To Apply: Please submit your resume & cover letter through our online application system by Friday, May 7th.

Please note the preferred location for this position is Washington, DC. Other major cities along the East Coast may be considered.

As the leading conservation organization working to unite people to protect America’s wild places, The Wilderness Society (TWS) envisions a future where people and wild nature flourish together, meeting the challenges of a rapidly changing planet. Our principles include striving for equity and justice in all we do, seeking to reflect the many communities with whom we work, and viewing access to nature as a basic right. To achieve our mission, vision and be true to our principles, we must work in new, transformative ways.

POSITION OVERVIEW

Reporting directly to the Deputy Vice President of Conservation, the Senior Regional Director provides general oversight to assigned regional field offices and significant contributions to the overall leadership of the organization. The Senior Regional Director provides management and support to a highly skilled and experienced set of staff within a broad multi-state region. As a member of the management team, the Senior Regional Director provides strategic counsel on matters of significance to the regions. The person in this position will have the opportunity to create a strategic and holistic program, launch a long-term landscape conservation investment in the Southern Appalachians, develop new and creative partnerships and build a politically influential network to advance conservation regionally and nationally. The Senior Director plays a critical role in cultivating and managing relationships with a wide range of partners as well as with federal, state, tribal, and local government officials and their staffs to build and strengthen The Wilderness Society’s presence in the region and nationally.

This position serves as a critical link between assigned regions and the rest of the organization – facilitating both intradepartmental and interdepartmental integration and alignment throughout the Conservation Department and across the organization. In particular, the Senior Regional Director will function as a close partner to the directors of the organization’s priority campaigns with responsibility for helping to design and implement programs that deliver on campaign goals and outcomes.

TWS has made diversity, equity, and inclusion strategic priorities for the organization and the Senior Regional Director will integrate these priorities throughout their work.  The person in this role must model equitable and inclusive behaviors and possess strong management skills including success leading teams that are diverse across race, gender identity, and geography. Additionally, this position is responsible for promoting a positive organizational culture that is grounded in trust, accountability to shared goals and outcomes, and which is campaign-oriented, nimble, collaborative, innovative, adaptive, transparent, and supportive of staff.

The Eastern region has a rich history and is home to many sacred and historic sites as well as some of the most biologically rich and most visited national parks and forests in the country – areas which also offer premier outdoor recreation opportunities. Going forward, our work must combine protecting these iconic natural and recreational values at a landscape scale while focusing on how we better connect people to the outdoors and ensure people from all backgrounds can share in the benefits of these shared lands.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Management responsibilities for assigned regional office include, but are not limited to:

· Provides leadership to regional staff and guidance to all TWS staff working within assigned regions.

· Responsible for contributing to an inclusive and welcoming organizational culture by modeling key equity competencies including understanding of the foundations of equity such as implicit bias, White privilege, and group identities (and the cultural and historical context of those identities within the organization, nation, and world), and holding their staff accountable to equity competencies and how their actions impact TWS as an inclusive and equitable workplace.

· Responsible for oversight of all programmatic work to ensure strategic focus that delivers on the goals of the organization’s priority campaigns.

· Manages personnel to ensure staff is inspired, well-supported, and performing at the highest levels.

· Responsible for the creation and management of the regional budget and working in partnership with campaign and finance leads on budget design.

· Serves as the external relations lead with key partners, elected officials, and the media.

· Continually cultivates strong, professional relationships with board members.

· In coordination with Philanthropy staff, performs substantial fundraising duties with philanthropic foundations as well as major donors and supports a culture of philanthropy.

· Performs other related duties as assigned.

Management responsibilities for multi-state regions include, but are not limited to:

· Provides support to campaign and regional staff in strategic planning and development of a forward-looking vision within the context of the organization’s priority campaigns.

· Provides support and strategic leadership as appropriate to directors on complex programmatic, policy and political issues.

· Serves as an advisor and provides guidance in complex personnel matters, as appropriate.

· Provides oversight of the regional budgets.

· Fosters cross-regional and cross-departmental fundraising and resource-sharing.

· Performs other related duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS

Experience, Competencies, and Education

· At least ten years of experience working in a leadership role in non-profit/advocacy or analogous experience in government at the state or federal level, politics, or policy arena.

· Thorough and realistic understanding of federal legislative and administrative processes as they relate to public land conservation and strong knowledge of conservation issues in the regions they oversee.

· Demonstrated experience leading and managing staff or teams representing a rich mix of talent, backgrounds, and perspectives toward shared goals/outcomes.  This includes a track record of successful recruitment, cultivation, and retention of highly skilled staff across race and gender identity.

· Effective and inclusive management skills including experience working productively across difference (i.e., gender identity, race, ethnicity, and socio-economic background)

· Strong intercultural competence combined with a demonstrated commitment to being part of and acquiring the skills to contribute to an anti-racist organization that is committed to equity and inclusion.

· Proven track record of working effectively across all departments within an organization and with diverse audiences.

· Must be a leader – capable of operating effectively with a multitude of audiences and committed to supporting others in accomplishing our conservation goals.

· Excellent strategic instincts and long-term vision.

· Demonstrated ability to advance strategic thinking, craft a compelling vision, and generate support for that vision, set priorities, and balance short- and long-term demands as well as regional and national goals.

· Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills that can be applied to complex conservation issues as well as sensitive personnel matters.

· Ability to manage a complex array of personnel, programmatic, and organizational demands.

· Willingness and ability to travel as needed.

· Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools or controls; reach with hands and arms; climb stairs; talk or hear. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 15 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

Work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is not exposed to adverse weather conditions. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

This job description is intended to convey information essential to understanding the scope of this position and it is not intended to be an exhaustive list of experience, skills, efforts, duties, responsibilities or working conditions associated with the position.

The Wilderness Society offers a competitive salary and benefits package, including: health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance; sick and vacation leave; a sabbatical program; and a retirement plan. TWS is an equal opportunity employer and actively works to ensure fair treatment of our employees and constituents across culture, socioeconomic status, race, marital or family situation, gender identity, age, ethnicity, religious beliefs, physical ability, veteran status or sexual orientation.

As an organization, we aspire to being inclusive in the work that we do, and in the kind of organization we are. Internally this means working as a team that listens to different points of view, recognizes the contributions of every employee and empowers each employee to bring their whole selves to work every day. Externally this means ensuring that public lands are inclusive and welcoming, so that our shared wildlands can help people and nature to thrive. We are committed to equity throughout our work, which we define as our commitment to realizing the promise of our public lands and ensuring that all can share in their universal benefits.

To learn more about our commitment, please see http://wilderness.org/our-commitment-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-wilderness-society