DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITY

PLEASE APPLY BY: March 21, 2025

EARLY APPLICATIONS MAY BE CONSIDERED
AND THE POSITION MAY BE FILLED BEFORE THAT DATE IF POSSIBLE.

CreativeEvolutions.com/OpenPositions 

Who We Are and What We Do

BroadStage is a contemporary performing arts presenter, located at The Eli and Edythe Broad Stage on the campus of the Santa Monica College Performing Arts Center.

Established in 2008, BroadStage energizes audiences and community through bold performances and personal connections. BroadStage is one of Los Angeles’ leading arts presenters showcasing daring artistic performances. 

BroadStage presents works in three distinct venues. The Mainstage is a strikingly grand 535-seat venue that combines the warmth of a small theater with the acoustics and staging of a grand hall. The Edye is a 100-seat black box theater that uplifts new, developing, and innovative work to feature younger, emerging artists, and increased accessible programming. The East Wing is a versatile indoor/outdoor venue that provides flexibility for live performances and serves as an additional special event space.

BroadStage also provides educational programs for high school and college students, artist workshops, and special events through our Artist in Residency Program, Community Field Trips, Student Nights, and more. BroadStage is expanding to meet a rapidly evolving set of needs for artists, audiences, community, and campus. Under the leadership of Artistic & Executive Director Rob Bailis, BroadStage is broadening its impact through a new artistic vision, celebrating our shared humanity, and expanding the role the arts play in the vitality of our diverse community.  

BroadStage is launching a new artist-led programming model that transforms how presenting organizations operate.  Over the next three years, BroadStage will announce a world-class artist to curate each area of our programming.  These artists will collaborate with BroadStage over three years, designing programs and festivals and inviting BroadStage’s audiences to learn more about the past and future of each artistic discipline.  This new model moves the presenting organization from the old role of gatekeeper to providing a platform for leading creative artists, acknowledging that artists hold the keys to imagining the future we wish to see, evolving our work for a new day, and shaping a world in which we can all proudly live.

Our Mission and Vision and What That Means

Mission Statement: BroadStage gathers artists, thinkers, and audiences to celebrate our shared humanity and expand the role the arts play in the vitality of our diverse community.

Vision Statement: BroadStage’s artistic vision and programmatic integrity are upheld by the following ideals:   

1. We are a facilitator and a conduit of inspiration, joy, learning, and introspection, while confronting the most complex issues of our day.   
2. We convene the many communities of LA County into a shared space where the arts and artists provide a platform for collaboration, conversation, healing, and partnership.  
3. We champion bold artistry and celebrate innovation and authentic practices across a variety of cultures and aesthetics. 
4. We pursue lasting creative partnerships with artists whose work stimulates and extends BroadStage beyond the walls of our venue. 
5. We are dedicated to presenting works that reflect the ever-changing landscape of ideologies, social issues, and human potentials by showcasing a variety of voices, artistic expressions, and perspectives.

Who is ‘Our Community’?

The cultural ecosystem of the city of Santa Monica includes a high concentration of creative individuals and resources that is adjacent to one of the nation’s largest and most influential cultural regions — the greater Los Angeles area. We recognize the fluidity of Santa Monica’s population as it triples in size daily due to a commuting workforce, and changes currently underway due to the recent disruptions with the LA fires.  BroadStage itself is only miles away from the edge of the devastation of the Palisades Fire, and many of our patrons lived there and have had their lives profoundly disrupted.

BroadStage audiences have historically been reflective of the array of identities and experiences that occupy the city of Santa Monica. As we move forward, we are committed to inviting audiences that reflect the communities of greater Los Angeles. We recognize that our work will become evident gradually with each season as we expand our community relationships with the many Santa Monicas — and the many Los Angeles’s –  past, present, and future.

We anticipate that our new Director of Development will play a powerful role in shaping BroadStage’s future constituencies.

How this Search will Operate – Values, Communication, and Compensation

Compensation:  Semi-finalist candidates will all be compensated approximately $500 for their participation. Candidates who advance as Finalists will be invited to come on-site to interview at BroadStage and will be compensated an additional $1,000 plus reimbursement of all travel, lodging, and food expenses for their trip.

