President & CEO - New Music USA

THE OPPORTUNITY

The next President & CEO of New Music USA will lead the organization into a bold, strategic, and community-centered future. This leader will build upon a strong foundation of national programs and partnerships while expanding the organization’s reach, revenue, and relevance.

Reporting to the Board of Directors, the President & CEO serves as chief strategist, fundraiser, communicator, and team leader. Key priorities include:

Strategic Leadership

• Execute the Board-approved Strategic Plan and continuously refine priorities in response to the evolving needs of music creators, communities, and funders.
• Partner with the Board and staff to clarify New Music USA’s identity, evaluate and communicate its impact, and champion its role as a national catalyst and trusted convener.

Fundraising & Resource Development

• Lead fundraising strategy and personally steward a portfolio of institutional and individual donors.
• Continue strong relationships with partners like the Mellon Foundation, SESAC, and Berklee College of Music while expanding support from new philanthropic sources.
• Explore creative revenue models that align with New Music USA’s mission and capacity.

Program Oversight & Evaluation

• Ensure continued excellence and equity in all programs and grantmaking processes.
• Work collaboratively with staff and grantees to assess impact, refine operations, and adapt programs for relevance and sustainability.
• Assess and identify ways to invest in the future of current programs, and work collaboratively to develop new ones.

Team Leadership & Culture Building

• Foster a values-aligned, collaborative organizational culture that supports staff development and well-being.
• Provide clear direction, inclusive decision-making, and strategic alignment across departments.
• Attract and retain talented professionals who reflect the communities served by New Music USA.

Board Engagement & Governance

• Serve as the primary liaison to the Board of Directors, ensuring strong governance, accountability, and generative conversation.
• Collaborate on Board development, orientation, and effective committee structures.
• Support the Board’s fundraising, ambassadorship, and strategic input.

Field & Public Representation

• Passionately engage as a visible, persuasive spokesperson for New Music USA across public, private, philanthropic, and creative sectors, including in New Music USA’s own activities.
• Build national partnerships across the music, media, philanthropic and academic ecosystems.
• Advocate for music creators, support equity in the arts and elevate underrepresented voices.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS & COMPETENCIES

While no candidate will meet every criterion, New Music USA seeks candidates who offer a majority of the following:

Leadership & Vision

• Demonstrated success leading a mission-driven organization and program with national scope.
• Experience aligning internal operations with external strategy.
• Comfort navigating complexity with decisiveness, diplomacy, and adaptability.

Fundraising & Resource Development

• Proven ability to raise significant philanthropic support from institutional and individual donors.
• Knowledge of arts and culture funding trends, and contacts within the foundation and private philanthropic communities, particularly in New York and Los Angeles.

Sector Knowledge & Appreciation

• Deep passion and knowledge of contemporary music across a range of genres.
• Experience working within the arts and culture sector or adjacent creative industries. Personal experience or training as a professional musician a plus.
• Strong networks and credibility with the music community.
• Understanding issues facing independent artists, historically under-represented creators, and the next generation of music leaders.

Operational Management

• Experience managing budgets of $2M+, overseeing diverse revenue streams and successfully leading small not-for-profit organizations.
• Competency in financial oversight, organizational policies, risk management, and performance evaluation.

Equity & Belonging

• Strong equity fluency and ability to lead inclusively across identity, geography, and genre lines.
• Commitment to centering historically marginalized voices and dismantling barriers to access.

Communication & External Affairs

• Exceptional communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Public speaking presence and comfort with media, interviews, and thought leadership.
• Experience building organizational reputation and leading brand positioning work.

Relationship-Building & Collaboration

• Humble and confident leadership style with strong emotional intelligence.
• Ability to build trust, listen with curiosity, and convene diverse stakeholders.
• Proven experience recruiting, fostering, motivating and mentoring collaborative teams

  New Music USA has retained H C Smith Ltd to manage this executive search.

  Rebecca Smith                                 *                E.B. Smith          *                Judith Frankfurt