Chief External Affairs Officer (CEAO) - Greater Seattle/King County Area

Description

About Girl Scouts of Western Washington

Girl Scouts of Western Washington is consistently and unapologetically committed to providing safe spaces for all girls* to belong. We build Girl Scouts of courage, confidence, and character who make the world a better place. Founded in 1912, our organization has been committed to meeting the needs of our youth members for over a century. We uplift all Girl Scouts in a supportive environment where they can discover their strengths and rise to meet new challenges—whether they want to climb to the top of a tree or the top of their class, lace up their boots for a hike or advocate for climate justice, or make their very first best friends. Backed by trusted adult volunteers, mentors, and millions of alums, Girl Scouts lead the way as they find their voices and make changes that affect the issues most important to them. They are the future leaders paving the way toward a brighter tomorrow. To learn more, visit www.girlscoutsww.org.

Girl Scouts of Western Washington values diversity, equity, and inclusion and we foster a welcoming, inclusive work environment. We are an equal opportunity employer, and we do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, age, national origin, gender, veteran status, sexual orientation (heterosexuality, homosexuality, bisexuality, and gender expression of identity), marital status, or the presence of any physical, sensory, or mental disability, or any other protected classification under applicable laws. 

*Girl Scouts of Western Washington uses the term girl inclusively to speak to everyone who identifies with the Girl Scout experience, which includes cisgender girls, gender-expansive youth, transgender youth, non-binary youth, gender nonconforming youth, genderqueer youth, and any girl-identifying human.

Requirements

About the Position

The Chief External Affairs Officer (CEAO) at Girl Scouts of Western Washington (GSWW) is a vital member of the Executive Team, responsible for oversight and alignment of the Marketing and Communications, Philanthropy, and Episodic Volunteering & Alumni Stewardship teams. This role is central to driving revenue growth, increasing brand awareness, and fostering a thriving membership base, all while advancing GSWW’s mission and expanding its positive influence in the communities we serve. The CEAO will create and lead a high-performing External Affairs department, integrating cross-functional teams to execute cohesive strategies that yield measurable results. By fostering collaboration and alignment, the CEAO will ensure a unified approach to external engagement, marketing, communications, fundraising, events, and community relations.

This is a regular, full-time exempt role with the requirement of residency in Western Washington, preferably within the Greater Seattle/King County area. This position is classified as hybrid – while work can be conducted remotely, successful candidates must be willing and able to come into a GSWW office or alternative work location as necessary or when requested. The full pay range for this position is $139,703 to $152,030 per year.  Additionally, GSWW offers an excellent work environment, meaningful mission-driven work and a competitive benefits package that includes employer-paid options for medical, dental, life/AD&D for employees. Additionally, access is available for our 403(b) retirement plan, as well as voluntary benefits that include vision insurance and flexible spending accounts. Our generous paid leave plan includes three weeks of vacation to start, sick leave, paid holidays, paid time off for personal development and volunteerism, and nearly two weeks of paid leave for our winter break.
 

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Leadership and Management

• As a key member of the Executive Team, participates in Council-wide leadership and planning for overall organizational strategy and direction. 
• Provides leadership and management to GSWW teams responsible for the planning, organization, evaluation, and execution of external engagement strategies, to include Marketing and Communications, Philanthropy, Episodic Volunteering, and Alumni Stewardship. 
• Designs and executes metric-based short and long-term plans to achieve departmental goals, establish key performance metrics across the External Affairs Team , and supports the success of the organization’s overall strategic and financial objectives. 
• Ensures the clear, consistent, and quantifiable articulation of  the impact and value of Girl Scouting to all internal and external audiences. 
• Oversees the creation and monitoring of departmental budgets. 
• Plays an active role in the strategic recruitment, orientation, and engagement of Board members and Ambassador level volunteers. 

Fundraising

• Ensures a culture of philanthropy throughout GSWW including staff, volunteers, the Board of Directors and our larger community supporters. 
• Creates annual strategies and goals to grow GSWW’s fundraising initiatives, performance, and donor base. 
• Serves as a prominent fundraising face throughout the organization, among stakeholders, and throughout Western Washington, cultivating a portfolio of high-level donors/funders and prospects to continue building and elevating GSWW’s visibility, impact, and financial resources.
• Serves as Board/Staff liaison on the GSWW Board Donor and Volunteer Stewardship Committee, to support Board Members and the CEO in stewarding specific philanthropic efforts and individuals.
• Partners across departments to identify mission-aligned revenue opportunities that advance program delivery, expand financial assistance, and strengthen infrastructure—ensuring philanthropic efforts directly support organizational goals and long-term impact.

