President & CEO

About Vermont Public 

Vermont Public is one of the most vibrant, trusted, and expansive public media organizations in New England, providing award-winning news, music and original programming across 29 radio frequencies, 8 television channels, and a full array of digital platforms, including the web, podcasts, social media and e-newsletters. With an annual budget of nearly $20M, Vermont Public produces original reporting, stories, shows, podcasts and documentaries that inform, engage and inspire residents throughout Vermont and beyond. Audio programming includes a dedicated 24-7 news-talk station featuring local, national, and international journalism from Vermont Public, NPR, and the BBC, as well as Vermont Public Classical, Vermont’s only classical music radio network.

Located just north of Burlington in Colchester, Vermont, Vermont Public was created in 2021 when Vermont Public Radio and Vermont PBS merged into a unified public media organization serving the entire state of Vermont as well as parts of Eastern New York, Western New Hampshire, and Southern Quebec.

Inspire, Engage & Educate 

Vermont Public’s mission is to broaden and diversify its audience through relevant, trusted information and stories that bring people and communities together. In service of this mission, the organization produces an array of original audio and video content across platforms, including shows, segments, and podcasts. Examples include Vermont Edition, Vermont Public’s weekday talk show; The Frequency, Vermont Public’s daily news podcast; and Vermont This Week, a weekly TV and radio roundtable featuring local journalists unpacking the most important news stories of the week. Vermont Public centers the perspectives, voices, and talents of the community in much of its work, including projects such as Brave Little State, which invites Vermonters to collaborate with Vermont Public reporters and producers to uncover the answers to audience questions. Homegoings is a show and standalone podcast that invites listeners to be a fly on the wall, privy to candid and genuine conversations about race. All Things Gardening cultivates a weekly conversation for backyard gardeners. And But Why? is a podcast that leverages the curiosity of kids to unlock a world of discovery.  

Vermont Public’s Made Here showcases films made by and about Vermonters, and the Made Here Fund provides grants to local producers to broaden and diversify storytelling in the state. This past year, grants were awarded to ten local producers whose projects range from short documentaries and animated films to digital video series and podcasts. In addition to its expansive and creative programming, Vermont Public also engages its communities through live events and educational programs and resources for educators and families. As a PBS member station, Vermont Public is proud to provide PBS KIDS’ trusted, non-commercial, educational shows and activities. PBS KIDS programming is available weekdays on Vermont Public’s main TV channel, 24/7 on its dedicated Kids Channel, and via streaming through the smart TV and mobile app.

Vermont Public continues to work with partners like the Vermont Agency of Education, Vermont Department of Libraries, and ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain to reach families and educators looking for safe, playful learning media connections. Its teacher-directed Education Ambassadors program connects Vermont educators with free, standards-based, multimedia resources available from Vermont Public and PBS, reaching 11,800 educators in 2023. More recently, But Why launched But Why: Adventures, a video series for grades 3-5 that explores the science behind what’s happening in the northeastern U.S. landscape each month, offering educators and students an opportunity to find science in their own backyards.

An independent, locally owned and operated community licensee, Vermont Public has 120 employees and is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors. More than 60% of Vermont Public’s funding comes from individual donors and local business supporters. Today, Vermont Public reaches approximately 200,000 weekly radio listeners, nearly 240,000 monthly television viewers, and more than 260,000 monthly website visitors.

To learn more about Vermont Public, please visit its website at https://www.vermontpublic.org/ and read its 2023 Impact Report at https://www.impact.vermontpublic.org/.      

The President & CEO Opportunity

As Vermont Public moves into its next phase of growth, integration, and evolution, the organization seeks an emotionally intelligent, innovative, strategic, and mission-driven President & CEO to lead a new era of journalistic innovation, impact, and sustainability in Vermont. The next President & CEO will relish the opportunity to lead a large, multi-platform news organization with a deep history in the state and bold ambition to serve more Vermonters than ever before.

Reporting to the Vermont Public Board of Directors, the President & CEO will provide vision and leadership for Vermont Public in service of its mission, and is responsible for the overall strategic, financial, and operational success of the organization. Importantly, the new CEO will be expected to inspire others and to unlock the full potential of the merger of Vermont PBS and Vermont Public Radio by developing and articulating a cohesive vision and a clear plan to integrate the operations of each organization more fully, achieving programming excellence and financial sustainability in the digital age. Direct reports to the CEO include the Chief Financial Officer, Senior Vice President of Audience & Community, Senior Vice President of Content, Senior Vice President of Development, Senior Vice President of Engineering & Technology, and the Senior Vice President of People & Culture.

