Bellevue, WA

Chief Executive Officer, Kindering

The Organization

Kindering embraces children of diverse abilities and their families by providing the finest education and therapies to nurture hope, courage, and the skills to soar.

 

About Kindering

Kindering was founded in 1962 by five mothers of children with disabilities and has grown into the largest and most comprehensive neurodevelopment center in the Northwest serving infants and young children with disabilities, delays and risk factors through early interventions and therapies.

Kindering annually serves nearly 1/3 of children ages 0-3 with disabilities in King County. We are the only local early intervention center offering a full continuum of programs to meet the needs of children, their parents, caregivers and siblings. Kindering boasts three campuses: our Bellevue headquarters, a Bothell facility opened in 2014, and our newest site in Renton opened in 2017, further expanding our reach into South King County.

Kindering’s long serving leader, Mimi Siegel, will retire at the beginning of 2019. As we celebrate Mimi’s phenomenal 40 years of service she leaves an organization well poised for continued growth and success. With an experienced and collaborative senior leadership team, comprehensive services and proven programs, a nationally respected brand and strong financials, the new CEO will inherit an organization that is healthy and robust.

 

Kindering’s Programs

Kindering targets infants and children 0-3 whose development is affected by disabilities including: Austism Spectrum Disorder, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, delays, or factors such as abuse or neglect that impact an array of characteristics including hearing, vision, cognitive, motor, communication, feeding and behavior.

Kindering provides developmental assessments; physical, speech, vision, feeding, and mental health therapies; personalized special education; inclusive toddler preschool; childcare consultation; foster/kinship care interventions; family counseling; and parent education.

Current Facts and Figures

·       $15M budget for 2018.

·       Families speak 90+ languages.

·       5,000 children and their families expect to be served in 2018.

·       3 campus program sites in Bellevue, Bothell and Renton, WA.

·       Over 12 programs serving children and their families.

·       200 dedicated staff members.

·       Recognized as one of Washington’s Best Workplaces by the Puget Sound Business Journal.

Kindering Outcomes

·       99% of Kindering early intervention graduates make measureable developmental progress.

·       96% of parents report satisfaction with their child’s improvement from our in-home services or on-site Stepping Stones preschool.

·       76% of Kindering graduates make substantive gains in 2+ developmental areas; 46% close the gap with their typically developing peers.

·       In 2016 our team provided observation and consultation for 289 children in child care and trained 200 child care providers.

 

Position Overview

The Opportunity

Kindering is at an exciting time in its organizational growth trajectory and we seek an experienced leader to work in partnership with the Board of Directors to write the next chapter of our story. We are looking for a visionary leader who will guide the organization in new ways to leverage programs and services to achieve greater impact, while maintaining the financial stability, best-in-class programs and comprehensive support to children and their families.

We want to build on our strengths and grow to meet rising demand, with the ultimate goal of annually serving 10,000 children and families by 2022. The ideal candidate will be a strategic and results-driven leader with a proven track record of success in fundraising; a high comfort leading finance and operations; excellent relationship-building capabilities; and impeccable communication skills.

Our new CEO will also have previous experience leading an organization through significant change with the sensitivity, clear vision and excellent communication skills to guide the process. S/he will be integral in maintaining a positive and compassionate internal culture and will proactively address opportunities and challenges as the organization grows and evolves. S/he will have the business savvy and good judgment to establish the necessary trust and credibility with the Board of Directors, staff, medical community, volunteers, and other external partners.

 

Initial Focus for Kindering’s next CEO

·       Accomplish a smooth leadership transition with transparency, openness, sensitivity and visibility.

·       Develop strong, positive relationships with the Board of Directors, staff, funders, families and community partners.

·       Build capacity and excellence in our programs. Ensure Kindering recruits, retains and develops our exceptional team of diverse, highly-skilled and committed staff.

·       Engage as an effective and sensitive student of the organization’s history and future potential through careful listening and connections with stakeholders.

Longer Term Opportunities

·       Lead the board and staff through a process to make the vision of serving 10,000 children and their families annually by 2022 a reality. Create the roadmap to guide Kindering’s growth trajectory, while maintaining quality of service and impact.

·       Build capacity through partnerships and program replication that expand Kindering’s reach and impact.

·       Build a reputation as Kindering’s leader, within the early intervention and early learning communities in Washington and beyond.

Kindering Seeks

Kindering’s next CEO will have experience leading a large, complex organization and will bring the following skills and experience to their work:

·       Strong affiliation for the Kindering mission, a heartfelt connection to the children and families we serve and a drive for making our programs and services accessible to all the children who need them.

·       Entrepreneurial mindset and the visionary leadership skills to implement growth strategies.

·       Track record of success in expanding programs and organizational capacity.

·       Previous oversight of a multi-site, multi-program organization with a large and dispersed staff.

·       Experience working with a large nonprofit organization, in either a board, staff or leadership capacity.

·       Demonstrated experience with change management and effective stewardship of stakeholder relationships through a change process.

·       The ability to inspire quality performance with the leadership capacity to build, nurture, and retain a strong team of professionals that is focused on excellence, accountability, and efficiency.

·       Strong fiscal management and budgetary leadership, preferably with a highly complex revenue model.

·       Demonstrated success in advancing the values of diversity, equity and inclusion in organizational culture.

·       A track record of success raising significant resources through donations, grants and corporate partnerships.

·       Familiarity with the complexity of securing government funding.

·       Proven experience serving as a passionate advocate and compelling external face of the organization to the community, partners, donors and stakeholders. Excellent public speaking skills and the ability to form strong networks of support for Kindering.

Competencies of our next CEO

·       Excellent integrity and the ability to earn trust.

·       Ability to inspire others through vision and purpose.

·       Strong business acumen.

·       Driven towards innovation.

·       Intellectual horsepower to learn quickly and make timely decisions.

·       Excellent staff management and development skills.

·       Managerial courage to lead through challenge and change.

·       Interpersonal savvy and approachability with staff, Board, partners, clients and community stakeholders.

·       Fundamental understanding of current issues and challenges facing individuals from underserved communities including sensitivity to racial equity/diversity.

·       Excellent listening skills.

·       Empathy and the ability to understand others undergoing personal challenge.

How To Apply

Application process and timeline

All applications will be given serious consideration. Applications will be acknowledged via an email receipt and will be held confidentially within the Search Committee until the finalists are introduced to the Kindering Board. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis but full consideration will be given to materials received by June 15, 2018. Screening for candidates will continue through May and June. Initial committee interviews will be conducted in July and August, with final interviews anticipated in early Fall 2018. We anticipate a start date during Q4 2018.

Please submit a cover letter and resume as one document. Cover letters should be no more than 2 pages. In your cover letter, please share how your professional interests and passions specifically correlate to Kindering’s mission, strategic direction and impact. In your cover letter please answer the questions:

·       Why are you interested in the Executive Director role at Kindering?

·       What about your background and experience makes you the best candidate for the future of Kindering?

Please submit your cover letter and resume as one document, ideally by June 15, 2018, by following this link: https://hrstrategiesintl.recruiterbox.com/jobs/fk011ub/

 

The search for this position is being facilitated by HR Strategies International, a nonprofit consulting firm that provides a full range of search, interim and leadership transition support and outsourced Human Resources services throughout the Puget Sound.

Questions regarding this opportunity can be directed to Christine Martin, Principal, or Karen Rea, Senior Consultant, HR Strategies International— Christine@hrstrategiesintl.com or Karen@hrstrategiesintl.com

 

Kindering values diverse perspectives and life experiences. We encourage people of all backgrounds to apply, including people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQ, people with disabilities, and veterans.

Sign up