Overall Estimated Timeline:

• Preferred Application Period:  February 20 - March 21, 2025
  Please note that the position may be filled before this period closes, so do not wait to apply!  After the end of the application period, please reach out if you are still interested and we will let you know if there is still an opportunity for consideration.
• Conversations with active candidates, including on-site visits for finalists will be ongoing as applications are received and reviewed.
• Desired Employment Begins:  May 2025

After an initial submission of interest, a candidate may be invited for a virtual First Conversation with two members of the Creative Evolutions team (Rebecca Novick, Calida Jones, and Douglas Clayton). Following the First Conversation, some candidates will be advanced to a virtual Semi-Finalist conversation and other steps with leadership from BroadStage and an Industry Advisor in the non-profit development sector. 

This search process is rooted in values shared by BroadStage and Creative Evolutions, and will include the following elements:

• It is important to us that you are treated with respect and are appreciated for the value you create for BroadStage through your participation.  
• Throughout the process we commit to active communication with you, so you are never wondering what is happening or where things stand with your application or the hiring process.
• It is very important that the BroadStage staff and board participate in the selection process to set you up most effectively for success. This announcement has been informed by many perspectives, and finalists will have the opportunity to come on site and meet the staff and some board members before a hiring decision is made.

In addition, Creative Evolutions is engaging a paid Industry Advisor who will be collaborating with Creative Evolutions to design and conduct the Semi-Finalist Conversations as part of the process. This peer will also commit to be available for up to three calls for the selected Director of Development during their first year of employment at BroadStage to provide strong collegial or mentorship support during the transition period.

 

If you have questions or recommendations (under our referrals compensation policy), we encourage you to contact the team at Creative Evolutions at:

Rebecca Novick: [email protected] 

Calida Jones: [email protected]

Douglas Clayton: [email protected]

What We Are Looking for in Our New Director of Development

BroadStage is eager to bring in a Director of Development who is passionate about our work to transform how a presenting organization operates and how it can serve its communities. We are seeking a forward thinking and adaptable development strategist who can lead everyone in our organization in our collective building of support for our mission.  They will also be a confident and nimble major gifts solicitor who can develop and mentor other members of the team. 

We think it will be a great advantage for our new colleague to have current or past development experience in Greater Los Angeles, but are open to people from other places if the rest of this opportunity feels perfect for you.

Human Expectations

As we are becoming more collaborative and communicative here as a team, we imagine bringing in a new colleague who loves sharing information with other people at BroadStage, and who sees those team connections and deepening understanding of each other as a foundation of how they can be successful. They will see opportunities to compromise as a positive and as a way to learn about the team as a whole more fully. 

They will gain energy from being social and in conversation with other people, including feeling at ease and confident when talking to new prospects. Their kindness and curiosity around people should be clear - our team would love to experience them as personable and inclusive. 

They may come from vast and varied experiences, but will have an eagerness to grow, in our environment of ongoing professional development.  They should be someone who understands the importance of having a diverse workplace, and is committed to ongoing work to help everyone be more inclusive and equitable.

We are all working towards unified goals at BroadStage, we are also very different kinds of people - and we are engaging with many kinds of people in the communities we touch.  Being able to be flexible and adaptable when working person to person is a key quality that will benefit us and that will help the new Director work effectively. 

Where Our Director of Development will be Exceptional

The new Director of Development will be an exceptional fundraising and relationship strategist. They will be the center of strategic leadership on resource development for the entire organization.  While they will have many skills and abilities around personal relationship building and major gift cultivation, they will first and foremost be a pro-active strategist who can refine, support, and drive the actions of all the other team members at BroadStage towards resource growth.  This includes pro-active engagement with the executive team, the board of directors, the development staff, resident or visiting artists, and other staff throughout the organization.

They will have an authentic and meaningful connection to the performing arts and an ability to inspire others with how a performing arts organization is impactful and valuable

• in its own moment-to-moment artistic experiences, 
• in its ability to bring people together and connect with each other, and 
• in strengthening and invigorating a neighborhood, college, city, region, and nation.

