to foster internal and external collaboration and efficiency.
- Serve the Clarke community and the world through data, research, innovation, and communication.
- Build toward sustainable funding.
- Become the employer of choice among institutions serving those who are deaf or hard of hearing using listening and spoken language.
- Strengthen the Clarke community and network of alumni.
- Move toward program standardization and alignment of child/family needs and offerings.
- Articulate and reinforce, both internally and externally, the Clarke story including a compelling long-term vision that engages and motivates the entire organization, its supporters, and other stakeholders.
- Serve as a trusted voice in the broader field of education of those who are deaf or hard of hearing and find common ground with other organizations serving children who are deaf or hard of hearing.
The successful President and CEO candidate should bring:
- A passion for Clarke’s mission as well as empathy for the challenges faced by those it serves.
- 10 - 15 years of applicable experience in executive leadership roles. Preference for candidates with experience working in a highly regulated, multi-faceted and multi-state organization.
- Clear success in fundraising and enhancing diverse revenue streams to advance an organization’s mission.
- Proven experience as a change agent, advancing methodologies and infrastructure to advance service delivery.
- Ability to lead complex initiatives to successful outcomes.
- The presence, demeanor, intellect, and communication skills to effectively inspire a compelling vision, assemble support and spark enthusiasm for ideas.
- Demonstrated ability to develop and nurture relationships across philanthropy, corporate partnerships, and a broad field of tacitly competitive educational service providers.
- A belief in the power of teamwork and the demonstrated ability to identify, hire, grow, and develop strong team members.
Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech has partnered with Boyden Executive Search. For more information about this opportunity or to submit a cover letter and resume, please email:
Shake Sulikyan, Senior Advisor and Executive Search Consultant - [email protected]