Chief Executive Officer Berkshire Family YMCA

Berkshire Family YMCA

Job Description

The Opportunity: 

This is an amazing opportunity for a proven and experienced professional to take their next leadership step to lead a $4.8M strong YMCA in a great community. As the next Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Berkshire Family YMCA, you have the incredible opportunity to lead a strong organization dedicated to improving the lives of individuals and communities. With a rich history of serving the Berkshire area, the YMCA holds a special place in the hearts of its members and the broader community. 

As the leader, you will have the chance to drive strategic initiatives, cultivate strong relationships with community partners, and champion a vision of inclusivity, health, and empowerment. Your leadership will have a direct and lasting impact on the lives of children, families, and individuals from all walks of life, fostering a sense of belonging, building resilience, and promoting healthy living. 

About the YMCA: 

Since 1886, the Berkshire Family YMCA has put values-oriented principles into practice to strengthen our community. We work tirelessly to meet the health, fitness and social challenges of area residents while focusing particular attention on at-risk children and families. The Y’s service area now reaches all Berkshire County and beyond.  Every day the Y works side-by-side with our neighbors to make sure that everyone, regardless of age, income or background, feels welcome and can be a part of the Y.  In addition to health and wellness, aquatics and fitness, the Y is the region’s largest nonprofit provider of high-quality full-day, year-round early child care and preschool. Together we work to nurture the potential of children and teens, improve our community’s health and well-being, and give back and support our neighbors. 

Today, the Berkshire Family YMCA plays an essential role in the lives of more than 131,000+ residents of Berkshire County. For over a century, the Y has provided high-quality programs, services and activities for children, families, adults, seniors and persons with special needs. As our population and demands have changed, the Y has responded accordingly, expanding to meet new and ongoing needs efficiently and effectively.  

Our Mission: 

To put Caring, Honesty, Respect and Responsibility into programs that build healthy spirit, mind, and body for all.

Our Vision: 

The Y’s commitment is developing new generations of changemakers who will create communities we all want to live in. We envision communities where all people achieve health, gain confidence, make connections, and feel secure at every stage of life.

Our Purpose:

The Y is the leading nonprofit committed to strengthening community by connecting all people to their potential, purpose and each other. Working locally, we focus on empowering young people, improving health and well-being, and inspiring action in and across communities. By bringing together people from different backgrounds, perspectives and generations, we ensure that we all have access to the opportunities, relationships and resources necessary to learn, grow, and thrive.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement: 

The Y is a diverse organization of people joined together by a shared commitment to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to learn, grow, and thrive. Cause-driven YMCAs are led by staff and volunteers who intentionally and continuously strive to promote an inclusive organizational culture that values all dimensions of diversity, strengthens inclusion, and builds global community in the U.S. and abroad. By prioritizing diversity, inclusion, and global work, we seek to ensure that all segments of society have access to the Y and feel welcome and are fully engaged as participants, members, staff, and volunteers. The Y is a force for building bridges among all people to advance our cause of strengthening community.

Current Key Strategic Initiatives: 

  • Collaboration: Establish partnerships and collaborations that will support the communities we serve
  • DEI: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in all that we do
  • Facility Development: to ensure our facilities fit the needs of the communities we serve
  • Investment in our Staff
Membership: 

  • Total Number of Members:5661 members/3495 units
  • Total Number of Membership Units:
    • % Youth: 21%
    • % Teen 14%
    • % Adults 65%
    • % Household 25% of the units are household members
Branch and Childcare Site Information:

  • Pittsfield Branch, Pittsfield, MA
    • Basement, 1st, and 2nd floors:
      • Owner: Berkshire Family YMCA Support Corporation
      • Manager: Berkshire Family YMCA
    • 3rd and 4th floors:
      • Residents:
        • Owner: Berkshire Family YMCA Support Corporation
        • Manager: Berkshire Housing
  • Northern Berkshire Branch, North Adams, MA
  • Bennington Recreation Center Branch, Bennington, VT
    • Owner: Town of Bennington
    • Program and Operations: Berkshire Family YMCA
  • Bennington Sports Center
    • Owner: Vermont Voltage, Bojan Vuchovic
      • Program Manager: Berkshire Family YMCA
  • Day Camps:
    • Pittsfield: Located at Berkshire Community College- Paterson Field House
    • North Adams: Located at Windsor Lake (City owned)
    • Bennington: Located at the Recreation Center and Sports Center

Core Programs: 

  • Licensed Childcare and School-Age programs
  • Swim, Sports & Play
  • Summer Day Camp
  • Family Time
  • Health, Well-Being, and Fitness
  • Sports and Recreation
  • Family Reunification (Supervised Visitation Program)
  • Residents Program (Managed by Berkshire Housing)
    • 44 Low Income Studio Apartments

Annual Support Campaign: 

  • Prior Year’s Total: $48,649
  • Current Year’s Goal: $53,150
  • Total number of people receiving financial assistance prior year: 550

Capital Campaign(s): 

  • Recent Pittsfield Branch $12.4M Capital Campaign completed in May, 2023.

