Vice President, Strategy and Planning

Description

Pay range: To maintain internal equity, we have identified the starting range for this position at the Oakland Zoo as $156,409.67 to $181,500.22 annually. An offer within this range will be determined by the experience and qualifications of a candidate and will be our best and final compensation offer, in alignment with Oakland Zoo's compensation philosophy. 

Position Summary

Oakland Zoo is entering a defining period. Its Zoo-wide Organizational Strategy, its Conservation Strategic Plan, a Welfare Strategy now in development, and the long-term public investment of Measure Y together give the Zoo a rare opportunity to shape what it will be for wildlife, for its people, and for its community in the decades ahead. The Vice President, Strategy & Planning exists to see that opportunity realized, so that these strategies advance as one coherent direction and the Zoo's ambitions become commitments it keeps. 

As a strategic business partner to the CEO and the leadership team, the Vice President holds three organization-wide workstreams: Organizational Strategy, Measure Y Strategy, and Long-Range Planning, which includes campus planning. The Vice President also guides the annual organizational and departmental goal planning that turns long-term strategy into each year's work. Other strategic efforts will arise over time, and this role ensures that each one aligns with the Zoo's current and developing strategies. 

When this role succeeds: 

• The Zoo's strategies read and operate as one direction, with shared priorities, timelines, and measures. 
• Every department's annual goals trace clearly to those strategies. 
• Measure Y funds are planned, tracked, and reported against multi-year priorities the leadership team shares. 
• Campus and long-range plans reflect the Zoo's organizational, conservation, and welfare commitments. 
• Leaders have the information and the forum they need to make timely, well-informed decisions. 
• The CEO, the leadership team, and the Board can see at any point where the Zoo stands against its commitments. 

Guided by the CEO and the Zoo's established direction, the Vice President supervises one Project Manager and achieves these outcomes by bringing the right people together, facilitating strong decisions, and keeping the Zoo on track.

Application Process

Applicants must submit a resume and a cover letter under the "Upload Additional Files" portion of the application. Applicants who do not submit this/these will be declined. The cover letter should include responses to the following:

• Describe a time you raised concerns that an organization’s priorities exceeded its capacity, but leaders were reluctant to hear that or wanted to keep the work moving. How did you handle the conversation, make the tradeoffs clear, and help determine a responsible path forward?
• Describe a time you brought two or more separate plans or strategies into one direction. What overlaps, gaps, or conflicts did you find, who resolved them, and how did you choose measures and report progress to executives or a board?
• Describe how you have designed or run a goal-setting process across several departments. How did you connect goals to long-term strategy, budget, and staffing, and how did you coach leaders while letting them own their goals?
• Tell us about a time you facilitated a leadership or board discussion that ended in a difficult decision, including how you framed the tradeoffs and tracked follow-up. Then describe how you lead through influence when a leader disagrees, and how you develop a direct report.

Essential Job Duties

Strategic Partnership with the CEO and Leadership Team 

• Serve as a strategic thought partner to the CEO and the leadership team, ensuring alignment and follow-through on key priorities. 
• Frame issues, options, and tradeoffs so leaders can make timely, well-informed decisions. 
• Build cross-functional collaboration across departments to improve efficiency and effectiveness. 
• Foster clear and transparent communication between leadership and staff about strategy, priorities, and progress. 

Strategy Integration 

• Thread together the Zoo-wide Organizational Strategy, the Conservation Strategic Plan, and the Welfare Strategy so their goals, timelines, and resource needs align. 
• Ensure that other strategic efforts, as they arise, align with the Zoo's current and developing strategies before they move forward. 
• Identify overlaps, gaps, and conflicts between plans and bring them to the right leaders for resolution. 
• Support the leaders developing the Welfare Strategy so it fits with the Zoo's other plans from the start. 
• Maintain one integrated view of the Zoo's strategic commitments, owners, and milestones. 

Organizational Strategy 

• Hold the workstream for implementing the Zoo-wide Organizational Strategy, including progress tracking, accountability, and alignment with institutional goals. 
• Develop and manage performance metrics for strategic initiatives, and report progress to the CEO, the leadership team, and the Board. 
• Drive follow-through on high-priority initiatives by working with the leaders who own them. 
• Facilitate periodic review and refresh of the strategy as the Zoo's needs change and other strategic efforts emerge. 

Annual Organizational and Departmental Goal Planning 

• Design and run the annual goal planning cycle with the CEO and the leadership team, including the calendar, guidance, and tools. 
• Support department leaders in setting annual goals that connect to the Zoo's current and developing strategies. The role advises and coaches; department leaders own their goals. 
• Coordinate with Finance and People & Culture so that goals, budget, and staffing plans inform one another. 
• Facilitate regular progress reviews and keep organizational and departmental goals visible throughout the year. 

Measure Y Strategy 

• Hold the workstream for Measure Y planning and implementation, ensuring alignment with strategic priorities and financial accountability. 
• Convene Finance and department leaders to develop multi-year priorities for Measure Y funds, and facilitate recommendations to the CEO. 
• Partner with Finance on tracking the use of Measure Y funds against plan. 
• Support clear reporting on Measure Y to the Board, the City of Oakland, and the community. 

