Job Description:
The Fetzer Institute announces an opening for a full-time program officer to help develop, manage, and evaluate Institute projects and programs in support of the Communication & Outreach program area. The program officer will be a member of an advisory group consisting of peer program staff members, board members, and advisors. The position will report to the senior program officer for Communication & Outreach.
The Fetzer Institute is a private operating foundation with an endowment of approximately $490 million. Based in Kalamazoo, Michigan, the Institute carries out its mission to foster awareness of the power of love and forgiveness in the emerging global community through a deeply engaged board of trustees drawn from across the United States, a staff of 53 talented and experienced professionals, a select set of expert outside advisors, and a growing network of program and project partners.
The Institute was founded in 1962 by John E. Fetzer, a broadcast pioneer who was deeply influenced by many spiritual traditions. Today the Fetzer Institute is steadily gaining recognition as a leader in the study, application, and promotion of love and forgiveness as practical and proven resources for improving individual vitality, strengthening personal relationships, and creating meaningful social connections at all levels—from the grass roots to the global.
One of three program areas (Science & Spirituality and Individual & Community Transformation are the other two), Communication & Outreach represents a new area of focus for Fetzer. Created in response to an Institute decision in 2006 to “go public” with its work, the Communication & Outreach program area is charged with initiating new outreach activities, amplifying the impact of current Fetzer programs, and illuminating real-world examples of the transformative power of love and forgiveness.
The successful candidate may possess:
• Expertise in strategic communications, marketing, public relations, community outreach, or related fields
• A bachelor’s degree and five to seven years’ experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience
• Extensive experience with digital media and the Web 2.0 environment
• Experience creating and sustaining successful partnerships
• Strong project management skills; comfort using Microsoft Suite applications and performing Internet research
• Excellent conceptual, analytical, and critical thinking skills, with the ability to absorb the broader meaning and context of the Institute’s work in relation to its mission and the program area
• A strong sense of authenticity and integrity, respect for diversity, and high ethical standards
• A healthy sense of humor and high energy, along with spiritual grounding and depth
• Capacity to work effectively in an organization that places a high value on relationships and ability to work collaboratively, emphasizing inclusiveness and flexibility, with an orientation to listening and learning
• An interest in, openness to, and personal engagement with the Institute’s mission, vision, and values
Core responsibilities include:
• Developing, managing, and evaluating communication and outreach projects designed to advance the mission of the Institute and meet the goals of its five-year strategic plan and assisting in long-term planning and creative direction for the Communication & Outreach program area
• Playing a leadership role in moving the Institute’s work into the Web 2.0 environment and helping to develop an ambitious plan to reach audiences across the globe using the latest forms of social networking and online community building
• Identifying prospective partners, building alliances, and developing programmatic plans and detailed budgets
• Preparing and presenting project recommendations and other needed information to the board of trustees
• Assuming management and fiscal supervision of all assigned program projects, including ongoing engagement with project leaders, partners, and consultants; participating in project meetings and site visits; monitoring administrative and financial progress reports; preparing progress reports; supervising evaluation of projects; and reporting findings and implications of programs
• Assisting in the development and management of core communication projects that serve the Institute as a whole, including print publications, media relations, and high-profile special events
• Participating in program group meetings and assisting in the conceptualization and development of the Institute’s overall program direction
• Initiating collaborative work with colleagues in the two other program areas and identifying communication and outreach opportunities to bring the work of these programs more widely into public view
• Facilitating in-house and off-site meetings of project working groups, as well as conferences, retreats, dialogues, and public events and representing the Institute at meetings and conferences and with various media and the general public
• Participating in the development of annual program/advisory team budgets and financial planning, managing specific project budgets, and recommending approval of appropriate final project expenses and accountings to the Vice President–Finance & Administration
This position requires approximately 25% travel, and the incumbent must be available after hours and on weekends for Institute-related meetings and events.
The Institute is located in a beautiful wooded setting on the outskirts of Kalamazoo, a university town in Southwest Michigan halfway between Detroit and Chicago and thirty miles from Lake Michigan. Adjacent to the Institute is its programmatic retreat center, Seasons. Seasons is dedicated to bringing people together in dialogue, reflection, and learning. Approximately thirty miles south of the Institute is its contemplative retreat center, GilChrist, which was founded to assist individuals in their quest to nurture their experience of the sacred in everyday life.
The Institute offers a unique working environment and a competitive salary and benefits package. To learn more about the Fetzer Institute, please visit www.fetzer.org.
Qualified candidates are invited to mail, e-mail, or fax a letter of interest, résumé, and three-year salary history by March 28, 2008, to Human Resources, 9292 West KL Ave., Kalamazoo, MI 49009, cojob@fetzer.org, or 269-372-9633 (fax). Electronic submission as e-mail attachments in MSWord is preferred. (Please use “cojob” in the subject line.) This position will remain open until filled.
The Fetzer Institute is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
We encourage applications from individuals representing diverse backgrounds.
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