Associate Executive Director

Title: Associate Executive Director

Location: REMOTE

Job Description:

$116,500 Annually

Empower the Next Generation to End Factory Farming

What would it mean to dedicate your time, talent, and energy to creating a more just and sustainable food system?

New Roots Institute is a growing nonprofit dedicated to ending factory farming by empowering the next generation of advocates. Our fellowship programs train students to lead real-world campaigns that create structural and behavioral change in their communities. 

We’re seeking a passionate and experienced Associate Executive Director to join our team and help us deepen our impact. 

About This Role

You’ll begin as Associate Executive Director and step into the Executive Director role, with timing based on readiness and organizational need. 

The Executive Director holds ultimate responsibility for the overall success and sustainability of New Roots Institute. They are the public face of New Roots and our lead relationship-builder with donors, the board, and the broader movement to end factory farming. In addition, they serve as a thought partner and supervisor to the Managing Director, who is accountable for New Roots Institute’s org-level strategy and culture.

New Roots runs on a distributed decision-making model. Inside the organization, your impact comes from the trust you build and the feedback you give. This role is built for a leader who is comfortable influencing through conversations rather than direct decision-making authority. 

Is New Roots Institute the right place for you? Here’s what you should know:

• Ending factory farming is not merely our employment. We prioritize our lives around it and are looking for people who bring that same commitment, along with the self-awareness and discipline to sustain it.

• We continuously question our own biases and assumptions and adapt when we recognize we’re wrong. We’re looking for people who can see their ego and know how to put it aside to achieve shared goals.

• We're results-oriented, strive for excellence, and are looking for people who can say they never miss deadlines.

• Giving and receiving honest and direct feedback is foundational to our culture and a performance requirement for all of us. We're looking for people who are eager to use constructive feedback to grow and help others to grow, both personally and professionally.

• Because we work remotely, proactive communication and quick responses are key to building trust and working effectively together. We’re looking for people who excel at keeping everyone updated. If you don’t always respond within a few hours, New Roots won’t be the place for you. 

• We genuinely enjoy working together and look for ways to have fun, despite the tragic nature of what we are up against.

How You’ll Make an Impact

• Lead as the primary representative for New Roots by speaking at major conferences, shaping industry events, and representing the organization in coalition spaces.

• Function as the primary landing point for incoming partner referrals while maintaining strong, lasting relationships across the ecosystem, including with our fellows and alumni.

• Serve as lead fundraiser with sole accountability for securing six- and seven-figure gifts, driving the philanthropic growth needed to sustain and expand our $4M+ annual operation.

• Partner with the development team to oversee revenue forecasting, prospect tracking, and the stewardship systems that support long-term funder engagement.

• Act as a strategic thought partner to the Managing Director and senior management, with a crucial role in shaping organizational strategy.

• Communicate our strategy to our stakeholders with clarity and conviction.

• Adapt to what the organization needs by guiding it through turnover and transitions, managing legal matters and outside counsel relationships, and personally filling gaps beyond your core specialty.

• Maintain a current read on the broader ecosystem to keep our staff and fellows informed.

• Cultivate trusted relationships with individual board members and own the cadence and quality of board meetings.

What We’re Looking For

Required Skills & Experience

• Proven commitment to cultivating the next generation, with demonstrated expertise in youth leadership development.

• Deep fluency in the movement to end factory farming, comprehensive knowledge of its interventions and funding landscape, as well as familiarity with effective altruism.

• Unwavering executive accountability, maintaining ultimate ownership for organizational outcomes. 

• Recognized strategic authority and credibility across the broader sector.

• Demonstrated leadership shaping organizational culture, exercising courageous decision-making, and translating opportunities into high-impact, completed initiatives.

• Ability to champion the organization’s mission through compelling public speaking and an active online thought leadership presence.

• Skilled in employing genuine empathy to build durable relationships across a spectrum of worldviews.

• Demonstrated expertise in philanthropic leadership, personally cultivating and stewarding high-value donor and funder relationships to drive long-term organizational stability. 

Other Requirements

• Ability to travel one to two times per month or more frequently for conferences, donor events, and coalition meetings.

• Willingness to work unconventional hours whenever the role requires it, including around conferences and events.

• Shared vegan and anti-speciesist values. No one on our team consumes animals or animal products or believes that non-human animals can ethically be treated as resources for human use.

• Ability to commit to attending the annual in-person team meeting, which typically takes place during the first full week of June.

Compensation and Benefits 

This is a full-time, remote position with a salary of $116,500 per year (for both Associate and Executive Director roles), plus a comprehensive benefits package, including health, dental, and vision insurance, and unlimited PTO. 

Please note, we have a no-negotiation salary policy to ensure transparency and equity across the team.

Also note, the compensation and benefits information provided in this posting is specific to candidates residing in the United States. For candidates located in other North American countries (e.g., Canada and Mexico), compensation and benefits will be adjusted in accordance with local regulations, currency, and market standards, and may differ from the figures stated herein.