Chief Executive Officer

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Women’s Foundation of Colorado (WFCO) is the only statewide, community-funded foundation advancing and protecting the progress of gender, racial, and economic equity for all Colorado women. WFCO has been catalyzing community investment in women and their work since 1987, with over $26.2 million in grantmaking to date. WFCO’s substantial policy and advocacy efforts impact all 2.85 million Colorado women and girls, and their grantmaking reaches women and girls in all 64 Colorado counties.

WFCO is seeking an experienced and innovative leader with deep knowledge and a passion for gender, racial, and economic equity to serve as its next Chief Executive Officer (CEO). We are in an era of extraordinary uncertainty, and the stakes for women and girls are arguably higher than they have been in decades. This is truly a pivotal moment. The next WFCO CEO will take the reins of a dynamic, evolving organization at an important inflection point, in a time of both challenge and opportunity.

WFCO is embarking on historic new fundraising initiatives to ensure continued momentum and impact and to fuel strategic growth into the future. The CEO will play a critical role in amplifying the foundation’s voice, achieving ambitious goals for women and girls, and ensuring the long-term success of the organization. They will lead a team of approximately 14 dedicated staff and manage an annual operating budget of approximately $5.8 million.

This is an exciting time to join the WFCO team and shape the future of an important institution playing a key role in Colorado at an incredibly consequential moment in time.

Strong candidates will have significant experience serving in key leadership roles in the non-profit or philanthropic sector; exceptional communication and ambassadorial skills; extensive fundraising experience; business and strategic acumen; innovative problem-solving skills, experience leading, managing and developing diverse leaders and teams; and demonstrated commitment to the values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.

This position is hybrid with offices in Denver, CO. The CEO position will entail statewide travel throughout the year. The base compensation range for this position is $235,000 - $255,000, with a generous benefits package including medical, dental and vision insurance; paid vacation/sick time; paid holidays; leaves of absence; disability, life insurance and supplemental life insurance options; retirement plans, and more.

ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW

WFCO was established in 1987 as place to advance economic opportunity and philanthropy by and for women in Colorado. Many funds centering the needs of women and girls were emerging throughout the country at that time, catalyzed by the launch of the Ms. Foundation in the mid ‘70s. Women’s funds provided a space for donors, volunteers, and leaders to work together to promote gender equity, and were rooted in the belief that we can achieve more together than alone. Since its inception, WFCO’s work has been focused on addressing serious and significant gender disparities among those who live in poverty.

The Hunt Alternatives Fund provided the initial funding to catalyze additional investment in WFCO. From the beginning, WFCO’s leaders came together from different backgrounds in service of a shared vision: to advance the economic security of women throughout Colorado by opening doors to opportunity. Hundreds of donors fueled WFCO’s formal launch in January 1987. In the two years leading to the launch, individuals made generous gifts and pledges totaling $2 million, including support from local funders such as the Piton Foundation, Mile High United Way, and the Colorado Trust, and corporations such as the United Bank of Denver.

These donations seeded a true community foundation: an organization that combines resources from many community sources who share a focus on and deep commitment to supporting women and girls in Colorado. WFCO’s leaders created permanent funds and a dedicated endowment, utilizing some dollars to address pressing present-day challenges, and setting aside other funds for future needs that would emerge.

In alignment with the most recent strategic framework, WFCO centers gender, racial, and economic equity in its grantmaking and investments. WFCO deploys flexible and holistic resources to invest in the inherent gifts and talents of women so they have what they need to be leaders in their lives, their families, their businesses, and their communities. In 2022, WFCO invested over $2.76 million through donor-advised funds, giving circles, board-controlled WINcome funding, and community-led funds. WFCO has two opportunities in which organizations can directly apply for funding: WINcome and the Women and Girls of Color Fund.

WFCO’s data-driven and nonpartisan approach to public policy advocacy has earned the foundation recognition as a trusted voice and leading advocate for Colorado women and their families at the Capitol. When WFCO combines the work of the WINcome direct-service grantees with the work of their public policy advocacy grantees, the impact for Colorado women is magnified. Since 1987, WFCO and their public policy partners have helped pass more than 50 measures that have achieved the following:

• Increased access to high-quality childcare and universal pre-kindergarten
• Raising the minimum wage
• Elimination of barriers to pay equity for equal work to reduce Colorado’s gender pay gap
• Support in passing paid family and medical leave for all Colorado employees
• Increased access to long-acting, reversible contraception for low-income women

THE OPPORTUNITY

WFCO’s next CEO will join a dynamic team at an important inflection point for women within the state of Colorado. Working closely with the Board of Trustees and WFCO’s dedicated staff, the new CEO can expect to engage in the following core opportunities and challenges:

Engage with the Community to Drive Impact and Visibility

It will be crucial for the CEO to engage authentically and deeply with communities throughout the state, with a diverse range of external stakeholders, and with policymakers who represent these communities in state government. The new CEO will represent WFCO as a thought leader and spokesperson on issues impacting women and girls. They will be a champion and ambassador for gender, racial, and economic equity for women and girls in Colorado.

