Executive Director

Chinook Fund is seeking a full-time (32 hours/week) Executive Director to build on the organization’s history fueling grassroots social justice work in Colorado, partner with communities at a uniquely challenging time, and drive future growth and impact. In collaboration with the Board of Directors, the Executive Director will provide leadership and direction to advance Chinook Fund’s mission, vision, and goals and operate a smooth, effective, legally and fiscally sound 501(c)(3) organization.

The ideal candidate will be a compassionate, values-aligned leader who understands philanthropic and grassroots organizing, preferentially with a deep understanding of Colorado’s landscape, and can balance thought leadership with collaboration and collective responsibility. They will have a deep commitment to social justice, strong people management skills, and the ability to cultivate and maintain authentic relationships. They should be self-aware and dedicated to fostering a healthy and equitable work environment.

Organizational Overview

Chinook Fund seeds community-led, systematic change by mobilizing resources for and trusting in grassroots social justice organizations across Colorado. Based in Denver, CO Chinook Fund was founded in 1988 to provide grants to community-led groups that are often overlooked by mainstream funders. We are committed to racial justice and prioritize funding organizations led by people of color and have awarded over $4.5 million to more than 550 grassroots groups since our inception.

Chinook Fund is both a fundraising and grantmaking organization that utilizes an innovative model called the Giving Project to fund social change and foster leadership. The Giving Project brings together diverse community members of all incomes who are passionate about social change and committed to building skills in fundraising, grantmaking, and community mobilization. Participants have transformational conversations about race and class, collective giving impacts, and the tensions and joys of grantmaking. Two Giving Project cycles are hosted annually.

Rooted in the belief that everyone can give, Chinook Fund utilizes a donor organizing approach to drive fundraising efforts. This approach incorporates values-based conversations and political education to empower donors to see their contributions as a vehicle for systematic change. Donor organizing is a key strategy of the Giving Project and by developing the fundraising leadership of its members, Chinook Fund engages new social justice donors. Since 2016, we have completed 14 Giving Projects and 2 alumni grantmaking committees, supporting 252 members who have collectively raised over $1.5 million from more than 4,000 donors.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Human Resources, Management, and Operations (30%)

• Manage employee lifecycle: Oversee new employee paperwork, benefits enrollment and management, payroll processing, recruitment, hiring, onboarding, performance management, and annual evaluations.
• Ensure compliance and values alignment: Maintain personnel policies that comply with all local, state, and federal laws and policy requirements and reflect Chinook Fund's values, with support from the Finance and Operations Manager.
• Supervise and support staff: Utilize effective and equitable management practices to set clear expectations, support staff in achieving goals, provide regular feedback, and address personnel challenges compassionately and firmly.
• Foster a positive work environment: Cultivate a collaborative and inclusive team culture that prioritizes wellness, belonging, purpose, and ownership for each staff member.
• Champion professional development: Serve as a coach and advocate for staff, supporting their professional growth through feedback and development opportunities.

Development & Donor Organizing (20%)

• Lead development planning: Spearhead annual development planning with support from the Development and Communications Manager, integrating donor organizing strategies into goals and work plans.
• Execute fundraising strategies: Implement institutional and individual development and donor organizing strategies, including grant writing, site visits, and reporting.
• Oversee major donor program: Lead visioning and oversight of the Constellations of Change major and recurring donor program.
• Cultivate, steward, and engage donors through personalized outreach, one-on-one visits, and multi-year solicitations.
• Oversee the Resource Mobilizer Committee and assist the Board in giving and fundraising events and activities.
• Foster a culture of grassroots fundraising and donor organizing throughout the organization.

Programs and Grantmaking (15%)

• Oversee Giving Projects: Utilize Giving Projects as a political education initiative focused on driving action through democratic grantmaking, donor organizing, and community building.
• Support program implementation: Provide support for recruitment, outreach, program development, grant application review, and facilitation.
• Manage community-led grantmaking: Oversee the strategy and processes for community-led grantmaking and rapid response funds, including evaluation, funding criteria alignment (constituent-led, community-wide, lasting effect), and funding priorities (community organizing, rural communities, and Black & Indigenous-led initiatives).
• Organizational Leadership & Strategic Partnerships (15%)
• Represent Chinook Fund: Oversee membership and participation in the National Giving Project Network, philanthropic and donor networks, national conferences, and other relevant social justice and philanthropic spaces.
• Maintain knowledge of trends, best practices, and issues related to donor organizing, resource mobilization, social justice, participatory grantmaking, and philanthropy. Share insights as a leader and practitioner in the philanthropic sector.
• Lead organizational initiatives: Oversee annual goal setting and staff-wide team building efforts.
• Facilitate communication and collaboration: Develop agendas and facilitate bi-weekly staff meetings, rotating facilitation for team check-ins. Lead Managing Director Team meetings and collaborate with the Program Director as a thought partner.

