Job  Board

Springboard for the Arts (Springboard) seeks an experienced leader to serve as its next Executive Director. The Executive Director provides overall leadership and strategy for Springboard by articulating a shared vision and purpose for the organization, working with organizational leadership to create a collaborative and effective organizational culture, and leading the teams responsible for fundraising, external relations, programming, staffing, and operations. The Executive Director is a visible advocate for artists, and participates in local and national thought leadership through writing, speaking, and representing Springboard in local, state-wide, regional, and national conversations and working groups. The Executive Director reports to a 9-12 member Board of Directors, leads a 21-member hybrid staff based in offices in Saint Paul and Fergus Falls, MN, and manages the operating budget of over $5 million and more than $14 million in net assets.

Equity is foundational to Springboard’s work, whose priority communities include Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQIA+ artists, artists with disabilities, and artists living in rural places and underinvested urban neighborhoods.

About the opportunity

Springboard is undertaking a planned leadership transition to strengthen its long-term sustainability and position the organization for its next stage of impact.

Over the past five years, Springboard’s operating budget has grown by almost 50% driven by major initiatives including piloting one of the longest-running Guaranteed Income programs in the U.S., scaling its Emergency Relief Fund through a statewide partnership with MN’s regional arts councils, transforming a used car dealership into its new Saint Paul offices and public space, and establishing the national Creative Change Coalition. After operating at this increased scale, the board and staff recognized the need to focus the organization and right-size operations for long-term health.

As part of this shift, Springboard’s Creative Change Coalition (CCC) is moving into a related but independent structure that the current Executive Director, Laura Zabel, will lead. This evolution enables both organizations’ work to thrive with greater focus, dedicated leadership, and operational flexibility, while keeping artists at the center of all decisions.

With the current Executive Director transitioning to leadership of the CCC, Springboard seeks a new Executive Director to fully lead its strategy, culture, operations, fundraising, and local partnerships and programming. This new position will report to the Springboard Board of Directors and be responsible for leading Springboard in the future.

About Springboard 

Founded in 1991 as Resources and Counseling for the Arts, Springboard for the Arts is a nationally recognized artist-led community and economic development organization: by artists, for artists. Its mission is to support artists with the tools to make a living and a life, and to build just and equitable communities full of meaning, joy, and connection. From its dual offices in Saint Paul and Fergus Falls, Springboard delivers resources locally and nationally tailored to creative workers, and pilots bold ideas rooted in local contexts, assets, and needs. 

Compensation and benefits

The position is full-time, in-person, and based in Springboard’s Saint Paul office. Some travel is required, including time working from Springboard’s Fergus Falls office (approximately four times per year). The salary range for this position is $175,000 to $195,000 plus excellent benefits, and an annual salary increase at the discretion of the Executive Committee of the Board.

The application process

Please see the full position announcement for information on how to apply and for detail on Springboard, the position’s responsibilities and qualifications, and the benefits package.