Executive Director

SARASOTA BAY ESTUARY PROGRAM

111 South Orange Avenue, Suite 200W

Sarasota, FL 34236

POSITION ANNOUNCEMENT

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

The Sarasota Bay Estuary Program (SBEP) is seeking qualified applicants for the Executive Director position.  The successful applicant will have demonstrated experience in effectively managing multi-entity environmental, scientific and/or engineering programs; fostering and maintaining collaborative approaches to complex environmental issues; the ability to facilitate consensus among diverse and sometimes conflicting stakeholders; success in raising funds from public and private sectors, including federal, state and local grants; and the ability to manage an effective and talented staff.

Position Summary

The Executive Director is a full-time position responsible for ensuring the efficient and fiscally responsible operation of the SBEP.  This includes providing supervision and appropriate oversight of the managers of SBEP’s technical projects, its public education and outreach initiatives, and its program administration function.  The Executive Director will also be responsible for maintaining existing and developing new sustainable funding sources from public and private sectors, and meeting requirements stated in the various grants (including EPA Cooperative Agreements) awarded to SBEP.  

Primary among the Executive Director’s responsibilities is to maintain and strengthen SBEP’s local, state and national reputation as a science-based ‘honest broker,’ encouraging all stakeholders to work together to form effective solutions to meet agreed-upon goals for the restoration and protection of Sarasota Bay.

Qualifications

The successful applicant will possess most or all of the following qualifications:

• Knowledge of the principles of estuarine ecology and the factors affecting water quality in estuaries.
• The ability to readily grasp the technical basis for the program’s goals and actions and to communicate those concepts to policymakers, the public, and the media in easily understood terms.
• The ability to facilitate consensus among diverse and sometimes competing stakeholders on complex environmental issues.
• The ability to build partnerships among the program’s local government, agency, and private-sector partners on projects that support implementation of the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP).
• Success in marketing environmental or natural resource management programs and in raising funds from private and public sources.
• Experience in program management including project management, finance, budgeting and personnel management.
• Demonstrated leadership in professional and personal accomplishments.

SBEP values leadership qualities in its Executive Director, and has identified the following qualities as desirable:

• Ethics and values – adheres to an effective set of core values, whether working within the SBEP organization, with partners, or with members of the community at large.
• Integrity and trust – is widely trusted by the scientific community, government agencies and the public at large.
• Communications – is able to speak and write clearly and succinctly regarding SBEP’s mission and projects to a variety of audiences including public officials, the technical and scientific community, and the public.
• Building and maintaining successful teams – creates strong morale and spirit within the SBEP staff and with all partners; shares credit and successes.
• Working toward common goals with multiple and diverse partners – is adept at identifying common goals and solutions for complex and long-term issues affecting Sarasota Bay’s resources.

Education/Experience

The position requires a graduate degree from an accredited university or college in one of the natural sciences, engineering, public administration, business administration, urban and regional planning, policy analysis, or a related field and at least six years of progressively responsible experience in one or a combination of those fields. Preference will be given to candidates who have successfully directed environmental and natural resource management programs with high visibility and who have successfully developed diverse and stable funding sources for those programs.

Compensation and Benefits

• Salary: The successful candidate will be hired at a salary within the range of $100,000 – $125,000, commensurate with education, experience, and other qualifications.
• Pension: SBEP participates in the Florida Retirement System (myfrs.com)
• Deferred Compensation: Nationwide 457 Plan available
• Health, Dental and Vision: Employer subsidized
• Life Insurance: Employer paid
• Vacation/Sick Leave/Holidays: Competitive leave package, including annual, sick and holidays

SBEP Organizational Summary

The Sarasota Bay Estuary Program is an independent special district of the State of Florida with the mission of building partnerships to restore and protect Sarasota Bay through implementation of a scientifically sound, community-based management plan.  SBEP was originally formed as the Sarasota Bay National Estuary Program in 1989 and re-organized through an Interlocal Agreement as the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program in 2004.  As provided in the Interlocal Agreement, the SBEP office and staff coordinate the implementation of the CCMP for bay restoration. The CCMP serves as the blueprint for bay restoration as mandated under the Section 320 of the federal Clean Water Act.

The Program is directed by a Policy Board comprised of elected officials from the counties of Sarasota and Manatee, cities of Sarasota and Bradenton, Town of Longboat Key, and officials from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP), and the Southwest Florida Water Management District.  The Executive Director reports to the Policy Board. The Policy Board and the Executive Director are advised by senior managers from local governments, agencies, and industry sitting on a Management Board, and with input from a Technical Advisory Committee and a Community Advisory Committee. Various other groups created by the SBEP, including the Sarasota Bay Water Quality Consortium, play important roles in achieving the goals of the CCMP. 

As of July 2025, the program will be staffed by five full-time positions: an Executive Director, a Science and Restoration Manager, a Public Outreach Manager, an Operations Manager, and an Executive Assistant.  Funding is provided by Congressional appropriations administered through EPA, plus by five local governments and the Southwest Florida Water Management District, pursuant to commitments in the Interlocal Agreement. Revenues from the Sarasota Bay Environmental Fund, and various grants for special projects administered by SBEP supplement funding.

Application Instructions

Applicants must submit a cover letter, resume, three professional references and/or letters of recommendation, and responses to the three questions below. A supplemental brief video introduction is optional. Documents must be submitted through the application portal at www.sarasotabay.org/careers. Materials received through other platforms will not be considered.

Applications must be received no later than 2:00 P.M. EST on Friday, August 8, 2025.  No phone calls, please. Applicants are prohibited from contacting members of the Policy Board or Screening Committee about SBEP, their application, or any aspect of this selection process. 

To ensure all applicants have the opportunity to address a common set of questions, applications should include written responses to the following:

• Please describe why you would like to be the Executive Director of the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program. What do you consider to be your primary strengths for this position?
• Please describe a challenging situation that best demonstrates your ability to lead an agency or program/project under difficult circumstances.
• Please describe a large, complex issue that required you to communicate effectively with a variety of stakeholders in order to address the issue and bring about consensus.

Local Residency

The selected candidate will agree to reside in Sarasota or Manatee County within six months of employment commencement.

Veteran’s Preference 

All applicants who claim Veteran’s Preference must submit substantiation of their service with their application.  Qualified veterans will be interviewed by the Screening Committee.

Interview Process

Finalists will be contacted in early September and are expected to be present for interviews by the Policy Board on Friday, September 12, 2025, in Sarasota, Florida.  Virtual interviews may be considered. The person selected will be expected to start employment as Executive Director in early November 2025, to allow a brief overlap and transition with the current Executive Director.

All applications and materials provided to the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program are public record and will be made available upon request.   

The Sarasota Bay Estuary Program is an Equal Opportunity Employer and a Drug-Free Workplace