Financial Management and Oversight (10%)

• Oversee budgeting and financial operations: Oversee the annual budget process, annual audit, 990 preparation, 1099s, and multi-year budget and cash flow projections.
• Deepen values-aligned investment approach: Maintain ethical and values-aligned approach to endowment fund management and explore and advance impact investing as a tool to advance social justice.
• Ensure financial integrity: Oversee and approve bank transfer requests, payments, and income processing.
• Maintain financial health: Ensure timely and accurate financial statements and cash flow reports, reviewing them monthly and identifying potential opportunities and risks
• Manage and co-chair Finance & Investment Committee with support from the Board Treasurer.
• Act as the liaison with investment advisors; ensure compliance with Endowment Stewardship & Investment Policy and review quarterly reports.

Board Development (5%)

• Facilitate Board Governance: Collaborate with Board co-chairs to develop meeting agendas, facilitate meetings, oversee annual work plan, and advance board development.
• Partner with the Board to develop and implement strategic planning (ideally every 3-5 years).
• Support Board Committees: Partner with the Executive Committee and committee chairs in fulfilling their responsibilities.
• Support the recruitment and onboarding of new Board members.

Communications (5%)

• Serve as the primary spokesperson for Chinook Fund, with support from key staff.
• Communicate and showcase Chinook's unique value as a grassroots grantmaker, place-based social justice fund, and donor organizer to local, regional, state, and national audiences.
• Oversee the development and implementation of a comprehensive communications and special event strategy; support identify development initiatives (visuals and messaging).
• Collaborate with the Development and Communications Manager to refine the organization's verbal identity (voice, tone, and key messages) and ensure brand and message consistency across all platforms.

LEADERSHIP APPROACH

Empathetic and Attentive Leadership: Ability to make everyone in the Chinook Fund community feel welcome and valued, with clarity and understanding of their role/purpose and unique contributions. Demonstrate empathy and patience, especially when navigating challenging situations and power dynamics. Actively listen and provide thoughtful input.

Effective and Equitable People Management: Experience leading diverse teams. Focus on staff development through constructive feedback and inclusive management practices. Can handle conflict constructively and fosters a positive organizational culture. Experience with board and volunteer group management.

Relationship Building: Ability to connect genuinely with people from various backgrounds, building authentic relationships with staff, board members, donors, grantees, and volunteers. Welcomes diverse perspectives and can handle discomfort when encountering unfamiliar viewpoints.

Commitment to Social and Racial Justice: Understands the intersectional nature of identities (race, class, etc.) and their impact on the work, particularly within the communities served. Demonstrates leadership and advocacy for justice and can articulate their personal connection to the mission through their unique lived experience.

Self-Awareness and Emotional Intelligence: Ability to reflect on the impact of one's own and others' identities in various situations. Recognizes areas for personal growth and development, and is receptive to feedback, particularly regarding identity and equity.

Commitment to Chinook Fund's Core Values: Upholds the organization's values of Liberation, Community, Integrity, and Leadership in all aspects of the role. Models a healthy work culture by adhering to a 32-hour work week, avoiding after-hours communication, and utilizing paid leave.

Compensation and Benefits

Chinook Fund offers a competitive compensation and benefits package, flexible work environment, and 32-hour work week. The hiring range for this position is $127,000 to $143,000.

The position is based in Denver, Colorado. Chinook Fund works on a hybrid schedule that is typically one day in-office (Wednesday) and three days remote (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday). There is occasional work on evenings and weekends. Limited travel within Colorado and nationally is also anticipated.

Chinook Fund offers a robust benefits package including:

• 100% employer paid health, dental, vision, short- and long-term disability insurance
• Medical/Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account
• Annual paid vacation (3 weeks)
• Unlimited sick leave and paid parental leave
• SEP IRA tax-deferred individual retirement account with a 5% employer contribution
• Professional development opportunities and leadership coaching
• Home office reimbursement
• Wellness funds
• 2-month paid sabbatical leave after 5 years

To Apply

The search is being led by Marisol Solarte-Erlacher and Sonya Ulibarri with Cultura Leadership Consulting. Candidates should submit a cover letter, outlining their interest and qualifications, along with their resume to info@culturaleadership.com. Applications will be reviewed as they are received until the position is filled. We encourage submissions by the priority date of March 30, 2025.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Chinook Fund is dedicated to equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, age, color, ancestry, creed, sexual orientation (actual or perceived, and includes transgender status), religion, marital status, citizenship, national origin, veteran status, gender, gender expression, disability, pregnancy, childbirth, and related conditions in hiring or advancement in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment.

To further the principle of equal employment opportunity for all, Chinook Fund believes in maintaining diverse staff, board, and program participants. Chinook Fund’s recruiting, hiring, and advancement decisions will reflect its belief that representation of groups that make up a significant component of our constituency is important to the effective promotion of Chinook Fund’s mission and a means to address historical discrimination.