Join ESC's Interim Executive Director Pool

ESC is recruiting highly experienced and knowledgeable nonprofit executives to join our Interim Executive Director candidate pool. Interim Executive Directors meet a critical and growing need of nonprofits by providing experienced, objective, and neutral leadership to organizations undergoing leadership transitions. Click here for more information, to apply or to refer someone - qualified candidates will be invited to participate in specialized training on Wednesday, April 11 and Thursday, April 12, 2012.

 

Welcome New Members to our Board of Directors

ESC welcomes Kevin Rochford and R. James Young, Jr. to our Board of Directors. Kevin and RJ bring great expertise and experiences to their service with ESC:

RJ Young and Pam WilcoxRJ Young (pictured with ESC President & CEO Pam Wilcox) had a 35 year career with Allstate, beginning in 1971 when he had just graduated from college with a B.S. in Mathematics. Over time he became a Fellow in the Casualty Actuarial Society and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries, while serving as Allstate’s lead actuary in their property and casualty business unit. Over the years R.J. was an Assistant Vice President in Sales, a Regional Vice President, Vice President of Pricing, Chief Marketing Officer, Chief Strategy Officer, and oversaw Allstate’s distribution system throughout the U.S. and Canada. He was Chairman of Allstate Canada, Allstate New Jersey, Allstate Florida and an Allstate Bank Director. He retired in 2006.

RJ has served as the President of the Rolling Meadows United Way and a Director on the Barrington Area United Way. He has served in several roles with the United Way of Metropolitan Chicago over the years, and he’s also volunteered his time with Little City in Palatine, along with various senior citizens’ organizations. He has been an ESC consultant serving our nonprofit and public agency clients in Strategic Planning, Organization Review, Board Development and Retreats, Human Resources and more since 2007.


Kevin RochfordKevin Rochford manages Bessemer Trust Company’s Chicago office as Managing Director and Senior Resident Officer. Prior to Bessemer, Kevin was a Managing Director for Nuveen Investments. Previously, he spent 13 years with Northern Trust, most recently as Chairman and CEO of Northern Trust’s Western Region. Kevin also held roles at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Bankers Trust, and Chemical Banking Corporation. He served as an artillery officer in the U.S. Marine Corps after college.

Kevin received his Bachelors from Williams College and an M.B.A. from New York University. He also serves on the boards of the Lookingglass Theatre and The Cradle in Chicago. He is a member of the Economic Club of Chicago.

 

2011 Celebration of ServiceThanks for Giving

Thanks-for-Giving, ESC's 2011 Celebration of Service, has gone down in the history books as our most successful event ever! Welcoming a crowd of 300 guests, President & CEO Pam Wilcox updated those in attendance on what's happening with ESC and introduced us to Growing Forward, the 2012-2014 strategic plan. ESC is grateful for Chicago civic and corporate leader Pamela Strobel who spoke to us on service and her deep appreciation for what we do and how we do it. All in all, it was a great, fun and energizing event!

ESC was grateful and honored to recognize the following volunteer members for their extraordinatory dedication and service:

  • Joe Clark and Marj Lundy for contributing 1,500 hours of service to ESC and our nonprofit and public agency clients
  • George Kraficisin and Frank Schnierow for contributing 3,000 hours of service
  • Dave Dunning as a Director Emeritus of ESC's Board of Directors
  • Phyllis Tabachnick and Jack Tovin as newly elected Life Directors
  • Bob Vanden Bosch with the Chairman's Award for outstanding service to ESC

For event photos visit ESC's facebook page (and "like" us while you're there!).

 

Consultant Honored for ServiceBobMatthei

ESC Volunteer Consultant, Robert (Bob) Matthei was recognized with an I Care Award by Lake County Cares at their annual award dinner, April 16, 2011. This year, I Care Awards were distributed to nine leaders who have contributed greatly to the Lake County and greater Chicago communities. "I don't volunteer to get awards," said Bob, "But it's a good feeling to be able to give back to my community." Bob's service with ESC began in 2000, when he joined to redirect his years of experience in sales and marketing to consulting with nonprofits and public agencies in his community. Since that time Bob has contributed over 4,200 hours of service to ESC and over 18 client organizations. Bob was also instrumental to the development of ESC's Coaching program, now one of our most sought-after programs. In addition to his ESC achievements, Bob has served on the Pastoral Council and Finance Committee of St. Mary's Church in Lake Forest. Previously he served on the Board of the United Way of Lake Forest/Lake Bluff and is currently a board member, Finance Committee member and active volunteer with United Way of Lake County. ESC is very grateful for Bob's years of dedication and salutes him and his fellow awardees for their many contributions to the community.

 

ESC & YNPN Kick Off Third Year of The Leadership Institute

ESC and YNPN Chicago are proud to announce the third year of The Leadership Institute beginning in Spring 2011 - a comprehensive program designed to instill in the next generation of Chicago nonprofit leaders the skills and knowledge necessary to step into executive leadership roles.

The Institute's first program asks its participants, "So You Want to be an Executive Director?", guiding them through monthly peer-learning roundtables, discussions with current Executive Directors, and one-on-one professional coaching or mentoring. Participants gain understanding of nonprofit fundraising, board/staff relationships, crafting budgets and tracking financials, marketing, creating productive partnerships, and much more.

In the continuation program of the Institute, "Charting Your Course", participants focus on their own leadership and management styles as well as determining their own desired career trajectory for moving forward. "The roundtables really enforced a solid work plan for becoming a new Executive Director. I feel that I will be able to step into an ED role strategically, while before I wouldn't have known where to start," said one participant.

For more information about The Leadership Institute and to read blog posts from current participants, visit YNPN Chicago's website. Participation is limited to members of YNPN Chicago, so join today (it's free!) to receive information for upcoming application deadlines as well as various other professional development and networking opportunities available to YNPN Chicago's membership.

 

ESC Wins Encore Opportunity Award

Civic Ventures and MetLife Foundation have awarded one of eight Encore Opportunity Awards to ESC. The awards honor organizations that are making it easier for experienced workers to transition into "encore careers" - paid jobs that offer meaning and a chance to make a social impact. ESC was recognized for its innovative Interim Executive Director service which places highly experienced former nonprofit Executive Directors as interim leaders in organizations undergoing a leadership transition. Click here to read more.

 

For an archive of ESC press releases and media coverage, please visit our Publications & Media Coverage page.