About The Women's Center of Southeastern Michigan
As it enters its 25th Year, The Women's Center of Southeastern Michigan (The Women's Center) remains dedicated to the economic and emotional self-determination of individuals. Through The Women's Center, women have access to low-cost help from a therapist, career coach, divorce specialist, family law attorney, or financial adviser. The Women’s Center believes that when women have the tools to assert their economic and emotional strengths, families and communities also thrive.
Staff and long-term professional volunteers facilitate divorce-related financial and family law education, resource navigation, mother-and-infant group, and job and financial coaching. Therapist-interns, under the guidance of a 12-person supervisory team, offer sliding-fee counseling and connections to women-friendly services.
One of the larger programs at The Women’s Center is Room to Talk, an insurance-funded counseling service, which also provides a revenue stream for the organization to support its low-cost services. Room to Talk offers individual, family, and couples counseling for insured clients, with sessions provided by licensed social workers, psychologists, and counselors.
When The Women’ Center helps one woman, everyone connected to her also benefits.
The Women's Center’s Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Belonging
The Women's Center works to make its policies, procedures, and behavior consistent with its commitment to social justice. As an agency advocating for women’s equity, it values diversity of sex, age, race, size, income, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, ability, and marital status.
The Women’s Center acknowledges that racism and discrimination must be challenged in the community at large and within its own walls. The Center believes it is vital to have its leadership and staff reflect the broad spectrum of its service population.
Learn more about The Women's Center at https://www.womenscentersemi.org/.
The Opportunity
To plan for the transition of a long-time leader, The Women's Center is seeking an Executive Director (ED) who is excited about building on the remarkable history of the organization. The ED will serve as the primary leader and strategist, external champion and community ambassador, and organizational leader for The Women's Center and will expand on a track record of success. Reporting to the Board of Trustees, the ED will be an experienced nonprofit leader who will be able to advocate successfully and passionately on behalf of the women, older teens, men, and gender-diverse individuals who utilize The Women's Center’s services. In addition, the ED will have had success in fundraising in various revenue streams to support the delivery of effective programming and ensure long-term sustainability.
Creative and entrepreneurial, the ED will demonstrate emotional intelligence and bring a growth mindset with an eye on how The Women's Center can continue to have an even greater impact. With a commitment to diversity, equity, and belonging, the ED will embrace the importance of these initiatives throughout the organization. In addition, the ED will be an effective and flexible communicator, collaborator, and results-driven individual.
The Women's Center culture is one of participative decision-making in an atmosphere of mutual respect. Whenever possible, its Board, staff, interns, and volunteers make decisions together in their various spheres of responsibility and expertise. Inclusive power and decision-making structures are not only more supportive of personal sovereignty, but also more effective in achieving organizational goals.
The Women's Center of Southeastern Michigan is an equal opportunity employer and strongly encourages applications from people of color, persons with disabilities, women, and LGBTQ+ applicants.
Candidate Profile
The following offers an aspirational view of the ideal candidate profile; we encourage applications from candidates with a wide range of experiences and backgrounds, especially those from underrepresented groups.
Passion for Mission and Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Belonging
The ED will lead The Women's Center with a balanced approach, fostering an inclusive organizational culture while establishing robust administrative systems that align with The Women's Center's mission. During this period of transition, the ED will lead the organization with empathy, sensitivity, and transparent communication, guiding staff and constituents through change. The ED will embody a strong social justice perspective, advocating for diversity, equity, and belonging, and upholding these values in all aspects of The Women's Center’s work. Ideally, the ED will bring experience from a social services background or demonstrate a strong commitment to supporting individuals through counseling and mental health support programs. With a focus on mission-driven and participatory leadership, the ED will ensure that The Women's Center remains a welcoming and empowering space for all who seek its services.
Strategic Organizational Leadership
The ED will be a strategic and entrepreneurial leader, ready to develop, articulate, and work towards a vision for The Women's Center's next chapter. This dynamic leader will establish and drive strategic priorities that advance the organization’s mission and ensure sustainable growth - from securing funding to delivering impactful programs. With a proven ability to build and lead effective teams, the ED will inspire and nurture a dedicated staff, interns, and volunteers, fostering a collaborative work environment where each team member can grow professionally and contribute their unique skills. Through a management style rooted in trust and collaboration, the ED will guide team members to reach their potential, holding them accountable to clear goals and expectations. The ED will bring creative yet practical solutions to strengthen The Women's Center's programs and operations, consistently focusing on meaningful outcomes and cost efficiency.
Strong Ambassador and Partnership Orientation
As the public face of The Women's Center, the ED will be responsible for sharing its mission and vision with the greater Ann Arbor community to increase visibility and awareness. As an energetic fundraiser and resource developer, the ED will fully embrace every aspect of the role. The ED will bring a creative and entrepreneurial approach to revenue generation and an understanding of nonprofit finance and various revenue streams, including foundation and government grants, government contracts, corporate and individual philanthropy, and events among others. Additionally, The Women's Center generates earned revenue through Room to Talk, and the ED will focus on exploring opportunities for increased earned revenue. Reporting to the Board of Trustees, the ED understands the importance of a robust partnership with the Board and will ensure best board practices and accountability to the Board. The ED will possess an authentic and genuine ability to convene and inspire individuals, communities, and partner organizations around The Women's Center’s vision. The ED will be a strong advocate for the individuals served, the Board, staff, and volunteers.
Nonprofit and Financial Understanding
The ED is an executive with staff, operational, and financial management experience. The ED will have a proven track record in effectively leading a vibrant, high-performing, cohesive team in an inclusive organizational culture as well as in strategic financial and operational oversight. With experience in budgeting, strategy and planning, the ED will be skilled in overseeing financial, HR, compliance, insurance billing, earned revenue streams, and risk management activities. The ED will play a critical role in ensuring the organization's strong positive culture, financial stability, and effective resource allocation to support its mission.
In addition, strong candidates will have:
- The ability to attract, develop, retain, motivate, and lead the staff while maintaining a high level of performance and a leadership style that is both clear and empathetic and respects the intensity of the day-to-day work.
- A solutions-focused and results oriented approach with an ability to solve problems independently and as a team.
- An understanding and respect for populations with diverse cultural, economic, and educational backgrounds.
- The ability to ensure program outcomes are achieving mission, vision, and intent and that programs are continuously evaluated and improved upon to ensure excellence and impact.
- A high level of emotional intelligence.
- The ability to take a long-term, thoughtful approach to achieving organizational goals.
- Demonstrated inclusive leadership, coaching, and relationship management experience.
Compensation & Benefits
The salary range for this position is $110,000-$120,000 plus a comprehensive benefits package.
Contact
Koya Partners has been exclusively retained for this engagement. Express interest in this role by filling out our Talent Profile. All inquiries and discussions 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.