Key responsibilities of the CEO include:

• Provide ultimate leadership for all operational and administrative aspects of Vermont Public, including managing a team of nearly 120 full and part-time staff and a $20M budget.
• Ensure strategic focus for the organization, identifying and implementing initiatives that deliver against Vermont Public’s goals and mission amid a rapidly and ever-evolving media and technological environment.
• Develop and implement plans and budgets to achieve Vermont Public’s revenue goals, including meeting annual financial targets, and ensuring long-term financial health.
• Establish a shared culture across teams, ensuring all Vermont Public employees are collaborating with a unified sense of purpose, transparency, and excellence.
• Recruit, develop and retain a highly talented and diverse team at all levels of Vermont Public while being a driving force in fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace.
• In collaboration with staff, senior leadership, and the Board of Directors, identify pathways for serving, growing, and diversifying audiences across platforms.
• Foster community collaborations and strategic partnerships that enhance Vermont Public’s reach, revenues, capacity, and impact, serving as an effective leader, ambassador, and collaborator.
• Bring a forward looking, entrepreneurial approach to the complex and evolving media environment, identifying future trends and key opportunities that will ensure Vermont Public’s ongoing service, success, and relevance.
• Ensure that resources are ethically, efficiently, and responsibly deployed to serve Vermont Public’s mission in the near and long term.
• Serve as the organization's chief fundraiser by cultivating and stewarding donors, attending fundraising functions, and soliciting major gifts for the organization's current and future needs.
• Be an effective spokesperson for Vermont Public and its mission across diverse constituencies, including community members, civic and business leaders, foundations, professional associations, and local and national media.

Candidate Profile

While no one candidate will have every experience outlined in the position description, ideal candidates will display the following professional and personal qualities, skills, and characteristics:

A Proven Strategic & Innovative Leader

• An accomplished strategic thinker and innovator who can articulate a clear, compelling, and unifying vision for Vermont Public that engages, inspires, and educates.
• An individual who brings strategic focus to the ever-changing, dynamic world of media, ensuring all members of the Vermont Public team are clear about key goals and objectives and that the necessary resources are aligned in service of the mission and intended impact.

• A leader who excels at developing, articulating, and executing on a clear strategy, with the ability and willingness to pivot based on the rapidly evolving media and technology landscape to best meet the needs of the audience.

• A visionary who embraces the creative process and allows others to try new approaches while also establishing clear benchmarks for success and the ability to course correct as circumstances dictate.
• A growth-oriented leader who proactively seeks out opportunities to increase Vermont Public’s impact and reputation locally, regionally, and beyond.

A Highly Inclusive, Emotionally Intelligent Leader & Culture Builder

• A natural teambuilder and uniter, someone who is adept at building and strengthening relationships across a diverse array of teams, functional areas, and legacy brands.
• A transparent communicator who actively informs staff and engages internal and external constituents in the mission, vision, and future of the organization.
• A leader who recruits, hires, and retains outstanding talent and is dedicated to creating pathways that encourage continuous learning and professional development among staff.
• A humble learner with strong self-awareness, deep cultural competence, and a commitment to advancing the work of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in its multiple, intersecting dimensions.
• A collaborative, trusting and accessible leader who listens actively, solicits ideas and feedback from others, and fosters a culture of innovation and experimentation.
• A leader who inspires the team to achieve excellence, celebrates accomplishments, and ensures an equitable and inclusive workplace for all.

Demonstrated Operational Acumen & Systems Thinking

• A dynamic, mission-focused executive with strong business acuity and a track record of successfully managing and integrating complex organizations.

• A skilled administrator and problem solver who can effectively balance “big picture” strategic guidance with the ability to execute and operationalize plans.

• An astute financial thinker with demonstrated experience in resource development, fundraising, budget, and P&L management, including expertise in building sustainable revenue models.
• An adept systems thinker who ensures the necessary operational and administrative structures and roles are in place so that the organization functions effectively.
• An inclusive leader and effective delegator who leverages the professional expertise of the team and establishes clear timelines and areas of responsibilities to ensure alignment, accountability, and outstanding execution.

A Genuine Commitment to Vermont & to the Mission of Public Media

• Fully embrace the work and mission of producing outstanding programming and journalism that inspires, engages, and educates Vermonters and their neighbors.
• Be a standard bearer for high-quality, trusted, and independent content – and the essential role it plays in strengthening civic life in Vermont and beyond.
• Encourages multi-platform content creation that authentically reflects a multiplicity of perspectives and actively seeks opportunities to capture the shared spirit and “sense of place” that makes Vermont unique.
• Exhibit enthusiasm for the state by engaging and partnering with Vermont’s distinct communities to extend the impact, reach and relevance of Vermont Public’s content.

