Director of Service

Established in 1985, American Jewish World Service (AJWS) is an international development organization motivated by Judaism's imperative to pursue justice. AJWS is dedicated to alleviating poverty, hunger and disease among the people of the developing world regardless of race, religion or nationality. Through grants to grassroots organizations, volunteer service, advocacy and education, AJWS fosters civil society, sustainable development and human rights for all people, while promoting the values and responsibilities of global citizenship within the Jewish community.

AJWS funds over 350 grassroots projects in 37 countries annually. The agency provides financial and technical assistance to organizations that: design and implement projects that creatively and effectively address HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment; promote access to healthcare and education; advance environmentally sound agriculture and food security; empower women and build their leadership capacities; strengthen human rights and civil society; promote economic development; and provide emergency relief and reconstruction when disaster occurs. Last year, AJWS distributed $13.6 million in support of grassroots organizations working on the front lines for economic empowerment, environmental sustainability, health education, women's rights and human rights – including $1.2 million for humanitarian relief, shelter, medical care and education for Darfur refugees.

Service

AJWS is positioned among the largest and most deeply engaged Jewish international volunteer service organizations with more than 500 student and adult volunteers annually laying the bricks for social change. The AJWS Service Department develops meaningful volunteer work assignments and service learning opportunities for individuals and groups through placements in Latin America, Africa and Asia in conjunction with grassroots partner organizations. Participants in AJWS service programs – Volunteer Corps, World Partners Fellowship, Volunteer Summer, Alternative Breaks and Rabbinic Student Delegations – work side-by-side with grantees, some contributing their sweat and labor, and others sharing their expertise and professional skills in order to create a more just and sustainable world. For AJWS, service is also about building the next generation of Jewish global citizens, and today more than 2000 alumni are increasingly seeding the leadership of social justice organizations in the United States and overseas. In addition, through a variety of alumni programs and initiatives, AJWS fosters a cadre of deeply committed social activists with a profound understanding of international social justice issues who work as advocates within the Jewish and secular communities.

With an operating budget of $32 million, AJWS is headquartered in New York, with offices in San Francisco and Washington DC. The Service Department has a staff of 24 in three major areas: Group, Individual and Alumni Services programs.

Basic Function

The Director will provide the overall leadership, direction and strategy for AJWS' volunteer service units, overseeing the Associate Directors of Group, Individual and Alumni programs and managing the department's day-to day operations and activities. Concurrently, the Director will serve as an external presence and spokesperson, representing and promoting AJWS volunteer service programs at appropriate meetings with other organizations, foundations and donors, and articulating the organization's mission, purpose and programs in the growing field of Jewish service.

Possessing strong management and program development experience, the Director will report to the Vice President for Programs. In consultation not only with the Vice President and others, but specifically with Associate Directors of Service, this person will create plans and strategies to ensure that the Service department strengthens volunteer efforts and maximizes service opportunities. This includes creating long-term plans that will continue to build on the established level of quality and ensure the safety and security of volunteers. The Director will also work to ensure smooth collaboration within and between the Service unit and other departments of AJWS.

The Director will build on the ongoing work being done by the Associate Directors and work collaboratively with the staffs of each unit. This person will bring together the talents and resources necessary to ensure that volunteer services are flexible, well managed and responsive to critical opportunities and changing circumstances and that volunteer service programs have a positive impact on the organizations and the countries that host volunteers. Most important, the Director will continue to build on AJWS' ability to engage AJWS alumni and other volunteers and the broader Jewish community in the world of social justice, humanitarian assistance and Jewish service globally.

Priorities and Ongoing Responsibilities

The Director of Service will:

