Chief of Staff

POSITION OVERVIEW

The Chief of Staff (COS) serves as a trusted advisor and partner to our Chief Executive Officer (CEO), driving strategy, managing special projects, and advancing critical cross-organizational priorities. This highly visible role supports the CEO in fostering a culture of inclusion, diversity, equity, and belonging, while ensuring the organization’s mission, goals, and initiatives are aligned.

Reporting directly to the CEO, the COS oversees the executive office, facilitates effective engagement with the Board of Directors, and collaborates across departments to streamline processes and promote strategic alignment. The COS is also responsible for internal communications, helping to ensure all staff feel connected to the organization’s vision and values.

This full-time position involves extended hours, including mornings, evenings, and weekends during key organizational moments. While primarily remote, the COS will travel regularly for meetings, events, and labs.

Top priorities include but are not limited to…

Strategy and Execution

• Partnering with the CEO and executive leadership team to ensure strategic clarity, focus, and execution across the organization.

• Leading the annual program planning, budgeting and impact measurement processes, in collaboration with the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Chief Operations Officer (COO).

• Identifying opportunities to enhance organizational structure, workflows, and processes to improve efficiency and effectiveness in collaboration with COO and Director of Human Resources.

• Preparing presentations, reports, and analyses for stakeholders, including the Board of Directors to ensure the CEO’s effective engagement of the Board Chair and board committees.

• Acting as a strategic advisor to the CEO, providing context, data-driven analysis, and recommendations to empower informed decision-making.

• Serving as a confidential sounding board to the CEO, offering perspective on complex challenges and opportunities maintaining positive change and intent.

Organizational Leadership and Coordination

• Collaborating with the CEO and General Counsel to establish and reinforce clear expectations and best practices for board engagement with staff and organizational operations.

• Developing and implementing training programs to educate board members on their governance responsibilities, ethical conduct, and appropriate communication channels, ensuring alignment with nonprofit best practices and legal guidelines.

• Building and maintaining strong, productive relationships with the Board Chair, board committees, and external partners.

• Designing and driving the organizational operating rhythm, ensuring executive leaders focus on the most critical priorities at the right times.

• Collaborating with HR and department leaders to build high-performing teams and foster a culture of inclusion, belonging, and respect.

• Leading cross-functional initiatives, ensuring alignment with strategic objectives and organizational values.

• Managing internal communications, ensuring staff are well-informed, engaged, and aligned with organizational strategy.

Team Management and Employee Engagement

• Supervising and mentoring executive office staff, delegating meaningful work while providing guidance and constructive feedback.

• Regularly engaging with employees across all levels to understand organizational culture and champion Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and Belonging (DEIAB) initiatives.

• Partnering with HR to identify and address gaps in leadership development, capacity issues, knowledge sharing, and team cohesion.

You have the following direct or transferable qualifications and skills:

• Legal authorization to work in the United States.

• 10 + years of demonstrated experience in leadership, strategic advisory, or project management roles (e.g., Chief of Staff, HR Business Partners, Director, Senior Manager or equivalent).

• Strong knowledge of financial reporting and budgeting processes, with the ability to interpret, analyze, and communicate financial information effectively.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to synthesize complex information and develop actionable strategies.

• Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to build relationships across diverse teams and stakeholders.

• Proven ability to manage multiple concurrent projects and deliver results in a fast-moving environment.

• Familiarity with organizational design, team building, and leadership development.Experience working in the arts, culture, or nonprofit sectors, with a passion for supporting artists and storytellers preferred

• Knowledge of advocacy, policy, or government work, ideally with experience in technology or public sector partnerships preferred.

You will be successful in this role if you...

• Strategic Execution and Organizational Alignment

  • Consistently drive organizational alignment, foster a culture of inclusion and belonging, and enable the CEO to focus on strategic priorities that advance the organization’s mission.

  • Achieve 90% completion rate of annual strategic initiatives, as outlined in the program planning and budgeting process, on time and within budget.

  • Facilitate monthly executive team reviews to assess alignment on priorities and adjust resources as needed to meet goals.

  • Ensure all major board-facing materials (e.g., reports, presentations) are delivered with 100% accuracy and at least one week in advance of deadlines.

• Leadership and Employee Engagement

  • Maintain a high satisfaction rate in annual employee engagement surveys regarding internal communications and leadership visibility.

  • Facilitate quarterly feedback sessions across departments to identify and address gaps in inclusion, team cohesion, and leadership effectiveness.

  • Achieve a measurable increase (10%+) in staff engagement with DEIAB initiatives year-over-year, as assessed through participation rates and qualitative feedback.

• CEO Enablement and Efficiency

  • Ensure the CEO spends 60% of their time on strategic initiatives by proactively prioritizing requests and delegating operational tasks.

  • Successfully resolve 90% of inquiries and issues escalated to the executive office without requiring direct CEO involvement.

  • Deliver weekly briefing materials that allow the CEO to stay informed and prepared for all key meetings and decisions.

• Internal Communication and Cross-Functional Collaboration

  • Publish bi-weekly internal updates that are accessed and read by at least 80% of staff, maintaining a consistent engagement rate.

  • Achieve alignment of internal communication messages with organizational strategy and priorities, based on feedback from leadership and staff surveys.

  • Successfully lead and complete at least three major cross-departmental initiatives annually that advance organizational goals and improve collaboration.

• Board and Stakeholder Relations

  • Develop and implement a board governance education program within the first six months, achieving 100% participation from board members.

  • Facilitate quarterly board meetings with 95% satisfaction rate from board members, as measured by post-meeting surveys.

  • Ensure timely and accurate communication with the Board Chair and committee members, with no more than one instance of delayed or missing information annually.

In addition to an annual salary of $170,000.00 to $190,000.00*, this position is eligible for our comprehensive benefits package, highlights include:

• Health, vision, and dental insurance

• 25 paid Institute holidays plus accrued vacation time

• Paid sick, family, and medical leave

• Employee Wellness initiatives

• 401(k) with automatic 3% employer contribution after one year of employment

• Sundance Film Festival passes and benefits (varies each year)

*Final rate of pay is determined based on the applicant's geographic location, relevant experience and skills, and internal equity among similar positions within our organization.


Link to apply: https://sundance.clearcompany.com/careers/jobs/63bab81e-74ad-f4c3-1918-a8b414e1e736/apply?source=3286160-CS-41884