• Have a passion for journalism and a deep understanding of the nature and ethics of the work, as well as the essential role quality journalism plays in healthy communities and a flourishing democracy.
• Bring a genuine and infectious excitement to the role, with a passion for the people, culture and natural resources of Vermont, and the role Vermont Public can play in serving the community more fully and inclusively than ever before.

An Authentic Relationship Builder & Trusted Community Ambassador

• An authentic presence and strong listener with low ego and high emotional intelligence, demonstrating the ability to form meaningful, trust-based relationships with staff, Board members, donors, community members, foundations, content partners and others.
• A compelling communicator who effectively conveys Vermont Public’s work, mission, and vision as a spokesperson and public representative across a broad range of constituencies. 

• An enterprising professional who can help drive, diversify, and optimize revenues and investment across the organization, including through membership, events, philanthropy, and corporate sponsorship.
• An experienced leader who genuinely enjoys fundraising and has the demonstrated skillset to cultivate new and existing donors and to inspire transformational gifts from individuals and foundations.

• A person with tremendous integrity and the highest ethical values.

About Vermont

Vermont is one of the most inspiring states in the US, with a rich history and unique culture marked by stunning natural beauty, strong community ties, and an independent spirit. 

Its largest city, Burlington, sits along the shores of Lake Champlain, with the Adirondack Mountains to the west and Vermont’s own Green Mountains to the east. The city is home to outstanding restaurants and craft breweries, successful start-ups, easy access to mountain sports and recreation, and an array of arts, cultural and educational institutions, including the University of Vermont. 

The state capital, Montpelier, is the smallest capital in the US, located just forty minutes southeast of Burlington. Poised along the Winooski River, Montpelier boasts great eateries, excellent schools and a strong arts and live music scene.

Across the state, picturesque small towns and rural villages dot the landscape, offering unique character and community amidst a patchwork of lakes and farmlands.

Well-known companies like Ben & Jerry's, Burton Snowboards, Seventh Generation, and Beta Technologies demonstrate the social and environmental commitment of companies born in Vermont; and the nearly 50 certified B Corps businesses and over 6,000 registered nonprofits highlight the mission driven sector and values centered priorities in the state.  

Home to a burgeoning and flourishing independent media scene, Vermonters take pride in their active engagement in civic life – as well as the great outdoors. From hiking to paddleboarding, and skiing to snowboarding, Vermont is home to countless miles of adventure all year round. And every autumn, visitors from around the world flock to the Green Mountain state to catch a glimpse of its legendary, vibrant fall foliage.

Compensation & Benefits

The salary range for this role is $220,000 - $260,000 with a generous benefits package that includes health, dental and vision insurance, family/parental leave, 11 holidays, 28 PTO days (increasing after 5 years), 401k match, FSA, EAP, and a free corporate gym membership. Out of state candidates will also be eligible for relocation assistance.

The President & CEO will be based in the Vermont Public offices in Colchester, Vermont, with some flexibility for occasional work from home.

Vermont Public is a proud equal-opportunity employer. We work diligently to recruit a broad pool of candidates and to hire and promote qualified individuals whose personal experiences, characteristics, and talents reasonably reflect the diversity of the communities served by Vermont Public. Our equal employment opportunities apply to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training. We encourage applications from women, minority groups, veterans, and people with disabilities.

Contact

Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group has been exclusively retained for this engagement, which is being led by Steve Edwards, Cassie Scarano, and Ariella Pasackow. Submit a compelling cover letter and resume by filling out our Talent Profile. All inquiries are strictly confidential.

Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals living with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual living with a disability and need assistance expressing interest online, please email [email protected]. If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.

About Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group

Koya Partners, a Diversified Search Group company, is the nation’s premier search firm dedicated to mission-driven leadership. Since its founding in 2004, Koya has had an exclusive focus on mission-driven clients and was founded on the belief that the right leader can transform an organization and have a deep and measurable impact on our world. Koya works with nonprofits & NGOs, responsible businesses, and social enterprises in local communities and around the world.

Diversified Search Group is consistently recognized by Forbes on its top 10 list of “America’s Best Executive Recruiting Firms” and is an industry leader in recruiting transformational leaders for a changing world. The firm is deliberately different in its approach, with best-in-class teams who have decades of experience in cultivating inclusive leaders, understanding the dimensions of diversity, and building equitable teams.

Learn more about Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group via the firm's website.