Staff: 

  • Full Time: 37
  • Part Time: 144
  • Seasonal: 20

CEO Direct Reports: 

  • CFO
  • Operations Director
  • Facilities Director
  • Mission Advancement Director
  • Pittsfield Branch Director

Board of Directors: 

  • Number of Governing Board Members: 16
  • Committees:
    • Governance Committee
    • Facilities Committee
    • Finance Committee
    • Northern Berkshire Committee
    • Golf Tournament Committee

Financial: 

  • Current Annual Budget Size: $5.3M
  • Current Debt: $2.47M
  • Current Endowment: $533,458
  • 3-year annual surplus/deficit:
    • Last year: $1.349M
    • Previous year: $4.409M
    • Previous year: $1.042M

Residency Expectation: Living in the YMCA’s service area is preferred within reasonable drive time to the Y’s service area. The CEO is expected to be engaged in the communities served by the Y.


Criteria for candidates: 

  1. Accredited 4-year college degree and or equivalent work experience.
  2. Must demonstrate excellent written and verbal communication skills and personal values consistent with the YMCA mission.
  3. Minimum five years prior experience in a senior management role with a YMCA or related experience at a comparable organization with direct supervision of multiple levels of staff and employees.
  4. Fiscally sound business management approach with a proven history of budgetary and fiscal management in excess of $2.5M or more annually.

What the Y is Looking For in their Next CEO: 

The Y is seeking an innovative, strategic, and community-minded individual to serve as its next CEO. He or she will build trust and extend the breadth and depth of the Y’s reach across our service area. The CEO will lead collaborative efforts to grow and maintain productive working relationships in the community that enhances our reputation and furthers our mission and impact. One of the important roles of the CEO is to ensure the safety and well-being of young people. It’s foundational to everything we do as a youth-serving organization. The CEO creates a culture of safety for everyone by exceeding standards and maintaining compliance.

The board believes its new CEO should be an experienced leader who has the background and qualities that will permit him or her to achieve excellence in the following roles: 

  • Develop and Implement a Strategic Plan: Work effectively with volunteers, community leaders, and key staff, to create and develop a strategic plan that addresses the needs of the communities served by the Y and includes defined organizational strategies, a clear implementation plan with deliverables, and measurable goals. Key competencies: Change Leadership, Communication & Influence, Critical Thinking & Decision Making, Program/Project Management
  • Improve Operating Performance: Engage the board and appropriate staff to develop an annual tactical plan for identifying and achieving key goals and objectives towards operating with safe, relevant, and sustainable practices. Quickly address issues that may arise, forecast future needs, and manage and direct the Y’s operations and activities. Key competencies: Developing Self & Others, Critical Thinking & Decision Making, Innovation
  • Fiscal Management: Use high-level financial analysis to forecast financial trends, growth, and stability, while consistently leading organization to balance or surplus operations by growing earned revenue and contributions and controlling costs. Empower and guide staff leaders to lead their departments to successful financial operation. Develop and implement stewardship strategies. Key competencies: Fiscal Management, Critical Thinking & Decision Making, Developing Self & Others, Philanthropy 
  • Position the Y as a Vital Partner for Community Change: Serve as an ambassador for the mission, purpose, and vision for the YMCA within the community. Possess the ability to develop and cultivate relationships with key stakeholders from diverse backgrounds, while always upholding the highest standards and values of the Y. Ensure your Y is seen as a leading nonprofit committed to strengthening community by connecting all people to their potential, purpose, and each other. Key competencies: Communication & Influence, Engaging Community, Collaboration 
  • Steward Fundraising Efforts: Develop and implement an annual fundraising plan that will establish the YMCA as a leading nonprofit organization within the community through the engagement of members, volunteers, staff, and donors. Identify the need for successful capital fundraising, while taking the organization to a new level of effectiveness and impact in annual giving and endowment. Key competencies: Philanthropy, Engaging Community, Communication & Influence
  • Build and Lead Staff: Ensure a talent development system is in place for staff. Hire, motivate, nurture, retain, and hold staff accountable for key objectives. Work towards recruiting, retaining, developing, and promoting staff that represent the diversity of the communities you serve. Encourage the team by creating a spirit of camaraderie, inclusion, and sense of mission and purpose. Create a learning organization to help staff achieve their highest potential. Key competencies: Developing Self & Others, Inclusion, Emotional Maturity, Change Leadership

Salary Range: $135,000 to $160,000

Benefits:  

  • YMCA Retirement: 8% by the Y once eligibility is met
  • 403B Savings Account
  • Medical, Dental (70% by the Y, 30% by employee)
  • PTO: 11 paid holidays, paid vacation based on tenure up to 25 days
  • Other benefits per personnel policy.

Search Process Target Dates: 

  • Resumes accepted through: February 12, Noon, CST 
  • Preliminary interviews scheduled: Afternoon of March 19 and Morning of March 20
  • In-person interviews: April 10 and 11 (full days)
  • CEO selection made: Week of April 15 or before
  • New CEO on board (anticipated): June 1 or earlier

References, Background Check, and Organizational Leader Certification: 

Candidates must submit the following in their online application: a resume, cover letter, and six references (four professional and two personal). References checked on final candidates only with prior notification. Successful candidate accepting the offer must pass a background check and must have a current Y-USA’s Organizational Leader Certification or obtain certification within the first three years from start date as the CEO.

Candidates must apply via the following website: http://tinyurl.com/berkshire-family-ymca-ceo

Questions about the CEO Search Process?

Contact Richard Clegg, CEO Search Senior Consultant, YMCA of the USA, richard.clegg@ymca.net

Questions about the Berkshire Family YMCA?

Contact Kate-Marie Roycroft, CEO, Alliance of Massachusetts YMCAs, Kate-Marie.Roycroft@maymca.com