Executive Search, North Hartford Partnership

Opportunity

The North Hartford Partnership (NHP) seeks an entrepreneurial leader to bring together and inspire residents and institutions around shared, data-driven strategies to close health, housing and economic opportunity gaps across North Hartford. The inaugural Executive Director of this newly independent nonprofit will use a collective impact approach centered on resident participation and data driven improvement strategies to advance economic mobility and outcomes for North Hartford residents. The Executive Director will lead the NHP to the next level at a moment of dynamic and exciting change for the community. The Executive Director will steward existing projects including:

• The operations of the Swift Factory, an economic development and health promotion hub developed by Community Solutions and the NHP that opened in 2020 in the heart of the community.
• A range of housing stabilization and physical development initiatives including the North Hartford Housing Trust.
• Facilitation of collective, resident-led improvements to closing health equity and opportunity gaps between North Hartford and the surrounding region.
• Support of key partner-led initiatives to improve cradle to career opportunities for neighborhood children, and a bold effort to eliminate “inflow” into homelessness from North Hartford that serves as a national model.

Organization
The North Hartford Partnership is a nonprofit organization working with the community to advance equitable social and economic development in the North Hartford Promise Zone (NHPZ) in Hartford, Connecticut. Working with residents, local partners and the NHP Board, the Executive Director will be accountable for achieving measurable, population level goals through collective action.

Launched as a project of Community Solutions International in 2010, the North Hartford Partnership became a separate, affiliated not for profit in 2022. The Executive Director will oversee an initial staff of four, an annual operating budget of approximately $1 million, management of the 85,000 square foot campus of the Swift Factory, and operation of the North Hartford Housing Trust (NHHT), a separate legal entity supported by the NHP. Responsible for convening partners and stakeholders to advance collective priorities, the Executive Director will report to the NHP Board of Directors.

North Hartford is a 3.11 square mile area home to nearly 24,000 residents, a neighborhood rich in assets and home to an active community of West Indian/Caribbean immigrants, African Americans, and Latinos. Over the years, economic conditions have compounded with the effects of decades of racially biased policies and disinvestment leading to housing instability, poor health outcomes and decreased average life expectancy. Housing stability is an urgent concern, with an estimated >20% of homelessness in the region originating from North Hartford alone and eviction rates also among the highest in the region.

Priorities

The successful candidate will embrace and lead a community-organizing ethos that puts residents in the driver's seat of identifying and implementing solutions to shared problems and opportunities, and help identify faltering public systems to increase their efficacy for residents through collaborative action. The Executive Director will lead and inspire staff, volunteers and partners to collaborate, learn, and propel systemic change in population level health, safety and economic prosperity, with a particular focus on community outcomes for housing stability and job creation. They will identify, partner with and support organizations in the neighborhood that share the values of resident leadership and collective action and a steadfast commitment to achieving racial justice.

The Executive Director will create and respond to feedback loops to assess and advance progress towards measurable, time-bound, neighborhood improvement goals; look past commonly accepted system flaws and find new opportunities to leapfrog the neighborhood to new heights and collaborate with partners and residents to develop common tools and resources to expedite design, adoption and scaling up of collective neighborhood initiatives.

Strategic Leadership

• Inspire a team of staff, community residents, organizational members and partners to advance the shared goal of economic mobility for North Hartford residents, addressing key barriers to health, safety and economic opportunity.
• Ensure accountability in achieving the shared goal for measurable, population-level results, honoring commitments to residents, provider partners and funders.
• Learn from past experiences and successes in North Hartford and other neighborhoods and apply these learnings to current endeavors.
• Participate in national learning networks to accelerate progress and support national place-based policies.
• Foster linkages across sectors and disciplines, particularly between health, housing and economic development, to achieve and sustain community-level goals.
• Liaise with Community Solutions’ leadership and contribute to organizational and neighborhood learning on scaling and impact.

Community Engagement and Leadership

• Oversee a community organizing strategy that empowers residents to identify and implement solutions to shared problems and opportunities.
• Establish and maintain a deep network of relationships, fostering trust and transparency with key community stakeholders, elected officials, funders and partners.
• Foster the growth and development of residents as leaders and create multiple pathways for participation.
• Develop and deliver training in the technical and governance skills required to support the North Hartford Housing Trust (NHHT) and other initiatives.
• Oversee communications of the NHP including active engagement of the community in setting goals and identifying challenges and opportunities.
• Ensure the organization and its mission and activities are consistently presented.

