Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park & Museum seeks a dynamic and experienced Executive Director to drive its mission of engaging diverse audiences in the critically important dialogue between art and nature. The Executive Director must advance the Park’s position as a leading cultural institution within the tri-state region and its reputation nationally among outdoor sculpture parks. This will include building the organization in terms of staffing, program and budget to achieve a sustainable and mission driven institution. The Executive Director will be the lead fundraiser responsible for cultivating donor relationships, securing financial grants and seeking other revenue streams to strengthen its financial position for future investments and long-term sustainability.

BACKGROUND
Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park & Museum is a unique institution comprising three extraordinary resources: its outdoor sculpture, its Ancient Sculpture Museum and Pyramid House, and its forested Ohio valley landscape. Established in 1998 as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, the Park’s mission is to bring people to art in nature. Since its founding over 20 years ago, Pyramid Hill has grown into a picturesque venue of over 300 acres and more than 60 outdoor sculptures. The Park offers visitors the ability to experience its monumental outdoor sculpture collection in an inspiring landscape of rolling hills, meadows, lakes, and hiking trails. The Ancient Sculpture Museum, featuring Greek, Roman, Etruscan, Syrian, and Egyptian objects dating to 1550 B.C., provides visitors with an opportunity to examine three-dimensional art from its origins to the most contemporary examples. In addition to ancient sculpture, the Museum exhibits contemporary work by local, regional, and national artists. Through the generosity of founder Harry Wilks, who passed away in 2014, the Park has become a draw for visitors and residents alike.

Pyramid Hill has established the highly successful holiday light show “Borealis” which attracted over 50,000 visitors in 2020. Other notable annual programs include an Art and Music Festival, an Art and Earth Celebration as well as collaborations with the Fitton Center, The Carnegie, the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra and other prominent arts organizations in the region. In addition to programming highlights, Pyramid Hill has grown its campus which now comprises the historic register site “Fortified Hill,” a 150+ acre site containing Hopewell Indian mounds and  ceremonial ground. To support the conservation and maintain accessibility to the 2,000-year-old earth sculpture, Pyramid Hill has formed a committee of archeologists, Native Americans and community stakeholders.

In preparation for its 25th Anniversary in 2022, Pyramid Hill is developing plans for a Capital Campaign to support a new Visitor Center. For more information, visit www.pyramidhill.org.

MISSION & STRATEGIC PLAN
Pyramid Hill inspires and educates its diverse visitors in a world-renowned setting of art and nature. It strives to be a center of community life. With its landscape and collection as catalyst for dialog, collaboration and contemplation, Pyramid Hill presents a broad variety of programs for audiences of all ages including tours, lectures, concerts, summer camps, and an annual holiday lights installation. The Pyramid Hill Board has articulated the following strategic goals to support the Park’s continued growth and success:

1. An enhanced Visitor Experience 
2. An original program uniting the art collection, exhibitions, educational programs and collaborative partnerships.
3. Park and Collections Maintenance
4. Fiscal Sustainability

The new Executive Director will build on these core initiatives to fulfill Pyramid Hill’s mission. The best candidates will combine the skills, experience, and vision to achieve the issues articulated below.

POSITION DESCRIPTION
The Executive Director is the leader and primary representative of Pyramid Hill, directing all activities required to fulfill its mission of collecting and conserving outdoor works of art and engaging the community in art and nature. The Executive Director is responsible for overseeing the Park’s cultural mission of collecting, exhibiting and preserving outdoor works of art and engaging audiences through educational activities and programs; stewarding the Park’s facilities, sculpture grounds, and other resources to maintain a strong and healthy organization; and building strong partnerships to advance programs and foster a vibrant and inspiring place to visit and learn. In addition, the Executive Director will help forge a new vision of how Pyramid Hill can play a significant role locally and nationally in advancing public debate and providing meaningful learning experiences and encounters in the complex and crucial area of the human culture-nature relationship.

The Executive Director will undertake, as a primary task, building the organization in terms of staffing and budget to achieve a sustainable mission driven institution.  This will include strengthening Pyramid Hill’s financial position, which includes serving as the primary fundraiser for the organization; forging key regional partnerships; and working closely with the Board to build an expanding network of supporters.

