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Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Senior Director, Governance and Leadership - **Company:** The Jewish Federation - **Location:** North Bethesda, MD, United States - **Experience:** Expert - **Salary:** $130,000.0 - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** Computer Programming, Microsoft Dynamics, Program Design Languages, Data Pipelines - **Published:** May 31, 2026 - **Apply:** https://www.indeed.com/viewjob?jk=a9b4906a5f1d0ebb ## About the Role Do you have experience in Volunteer support?, Required * 8+ years of progressive professional experience in nonprofit leadership, governance, organizational development, or a related field. * Demonstrated experience managing complex governance structures, volunteer leadership, and board relations. * Proven track record designing and implementing leadership development programs and pipelines. * Exceptional relationship-building and interpersonal skills; ability to work effectively with senior lay leaders, executives, and diverse stakeholders. * Strong strategic thinking, systems-building, and project management capabilities. * Experience supervising and developing teams; ability to coach staff at multiple levels. * Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including facilitation and presentation. * Commitment to JFGW's mission and values; understanding of and connection to the Jewish community. Preferred * Experience in the Jewish communal nonprofit sector or a similarly complex membership/governance-driven organization. * Familiarity with Jewish learning frameworks and content (e.g., Shalom Hartman Institute programming, Jewish text study). * Experience with measurement, evaluation, and theory of change development for leadership or educational programs. * Familiarity with CRM or leadership tracking platforms (e.g., Microsoft Dynamics, CoPilot). ## Description Reporting to the Chief of Staff, the Senior Director partners at the highest levels of lay and professional leadership-including the Board Chair, Chair of Leadership, Chair of Governance, and Community Leadership Council (CLC) Chair-and serves on the staff leadership working group for strategic planning. The Senior Director also leads and develops a team of three to four direct reports., Board Governance and Executive Partnership * Partner with the Chief of Staff to manage and support the Governing Board and Board Chair, serving as a primary staff liaison for the board's governance functions. * Serve as lead staff for the new Governance Committee of the Board, developing its structure, agenda, and operational cadence. * Work closely with the Chair of Governance and Chair of Leadership to advance governance priorities and ensure strong lay-professional partnership. * Lead and manage the Board evaluation process, identifying opportunities to strengthen board performance, engagement, and accountability. * Oversee bylaws review and revisions, ensuring governance documents remain current, compliant, and aligned with Federation's evolving structure. Governance Systems and Best Practices * Develop and implement best-practice systems and processes for governance across the Governing Board, Community Leadership Council, and standing committees. * Lead the Nominations Committee processes for both the Governing Board and the CLC, managing timelines, criteria, outreach, and onboarding of new leaders. * Work to clarify committee portfolios, role expectations, and governance responsibilities to support effective lay-professional relationships across the organization. Oversee intentional and broad-base efforts to build a culture of trust-based lay-professional partnerships. * Lead the Leadership Strategy Committee/JLL Task Force, ensuring it is well-structured, strategically focused, and effectively advancing Federation's leadership agenda. Community Leadership Council (CLC) Oversight * Oversee the agenda, operations, and strategic direction of the Community Leadership Council in partnership with the CLC Chair and Director of Convening. * Ensure the CLC is functioning as an effective vehicle for community-wide leadership engagement, strategic input into Federation priority-setting, and community needs identification. * Support effective integration of the CLC with other Federation departments, including Impact, to foster cohesion and shared purpose. * Manage the CLC Nominations process, including cycle planning, leader identification, and onboarding. Leadership Pipeline Development * Oversee Federation's leadership pipelining work, designing and operationalizing the systems and processes that identify, track, develop, and sustain high-potential lay leaders across governance and programming. * Build and manage leadership pathway tools in Dynamics/CoPilot to support data-informed decisions about leadership engagement and succession. * Develop on- and off-ramping procedures for Governing Board and CLC leaders, including robust onboarding and alumni/veteran engagement strategies. * Cultivate diverse leadership pathways that reflect the breadth of Greater Washington's Jewish community, with intentional attention to geographic diversity (including Northern Virginia). Leadership Programming * Develop and oversee all of Federation's leadership programming, integrating Jewish values, leadership skill-building, and community vision across program design. * Co-facilitate the Jewish Community Leadership Program (JCLP) in partnership with the Chief of Staff-a flagship year-long program designed to inspire and develop top communal lay leaders. * Oversee Federation's partnership with the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America, leveraging this relationship as a platform for thought leadership and Jewish learning for lay leaders and professionals. * Develop a measurement and evaluation framework for leadership programs, building a theory of change and shared metrics to demonstrate impact and guide resource allocation. Team Leadershi * Foster a culture of strategic clarity, professional growth, and collaborative excellence within the team. * Consult across JLL and other Federation departments to embed a culture of leadership in all organizational strategies. * Serve on the staff leadership working group for strategic planning, co-led by the Chief of Staff. Growth and Innovation Opportunities The Senior Director will have opportunities to shape emerging areas of Federation's leadership agenda, including: * Overseeing the development of Immersive Experiences in partnership with the Federation Resource Development (FRD) team, building high-impact engagement opportunities for lay leaders. * Developing a future Jewish Learning initiative that expands Federation's capacity to provide meaningful Jewish educational content as part of its leadership ecosystem. ## Related Videos - [Successful talent development in tech: A joint journey of executives and talents](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1497-successful-talent-development-in-tech-a-joint-journey-of-executives-and-talents) - [Photonic Computing: Programming a New Class of AI Accelerators (incl. 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