Executive Vice President, Pacific Forest Trust

Climate Adaptation Knowledge Exchange; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 160,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Pacific Forest Trust seeks an Executive Vice President to lead administration, operations, and internal leadership. This new role reports to the President & CEO and is core to the organization’s continued growth and excellence.

The EVP will shape cross‑functional systems, processes, and policies, overseeing five staff including Finance and Administration, to advance land trust and climate initiatives across programs.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of nonprofit management experience, including land trust work.
• Proven experience as a team leader and senior operations professional.
• Excellent communication and organizational skills with attention to detail.
• Ability to lead across programs and manage budgets, HR, IT, and risk.

Responsibilities

• Be a visionary operational leader balancing needs across programs and implementing annual work plans.
• Oversee human resources, recruitment, onboarding, development, performance review, and policy compliance.
• Lead budgets, IT, security, facilities, and vendor management to support strategic goals.
• Collaborate with Finance and Administration Director on annual budget and reporting.
• Chair or participate in Management Team and Board reporting.

Skills

Team leadership

Communication skills

Strategic thinking

Project management

Nonprofit governance

Job description

Executive Vice President, Pacific Forest Trust

Organization/Grantor:Pacific Forest Trust

Position/Title/Fund:Executive Vice President

Type/Term:Full-time, Permanent

Salary:$160,000 - $190,000 per year

Description:

Pacific Forest Trust (PFT) delivers landscape-scale private forest conservation in the West and develops innovative incentives for forest conservation at the national level. We do so in ways that reward private landowners for managing for public benefits including clean water, a healthy climate, and abundant native wildlife. Our work sustains rural economies and restores resilient forest landscapes across ownership boundaries. PFT is recognized nationally as a leader in forest and climate policy, developing new payment systems for ecosystems services, from climate to carbon, to working forest conservation easements, watershed and habitat services, and sustainable, renewable biomass energy.

PFT has led the conservation of over 363,000 acres of forestland in California and Oregon and acquired and stewards conservation easements on 130,000 acres. PFT also manages 14,000 acres for timber, water, and habitat values on behalf of forest landowners as well as its own forests. Our projects are outstanding not only for their scale, but also for landscape impacts and high standards for delivering multiple public benefits.

PFT has 4 offices in 2 states as well as dispersed field staff. It is thrice accredited by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission. Learn more at http://PacificForest.org.

Job description

The Executive Vice President (EVP) is responsible for PFT’s administration, operational management, and internal leadership. This is a new position that reports directly to the President & CEO and is core to PFT’s continued growth and excellence.

The executive Vice President position offers the opportunity to shape the operational foundation of one of the nation’s leading forest conservation organizations. At a time of unprecedented climate urgency and growing recognition of forests’ critical role in resilience and carbon sequestration, this role will enable PFT to scale our impact across landscapes and communities.

The EVP is charged with overseeing and improving coherent cross-organizational systems, processes, standards, and policies and ensuring their implementation. The overarching goal is to support and improve organizational operations, advance the mission, and help make PFT a great place to work. The EVP manages five staff–the Program Directors, including Finance and Administration–to oversee and support the organization’s operations and workplace implementation. They are responsible for operational excellence, fostering a culture of innovation and collaboration, and ensuring effective organizational policies.

The EVP will be an energetic leader with a track record of managing complex operations within the nonprofit environment, including specific experience with land trusts, budgets, and fundraising oversight.

Reports to

the President and CEO. The EVP is a member of the Management Team.

Responsibilities

This position will bring critical capacity for internal organizational effectiveness, administrative efficiency, and delivery of programmatic impact.

Be a visionary operational leader. The EVP will provide the cohesive operational backbone balancing the needs of the organization across all programs to meet organizational workplans and goals, implementing the annual workplan and programs. The EVP will lead the refinement/improvement and implementation of systems, processes, and operational solutions and change management projects consistent with PFT’s strategic goals.

Ensure operational integrity and excellent organizational reputation. The EVP will be a detail-oriented leader in management-including budget oversight, compliance, and security. They will implement comprehensive compliance and management frameworks that align with the PFT’s mission and ethical and legal standards as well as Accreditation; they will work with the Director of Finance and Administration and others to ensure adherence to regulations and requirements. The EVP will monitor and identify potential risks, develop and recommend mitigation strategies to address them proactively, updating processes as needed.

• Act as a “right hand” to the President and CEO in overseeing the efficient and engaged internal operations of the organization
• Lead workplan implementation, monitoring and regular reporting, to ensure organization goals are met; support annual workplan development.
• Oversee and ensure the Human Resources function, ensuring the organization has the talent it needs to deliver on its goals, including recruitment, onboarding, employee development and performance review programs, and compliance with internal policies, procedures, and regulatory requirements.
• Oversee and ensure internal operations functions including budgets, information technology, security and facilities management to ensure the organization has the tools and facilities needed to deliver on the strategic goals.
• Work closely with the Finance and Administration Director to develop and deliver on the annual budget process and implementation, including monthly and project reporting, prompt contract delivery/fulfillment and financial management.
• Participate in PFT’s Management Team and chair meetings when the President & CEO is unavailable.
• Participate in Board meetings, ensure comprehensive, appropriate and quality drafting of quarterly Board reports, and finalize with the CEO.

Qualifications

The EVP will have relevant experience in non-profits, specifically including work with land trusts, and a passion for PFT’s mission, vision, and values. Familiarity with conservation and climate policy is beneficial.

• At least 7 years of management experience in nonprofits, or equivalent, including land trust experience
• Proven experience as a team leader and senior operations professional
• Outstanding management skills with demonstrated ability to oversee complex operations
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to interact professionally with diverse team members
• Strong leadership skills, including team building and mentoring
• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail
• Excellent time management skills with a proven ability to meet deadlines
• Ability to function well in a high-paced environment
• Display resilience and resourcefulness in tackling tasks and finding solutions
• Discretion and confidentiality in handling sensitive information
• Professionalism, integrity, and a proactive approach to problem-solving

Preferred

• Familiarity with conservation and climate policy
• Leadership skills, vision, and strategic acumen
• High emotional intelligence
• Self-confidence combined with humility
• Ability to deal well with multiple priorities
• A balance of empathy and backbone: ability to make/implement tough decisions

Who Thrives Here

PFT is a high-performing organization where professionalism and results matter—and where we genuinely enjoy working together to achieve our conservation mission. Our team brings rigor and excellence to everything we do, from securing conservation easements to developing innovative payment systems for ecosystem services. We move quickly, hold ourselves accountable to high standards, and support each other in delivering exceptional outcomes.

Success in year one means establishing trust across the team, implementing cohesive operational systems that work across our programs, and demonstrating both strategic vision and tactical follow-through. You’ll know you’re thriving when workflows are more streamlined and effective, staff feel supported, cross-organizational collaboration flows smoothly, and your operational leadership enables our teams to focus on their best work and deliver consistently on internal commitments and external products.

If you’re energized by ensuring operational excellence in service of meaningful conservation and climate solution outcomes, and you enjoy the combination of strategic thinking and hands-on problem-solving in a performance-oriented culture, you’ll find a home at PFT.