• Know and understand AJWS – its philosophy, mission, culture and approach to programming and service delivery; deeply understand the content, constituents and multilayered work of the agency;
• Articulate and execute a strategy that will bring AJWS' service delivery to scale; ensure a level of responsible growth while balancing resources (financial and human) with the demand for volunteer programs in the Jewish community;
• Manage, mentor and empower the Associate Directors and their teams; ensure that staffing levels and specific functions are in place and appropriate to meet AJWS' goals and objectives; hire when appropriate and build a collaborative team that inspires confidence, respect and enthusiasm across AJWS and among constituent organizations;
• Promote and provide increased visibility for AJWS; expand relationships with colleagues in the Jewish world and field of international development; serve as a forceful and compelling representative of the Service unit across the organization and externally with the North American Jewish community;
• Work closely with the Director of Grants to determine when AJWS' project partners can use adult volunteers and/or can accept groups; become familiar with AJWS' grants making strategy and ensure that project partners dealing with both departments are handled seamlessly;
• Work closely with the Director of Education to ensure quality education materials designed and evaluated for their effectiveness in service programs and/or alumni;
• Work closely with the Director of Advocacy to maximize the involvement of service program alumni in AJWS' advocacy and organizing efforts;
• Maintain a high level of collaboration and open lines of communication with the Development and Communications department; identify opportunities to partner on donor related activities, ensuring that donor and other philanthropic interests don't outpace the Service unit's ability to deliver safe, secure, efficient and well managed volunteer initiatives;
• With the Vice President for Programs and the Vice President for Finance and Administration who oversees AJWS' Safety and Security program, monitor and address emergency situations as they arise and make specific recommendations regarding AJWS' emergency response;
• With the Vice President for Programs and the Associate Directors, develop guidelines, monitor and evaluate the impact that various service programs have on participants and the communities where they are serving; develop and implement appropriate standards, policies and systems for the effective management and delivery of AJWS services;
• Support the service committee of the AJWS Board of Trustees for program oversight, strategic planning and policy consideration;
• Oversee and manage the Service unit's budget and financial planning efforts;
• Adopt a proactive customer–oriented service mentality across all units; listen to, acknowledge and respect volunteers and alumni; champion their commitment and accomplishments.

Ideal Experience

The Director of Service will have experience that reflects the mission, constituency and purpose of AJWS and will also have:

• A level of success as a senior manager with significant staff responsibility, ideally in a complex environment that embraces community organizing, social justice, experiential learning, Jewish communal engagement and the like;
• Credibility as having successfully established and implemented strategies that include volunteers and/or partners externally while providing leadership, training, motivation and support internally; professional or volunteer experience in the developing world preferred;
• An interest in or vision for the role of service in advancing the mission of AJWS; direct experience with service programs preferred coupled with field experience with service programs;
• Proven ability to foster relationships and have credibility with the family foundations that support AJWS as well as other philanthropies, organizations and individuals within and outside of the Jewish community; a comfort level with personally interacting with volunteers and funders and cultivating relationships that are important to the agency's mission;
• A record of success as a hands-on manager of integrated financial, administrative and management information;
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, including excellent public speaking skills for formal and extemporaneous presentations in order to represent AJWS to a broad public.

Personal Characteristics

A successful candidate will be:

• Able to balance long-term planning and program development with flexibility and exploration of new opportunities;
• A strategic thinker with a razor sharp lens focused on the work of the Services unit;
• Confident and competent, with an understanding of the subtleties of motivating and directing a diverse group of personalities with different work styles; able to juggle multiple priorities, make decisions and delegate responsibilities;
• Intelligent and persuasive with the ability to conceptualize, express ideas, and anticipate and act on events that may create opportunities; a listener and evaluator with the good judgment to make realistic and clear-cut decisions; a creative problem solver and skilled negotiator;
• A "doer" who works hands-on in developing and executing a variety of activities ranging from the internal day-to-day to the highly creative, external and visible; a seasoned professional who is organized, strategic, financially aware and politically astute with the wisdom to develop and maintain on all fronts a sense of team spirit and common purpose;
• An individual with outstanding human qualities; one who is straightforward and shares information easily, who can build consensus and effect change; able to impart credibility, trust, enthusiasm and integrity, and motivate others in a similar vein;
• Highly organized and pragmatic, unflappable in an emergency yet passionate before an audience; a hard worker with a high energy level who is willing to travel as appropriate;
• Emotionally mature and self confident, with a good sense of humor.

Please send applications or nominations to:

Mark Tarnacki
Phillips Oppenheim
521 Fifth Avenue, 29th Floor
New York, NY 10175
AJWS-Service@PhillipsOppenheim.com

We thank you for your interest in career opportunities with AJWS. Due to high volume, only those candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.

AJWS is an equal opportunity employer and provides competitive salaries and benefits.

 

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