The American Symphony Orchestra League welcomes nominations and applications for the new position of Vice President, Research and Development, available early in 2007. American Symphony Orchestra League http://www.symphony.org The American Symphony Orchestra League is the national association that serves 1,000 member orchestras comprising symphony, chamber, youth, and university orchestras of all sizes, and supports a network of thousands of musicians, conductors, managers, board members, volunteers, staff members, and business partners.   Its mission is to lead, encourage, support, and serve orchestras as they assure the vitality of the musical experience, strengthen the entire orchestral organization, and deepen their connections with their artists, their public and their communities. The programs and services of the American Symphony Orchestra League are designed to develop and strengthen artistic, volunteer, and management leaders; to promote artistic vitality; to recognize excellence in education and community engagement; to advocate for public support of orchestras; and to provide a communications network through conferences, constituent meetings, publications, on-line services, and a comprehensive information resource center.   Founded in 1942 and chartered by Congress in 1962, the American Symphony Orchestra League is headquartered in New York City and has a government relations office in Washington, DC.  The League has an operating budget of approximately $6.5 million, a staff of 40, and is governed by a 50-member national Board of Directors who reflect the composition of the organization’s various constituencies.   Lowell Noteboom is Chairman of the Board; Henry Fogel is President and Chief Executive Officer; and Jesse Rosen is Executive Vice President and Managing Director. The Position The Vice President, Research and Development, is the Chief Knowledge Officer,  responsible and accountable for building the League’s capacity to be a catalyst for innovation, a provider of research and development, and a think tank for the orchestra field, thus enabling the field to grow as a knowledge-based industry.  S/he will design and implement strategies that allow the League to help orchestras respond to contemporary challenges and plan for the future with the benefit of new, shared, and applied knowledge.   Working with all of the League’s stakeholders, the Vice President will develop an overall framework to guide the League’s acquisition and management of knowledge.  S/he will identify old, existing, and new knowledge relevant to the orchestra field.  S/he will design and implement ways to capture, verify, organize, and disseminate knowledge.  S/he will determine what technologies are required for effective knowledge management.  S/he will identify and gather knowledge from experimentation and innovations already underway in the field.  S/he will oversee the process for developing new knowledge that encourages and allows innovation in the field and that enables the field to seize the opportunities presented by changes in the environment and advances in technology. The Vice President, Research and Development, will help the League build a demand for knowledge and innovation in the orchestra field.  S/he will help the field learn how to access, reflect upon, and assimilate information.  S/he will encourage the development of a culture of inquiry that values research and embraces intelligent risk-taking. The Vice President will develop the infrastructure that allows the League to serve as a think tank for the orchestra field.  Working with the League’s senior managers and constituents, s/he will oversee the development and implementation of the League’s research agenda.    S/he will initiate and encourage the development of partnerships with independent research institutes and with advisors inside and outside the orchestra field in order to frame critical questions and lead research.  S/he will oversee, evaluate, and make adjustments to the topical and on-going data collection and analysis done by the League to ensure that it keeps pace with industry needs.  S/he will keep abreast of and utilize new technologies that enhance user access and maximize value. The Vice President, Research and Development, supervises the Information Resources Manager and a staff of two.  S/he reports to the Executive Vice President and Managing Director and is part of a senior management team that includes the President and CEO, EVP and Managing Director, Chief Financial Officer, Director of Human Resources, and the Vice Presidents for Development, Communications and Public Relations,  Marketing and Membership Development, Learning and Leadership Development, and Advocacy. Candidate Profile This is a new position for the American Symphony Orchestra League and for the orchestra field.  The League welcomes inquiries and applications from interested professionals whose corporate, academic, research, arts, and other experience may not include every aspect of the following profile, but who would welcome the challenge of creating this new research and development function at the League.     The successful candidate will combine a passionate belief in the value and importance of orchestras with the expertise, experience, and management ability needed to build and oversee a new research and development function that will serve the orchestra field effectively.  Experience conducting, interpreting, and applying research is essential.   An advanced degree in business, management, or the social sciences is desirable. The successful candidate will be have a strong reputation and record of accomplishment as a manager of people and projects, with particular expertise in executing research projects. S/he will have the technical knowledge and skills needed to develop, access, and analyze a wide range of qualitative and quantitative data and information.   S/he will possess a depth of personal and intellectual integrity that in turn ensures the integrity of the work produced.   S/he will have a well-developed professional network that will ensure access to the best information and the finest practitioners. The successful candidate will be able to perform well as a both a team member and a team leader.   S/he will demonstrate the ability work effectively with a broad range of constituents and stakeholders in order to achieve organizational goals.  S/he will be skilled not only at building consensus, but also managing in the absence of consensus. The successful candidate will be a creative and strategic thinker with a high level of enthusiasm for knowledge and learning.   S/he will combine respect for tradition with openness to risk-taking and change.  By nature, the successful candidate will be curious, optimistic, and even-tempered.  S/he will be receptive to abstract and imaginative thinking and will have a highly developed capacity for ambiguity.  S/he will be respectful and considerate when dealing with strongly held and sometimes divergent points of view.   The successful candidate will welcome the opportunity to embrace and help achieve the mission and goals of the American Symphony Orchestra League on behalf of America’s orchestras.   Compensation Compensation will be competitive and commensurate with the candidate’s qualifications and experience.  The benefits package includes participatory group health, dental, vision and life insurance and 403(b) retirement programs. Applications This search is being managed jointly by and Catherine French ([email protected]) of the Catherine French Group and Richard Cisek ([email protected]) of Management Consultants for the Arts.   We welcome nominations and recommendations of candidates. Those interested in being candidates for the position should provide a cover letter that outlines both interest and qualifications, along with a resume, salary history or requirements, and names of at least three references.   Applications will be confidential and references will not be contacted without the applicant’s agreement.    

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