Vice President, Nonprofit Partnership Development

First Book has a mandatory Covid-19 vaccination policy (medical and religious exemptions permitted). Proof of fully vaccinated status is required before an interview.

About First Book: First Book (https://firstbook.org/) A global leader in social enterprise, First Book harnesses the strategies of the private sector to advance social change. First Book has built a family of social enterprises to serve its network of over 600K educators including the First Book Marketplace, The First Book Accelerator, First Book Insights, and a range of other efforts. In fact, since 1992, First Book has distributed more than 250 million books and educational materials to children from low-income families. Because of its record of innovation and impact, First Book has been celebrated globally by such institutions as the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship, the World Economic Forum, and in case studies at Columbia Business School, Wharton Business School, the Yale School of Management, and the London School of Economics. Finally, Charity Navigator recently awarded First Book with its highest rating, including a perfect 100% score for Accountability & Transparency.

About the Position: (This is not a 100% remote position/ MANDATORY IN OFFICE: Tuesday & Wednesday)

The VP Nonprofit Partnership Development is responsible for identifying, creating, managing and leveraging partnerships with national nonprofit organizations to increase awareness for First Book, drive growth of the First Book Network, generate and manage funded initiatives, and stimulate usage for First Book services via these partnerships.

The VP will work closely with the Member Engagement team as a change agent, who has the ability to identify insights that would be valuable to the organization, educate internal teams on the value and application of these insights, communicate the relevant data cross-functionally, and contribute to the team’s role as a foundation of First Book’s organizational strategy and decision making. The VP will leverage these insights and relationships with external organizations to secure opportunities for First Book’s leadership to participate in thought leadership convenings and conversations.

Additionally, the Vice President will lead and oversee process and organization improvements, in collaboration with other members of the Senior Leadership team and the five-members of the nonprofit partnership development team.

• Strategic planning for the team
• Internal cross-team collaboration
• Onboarding for partnership development managers

Duties and Responsibilities:

To perform this job successfully, the individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The responsibilities listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill and/or abilities required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• New Partnership Development – Identify and evaluate new partner opportunities. Establish introductory meetings, identify opportunities for a mutually beneficial partnership, creatively evaluate partnership scope, draft proposal and concept briefs, and develop partnership agreements as necessary
• Relationship Management – Personally manage existing, high-profile national partnerships. Identify opportunities for growth within existing partnerships. Determine how to best leverage existing resources to further these partnerships and get more books into the hands of more children nationwide. Provide partners with exceptional customer service
• Engagement Stimulation and Membership Growth – Work with partners to encourage network growth by leveraging First Book’s resources and engage with First Book as a valued partner. Drive partner activity and engagement through the First Book Marketplace.
• Business Development – Identify opportunities for new partnership models and new sector outreach to drive business goals of the Member Engagement Team, to include Research and Insights, and new Accelerator resource development.
• Team Management –Work with the Executive team to define annual strategic plan for Nonprofit Partnership Development. Support team members to meet deliverables and execution of that plan. Monitor and measure team results by partner. Recommend and implement resulting actions/develop appropriate resulting strategies. Provide strategic guidance, oversight, goal -setting and performance measurement, as appropriate.
• Project Management – Identify and lead execution of cross-departmental projects related to key partnerships. Lead cross-functional planning meetings, create project plans, execute flawlessly, and measure and report on results. Navigate and coordinate internally among cross-functional teams. Meet deadlines.
• Be a Change Agent –Equip internal stakeholders with the information they need to value, understand and apply network insights in work across the organization. Identify strategies the rest of the Engagement team can implement to build more effective partnerships and relationships, including with new partners. Demonstrate value so that nonprofit partnership considerations become incorporated into and inform organizational business decisions. Identify additional areas of growth and expansion for nonprofit partnerships and content areas, in collaboration with senior leadership.

Qualifications:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills and/or abilities required:

• Creative, inquisitive, and entrepreneurial spirit as well as a passion for First Book’s mission that is visible and contagious
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to spark, cultivate, and grow relationships.
• Ability to communicate effectively, professionally, and persuasively with internal staff and external partners.
• Executive level business writing and presentation skills with a sharp eye for detail.
• Strong project management skills
• Adept at working effectively independently and in a collaborative team environment.
• Capacity to work at the strategic level (using data and creativity to come up with innovative ideas for growth) and at the tactical level (executing projects, analyzing impact, solving problems) to recommend strategies/tactics that result in a positive ROI
• Demonstrated ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously. Exceptional organizational skills and time management required. Must have the ability to meet designated deadlines.
• Fast learner with a strong team-focused, collaborative mentality.
• Takes a solution-oriented approach to opportunities and challenges
• Ability to understand, synthesize and trend data; ability to translate this data into actionable opportunities for growth
• Must have an entrepreneurial mindset and a creative approach to problem solving, a “roll up your sleeves and get it done”/can-do attitude, the ability to leverage limited resources to deliver momentum and results, and the ability to multi-task and thrive in a fast-paced environment.
• Positive outlook and sense of humor – a must have
• Interest in working in a fun and creative professional environment a must.
• Travel is required as necessary, up to 20% during peak periods, unless precluded by global or regional safety and public health considerations.

Education/Experience:

• Bachelor degree required; Graduate degree preferred
• A minimum of 10 years’ work experience in a senior position required.
• Business development and account management experience a must, including a successful track record of meeting and exceeding goals
• Team management experience required
• Experience writing successful proposals required
• Experience working with cross-functional teams preferred
• Experience in the nonprofit sector required
• Marketing experience a plus
• Experience with customer relationship management systems such as Salesforce
• Proficiency with MS Office products including Word, Excel, Power Point and Outlook