Community Hub and Organizational Operations

• Ensure that the vision of the Swift Factory and the NHHT is fulfilled while financial, programmatic and operational goals are met.
• Work closely with the NHP Property Manager to establish and manage programming at the Swift Factory that activates resident connection, learning, creativity and enterprise.

Managing and Evaluating Programs

• Develop strong measurement tools and transparently track performance on key indicators of overall progress toward shared neighborhood goals.
• Create opportunities for community members to collect and use data about their neighborhood to initiate projects for improvement.
• Support efforts to improve, maintain, and activate neglected and vacant spaces to improve housing options and public spaces.

Fundraising and Financial Management

• Cultivate and manage relationships with foundations and corporations and diversify revenue sources.
• Using new and existing organizational relationships, secure both philanthropic and earned revenue of at least $1.5 million per year with Community Solutions’ support.
• In partnership with team members, lead annual planning and budgeting and financial management, including oversight of the audit process with Community Solutions’ fiscal sponsorship support.
• Support fundraising, financing, and development of critical projects that contribute to achieving the Partnership’s aims.

Board Management and Development

• Serve as a member of the NHP Board of Directors and be accountable to the Board.
• Create a high trust relationship that facilitates strong governance and stewardship of the mission.
• Lead board meetings to update and work in partnership with Board leadership.
• Board recruitment to broaden the diversity of representation.
• Manage budget and make recommendations to the Board to ensure sound financial management.

The North Hartford Partnership is seeking a proven, entrepreneurial leader with at least 10 years of experience in community development, real estate - management, development and/or financing, public space stewardship, public services delivery, arts management, or a related field.

The NHP promotes equal opportunity in the recruitment, selection, training, compensation, promotion, and benefits of all employees. If you meet many of the qualifications listed, the NHP encourages you to apply.

• Demonstrated results working with and leading teams to achieve common goals
• Passion for the mission, vision and values of the North Hartford Partnership
• Demonstrated commitment to equity and inclusion, including in the power of policy and practice to tackle structural racism; experience working with Black or Latinx majority neighborhoods is desired
• Adept at observing, searching, learning, identifying solutions and scaling innovations
• Practical experience with financial management including managing budgets, and generating revenues
• Proven fundraising experience, especially with government and philanthropic sources
• A track record of working effectively with colleagues both inside and outside their organization; reputation for building strong professional networks and the flexibility and finesse to manage by influence
• Achieved results as a problem-solver using data to drive insights and decision-making; demonstrated ability to track progress against targets
• Able to connect big picture with granular details, serving simultaneously as a leader and in the trenches
• Strategic thinking, decision-making skills, strong analytical capabilities, and stakeholder-oriented mindset
• Effective written and verbal communication skills, both internally and externally
• A bachelor’s degree in a related field is preferred
• Proficiency with word processing and spreadsheets required. The NHP currently uses the following technologies with back office support provided through Community Solutions: Google Suite Platform, Zoom Video Conferencing, Salesforce CRM, and Asana.

In addition to the above qualifications, key attributes include: 

• Motivated and inspired by working across sectors and disciplines
• High energy, maturity, and leadership skills with the ability to serve as a unifying force
• Brings a spirit of celebration and a sense of humor to work every day
• Creative and tenacious in working to push the boundaries of what is possible
• Humility, flexibility and the ability to lead a small team

How to Apply

Interested candidates can submit materials via the link at the top right of this page.  Electronic submissions sent through this link are preferred. All submissions receive acknowledgment and are confidential within the search committee and TSNE.

Candidates should include a resume and a cover letter that describes how their qualifications and experience match the needs and mission of the NHP, along with salary expectations and how they learned of the position. The position will remain open and applications accepted until the right candidate is identified.

The Executive Director position is full time and based at the Swift Factory in the Northeast neighborhood of Hartford with some flexibility to work remotely. The NHP offers a generous health and wellness package including health/dental/vision insurance, life insurance, retirement plan, educational assistance, new parent leave, and paid/unpaid leave time. Occasional travel within the US to participate in conferences and travel within the region is required. Salary is commensurate with relevant experience, within the framework of the organization’s annual operating budget, and in the approximate range of $115,000-140,000.

COVID-19 vaccination is mandatory for all North Hartford Partnership staff—full-time, part-time, and contracted. Vaccination documentation must be provided. Vaccination information is completely confidential between the employee and the Human Resources department of Community Solutions.

The North Hartford Partnership is an Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/Disability/Vet. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. VEVRAA Federal Contractor.