THE SEARCH

World Savvy, a national nonprofit reimagining education to prepare young people for a changing world, seeks an experienced, mission-driven leader to serve as its next Chief Executive Officer (CEO). This is an exciting opportunity for a proven executive committed to improving K-12 education to build on nearly 25 years of impact to lead World Savvy as it enters its next chapter. World Savvy works to transform an outdated K-12 system built for another era by partnering with schools and districts to empower educators and leaders to embed global competence in teaching, school culture, and policy. Since its founding in 2002, World Savvy has reached nearly 1 million students and over 7,400 educators across 45 states and 32 countries. Through professional development, individual coaching, and engaging resources, World Savvy provides administrators and educators with the support they need to embed global competence into all aspects of their school community. In 2027, World Savvy will mark 25 years of preparing young people to thrive in a changing world. This milestone is an opportunity to help define what readiness means for the next generation. The incoming CEO will build upon World Savvy's history of impact to lead the organization through a new phase of growth and impact. Specifically, the CEO will serve as a strategic and visionary leader to sharpen the identity of World Savvy; grow, expand, and expertly steward World Savvy's financial resources; lead and develop a talented and committed staff; cultivate and maintain a strong internal organizational culture; deepen cross-sector relationships; and position the organization as a trusted national voice. Reporting to the Board of Directors, the Chief Executive Officer will oversee an annual operating budget of about $4 million and lead a team of about 20 employees, including three direct reports—the Chief Operating and Finance Officer, the Chief Program Officer, and the Chief Growth Officer. The ideal candidate is an optimistic and accomplished nonprofit executive with a deep understanding of education sector challenges, trends, and emerging opportunities, the credibility to work alongside K-12 education leaders, and an understanding of how change occurs within complex education systems. They will also bring a demonstrated ability to identify and cultivate new organizational funding sources and experience leading an organization through revenue diversification strategies to position it for sustainability and growth. The ideal candidate will also bring a record of building relationships and collaborative partnerships to drive impact and growth; a record of developing, nurturing, and retaining strong teams; experiencing fostering an inclusive culture that translates an organization's values into everyday actions; experience collaborating with and effectively managing a board; and a personal belief in World Savvy's mission of reimagining education to ensure young people have the global competence and durable skills needed to thrive. World Savvy has engaged Isaacson, Miller, a national executive search firm, for this recruitment effort. All applications, inquiries, and nominations should be directed in confidence to the search team as noted at the end of this document.

ROLE OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Reporting to the 11-member Board of Directors, the Chief Executive Officer will oversee an annual operating budget of about $4 million, comprising philanthropic funding, individual donations, and earned revenue from partnerships with schools and districts. The CEO will also lead a team of about 20 employees, including three direct reports—the Chief Operating and Finance Officer, the Chief Program Officer, and the Chief Growth Officer. The Chief Executive Officer is World Savvy's chief fundraiser and financial steward. They will also serve as a public voice for the organization and build external relationships to further its impact. They will have the capacity to set and interpret vision for various audiences and then work closely with the staff to execute the vision. They will also be an adept manager of people and build strong relationships with the Board of Directors and the World Savvy staff. Finally, the CEO will build upon the organization's current work and vision to articulate clear strategies to drive program impact.

KEY OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES FOR THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