Long-Range Planning 

• Hold the workstream for long-range planning, including campus planning and the long-range financial outlook that supports it. 
• Convene the leaders, staff, and outside partners involved in campus planning, and keep the process on schedule. 
• Ensure campus planning reflects the Organizational Strategy, the Conservation Strategic Plan, the Welfare Strategy, other current and developing strategies, and available funding, including Measure Y. 
• Integrate long-range planning into annual goals so that long-term direction shapes each year's work. 

Leadership and Board Engagement 

• Plan and facilitate leadership team (LT) meetings, ensuring alignment, preparation, and productive discussion. 
• Coordinate board meeting preparation with the CEO, including agenda development, materials, and coordination with all necessary parties. 
• Track and drive follow-up actions from leadership and board meetings. 
• Support communication and change management that help staff adapt to strategic shifts. 
• Perform other related duties as required and assigned. 

Supervisory Responsibility:

• Hires, supervises, develops and oversees performance management of the Project Manager, Strategy & Planning. 

Who you are:

• Minimum of 12 years of professional experience, including at least 8 years leading organization-wide strategy, planning, or cross-functional initiatives of moderate to high complexity. 
• Deep expertise in strategic planning, with solid working knowledge of organizational operations, long-range planning, and change management. 
• Demonstrated experience connecting multiple plans or strategies into one coherent direction, with goals, metrics, and progress tracking. 
• Proven ability to advise and influence senior executive teams, and to lead through influence without direct authority. 
• Strong facilitation and communication skills, including experience leading executive meetings, strategic planning processes, and board engagements. 
• Experience designing and running organizational and departmental goal-setting processes. 
• Experience supervising and developing staff. 
• Experience in a nonprofit, public, or mission-driven organization, including work with a governing board. 
• Able to work on occasional weekends and holidays when needed. 

Bonus if you have:

• Bachelor's or advanced degree in business administration, public administration, organizational development, or a related field. 
• Experience with public funding frameworks, such as voter-approved tax measures, or with grant management or accreditation processes. 
• Experience with campus, facilities, or capital master planning. 
• Experience in a zoo, aquarium, museum, or conservation organization. 
• Experience leading system implementations or large-scale internal initiatives. 

Work Environment - Environmental or atmospheric conditions commonly associated with the performance of the functions of this job. 

• This role combines office-based work with occasional presence in the field, including construction sites, outdoor areas throughout the Zoo, and guest-facing spaces. 
• Work may involve exposure to varied weather conditions and uneven terrain. 
• Standard business hours with some flexibility. 
• Limited remote work may be available after an evaluation period and is dependent on ongoing performance assessments. 

Physical Considerations - The physical demands described below are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions. 

• Ability to move through Zoo grounds. 
• Sustained computer-based administrative and analytical work, using standard or assistive technology for extended periods every day. 
• Able to bend and twist, lift and carry objects weighing up to 35 lbs., stand, kneel, sit, walk, bend, and stoop occasionally within an 8 hour shift. 

Knowledge/Skills/Qualities - May be representative, but not all-inclusive, of those knowledge, skills and abilities commonly associated with this position. 

• Analytical and Conceptual Aptitude – engages in and facilitates broad organizational strategic thinking/planning with awareness of equity, inclusion, accessibility, and cultural relevance. 
• Communication – communicates respectfully and effectively with stakeholders across identities, both verbally and in writing. 
• Data Analysis – able to collect, interpret and detect patterns in clean data. 
• Flexibility – nimbly adapts to evolving priorities and urgent needs; handles intervals of high pressure while maintaining perspective and humor. 
• Inclusive Culture – fosters a culture of mutual respect, transparency, collaboration and belonging which allows all employees to feel appreciated, included, and valued. 
• Inclusive Facilitation – able to comfortably move a group through pre-determined content while balancing inclusion and timing; able to flexibly weave in related content to make connections for learners and adjust or pivot when needed. 
• Leadership – mentors, advises, and develops people across identities with consideration for cultural relevance and responsiveness, self-awareness around implicit bias and understanding of the power dynamics that exist in organizations. 
• Organization – strong attention to details and able to build and/or maintain efficient systems. 
• Passion – wholeheartedly believes in, represents, and models Oakland Zoo's mission and PRIDE values at all times. 
• Project management – effectively prioritizes commitments, driving forward multiple high-profile and complex projects simultaneously with flexibility, resourcefulness, and agility to adapt to shifting organizational needs. 
• Relationship-Building – able to build and maintain trusting relationships and mutually beneficial partnerships with internal and external stakeholders. 
• Self-motivated – effectively navigates multiple, simultaneous tasks with excellent attention to detail and deadlines. Enthusiastically identifies and approaches opportunities without regular supervision. 
• Solution-oriented – utilizes an open-minded and strengths-based approach to finding solutions for complex challenges. 
• Sustainability – oriented toward the mission and values of Oakland Zoo and able to put those into practice by finding creative and resourceful ways to develop sustainable practices within your role and department. 
• Wildlife Aware – understands mission to support the conservation and welfare of animals at the Zoo, locally and globally. This is demonstrated by a willingness/passion to reflect this mission in all actions and to continue to learn how to take action for wildlife. 

Benefits 

Oakland Zoo offers a comprehensive benefits package, including Health insurance, Dental insurance, Vision insurance, Flexible spending account, Retirement plan, Paid time off, Employee Assistance Program, and Zoo Membership options.