President and CEO

Aspen Leadership Group, a division of ZRG, is proud to partner with the Fetzer Institute in their search for a President and CEO.

The President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) serves as the most senior executive at the Fetzer Institute. As such, the CEO has responsibility for providing spiritual, programmatic, and operational leadership to the Institute. In partnership with the Board, the CEO will guide the Institute in living fully into its purpose: to awaken into and serve Spirit for the transformation of self and society, while ensuring operational and programmatic excellence, cultural coherence, and external engagement and influence.

The CEO is the primary point of communication between the Board and the staff and serves as an ex-officio member of the Board. The Board and CEO bear the great responsibility of leading the Institute in support of John Fetzer's vision of building the spiritual foundation of a loving world. The CEO will partner closely with the Board in the leadership of the organization following the Institute's unique "deep engagement" model of Board and staff relationship.

This model is reflected in the Board's practical and spiritual approaches to leadership and governance, including the degree of time commitment to Board service; commitment to personal and collective spiritual growth; and modeling for the Institute's staff a commitment to individual and collective spiritual journey and transformation. It is expressed in its partnership with the staff, and external thinkers and advisors, in looking out at the horizon and Fetzer's 500-year mission, embracing the mission's depth and breadth, and leaning into its role as generative sense maker.

John Fetzer, in founding the Fetzer Institute, enjoined us to build a community of spiritual discernment and loving action in the world and encouraged us to think in terms of the next 500 years. Our mission of "helping to build the spiritual foundation of a loving world" must meet the moment in which we find ourselves without losing our grounding in this long-term view to carry our work across generations.

The Institute is in a pivotal period of possibility and is ready to build coalitions, act boldly, and fuel imagination. There is a palpable momentum to unleash, activate, and establish clear communication and accountability structures to strengthen a learning approach. The CEO must balance continuity with innovation and lead the continued refinement and evolution of the Institute's strategies, cultivating an organizational disciplined practice of assessment and learning, evolving the strategies for helping build the spiritual foundation for a loving world.

The Fetzer Institute is a spiritually grounded but secular institution empowering a movement of funders and organizations that are applying spiritual solutions to social problems. We seek to build collective action for a sacred worldview; spiritually inclusive organizations that can sustain a sacred worldview; and the intellectual, cultural, and philanthropic foundation for a sacred worldview. The Fetzer Institute's 75-person community of board and staff is an inclusive, spiritually grounded community of love and hope, representing 20 faiths.

The organizational culture is deliberately developmental, which means we intentionally foster the professional, physical, social, emotional, and spiritual development of our staff through scaffolding and support for deeper transformation. Our communal practices provide a "spiritual meeting ground" where all ways of seeking and knowing Sacred Mystery both belong and co-exist.

The CEO must be intellectually curious and analytic, be a lifelong learner, and have an advanced degree or commensurate level of experience. Senior‑level leadership experience working in philanthropy, academia, or nonprofit sectors is highly preferred. In accordance with our core values of love, trust, authenticity, and belonging, the Fetzer Institute affirms that every person has inherent value and purpose, and that we belong to a sacred community that includes all people and all of creation.

The Institute welcomes candidates from all backgrounds who are inspired to contribute to our mission of helping build the spiritual foundation for a loving world. Your unique voice is valued, and we are excited to hear from you!

All applications must be accompanied by a cover letter and résumé. To be considered for the role, your cover letter must be responsive to the mission of the Institute and to the responsibilities and competencies presented in this position prospectus and must directly address each of the following questions:

• What about the Institute's mission resonates with you?
• How has your personal journey shaped your perspective on spirituality?
• What is your experience in, and approach to, creating a high‑performing organizational culture that is both results‑oriented and catalyzes individual and collective flourishing?
• How have you used your role as an organizational leader and the…