The Organization
When you Join Alight, you’ll find…
• A team with deep experience in co-designing solutions that create new value around the world. We know we need to always be better, and we believe in the power and abundance of everyday people, everywhere, to change the world with us.
• A culture of radical accountability to our customers –as we help build a meaningful life for and with the displaced, we ask them what they want and then deliver on it.
• An organization that refuses to settle for anything less than delivering human-worthy services.
If you are looking to be part of a living, breathing, ever-changing organization full of disrupters and doers, then read on!
We Are Alight
We are and always have been about amazing global citizens taking action to change our world. Forty years ago, Chicago businessman Neal Ball recruited a volunteer relief team who deployed to the Thai-Cambodian border. Even in the face of terrible tragedy, that first team was characterized by their incredible energy and belief that anything was possible.
In 2019, we took the next big step on a journey to unleash and put into action that same abundant belief. American Refugee Committee became Alight. We’re the same organization with the same people doing the same critical work – providing health care and clean water, shelter, protection, and economic opportunity to more than 3.5 million people in 19 countries each year. But in solidarity with the people we serve who are too often defined by a single dark moment in their lives, we’ve dropped the label ‘refugee.’
Alight sees and helps every person make meaningful change in the world – from displaced and marginalized communities in Africa, Asia and the Americas to…anyone, anywhere.
Position Overview
Hello Hello! So, you’re interested in joining us? Welcome, we’re happy you’re here.
The Opportunity
Now three years into our transformation from American Refugee Committee to Alight, we are at an exciting moment with new leadership and a new strategy. We are hiring a new executive leadership role – a Chief Marketing and Engagement Officer (CMEO) – to lead the next chapter of our brand evolution, raise the visibility of Alight, increase private giving, build strategic partnerships, and set Alight apart in the market. This person will oversee Alight’s communications, fundraising, advocacy, and partnerships teams; will sit on the five-person executive leadership team; and reports directly to CEO Jocelyn Wyatt.
We’re seeking someone with a background in strategic communications, someone who brings creativity to profile building and fundraising, a person who loves donor and partner engagement, and someone who is a strong leader of multidisciplinary and multicultural teams. Key responsibilities include:
Strategic Communications and Marketing
• Partner with the CEO, COO, and leaders across the organization to set Alight’s global communications vision, strategy, direction, and priorities.
• Lead the creation and development of robust marketing and communications plans and programs, lead effective systems and processes, and manage a budget of $3-$3.5million/year.
• Inspire, define, and nurture a future-forward understanding across the organization and position advocacy campaigns, engagement activities, and communications to both attract new opportunities and advance Alight’s impact in a global market.
• Provide overall creative direction for the brand expression of Alight and steward our brand in the humanitarian and development sectors and philanthropic community.
• Expand Alight’s influence and position us as an expert and thought leader by initiating and leading productive alliances with media, marketing organizations, industry groups, forums, and strategic networks; facilitating media placements, publicity opportunities, and digital engagement; and securing writing and speaking engagements for the organization.
• As a key voice and senior leader, represent Alight in pitches, social gatherings, annual galas, and internally and externally facing events and activities.
Fundraising and Partnership Development
• Hold accountability for unrestricted and restricted private giving through the annual fund and individual donor management.
• Develop comprehensive fundraising plans that effectively engage individual donors, major gifts, corporate donors, and philanthropy.
• Architect effective donor and partner engagement strategies to expand Alight’s financial support base, grow a network of influential friends and allies, and cultivate Board giving and active engagement in fundraising efforts.
• Lead collaboration between Alight’s global communications, fundraising, partnerships, advocacy, and country teams.
• Closely collaborate with country teams to identify and bring in external collaborators, build strategic partnerships, and align fundraising campaigns and partnerships with Alight’s strategic goals and priorities.
Team Building and Leadership
• Build a high-performing, resilient, and optimally leveraged multidisciplinary team of 15.
• Assess, optimize, and design collaborative, responsive relationships between global communications, fundraising, partnerships, advocacy, and country teams.
• Facilitate an inclusive workplace that emphasizes leadership development, career development, and collaboration.
• Establish a culture of innovation by exploring new systems, leveraging external collaborators and partners, and integrating best practices to position Alight as an innovator, change-maker, and disrupter in a crowded market.
Candidate Profile
Like our clients, supporters, and global community, we all bring unique backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives into the world. We believe everyone has the potential for success and recognize a range of skills and experiences that will complement our team. While candidates might not have experience in every responsibility outlined in the position profile, successful candidates will demonstrate these fundamental qualities, skills, and characteristics:
Mission Focus
A mission-motivated leader, you are attracted to a global organization that sees possibility instead of scarcity, that provides services that transcend the status quo of “good enough,” and who deeply believes that we can inspire and unleash the abundance in every person. Our mission inspires you to leverage your professional skills and experiences to help us build an extraordinary platform of people and organizations that provide lifesaving services and breakthrough solutions for and with the displaced. At your core, you believe that your work can and will amplify Alight’s impact in developing innovative solutions and approaches for the displaced and enable a life filled with joy, dignity, connection, and purpose.
