Executive Director in San Diego, California at The Moran Company

The Moran Company is pleased to partner with Friends of the Children-San Diego to recruit the organization's first Executive Director.

This is an exceptional opportunity for an entrepreneurial nonprofit leader to build a new chapter of a nationally proven professional youth mentorship model in San Diego. Friends of the Children–San Diego’s first Executive Director will build the team, expand philanthropic investment, and become the leading ambassador in San Diego for the nation's most proven long-term, professional youth mentoring model.

Organizational Background

Friends of the Children is a nationally recognized nonprofit organization with a powerful mission to impact generational change by empowering youth who face the greatest obstacles through relationships with paid professional mentors—12+ years, no matter what. For more than three decades, the Friends of the Children model has produced measurable outcomes for children and families across the country. Friends of the Children’s impact is evident - a longitudinal study by the Harvard Business School Association of Oregon confirmed that for every $1 invested in Friends of the Children, the community benefits over $7 in saved social costs. Now, Friends of the Children is bringing its proven model to San Diego.

Friends of the Children–San Diego is launching with extraordinary momentum. Rather than building from scratch, the organization's first Executive Director will inherit a remarkable opportunity to accelerate an already well-established vision. Over the past 18 months, Friends of the Children National and local community leaders have worked together to establish a strong foundation for the organization's long-term success. Multi-year seed capital has already been secured, relationships have been cultivated with philanthropic, civic, and nonprofit leaders throughout the region, and the model has been enthusiastically welcomed into collaborative efforts, such as the United 4 Youth Collaborative.

Friends of the Children–San Diego will intentionally enroll children ages 4 to 6 and their caregivers who face the greatest challenges to long-term stability and well-being, with an initial focus on former foster youth who are parenting and families most at risk of child welfare involvement. The chapter will launch as an independent 501(c)(3) supported by Friends of the Children National, benefiting from a nationally proven operating model, extensive leadership resources, and a network of successful Executive Directors across the country.

Position Summary

Friends of the Children–San Diego seeks a highly relational, entrepreneurial, and community-centered Executive Director to lead the successful launch and growth of this new chapter. The organization's first Executive Director will play a defining role in establishing Friends of the Children–San Diego as one of the region's most trusted and influential organizations serving children and families—hiring the founding staff team, building trusted relationships across San Diego County, expanding philanthropic investment, and working with the founding Board of Directors and the Friends of the Children National team to successfully launch the chapter. This is a rare opportunity to build an organization from the ground up while benefiting from the support, resources, and proven model of a nationally recognized network.

Reporting to the Board of Directors and working in close partnership with Friends of the Children National, the Executive Director serves as the organization's chief executive, chief fundraiser, strategic leader, and primary ambassador. The Executive Director's primary responsibility will be serving as the organization's fundraising leader and champion throughout the community. The successful candidate will be energized by building authentic relationships, inspiring philanthropic investment, and expanding awareness of Friends of the Children across San Diego County. The Executive Director will provide strategic oversight and ensure excellence and fidelity to the Friends of the Children model while empowering program leadership to oversee day-to-day service delivery. The primary focus of this role is building the relationships, visibility, organizational capacity, and sustainable funding that will allow the program—and the children and families it serves—to thrive.

The Executive Director will be a passionate advocate for children and families facing life's greatest challenges and a compelling communicator of both the urgency of the mission and the measurable outcomes of the Friends of the Children model. As the organization's primary spokesperson, they will excel at cultivating relationships with donors, corporate leaders, foundations, community partners, and the families and communities served. The Executive Director will position the organization as a distinctive partner within San Diego's child- and family-serving community. They will bring a strategic mindset to build a high-performing organization, humility to lead collaboratively, and enthusiasm to serve as Friends of the Children–San Diego's champion in the community.

This is an ideal opportunity for an accomplished nonprofit Executive Director or an experienced Chief Advancement Officer or Chief Development Officer who has successfully led teams, secured significant philanthropic investment, and brings entrepreneurial business acumen, a deep commitment to mission, and a desire to build and scale a high-impact organization in a new market.

Roles & Responsibilities

Leadership

• Provide enthusiastic leadership, inspiration, strategic direction, focus, and long-term vision for the organization.
• Be the lead fundraising champion and spokesperson, ambassador, and advocate for Friends of the Children–San Diego.
• Build trust across staff, board, community partners, families, and donors. Model professionalism and high ethical standards throughout the organization.
• Recruit, develop, and lead a high-performing team.
• Partner with Board leadership to ensure a strong and engaged Board culture and governance.
• Lead and model Friends of the Children’s commitment to a “children-first” culture of engagement, empowerment, support, belonging, and mutual respect.
• Foster a transparent, approachable, collaborative, and servant-oriented leadership culture where staff feel heard, valued, and supported.
• Work closely with the National CEO and National staff to ensure that Friends of the Children–San Diego and National are working together as collaborators, that the program is administered with fidelity, and to promote and grow the mission locally and across the county.
• Work closely with other Friends of the Children Executive Directors in the state of California to align around opportunities for leadership, fundraising, and statewide collaboration.

