Director – Business Volunteers for the Arts (BVA)

End Date
Nov 30, 2018

Director –  Business Volunteers for the Arts (BVA)

Reports to: Executive Director

Position Type: Full Time; Salaried, Exempt

The Arts & Business Council of Chicago (A&BC) links the strengths of the cultural and business sectors to promote community growth and vitality through the arts. By enlisting business volunteers to provide essential assessment, training, consulting and board service, A&BC enhances management capacity of arts organizations while promoting a highly engaged form of business participation in the arts.

A&BC is committed to inclusion and equity and strives to ensure that our staff reflects the diversity of our volunteers and clients. We are committed to removing barriers to employment that are faced by equity-seeking groups including veterans, people with disabilities, or individuals who identify as a members of ALAANA communities. Members of these groups are encouraged (but are not required) to self-identify as such in their cover letters and asked to describe the unique perspective this identity provides for this role.

Position Summary:  The Director of BVA is directly responsible for cultivating, training and retaining a professional business volunteer corps to meet the management needs of arts organizations. This person will be responsible for promoting the A&BC and developing its volunteers through strong interpersonal and communications skills. A key directive will be to maintain the diversity of A&BC’s  volunteer corps and client portfolio. Additionally, the Director will keep up-to-date with business trends that impact employee volunteerism, as well as with the changing business environment and how it impacts arts organizations.

The candidate should demonstrate initiative, imagination, and resourcefulness. We are seeking a professional who can attract and retain volunteers because of his or her consistent ability to anticipate the training needs and interests of the business volunteers and ensure that the interaction with the arts community is structured, meaningful, and fulfilling.

Responsibilities and Duties:

  • Designing and facilitating volunteer leadership development and training
  • Directing and managing a portfolio of projects comprised of professional business volunteers acting as pro bono  consultants on management projects with small to mid-sized not-for-profit arts organizations
  • Assessing needs of BVAs and arts organizations in collaboration with A&BC staff to maximize program impact and volunteer participation and reward

Core Competencies:

  • Excellent project management skills with the proven ability to develop and grow high-yield relationships.
  • Quick study so as to inform the organization’s processes and protocols; products and services.
  • Ability to infuse creativity, innovation and insight into training and development curriculums.
  • Able to work independently and within a team, prioritize and manage multiple projects, work efficiently.

Interpersonal and Communication:

  • Excellent written and verbal communication and presentation skills.
  • Superior organizational skills with high attention to detail.

Technical:

  • Excellent computer skills including database management. Knowledge of Salesforce program a plus.
  • Analytic skills

Desired Characteristics:

  • A commitment to arts and culture. Knowledge of/experience with Chicago’s cultural and business environments a plus.
  • Ability to thrive in a co-working space that is characterized by significant growth, diversity and constant change.
  • Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with a variety of representatives, specifically within cultural and corporate contexts.
  • Ability to accept accountability with responsibility.

Qualifications – A level of experience that demonstrates the necessary knowledge and abilities include:

  • A bachelor’s degree.
  • A minimum of 5 years of relevant experience with demonstrated success in volunteer management and leadership development and training; knowledgeable in board governance a plus. This includes paid and unpaid / volunteer and community work.
  • Experience with the intersection of non-profit and corporate cultures.
  • Willingness to work within anti-racist and anti-oppressive frameworks and actively engage in ongoing learning about these frameworks.

Salary: Competitive based upon experience, with excellent benefits package.

To apply: Send cover letter and resume to:

info@artsbiz-chicago.org Subject line: ‘ BVA’
Arts & Business Council of Chicago
100 S. State Street Chicago, IL 60603

Application deadline November 30, 2018