Chief Executive Officer (Lifelong) (Seattle)

In the early 1980s, a group of volunteers in Seattle banded together in response to the cruelty, bigotry, and lack of access to services faced by people with HIV/AIDS during the height of the AIDS epidemic. They mobilized a community to provide compassionate support to people suffering from the disease who were often abandoned by friends and family, shunned by the medical community, and left to die alone. The group went on to form the Northwest AIDS Foundation, Chicken Soup Brigade, and Evergreen Wellness, which are now known as Lifelong.

For over 35 years, Lifelong has provided customized, high quality care to people facing discrimination and marginalization—people who were deemed “untouchable.” The agency has leveraged its subject matter expertise gained from fighting HIV/AIDS to additionally serve people in the community who have other serious illnesses, the elderly, and people who are disabled, through programs that provide: financial assistance with health insurance premiums and navigation of the healthcare system; housing assistance; case management and support of the elderly and disabled; grocery and meal delivery; HIV/AIDS prevention, education, and case management; health education and youth outreach; dental services for those living with HIV/AIDS.

The same outrage that ignited Lifelong’s creation in the 80s during the height of the AIDS epidemic is fueling its plans for the future. Lifelong’s new strategic plan will focus on extending its reach and eliminating barriers to equitable healthcare for both the HIV/AIDS community and other stigmatized, vulnerable, and marginalized populations in Washington State. Just as it became a leader among AIDS Service Organizations (ASOs), the agency is poised to become a leader in the fight for health equity. Lifelong seeks a new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) as it embarks upon the next chapter in its story.

The CEO will help refine and articulate Lifelong’s vision and commitment to a state without stigma and with equitable healthcare for all.

Ideal Candidate

Lifelong’s CEO is at their core an innovator and visionary who is passionate about equity and access to quality healthcare and can inspire others to embrace their vision. The CEO will have held P&L responsibility in a complex environment with multiple business branches. The ideal candidate has the business acumen and change management skills to move an organization to a higher level of impact by building on what’s working, identifying and filling gaps, scanning the horizon for what lies ahead, and managing risk.

The successful candidate is a keen strategist who possesses the operational chops to run a complex organization and remove obstacles to allow a high-performing team to do their best work. They must be able make and communicate decisions; set clear, realistic expectations for staff; hold teams accountable; and manage with compassion and conviction. The ideal candidate will be able to leverage past experience to bring together seemingly disparate groups and those with specialized knowledge to increase impact through connection and collaboration, helping Lifelong to achieve health equity in Washington State.

The CEO is a persuasive and articulate leader whose enthusiasm for Lifelong’s mission and vision energizes the team, the board, current and potential funders, individual donors, public health partners, community partners, elected officials, and the community. The selected candidate will be a fearless fundraiser who has successfully worked with local, state, and federal funding sources as well as private donors.

The new CEO should have a minimum of eight years of nonprofit executive experience in a human services or public health organization, as well as experience working closely with or reporting to a Board of Directors. The selected candidate will have a history of operational success combined with demonstrated business development or fundraising results in a complex organization. An understanding of and passion around health equity is essential for success in this role, as is a bachelor’s degree in a relevant field of study. A Master’s degree in public health, public administration, business administration, or a related field is a plus.

Lifelong offers a supportive work culture and actively recruits, develops, and retains a talented and diverse workforce that contributes to our mission, vision, and values.