Provide Strategic Vision and Leadership

The next CEO will provide strategic direction and visionary leadership for the organization. They will have an established leadership track record, leading with compassion, cooperation, confidence, and inspiration that brings others along.

Foster a Cohesive, Engaged, and Impactful Team

The staff at WFCO is its greatest asset. The CEO will be a strong manager and cultivator of people and talent who will lead a high performing team to achieve organizational and strategic goals. The CEO will foster a culture that centers respect and belonging for all. They will bring inspiration to motivate the team by actively listening and understanding their needs, aspirations, and challenges, and work with leadership to strengthen policies and processes in alignment with WFCO’s values. They will be a deft leader of leaders, skilled in developing and coaching leaders, creating an environment in which those managers and teams can do their best work and achieve their aspirations. As the team grows and evolves, the CEO will continue to prioritize the recruitment, retention, and development of a diverse, efficient, talented, and engaged WFCO workforce.

Steward Financial Resources Effectively

The CEO will lead a historic new fundraising initiative to enable WFCO to build on its success and develop the standing capacity it needs to achieve its strategic goals. It will be important for the CEO to cultivate and sustain relationships with donors and the philanthropic community and to leverage their own networks to this end.

Partner with the Board to Advance WFCO’s Mission

WFCO’s board is a diverse and committed group of gender, racial, and economic equity champions who bring deep experience and appreciation for WFCO’s mission and value within the state of Colorado. The new CEO will partner with the board to further define, articulate, and implement the next iteration of the strategic plan. The CEO will leverage the board’s expertise to ensure they have a strong strategic, fiduciary, and generative partnership to guide WFCO forward.

QUALIFICATIONS OF THE IDEAL CANDIDATE

WFCO’s next CEO will be an experienced and innovative leader with deep knowledge and passion for gender, racial, and economic equity and for serving the women of Colorado. The CEO will also possess personal leadership skills consistent with the organization’s values. While no one candidate will embody all the qualifications enumerated below, the ideal candidate will possess many of the following professional and personal abilities, attributes, and experiences.

• An inspiring and dedicated leader – A visionary non-profit leader with at least fifteen years of senior leadership experience and a record of executive leadership in a non-profit organization, a Colorado-based or national philanthropic organization, or a convening organization focused gender, racial, or economic equity.
• An exceptional communicator – Capacity to effectively communicate and connect with a wide range of audiences. A dynamic and persuasive public speaker.
• A skilled fundraiser with experience leading successful fundraising campaigns – Demonstrated ability to bring strong donor relationships and sustain relationships over time.
• A strategic and disciplined financial leader – Demonstrated organizational financial management experience focusing on strategy and vision, operations, finance, and fund development to effectively steward resources within a growing nonprofit setting. Financial acumen and the ability to manage budgets, track, and forecast effectively.
• Deeply committed to the values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging, and overall values alignment with WFCO – Demonstrated personal commitment to building a diverse, inclusive, and equitable organization and supporting these values externally with their partners. Demonstrated alignment with the organization’s cultural values of transparency, trust, and respect.
• A savvy navigator of the Colorado political landscape – Demonstrated understanding of the political landscape within Colorado from the urban cities of Denver and Colorado Springs to rural and frontier areas within the state. Demonstrated understanding of Colorado’s legislative process and key stakeholders.
• An effective partner to the board – Experience partnering with a Board of Trustees to ensure transparency and accountability in organizational governance, fiscal oversight, compliance, and planning for current and future leadership needs.
• A commitment to statewide impact – The CEO must be able to travel throughout the state regularly to cultivate and sustain key relationships in all regions of Colorado.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

The Women’s Foundation of Colorado offers competitive wages and benefits. This position is hybrid, with offices in Denver, CO. The base compensation range for this position is $235,000 - $255,000 with a generous benefits package including medical, dental and vision insurance; paid vacation/sick time; paid holidays; leaves of absence; disability, life insurance and supplemental life insurance options; retirement plans, and more.

TO APPLY

More information about The Women’s Foundation of Colorado may be found at: www.wfco.org.

This search is being led by Ellen LaPointe, Phuong Quach, and Emily McCarthy of NPAG. We invite applications with a resume and cover letter outlining your interest and qualifications via the portal on NPAG’s website. Applications will be reviewed as they are received, and we anticipate interviews in early fall 2024.

Should you have questions, candidate nominations, or if you need assistance or accommodations in the application process, please contact Emily McCarthy at [email protected]

In alignment with our goal of advancing gender, racial, and economic equity, WFCO welcomes and encourages applications from members of historically and systemically marginalized communities. We understand that there are individuals that could excel in this role without meeting 100% of the qualifications precisely as described or who have essential skills we may not have considered. If that is you, we encourage you to apply and tell us about yourself. We are committed to considering candidates with diverse work experiences and backgrounds.

It is the policy of The Women’s Foundation of Colorado (WFCO) not to discriminate against employees, job applicants, board members, program participants, volunteers, or clients on the basis of sex, race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical ability, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected under federal, state or local law. The WFCO is an EEO/AA employer. We are dedicated to providing a work environment free from discrimination and harassment, and where employees are treated with respect and dignity.