The CEO, in collaboration with the World Savvy team and Board of Directors, will address the following opportunities and challenges: Serve as a strategic and visionary leader to sharpen the identity of the World Savvy. World Savvy's vision is clear—to create a K-12 education system that prepares all students with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions for success and active engagement in the global community. However, the methods and programs to achieve this vision can and must adapt to an ever-changing world. The incoming CEO will lead the organization in operationalizing how World Savvy will achieve its mission and make its value proposition in the K-12 space clear while maintaining the adaptability that makes World Savvy unique. Specifically, World Savvy's next leader will build the strategies and actions that make World Savvy's bold vision sustainable and inspiring. The CEO will work closely with current employees and board members to develop the strategies that ensure programs are appropriately resourced for long-term sustainability while remaining aligned to the organization's vision and theory of change. Grow, expand, and expertly steward World Savvy's financial resources. The financial strength and security of World Savvy are paramount to the pursuit of its mission and vision. Currently, the grant funding landscape in the country is in flux, making individual donations more important than ever. The CEO will be the chief fundraiser, executing fundraising at a high level while ensuring the fundraising infrastructure is in place to support both the increased demand for individual donations and ongoing grant cultivation. Additionally, as the organization's financial steward, the successful CEO will possess the business savvy to ensure World Savvy can continue delivering its work while adapting to changing circumstances and pursuing strategic growth. The incoming CEO will build on the staff's work to strengthen fundraising capacity and successfully lead World Savvy into its next chapter of impact by strategically identifying and cultivating new donors and funders. Lead and develop a talented and committed staff and cultivate and maintain a strong internal organizational culture. World Savvy's staff is comprised of mission-driven employees committed to the organization's ambitious mission of reimagining education. The CEO will be actively engaged, along with the executive team, in shaping and reinforcing an internal culture that allows employees to maximize their potential. A key priority will be supporting the senior leadership team as they grow and develop in their respective roles, providing real-time constructive feedback and professional development opportunities. The CEO will ensure the systems are in place to create clarity and alignment across teams and to solidify trust throughout the organization. The successful CEO will model what it means to be a World Savvy team member by investing in relationships, communicating transparently, listening deeply, and remaining actively engaged in shaping the culture. The CEO will also be a strong manager and mentor to senior staff, supporting their efforts to recruit, retain, and develop their teams. To execute the organization's mission, the CEO will need to translate strategy effectively and provide a collaborative yet decisive leadership approach to move the organization forward. Strengthen and expand partnerships to raise World Savvy's visibility, deepen its impact, and position the organization as a trusted national voice. The CEO will elevate World Savvy's work through coalition-building, strategic partnerships, thought leadership, and national brand recognition. World Savvy's next leader will be an adept communicator who can consistently translate World Savvy's work to different audiences, including key stakeholders such as funders, superintendents, principals, teachers, and community members. Additionally, the next CEO will build and deepen relationships with other national organizations to create coalitions of common cause, strengthen national networks, and develop advisory relationships to deepen impact through cross-sector collaborations. Finally, the successful CEO will be a vocal thought leader with the credibility, experience, and influence to shift the national discourse around quality education.

QUALIFICATIONS AND CHARACTERISTICS

The ideal candidate is an optimistic leader with vision and strong execution skills who motivates others and believes that students learn best when they are engaged in relevant and important issues that impact their communities and the world. This leader will be an accomplished nonprofit executive with a deep understanding of K-12 education, cross-sector collaboration, and impact. Additionally, while no individual will possess every quality, the successful candidate will bring many of the following qualifications, professional experiences, and personal attributes: Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university, related master's degree preferred. A deep understanding of education sector challenges, trends, and emerging opportunities, along with the credibility to work alongside K-12 education leaders, and an understanding of how change occurs within complex education systems. Strong fundraising abilities and a history of driving, growing, and sustaining funding in a nonprofit organization. Deep experience in generating new revenue, cultivating and maintaining excellent donor relations, and familiarity with national and regional philanthropic and individual funders. Experience and comfort leading an evolving organization and the ability to inspire others to share ownership in continuous improvement to drive impact and growth. Record of developing, nurturing, and retaining strong teams, including building a strong bench of organizational leaders and fostering equity and belonging in all relationships. Experience fostering an inclusive culture that translates an organization's values into everyday actions. A track record of identifying, developing, and extending successful collaborations with alliances, stakeholders, and school leaders to leverage collective expertise. Experience collaborating with and effectively managing a board. Personal belief in World Savvy's mission of reimagining education to ensure young people have the global competence and durable skills needed to thrive. Ideally, a personal connection to the power that global competence has played in their own experience as a student, professional, and leader.

COMPENSATION AND LOCATION

The starting salary range for this position is $240,000 to $260,000. World Savvy provides a comprehensive benefits package, including comprehensive medical, dental, and vision, 401 (k) with match, partially paid parental leave, flexible PTO, 15 paid office closures, cell phone and internet compensation, professional development, and paid sabbatical after five years of employment. World Savvy is a hybrid workplace with principal offices in the Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN area, and employees around the United States.

APPLICATIONS, INQUIRIES, AND NOMINATIONS

Screening of complete applications will begin immediately and continue until the completion of the search process. Inquiries, nominations, referrals, and CVs with cover letters should be sent via the Isaacson, Miller website: https://www.imsearch.com/open-searches/world-savvy/chief-executive-officer .