Ideally they will be passionate about BroadStage’s distinct artistic model with long-form artist-led programming, and have enough fluency in the arts to make the case for how this approach can be powerful and valuable to the people of Santa Monica, Greater Los Angeles, and the world.

Finally, they will have informed confidence with nonprofit financial planning and revenue management.  As the individual responsible for establishing projections and following through on execution for over 66% of BroadStage’s overall revenues, they need to lead strongly in the creation of detailed budgets and the overall place contributed revenue has in the fiscal health of the organization.

What Our Director of Development Will Handle Directly

The BroadStage team brings many capabilities to the table, but there are specific tasks and responsibilities that our Director of Development will be expected to handle personally.  These all contribute to the overall focus on collectively raising close to $4 million in contributed revenue each year.

These include:

• Developing and implementing a comprehensive plan to meet BroadStage’s revenue goals. The Director of Development will be personally responsible for creating a plan to meet annual targets and best use the skills of the development team, leadership and board members to fulfill that plan.
   
• Expanding BroadStage’s network and securing major gifts from a pool of specific supporters.  The Director of Development will be pro-actively investing in people on behalf of BroadStage.  This will include strengthening relationships with their personal pool of major supporters, and identifying and bringing new individuals into the BroadStage supporter network.
   
• Supporting and mentoring development staff.  They will be a thoughtful and excellent mentor, who accomplishes goals through building the knowledge, confidence, and capacity of their team.  Their day to day will include direct work on skill development with each member of the development team, helping them to expand their capacity and grow as fundraising professionals.  

• Consultation on Season Planning: BroadStage’s development, marketing, and programming teams meet monthly to discuss future programming planning. Transparency among these departments allows marketing and development to weigh in on the revenue possibilities of programming options and ensures that development staff are up to date on upcoming opportunities for donors. 

• Board Evolution and Support: BroadStage’s board is in a journey of transition from a board of founding donors to a board that is designed to specifically support the new approaches to BroadStage’s work and the changing circumstances of performing arts in Santa Monica. The Director will work closely with the Artistic and Managing Directors to develop and engage new board members, support the contributions of current board members as donors and ambassadors, and to ensure the experience and functioning of the board as a whole is effective and enjoyable.
   
• Capital Campaign Frames and Approaches. As part of the Director’s leadership on development strategies, they will need to understand the differences in approach and effectiveness of annual gifts relative to major one-time initiative gifts relative to capital campaigns for various purposes. They will be the lead thinker and decision maker on which tools to use in conjunction to best engage with BroadStage supporters and to best support BroadStage’s programming and progress as an institution.

What Our Director of Development Needs to Understand

Working with and alongside the rest of the team, there are important areas where we do not expect our Director of Development to be more knowledgeable and capable than other people at BroadStage, but where we do need them to have enough expertise to collaborate with us effectively.  

• Institutional Funding: They should have an understanding of how to frame artistic work, organizational culture, strategies, and brand identity into grant language and formats, and how to connect those with long-form institutional relationship building with foundation program officers and leadership. Currently grantwriting is handled by a contractor, grant management by other staff in the department, and direct relationship building with funders across multiple people in the organization.
   
• Cultivation and Fundraising Events:  The Director will be a top-line visionary for the use and style of events, but will collaborate extensively with other highly capable staff and board members on the design and implementation for a variety of events throughout the year, including the annual November BroadStage Gala.
   
• Unified Communications Strategy:  BroadStage has made great strides in unifying messaging to their community, including specifically communications coming from marketing and development.  The Director will work closely with marketing and other departments to ensure this continues and BroadStage speaks with one voice.
   
• Navigating Change and Innovation: BroadStage is in the midst of a substantial change in how we curate and select and our programming.  The Director will need to understand the intentions of this shift and celebrate them while allaying any concerns our long-time supporters may have. Ideally the Director will be inspired by the possibilities of an artist-led model and able to speak about its potential.

• Commitment to organizational culture: The Director of Development should be able to work in a conscious way with people from all different backgrounds, and be someone who understands the importance of a diverse workplace and welcomes ongoing opportunities for training and growth.

• Sensitivity to current Los Angeles situation: A number of BroadStage board members and donors were gravely affected by the recent fires. This tragedy will continue to resonate in coming months and will require sensitive handling.