Fundraising & Community Relations

• Lead all fundraising and resource development efforts, including establishing clear fundraising goals, objectives, and results, and serving as the organization’s sole fundraising professional during the launch years.
• Personally define, prioritize, cultivate, solicit, and steward major donors, foundations, and corporations, including local and regional funding opportunities that deepen community investment.
• Partner with the Board on fundraising and explore and develop diversified revenue opportunities that strengthen long-term sustainability.
• Represent the organization throughout San Diego's philanthropic, civic, business, and nonprofit communities.
• Serve as the organization's chief storyteller and external relationship builder.
• Work closely with public officials to develop a funding base that includes an appropriate amount of public funding (city, county, state, and federal).
• Empower program staff to implement and sustain strategic partnerships and collaborations that advance program outcomes.
• Partner with the Friends of the Children Chapter Grants team to bring in new opportunities, review grant proposals, and ensure ongoing reporting for grant deliverables.
• Partner with the Friends of the Children Chapter Web/Marketing team to tell stories, build the brand, and amplify the impact of Friends–San Diego.

Strategic Planning and Annual Operations

• Develop and execute strategic plans, annual operating plans, budgets, revenue and expense projections, and growth initiatives.
• Identify opportunities for expansion, innovation, and increased community impact.
• Monitor organizational performance and proactively manage risk.
• Partner with the Board and National leadership to achieve long-term goals.

Quality Program Delivery

• Ensure fidelity to the Friends of the Children model and ensure the resources necessary to uphold program excellence.
• Support and empower program leadership in delivering exceptional service and outcomes for youth and families.
• Monitor outcomes and foster continuous improvement.
• Cultivate quality feedback loops for program participants (youth, caregivers).
• Support the ongoing training and development of program staff to meet the requirements of the program with regard to skills, knowledge, and understanding of program content.
• Maintain alignment of the organizational structure and staffing to maximize effectiveness and results.

Financial, Administrative, & Human Resources Leadership

• Provide sound financial stewardship and organizational sustainability.
• Recruit, develop, supervise, and retain a high-performing team; ensure the effective supervision, guidance, development, and evaluation of all staff, and a work environment that results in positive morale and employee retention.
• Maintain accurate and timely communications with the Board of Directors and staff.
• Maximize organizational effectiveness without compromising program and organizational performance.
• Collaborate with, and benefit from, National team Finance and Operational resources to maximize effectiveness.

Qualifications

The ideal candidate will have the following qualifications:

• A bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• Ten or more years of progressively responsible executive leadership experience in nonprofit or related environments is desired.
• A passionate appreciation for child development, youth outcomes, and long-term mentoring models.
• Significant fundraising experience and demonstrated ability to successfully secure major gifts and diversify revenue streams.
• Strong executive presence and credibility with donors, board members, community leaders, and public stakeholders.
• Established relationships and credibility within San Diego County, or a demonstrated record of quickly building trusted relationships with philanthropic, business, civic, and community leaders, is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated success leading an organization and motivating others within a fast-paced, start-up work environment.
• Strategic thinker with experience building, scaling, launching, and leading organizational growth initiatives.
• Demonstrated success leading across fundraising, operations, finance, strategy, and people leadership.
• Cultural competence and sensitivity when working with diverse communities and family structures.
• Exceptional listening skills and an approachable, empowering leadership style.
• Outstanding storytelling, written and verbal communication skills, and public speaking abilities.
• Exceptional decision-making, organizational, and time management, delegation, and follow-up skills.
• Effective leadership and supervisory skills; ability to collaboratively set goals, provide direction, ensure accountability, and motivate others to achieve and overcome barriers.
• Ability to assess opportunities and mitigate strategic risks, while monitoring progress and making timely course corrections.
• A team player, with a commitment to collaboration and partnership with National and peer leadership.

Compensation & Benefits

The salary range for this position is $145,000–$165,000, including incentive compensation, depending on qualifications and experience. Friends of the Children offers a benefits package and a culture that values collaboration, belonging, professional growth, and work-life harmony.

Statement of Non-Discrimination

Friends of the Children is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to addressing discriminatory practices. The equal employment opportunity policy of Friends of the Children provides fair and equal opportunities for all employees and job applicants. Friends of the Children hires and promotes individuals solely based on their qualifications for the job to be filled.

Application Process

The search for the Friends of the Children-San Diego Executive Director is being conducted by The Moran Company. Questions about the position can be directed to Angie Heer, The Moran Company: angie (at) morancompany.com.

Interested candidates should submit a resume and cover letter to Angie Heer, The Moran Company. The resume should include all professional education and experience, examples of nonprofit leadership and fundraising accomplishments, dates of employment (month and year), position/title, and organization names. The cover letter should highlight your relevant experience, passion for Friends of the Children-San Diego’s mission, fundraising experience, and your approach to building and scaling an organization. Applications should be submitted by July 31.

PLEASE NOTE: All email correspondence from The Moran Company will originate from our official @morancompany.com domain or using our applicant tracking system domain @applytojob.com.