Who we are

Ecotrust creates and accelerates triple-bottom-line innovations to benefit our region and inspire the world. On the farm, at the coast, in the forest, and across our cities, we work in partnership towards an equitable, prosperous, climate-smart future. Since 1991, we have created durable change and sparked ideas across the globe. Ecotrust holds a deep commitment to equity and diversity as core principles integral to the work we do. Learn more at Ecotrust.org.

Job summary

Ecotrust seeks a new core member to lead program development, implementation, and systems-scale solutions that advance economic opportunity, environmental well-being, and social and racial equity. The Chief Impact Officer (CIO) will lead Ecotrust’s programs to greater collective impact, manage senior program staff, and lead fundraising efforts that propel programmatic work. A newly created position, the CIO will report to and work closely with the Executive Director and colleagues on Ecotrust’s Leadership Team to shape the future of our work. The CIO will manage, mentor, and support the career development of our program leads, and will work with them to remove roadblocks to teams’ success, including allocating resources, setting priorities, and fostering needed skills. The CIO will help secure grants and contracts that further the impact of program teams and support those teams in their grant management and implementation.

This is a full time position based in Portland, Oregon and requires regular travel throughout the region.

Who you are 

You are a leader with a track-record of exceptional impact through equity-centered program development and implementation. You have experience creating systems-based solutions that advance social equity, economic opportunity, and environmental well-being for all. You know the funding landscape as it pertains to social change organizations, and you have the knowledge and confidence to win major private and government grants and contracts. You enjoy developing staff and have proven experience as a manager and mentor who is humble, patient, collaborative, and empathetic. You have the utmost integrity, with the ability to nurture a culture of transparency. You are proactive, analytical, curious, creative, and flexible. You have a commitment to and passion for Ecotrust’s mission and are eager to use your influence to help make our programs the most impactful they can be.

Equity at the center

Ecotrust holds a deep commitment to equity, inclusion, and diversity as core principles integral to the work we do. As we add new members across all levels of the organization, we seek diverse perspectives and lived experiences that foster learning, creativity, innovation, and equity. The CIO provides leadership and vision to center racial equity and social justice across Ecotrust’s programmatic strategies.

• Work with leadership to set strategic priorities: create synergy across Ecotrust’s food & farms, forestry, fisheries, Indigenous affairs, and knowledge systems teams in service of greater collective impact
• Manage, mentor, and develop senior staff across our sector-based programs
• Work closely with the Development Team to raise significant private and government grants and contracts
• Explore and identify solutions to issues challenging program success, including allocating resources, setting priorities, and fostering needed skills
• Work closely with the Communications Team to convey Ecotrust’s impact, using all of our media platforms
• Actively engage in organization-wide equity work, including advancing equitable outcomes and centering people of color, LGBTQIA+, and other groups of people who routinely encounter intersecting systemic oppressions
• Collaborate with the Managing Director of Ecotrust Investments to identify opportunities to use investment capital to further organizational imperatives and program goals
• Work closely with the Director of Economic Research & Evaluation and the M&E Analyst to foster a learning culture within the organization, based on a robust Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) approach that tells us what is working, what isn’t working, and how to adapt
• Actively participate on Ecotrust’s Leadership Team and Executive Director’s Council
• Model Ecotrust’s core values in all aspects of work

*Transferable skills are any skills gained through education, work experience (including the military) or life experience that are relevant for this position. Be sure to describe any transferable skills in your cover letter and clearly explain how they apply to this position.

Required:

• Deep understanding and commitment to Ecotrust’s mission and values
• High emotional intelligence; display empathy, transparency, trust, and thoughtfulness in interactions with colleagues and external partners

Management and People:

• Demonstrated success as a manager with responsibility for staff supervision, planning, and budgeting
• Commitment to racial justice and demonstrated ability to interact effectively across racially diverse teams, partners, and experiences
• Strength managing, developing, and retaining individuals and teams, and empowering them to elevate their levels of responsibility and performance with experience managing racially diverse staff
• Outstanding interpersonal skills: good listener and thoughtful respondent; positive influencer, seeks collaboration among the teams and external partners
• High level of integrity and the ability to handle confidential information with discretion

Technical/Programmatic:

• Experience creating systems-based solutions at the intersection of social equity, economic opportunity, and environmental well-being for all
• Experience in social change program innovation, impact delivery, fundraising, and leadership
• Ability to lead multiple program departments and develop cross-team processes
• Demonstrated experience with and understanding of equity, diversity, and inclusion work in theory and practice
• Experience with place-based economic development and natural resources management
• Experience developing and managing budgets
• Demonstrated experience building relationships with a wide range of stakeholders, including communities of color

Thought Leadership and Fundraising:

• Proven track-record for fundraising and managing significant private and government grants and contracts in support of program execution
• Deep knowledge of the funding landscape for social change organizations
• Model a responsibility to interrupt and dismantle all forms of oppression, including but not limited to racism, cisheteropatriarchy, heterosexism, and transphobia, both inside and outside the organization

• Preference for 8+ years of leadership, including 5+ years of supervisory experience
• Specific experience leading programmatic work that intersects with at least one of Ecotrust’s core program areas of forestry, fisheries, food and farms, or work supporting Indigenous communities
• Experience with public policy as it relates to our core program areas
• Experience working with American Indian, Alaska Native villages, and First Nations communities

Ecotrust will consider work, volunteer, academic, and life experience as we evaluate candidates for the skills needed to be successful in this position.

Please follow these directions closely. (1) Complete an Ecotrust Employment Application form (available above as a PDF or Word DOC) and forward with (2) a cover letter (2-page maximum) and (3) your resume to jobs@ecotrust.org with “Chief Impact Officer” in the subject line by close of business on June 4, 2020.

Your cover letter should clearly explain how your skills, experience, and interests fit this position. Additionally, you should address the following two requests either within the text of your cover letter or as a response on supplemental pages: (1) Share an example of a time when you considered racial equity and social justice in decision-making as part of your job (250 words max), and (2) Address your experience managing racially diverse staff or how you would approach managing racially diverse staff (250 words max).

The Selection Process:

1. Initial review of minimum qualifications
2. Interview (Phone/Zoom with video off)
3. Consideration of top candidates through panel interview (Zoom with video on)
4. Reference checks

Salary Range: $104,000-$122,000

This is a full-time position. Ecotrust offers a full benefits package including medical and dental insurance, retirement plan, life insurance, and disability coverage. Download a copy of the position description here

Ecotrust held an informational session about this position on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. You can watch that here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/13XS7ZG5jBwmHSwd-tPbRAdq3K1zmckaw/view?usp=sharing

Also, here is a link to the FAQ with questions that were not able to be addressed in the info session: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FaJTY9GP28XscYns9iT1kRP_HTjcaol6/view?usp=sharing

Ecotrust is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We believe that a diverse staff of qualified, highly-skilled, and creative individuals is necessary to achieve the vision and mission of the project. We welcome and encourage applications from candidates who can contribute to the diversity of our workforce across a range of dimensions. Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and People of Color are strongly encouraged to apply.

Veterans’ Preference: Under Oregon Law, qualifying veterans may apply for veterans’ preference for this recruitment. The contact listed on the job announcement must receive all required documentation by the closing date of the recruitment.

Accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act: We gladly provide reasonable accommodation to anyone whose specific disability prevents them from completing an application or participating in this recruitment process. Please reach out to the contact above in advance to request assistance.