• Generational Transition: BroadStage is investing significant energy in developing younger audiences. Given different generational giving patterns, this may or may not translate quickly into donors from younger demographics.  Simultaneously, a more concerted planned giving approach is needed for our older donors.  Understanding the varied needs and motivations of different generations is critical to our work. 

• Actionable Uses of Patron Data:  The core data for BroadStage patrons is currently managed in PatronManager by dedicated development staff.  This data is actively used in a variety of ways, and has many potential applications.  The Director does not need to know how to operate data systems themselves, but does need to understand data well enough to know what kinds of reports to ask for, and to be able to explain clearly the purpose of those reports, how they will be utilized, and what results the team is trying to achieve with that information.
  
   

How We Will Support Our Director of Development

We know that we need to support our Director of Development so that our mutual success is aligned. At BroadStage, we continue to work to support the team and each individual as specifically as we can.

To begin we commit to providing:

• Annual salary for a full time position of $150,000. Please note that this salary is aligned with BroadStage’s salary tiers and is not negotiable. 

• Clear team and individual goal setting, employee policies, and mutual evaluation approaches for you and those who work with you at BroadStage.

• Benefits include medical insurance and a matching 401K program. Dental and vision insurance are available with employee-paid premiums.

• A hybrid and flexible ongoing schedule.  This role is not centered on a 9-5 day.  Active engagement with the BroadStage community will involve attendance at many performances and events in the evenings and weekends, and traveling throughout Greater Los Angeles regularly.  These activities will naturally be balanced by time off at other days or times during the week.  BroadStage is a hybrid workplace with all staff members working in the office on the same two days per week. We hope you will be confident working with a team in a hybrid context and appreciate the benefits of this structure.
• Regular access and collaboration with all members of the board, leadership team, artists, and cross-departmental teams throughout the organization.
   
• Mentorship or Advisory support during the first year with Creative Evolutions and one industry peer.

How to Express Your Interest

Please complete the application in the Creative Evolutions JazzHR portal. We will stay in communication with you consistently throughout the process. If at any time you are wondering or unsure where you are in the process or what is happening, please do not hesitate to reach out.  We will respond swiftly and update you.

Your application should include:

• Your resume. The resume can be of any length and style, though we encourage you to adjust it as appropriate to help us see how your history and experience connect to the current circumstances, intentions, and hopes for BroadStage.
   
• Instead of a standard cover letter, the application portal will ask you to answer a set of written questions that will help us to understand you more. So you can prepare your answers in advance, the questions are as follows:
   
  • Who are you, and what is most exciting for us to know about you as a human being?
     
  • When you look at BroadStage’s five Vision statements (page 2), how would some of those specific organizational approaches show up in your leadership of BroadStage’s Development efforts?
     
  • When someone who might be skeptical asks you ‘Why should I use my time or my money to support the performing arts?’, what is your initial approach to engage them in an inspiring way?
     
  • Please describe what actions or processes you would implement as Development Director if you are able to have a central role in the overall budget creation and management for BroadStage.
     
  • Describe an example of a project or initiative that was particularly challenging to raise funds for.  What were some of the challenges and how did you overcome them?

• If you wish, feel free to share how you self-identify on any and all lenses so we can honor your preferences in our communications with you.  If you have particular access needs related to the hiring process or acting in this Development Director role, please feel free to share those also and we are happy to explore adaptations to support you.

If possible, please have any attachments be included in pdf format.

If you have any questions about the position or your submission, please feel free to e-mail, and we will be happy to discuss with you at any time!

Calida Jones: [email protected]

Rebecca Novick: [email protected] 

Douglas Clayton: [email protected]

About Creative Evolutions: As the Executive Search support team for BroadStage, Creative Evolutions operates as an evolving and adaptable ecosystem of human beings who believe that We Can Do Better. In creative and cultural sectors, there has been a national discussion for decades where people identify broken systems and ask for new solutions. We believe that our structures and behaviors can be addressed through bold action and human-centered principles, which the ecosystem of managers, innovators, consultants, coaches, and speakers involved with Creative Evolutions embrace in finding new futures for creativity and culture.

www.CreativeEvolutions.com