Executive Director

Job Description

Position Title: Executive Director
Status: Full-time/Exempt; 32-hours per week.
Salary: $95,000-$105,000/year
Benefits: fully paid medical and dental insurance, 10 paid holidays, and generous paid time off (PTO) and a 3% employer-matched retirement program,
Reports To: Board of Directors

Who We Are:

We are a nonprofit urban and organic farm in outer southeast Portland demonstrating how locally grown food makes people, communities and natural systems healthier and more resilient.

With programs that support farming, volunteerism, education, community empowerment and prescription produce, we make good food, abundant nature and community space accessible for all.

Currently staffed by 9 FTE and with an annual budget of approximately $1.4 million, Zenger Farm sits in the Powellhurst-Gilbert neighborhood on the territory of the Clackamas band of Chinook, the Multnomahs, the Tualatin Kalapuya, the Wasco-Wishram, the Willamette Tumwater, and many other tribes.

We value our partnerships with members of the local indigenous community, the City of Portland, Multnomah County and numerous other local farms and community health partners working together to repair the harms of industrialized farming and food systems that extract, exclude and pollute.

Position Summary:

The Executive Director of Zenger Farm reports to the Board of Directors and is responsible for ensuring communication, collaboration, relationship-building, accountability, and innovation between staff, board and community members. The Executive Director oversees the successful maintenance of organizational systems and resources, leads the organization’s fundraising activities, budget development, grant reporting and facility oversight.

The Executive Director is a true entrepreneur looking at the opportunity to build a successful, sustainable nonprofit in the food and farming space. At a time of increasing need, Zenger Farm’s ED will be on the forefront of supporting dedicated staff, accessing funds and delivering high quality food and education to our local community. It doesn’t get more important than this!

Key Responsibilities:

Organizational and Operational Leadership (40%):

• Leads the development and maintenance of a healthy organizational culture, in which relationships are tended and staff are supported.

• Supervises development, operations, program and farm staff to ensure that they are supported and accountable to the organization’s mission, vision, and strategic plan.

• Leads internal development and tending of management structure, systems, processes, and mechanisms of accountability.

• Manages overall operations and develops systems for holding the organization accountable to its mission and funders.

• Ensures the organization operates within best practice guidelines and within all federal, state and local laws.

• Creates and implements annual budget with the support of the operations and program staff.

• Supports the creation of grant and donation dollar tracking systems and reviews all grant reports.

• Ensures organizational sustainability and good relations with the Zenger Farm Workers Union through upholding the Collective Bargaining Agreement and supporting CBA negotiations.

Fundraising (25%):

• Creates, supervises, and executes strategies to sustain and expand community investment, including individual giving (annual giving and major gifts), corporate donations, and foundation grants.

• Plays an active role in the Development Team’s goal-setting, work-planning, activities, and assessment.

• Engages in major donor cultivation, stewardship, and solicitation as well as grant writing as needed.

• Supports the creation of grant and donation dollar tracking systems and reviews all grant reports.

Strategic Planning and Board Support (20%):

• Provides leadership in the organization’s collaborative processes for strategic planning, partnership opportunities and community responsiveness.

• Guides programs and their resources to ensure Zenger Farm is sustainable, relevant and aligned with its mission, vision and values.

• Supports the Board of Directors in its fiduciary oversight of the organization, strategic guidance, engagement with staff and partners, director development, and their comprehension of organization programs, budgets and staffing.

Community Outreach (15%):

• Cultivate and sustain relationships with diverse community organizations, friends of the farm, educational institutions, and healthcare providers to ensure alignment between the farm’s impact on food equity and access needs around east Portland.

• Serve as the farm’s primary public ambassador effectively communicating its vision, values, and programs to local media, funders, and civic groups.

• Participate in outreach efforts to ensure programs genuinely reflect the needs and priorities of the diverse neighborhoods Zenger Farm serves.

• Represent the organization in local and regional food justice initiatives.

Desired Qualifications:

• Experience with nonprofit operations, including financial management and budget development, human resources and labor relations, and nonprofit Boards.

• Experience with nonprofit fundraising and resource development, including annual giving, major gifts, corporate giving, and foundation grants.

• Demonstrated leadership skills, and the ability to prioritize multiple and competing commitments and requests successfully.

• Excellent communication and people management skills, including aptitude for conflict resolution and knowledge of policies and practices for creating a healthy workplace culture.

• Experience in developing and implementing strategic plans and measuring their impact.

• Strong background in cultivating partnerships with movement partners, community members, funders, and donors.

How to Apply

Job Categories: Farm Manager and Management. Job Types: Full Time. Job Tags: Oregon Farm Jobs.

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