Opportunities and Challenges
As the Pyramid Hill looks ahead to its 25th anniversary, a key opportunity is to lead the board through a planning process to develop a long-term vision and plan to advance the Park’s future and sustainability.  This will result in a new staffing structure and an implementation plan and  budget to balance an original program with the services, amenities and maintenance of a park environment.  A priority will be to build collaborative partnerships with the local nature, plant science and art organizations to improve the experience and quality of the Pyramid Hill campus. The Executive Director must devise a thoughtful and inspirational path ahead for the Park to capitalize on increasing awareness of and interest in the linkage between contemporary art and the environment and to have a significant impact on the regional community.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities
I. Leadership and Strategy
• Strong communicator who can articulate a shared future for Pyramid Hill and can define a process to achieve growth and sustainability.
• Be an energetic, engaged and visible leader locally, regionally and nationally to connect the mission of Pyramid Hill to other organizations, building effective and collaborative partnerships.
• Work with the Board to ensure strong governance; establish clear, active, and goal-oriented lines of communication; support generative, informed discussion and organizational transparency; provide well-defined opportunities for committee engagement; assist the Board in the strategic recruitment, selection and evaluation of its members.
• Be a strong manager who can empower, lead, and collaborate with staff to achieve mission and organizational goals.
• Engage stakeholders, local educators, students, artists and both the immediate and the broader residential, business and cultural communities to enhance and develop the vibrancy of Pyramid Hill and build support for the mission.
• Continue to build open and inclusive relationships that honor and enhance Pyramid Hill’s commitment to serving diverse, multi-cultural neighborhoods.

II. Fundraising and Advocacy
• Be the chief fundraiser and advocate for Pyramid Hill; represent the organization effectively increasing its visibility; grow support for its operations and capital needs, as well as its collection, conservation, and exhibition programs.
• Create a plan to actively expand the level of philanthropic support through major individual and corporate donors; develop and maintain key foundation relationships and critical contacts in city and regional government; and foster opportunities to engage the business community around corporate sponsorships and partnerships.
• Work in collaboration with the Pyramid Hill Board members to ensure goals are met and donor relationships are maximized.
• Manage the marketing effort and staff to establish successful communications that enhance Pyramid Hill’s visibility and reputation.
• Oversee Pyramid Hill’s operations and programs ensuring progress toward overarching strategic goals and drawing upon staff strengths to enrich decision-making and foster open communications.
• Recruit, nurture and challenge a highly qualified and motivated professional staff; delegate specific responsibilities; establish accountability.
• Lead ongoing development and improvement of organizational policies and practices—including assessment of the use of technology in order to effectively plan and manage registration and budgeting, as well as tracking and measuring demographics and outcomes.
• Work with the Controller to present financial plans and annual budgets to the Board for approval; regularly monitor and report financial status to the Board; engage their collective knowledge and resources in achieving financial sustainability.

Qualifications
A successful Executive Director candidate will likely have:
• Knowledge in visual art, with a deep appreciation for sculpture and public art as well as for the relationship between art and nature.
• Experience in effectively leading an arts, facilities, and land management for an organization of similar size and complexity, ideally for a nonprofit.
• Past success in growing support, particularly with major individual donors.
• Demonstrated ability leading change management, including building commitment internally and externally for key initiatives.
• Experience fostering strong Board relationships and supporting Board development.
• Demonstrated leadership and management skills; experience in team building and professional development with the ability and appetite to mentor staff and the discipline to delegate and honor team contributions.
• A record of strong collaboration; someone who actively seeks strategic partnerships and develops effective relationships.
• Experience as the face of an organization; well-developed interpersonal skills; superb oral and written communication skills; ability to present ideas clearly and persuasively.
• Strong financial, organizational and project management skills; a track record of managing complex projects; engaging in shared decision-making based on data and realistic expectations.
• A visionary leader with success in aligning operations to mission and deepening engagement across the organization and its constituents.
• A team builder with strong management skills; one who can motivate and inspire diverse partners.

COMPENSATION
Compensation package is competitive and commensurate with experience and qualifications.

START DATE
Summer 2021

PROCESS FOR APPLICATION
Bill Appleton is the MCA consultant leading this search. To be considered for the position, you must submit a current resumé, a one-page narrative describing interest and experience, and three professional references utilizing our online application system:
https://mcaonline.com/searches/executive-director-pyramid-hill
Once all your materials have been submitted online, you will receive a confirmation of your submission via the email address you have provided in the application.

The Pyramid Hill is an Equal Opportunity Employer.