Marketing and Communications

• Leads the development and execution of strategic communication and marketing initiatives that promote innovation, enhance organizational visibility, and strengthen partnerships with internal and external stakeholders. 
• Oversees the creation, implementation, and evaluation of a comprehensive marketing and communications program that will enhance GSWW’s mission and the organization’s position with existing and new audiences. 
• Further defines, builds, protects, measures, and promotes the mission, brand, value, and impact of GSWW.
• Oversees the effective multichannel distribution of messaging, communication, and promotional campaigns, including a robust digital strategy.
• Ensures the production of strategic, compelling stories that incorporate and balance the objectives of all departments and promote a unified, singular voice of GSWW.
• Ensures that proactive media, public relations, and thought leadership strategies are designed and executed to stimulate positive media interest, build brand awareness, and convey messaging in support of the mission, vision, and value of GSWW. 
• Serves as a spokesperson to key external audiences and positions the CEO and other organization leaders to interface with the media and other key influencers such as donors, foundations, partners, policymakers, business leaders, and other key stakeholders. 
• Proactively identifies potential crises and leads GSWW’s rapid communications strategy, working in partnership with the VP, Marketing and Communications to execute responses to both internal and external crises.
• Leads data alignment across the council—overseeing collection, visualization, and analysis to drive data-informed decision-making and ensure alignment with regional and national trends, donor behavior, member acquisition, and external affairs priorities.

External and Government Relations

• Oversees the strategy and vision for expanding community partnerships, actively engaging and stewarding a diverse network of key individuals and organizations to advance GSWW’s mission and vision in alignment with the strategic plan.
• Monitors state and federal policy landscapes, briefing the CEO and Board on issues impacting mission delivery, funding, and regulatory compliance. 
• Builds strategic partnerships to influence policy and advance GSWW’s public affairs agenda; participates in public policy discussions as directed by the CEO. 
• In time, leads the development of a government relations program, which may include initiating engagement with government and civic officials, establishing and strengthening relationships to further the organization’s mission, and overseeing advocacy efforts for legislation and funding to advance the mission.

This is a general description of the essential responsibilities of the position and is not inclusive of all job duties; other associated duties may be assigned.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Knowledge of and commitment to fostering environments that prioritize diversity, equity, inclusion, racial justice and belonging
• Strong alignment with Girl Scouts of Western Washington’s mission and vision.
• Highly strategic, with the ability to priorities decisively but collaboratively, delegate responsibilities, ensure accountability, and allocate resources to ensure results.
• Successful fund development professional, with knowledge of and success in attracting foundation and corporate grants, as well as the ability to identify, steward, and solicit individual donors.
• Solid, hands-on budget management skills, including budget preparation, analysis, decision-making, and reporting.
• Excellent organizational skills with strong administration and personnel management skills.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and oral, strong presentation skills.
• Ability to work respectfully with people from all backgrounds with an affinity for working with a culturally and politically diverse community.
• Ability to build collaborative ventures with diverse constituencies.
• Ability to interact with and engage with diverse volunteer and donor groups.
• Diplomatic, approachable, and supportive professional that inspires all to think entrepreneurially and welcome new ideas.
• Ability to convey a vision of the organization’s strategic future to staff, board, volunteers, corporate and community leaders and donors.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to inspire, influence and motivate. 
• Outstanding skills in relationship building, donor correspondence, and public speaking.
• Experience scaling quality and quantity of content through a combination of tools, people and processes.
• Proven track record developing and overseeing processes and implementation, as well as in KPI measurement, reporting and analysis.
• Ability to receive and apply feedback, as well as the ability to advise ways to improve performance in a way that can be heard.

Supervisory Responsibilities

This position directly supervises the following roles: 

• VP, Marketing and Communications
• Director, Corporate Relations
• Director, Institutional Relations
• Manager, Individual Donor Relations
• Manager, Episodic Volunteers
• Donor Data Specialist

This position indirectly supervises the following roles:

• Director, Marketing and Communications
• Marketing and Communications Assistant
• Marketing Analyst, Data Storytelling
• Episodic Volunteers
• Contracted Consultants

Required Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in public administration, non-profit management or another relevant field.
• Minimum of seven years of progressively responsible senior management with demonstrated success in the areas of responsibility of this role, including communications, marketing, and increasing philanthropic revenue.
• Experience affecting change in a complex organization, with a proven record of converting strategy into effective execution in support of an organization’s strategic objectives.
• Experience managing complex budgets. 
• Experience and/or familiarity with strategic communications.
• Familiarity with a wide range of fundraising channels, including individual giving and organizational funding partners; OR
• Equivalent combination of related experience and education

Preferred Education and Experience

• Experience in non-profit management.
• CFRE or ACFRE certification(s).
• Advanced degree in public administration, non-profit management, or another relevant field.
• Experience using various CRM and CMS platforms, such as Salesforce and DonorPerfect.

Other Qualifications

• Primary residence must be within GSWW Council area of Western Washington, with preference for Greater Seattle/King County Area.
• Valid Washington State driver’s license, access to a reliable vehicle, proof of insurance and the ability to fulfill travel requirements across widespread regional geography as necessary.
• Satisfactory results from criminal background search. 
• Willingness to maintain Girl Scout membership.
• Must be willing and able to come into a GSWW office or alternative work location as needed or when requested.