Deputy Director, Carpenter's Shelter

Our client, Carpenter's Shelter, seeks a skilled Deputy Director to ensure the organization’s operational excellence while designing strategic plans and delivering high-quality programming.

For a full job description, visit www.good-insight.org/careers.

About Carpenter’s Shelter

For more than thirty-five years, Carpenter's Shelter has been dedicated to addressing the housing crisis faced by households experiencing homelessness in the City of Alexandria. Carpenter’s Shelter offers the broadest range of homeless services of any provider in the City of Alexandria, including two 24-hour, year-round emergency shelters, rapid re-housing, David’s Place (a day shelter for individuals experiencing homelessness), permanent supportive housing, seasonal winter shelter, and medical clinic and mental health services.

With a dedicated team of 30 full-time staff, 35 part-time staff, and an annual operating budget exceeding $5 million, Carpenter’s Shelter continues to expand its impact. Grounded in the belief that housing is the key to stability, Carpenter’s Shelter is dedicated to our mission of supporting people experiencing and at risk of homelessness to achieve sustainable independence through shelter and housing placement, guidance, education, and advocacy. To learn more, visit carpentersshelter.org.

Position Overview

Carpenter’s Shelter seeks a dynamic and forward-thinking leader to build on its 35 years of impactful service to the City of Alexandria. Reporting to and partnering closely with the Executive Director, the Deputy Director will play shape and execute strategies that ensure operational excellence and high-quality program delivery.

This systems-oriented leader will drive organizational efficiency and work collaboratively with the program team to develop responsive strategies that address the evolving needs of clients and staff. The Deputy Director will oversee the strategic direction and operations of all Carpenter’s Shelter programs and bring demonstrated experience in team leadership, coaching, and mentoring, managing a high-performing team that includes the Finance Director, HR & Operations Manager, Grants Manager, Senior Director of Programs, and Therapeutic Services Director.

Additionally, the Deputy Director and their team will engage with the Board of Directors’ committees—including Operations, Finance, Audit, Programs, and Strategic Planning—to align organizational efforts with long-term goals.

Specific areas of responsibilities include:

Organizational Leadership

• In partnership with the Executive Director, enhance, develop, and implement the organizational vision established in Carpenter’s Shelter’s Strategic Plan
• Demonstrate consistent quality of finance, administration, and communications
• Recommend timelines and resources needed to achieve organizational goals
• Develop policies and procedures related to programs, operations, and facilities
• Ensure organizational compliance with local, state, and federal regulations
• Develop strategies with senior management team to address challenges and opportunities
• Encourage cross-functional knowledge sharing and support between the Programs team and the Development team

People Management

• Attract, develop, and retain high-performance team members, and coach them through opportunities for growth
• Provide leadership and cohesiveness with internal communication
• Support staff during organizational growth
• Work with staff to develop systems to ensure consistent high-quality project management
• Oversee program budget and advise on allocations and expenditures

Knowledge Management

• Develop, maintain, and update systems, policies, and procedures to build organizational efficiency
• Ensure that key project outcomes are evaluated and leveraged for maximum community and organizational impact
• Develop a dashboard to monitor and assess organizational key performance indicators (KPIs)
• Monitor and make data-driven decisions based on KPIs

Experience, Skills, and Qualities

This position is a challenging and rewarding opportunity that requires a diverse set of skills and experiences. While we understand that no single candidate can possess every skill, listed below are highly preferred qualities and experience:

• Demonstrated passion for Carpenter’s Shelter’s mission and commitment to working collaboratively with a management team of senior professionals
• 7 years of nonprofit experience and a record of supervising staff
• Business acumen and financial management skills to develop and operationalize strategies to take the organization to the next stage of growth
• Understanding of nonprofit finance and budget oversight experience
• Record of grounding client needs and developing intentional trauma-informed strategies
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the confidence to defend and debate ideas collaboratively
• Compassionate leadership; able to work effectively with diverse groups of people
• Commitment to fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace
• Knowledge of affordable housing trends and finance models preferred but not required

Location

Carpenter’s Shelter is based in Alexandria, Virginia. The Deputy Director will work on-site with the potential for remote work up to one day per week. The Deputy Director may be asked to handle emergencies outside of regular business hours. The shelter is operated 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Compensation & Benefits

The salary for this role has been budgeted between $115,000–$130,000. Carpenter’s Shelter offers health, vision, and dental insurance, long-term disability and life insurance, flexible scheduling, paid time off, holidays, and a 403(b) retirement plan.

Application Process

Good Insight, a national nonprofit executive search firm headquartered in Washington, DC, is

assisting with this search. Interested applicants should upload a resume and a

detailed cover letter in PDF format to good-insight.org/careers. Confidential inquiries about the

role may be directed to CarpentersShelter@good-insight.org. For best consideration, submit a resume and a cover letter by late January 2025. Qualified applicants will be contacted on a rolling basis. Early applications are encouraged due to the pace of the search.