Job Posting: Executive Director

The All Kind Animal Initiative seeks a dynamic Executive Director with a diverse leadership skill set, a passion for animals, and the ability to drive results—additional qualifications and details are listed below.

Who Are We?

All Kind Animal Initiative is a non-profit organization established in 2021 in Abilene, Texas, whose mission is to improve animal welfare in our community. All Kind began managing the City of Abilene Animal Shelter in January 2023.

At All Kind, we believe…

• Every pet deserves an excellent quality of life in a loving home.
• Education for ALL on responsible pet ownership.
• Providing resources to increase pet retention and accountability, including accessible spay/neuter options, vaccination, public adoption events, robust foster programs, microchipping clinics, TNR (Trap, Neuter, Release) cat programs, and more.
• Raising awareness of the factors that create the overpopulation of homeless pets.

Where Are We Going?

After conducting a robust capital campaign, we are excited to announce the planned opening of a state-of-the-art animal welfare facility by the end of 2024. In addition to having a new animal shelter facility, we want to reduce the number of dogs and cats that end up in the shelter by continuing to increase both the number of shelter pets and our community as a whole who are spayed/neutered. We meet this objective by working with local vets to improve the voucher program, conducting on-site services, and offering spay/neuter clinic days to the public.

We want to improve overall pet retention in our community so that pets who have homes stay in those homes rather than end up in the shelter. For 23-24 we are striving to reduce our community’s number of owner surrenders, increase owner reclaims, and increase adoptions over our 22-23 numbers.

In some circumstances, an animal does not have a positive quality of life, and euthanasia may be the only humane option. We understand this reality. However, we aim to increase our yearly average percentage to as close as possible to no-kill animal status (90%), so we do not have to euthanize an animal for space or a treatable medical condition.

Community outreach is essential to our mission, whether providing resources to help families get through financially tight spots, expanding the foster program to make better matches, education to help families work through pet behavioral problems, or offering microchip clinics to the public. Our goal is to increase our overall public education events when we are in our new shelter facility, in 24-25. make sure lost pets can be reunited with their owners.

Who is Our Ideal Candidate?

We are seeking an Executive Director who will help us execute our vision for the future of the All-Kind Abilene Animal Shelter while playing a critical role in helping us achieve our quantifiable goals. Our ideal candidate will bring hustle, urgency, a professional attitude, and a willingness to innovate.

The Executive Director must thrive in a performance-minded culture that acts in support of the Organization’s Mission responsibly and sustainably. The position requires active involvement in the sheltering community and maintaining knowledge and understanding of industry trends and best practices while applying high-performing business practices to ensure the organization delivers to all of its constituents: animals, staff, volunteers, and the community. Our ideal candidate will feel comfortable engaging local government representatives, the media, and businesses to inform and educate the community about relevant issues while promoting the mission of All Kind.

The Executive Director must be a relationship builder and decisive business leader to carry forward a fiscally and operationally strong organization, build its visibility, and raise unrestricted funds, resulting in continued growth. This person should demonstrate a balance between creative thinking and management understanding and the ability to assess and maintain policies and procedures for moving an organization to a new level of excellence. A sense of business principles applied to a nonprofit enterprise, including a background in good budget management, is necessary.

Location: The office is at 834 N. 3rd St., and shelter oversight is at 925 S. 25th St. (soon to be at the PARC off South 11th St). There are approximately 29 shelter staff (both full and part-time, excluding Animal Control Officers who report to the City of Abilene) and an All-Kind administrative assistant. The applicant must be willing to relocate and reside a minimum of 30 miles from Abilene, Texas.

Compensation: This is an executive-level position. The salary is negotiable based on experience. There are additional performance-based pay incentives available for meeting the organizational objectives. A relocation allowance based on geographic area is available if needed. Position reports to the All Kind Board of Directors.

Full-Time Benefits include: Health insurance, PTO, life insurance, 401K plan.

To learn more about Abilene, Texas, please visit https://www.abilenevisitors.com/ or https://www.abilenechamber.com/.

Interested applicants, please read the entire job description below and send a resume, cover letter, and three professional references to Christine Curtis-Carr, ED Search Chair, All Kind Animal Initiative, at christine@allkindabilene.org

General Position Overview:

• Must be passionate about animal welfare.
• Strong organizational, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• Highly motivated self-starter with excellent time management abilities.
• Proficient in building strategic partnerships and relationships.
• Exceptional written and oral communication skills.
• Experience in financial management and budgeting.
• Oversees marketing, publicity, and media relations.
• Supervises and fosters a top-quality team, currently 29 full and part-time staff members, including a full-time facilities/operations manager.
• Ensures compliance with laws and regulations.
• Responsible for general facility oversight, leadership staff management and maintenance needs are being handled.

Important and Essential Duties:

• Ensures humane treatment and quality care for animals.
• Maintains positive public relations and upholds organizational policies. Reviews and improves policies as needed.
• Develops, improves, and implements community engagement programs.
• Collaborate with the leadership team to set and achieve goals.
• Identify and address ineffective systems and departments.
• Manages organizational budget and compiles monthly reports, including grant reporting and evaluations needed to maintain grant-funded programs.
• Plans and oversees fundraising strategies, events, and engages board members and other constituents in fundraising efforts, including grant writing and reporting.
• Ability to delegate effectively and provide clear communication to staff, board members, donors, and other stakeholders.
• Must be able to make critical decisions, display flexibility, and handle pressure.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Leadership qualities to build and strengthen teams. A history of formal (workshops, training, or post-secondary educational coursework) and informal leadership training preferred (books, or personal development).
• Knowledge of animal health and welfare practices.
• Proficiency in fundraising, grant writing, and donor relationships.
• Working knowledge of Google documents platform.
• Basic knowledge of effective marketing strategies, and social media platforms.
• Operate office equipment and pet management software (training provided on pet management if needed).
• Recognize and address employee burnout and compassion fatigue.

Working Conditions:

• Exposure to various animals and zoonotic diseases.
• Physical skills required for lifting, maneuvering, and restraining animals (as needed).
• Ability to work in challenging environmental conditions.
• Involvement in weekend, night, and holiday work.
• Read more about our new facility, opening end of 2024! www.allkindabilene.org

Nature of Employment:

• Reports to the Board of Directors and has decision-making authority.
• Exempt position requiring at least 40 hours per week.
• Performance bonuses based on growth of animal care statistics and fundraising goals.
• Employment is at-will, subject to termination by either party at any time.

Interested applicants, Please email your resume, cover letter, and three professional references to Christine Curtis-Carr, Executive Director Search Committee Chair, All Kind Animal Initiative, at .

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $80,637.00 - $89,376.00 per year

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Relocation assistance

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday
• On call
• Weekends as needed

People with a criminal record are encouraged to apply

Ability to Relocate:

• Abilene, TX 79601: Relocate before starting work (Required)

Work Location: In person