Company description

Denver Urban Gardens was established in 1985, in order to support Denver residents in creating sustainable, food-producing neighborhood community gardens. Within the past decade, we have created multiple ongoing youth and community education programs designed to facilitate community involvement and ensure long-term garden sustainability. In the past 30+ years, our network of community gardens has grown to over 181, our youth education and community training programs have expanded to benefit thousands of underserved Coloradans annually, and we have seen through our research with the Colorado School of Public Health that our efforts have lead to tangible, positive change in community health and food security.

Job description

Denver Urban Gardens, a nationally recognized leader in creating sustainable community gardens, is currently seeking an Executive Director to lead and implement the organization’s strategic vision. Based in Denver, Denver Urban Gardens (www.dug.org) was founded in 1985 to support local neighborhoods in establishing food-producing community gardens and has expanded into nutrition education and training programs, school partnerships and work in food access. The Executive Director role is an extraordinary opportunity for a leader who is passionate about food access and building community through food systems. Reporting to the Board of Directors, the Executive Director will have both internal and external facing responsibilities, including organizational leadership and culture development, staff administration, finance, board and organizational management, program development, fundraising, stakeholder development and marketing communications.     

Key Responsibilities of the Position:

• Develop and maintain relationships with outside partners, funders, donors and other stakeholders
• Cultivate associated municipal, agency and non-profit partnerships and collaborations
• Oversee the design and growth of all of the organization’s programs to ensure their quality, financial health, connection to one another and to the overarching mission
• Lead the organization’s strategic planning, program direction, resource needs, evaluation and impact assessment
• Continue to improve DUG’s organizational presence and local food system leadership in the Denver Metro Area and across the U.S.
• Oversee and, when needed, lead fundraising initiatives; meet with key foundation, corporate, partner and individual donors; develop proposal strategies and edit proposals; assist with the development of grant request budgets; and cultivate relationships with major donors
• Review and complete grant contracting requirements; oversee grant progress and reporting
• Oversee fiscal management and tracking for the organization and each of its programs; create and manage annual budget process
• Guide the implementation and growth of DUG’s membership program
• Promote a culture of support, high-performance and continuous improvement that values learning and a commitment to quality, mission and collaboration
• Lead and maintain a healthy, inclusive, diverse and positive internal work culture

Successful Candidates will have:

• Bachelor’s Degree and a minimum of 10 years of professional management experience in the areas of operations, finance, fundraising, board and leadership support, development and communications, preferably with non-profit organizations
• Proven track record of success facilitating progressive organizational change and development within a grassroots organization
• Knowledge and/or experience with public health programming, sustainability, and social/food justice issues
• Significant experience supporting, mentoring and coaching a team with diverse skill levels and areas of expertise
• Strong competence with budgeting and forecasting
• Comfort level with public speaking
• Exceptional interpersonal and active listening skills and the ability to effectively interface with senior management, board of directors, staff, funders, donors and community members
• Excellent judgment and creative problem-solving skills including negotiation and conflict resolution skills
• Ability to operate as an effective tactical AND strategic thinker and leader
• Experience with urban food systems and policy, gardening, landscaping and/or nature-based programming preferred
• Bilingual skills, preferably conversational in Spanish
• Non-traditional candidates encouraged to apply

We offer excellent compensation, full benefits, and an inclusive company culture inspired by a dedicated team of professionals working toward a common goal. If you are looking for an opportunity to join an organization focused on making a positive impact, both locally and nationally, please send your resume for consideration today. Pre-employment background check and drug-screen a condition of employment.

Compensation

this position is: salaried, more than 100k

Application instructions

Deadline

October 01, 2019