Strategic Storytelling and Brand Positioning
A big-picture thinker, you possess extensive experience harnessing the power of storytelling to effectively reach diverse audiences and inspire action. You deploy an audience-centered approach to engaging constituents and partners, develop engagement strategies and activities that appeal to global audiences, and align marketing, communications, and fundraiser campaigns with the broader brand narrative and organizational priorities. Through authentic, innovative storytelling, you craft compelling and authentic narratives, represent the stories and histories of your organization and end users and effectively position your organization for action and impact.
Adaptive Leadership
A systems thinker, you value evidence-based learning; leverage data and analytics to evaluate, measure, monitor, and refine strategic plans; balance competing priorities; and use institutional knowledge to find innovative ways to address challenges and leverage opportunity. Responsive to both our changing world and its impact on your organization’s business needs, you effectively manage organizational and team priorities, set measurable goals and objectives, and hold yourself and others accountable for delivering results. A creative problem solver and generative thinker, you build adaptive, agile campaigns; capitalize on emerging opportunities, and simultaneously drive forward your organization’s short and long-term goals and objectives.
Supporter and Partnership Engagement
A seasoned professional, you understand how to meet the needs of a diverse supporter base. You use data and analytics to segment audiences and turn these insights into effective donor and advocacy campaigns. You engage end users, partners, collaborators, and the broader community to understand their perspectives, challenge their thinking, and inspire connectivity and action. As a leader who values and honors the power of human connections, you cultivate authentic relationships and create compelling narratives, campaigns, and engagement activities that generate connection, trust, and commitment.
Leadership Through Influence
As a leader, you love to make new connections with your staff and have demonstrated success leading high-performing, multigenerational teams. You differentiate your leadership to encourage a diverse workplace characterized by collaboration and mutual respect. You lean into challenges, lead with a solutions-oriented mindset, listen compassionately, and challenge and mentor your team to achieve elevated levels of success. You see yourself as a leader, coach, and mentor who shares both accountability and success, serves as an ally and ambassador for your team and champions your staff across the organization and in the market.
In addition, strong candidates will offer:
• Willingness and ability to travel domestically and internationally 30%.
• Global experience and cross-cultural leadership experience are preferred.
• Experience telling and affirming stories of refugees, displaced, or other marginalized communities is preferred.
Compensation & Benefits
The salary range for this position begins in the $230,000 range and is commensurate with experience. Additionally, we are proud to highlight:
• Borderless Team of 2,500 staff worldwide that sees possibility, celebrates moments of abundance, shares new ideas, and strives to do a better thing every day.
• Family Friendly – We know that you are a whole person with a life and a family. We honor this. In return, we expect that you will take ownership of your work and follow-through on your commitments; sometimes that means flexing your schedule and we’re good with that.
• Learning & Development – Access thousands of free online learning courses to take at your own pace and tailor to your professional goals.
• Health, dental, and MedEvac Insurance – We strive to offer the best-in-class healthcare plans to our staff each year. We cover 100% of the cost for your health premium and 75% of the cost for coverage for your spouse/dependents.
• Retirement – We contribute 6% of your salary regardless of your contribution amount, after one year of service.
• Generous Leave Time – Between vacation days, personal leave days, and holidays, you have ample opportunity to take time off when you need it.
COVID POLICY
To ensure our safety and the safety of our staff and associates (including volunteers, incentive workers, and consultants) Alight is requiring vaccination to access US offices and workspaces. For staff and associates with vaccination concerns, our Alight Facilities Health and Safety Team, will be available for open dialogue and to discuss alternative work and operations options.
Alight is an Equal Opportunity Employer offering employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, national origin, citizenship, physical or mental disability, or protected veteran status. Alight complies with all applicable laws governing nondiscrimination in employment.
We strive to represent the diverse communities we serve. Applicants who contribute to this diversity and those who bring lived experience with displacement are strongly encouraged to apply.
How To Apply
Contact
Koya Partners, the executive search firm that specializes in mission-driven search, has been exclusively retained for this engagement. Molly Brennan and Malissa Brennan of Koya Partners have been exclusively retained for this search. To express interest in this role please submit your materials here (https://apptrkr.com/3272802). All inquiries and discussions will be considered strictly confidential.
Koya Partners is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals living with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual living with a disability and need assistance expressing interest online, please email NonprofitSearchOps@divsearch.com. If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.
About Koya Partners
Koya Partners, a part of Diversified Search Group, is a leading executive search and strategic advising firm dedicated to connecting exceptionally talented people with mission-driven clients. Our founding philosophy—The Right Person in the Right Place Can Change the World—guides our work as we partner with nonprofits & NGOs, institutions of higher education, responsible businesses, and social enterprises in local communities and around the world.
For more information about Koya Partners, visit www.koyapartners.com.