Zoological Association of America

The Zoological Association of America is seeking an Executive Director to serve as the organization’s chief executive and Integrator. This is a high-impact leadership opportunity for an experienced association leader who can translate the vision of the Board of Directors into focused priorities, organizational alignment, external influence, and measurable results.

ZAA is a national accrediting and membership organization representing zoological facilities, wildlife professionals, and related stakeholders committed to animal care, conservation, education, responsible wildlife management, and professional standards. ZAA operates in a complex public-policy environment where members are affected by legislation, regulation, public perception, media attention, and organized advocacy pressure.

This role is intentionally designed to be externally focused. The Executive Director will work closely with the Board Chair, Board of Directors, Director of Operations, staff, committees, consultants, and strategic partners to grow the organization, strengthen its voice, support member needs, and advance ZAA’s mission.

The Executive Director reports directly to the Board Chair, who serves as the Executive Director’s primary supervisor and point of direction on behalf of the Board of Directors.

Position Summary

The Executive Director serves as ZAA’s Integrator. The Board of Directors owns the vision, strategic direction, governance, and policy of the organization. The Executive Director is responsible for taking that vision and translating it into organizational priorities, accountability, external action, and measurable results.

The Director of Operations owns day-to-day internal execution, including systems, workflows, staff coordination, compliance tracking, and routine administrative follow-through. This structure allows the Executive Director to focus on ZAA’s highest-value needs: member recruitment, advocacy, legislative travel, public positioning, strategic relationships, conference presence, and revenue generation.

ZAA is seeking a builder, recruiter, communicator, advocate, and association leader who can help take the organization to its next level.

Key Responsibilities

Lead, Manage, and Hold Accountable

• Serve as ZAA’s Integrator by aligning the Board, Director of Operations, staff, committees, consultants, contractors, and strategic partners around the organization’s most important priorities.
• Lead through others by setting clear goals, scorecards, timelines, decision rights, and accountability expectations.
• Hold the Director of Operations and other direct reports accountable for results without becoming the default owner of routine administrative tasks.
• Create a disciplined meeting, reporting, and issue-resolution rhythm that supports transparency, traction, and follow-through.
• Provide the Board with timely, concise, decision-ready information and maintain alignment between Board direction, staff execution, advocacy priorities, member services, and financial sustainability.

Recruit Accredited Members

• Develop and execute a member-growth strategy focused on qualified facilities that are a strong fit for ZAA accreditation and membership.
• Build and manage a prospect pipeline of potential accredited members, including relationship status, barriers, next steps, and expected timing.
• Personally cultivate high-value prospective members and clearly communicate the value of ZAA accreditation, advocacy, community, professional standards, and member services.
• Represent ZAA at conferences, industry events, member facilities, and other venues where prospective members can be engaged.
• Work with membership and accreditation staff or committees to improve the prospect, application, onboarding, renewal, and retention experience without weakening standards.

Coordinate Legislation and Advocacy

• Coordinate ZAA’s federal and state legislative, regulatory, and legal strategy in alignment with Board-approved positions.
• Manage and align the work of government affairs consultants, lobbyists, legal counsel, monitoring services, committees, members, and Board leadership.
• Maintain a prioritized advocacy agenda that identifies threats, opportunities, desired outcomes, responsible parties, and next actions.
• Travel as needed for legislative meetings, regulatory discussions, hearings, fly-ins, conferences, coalition-building, and member advocacy.
• Coordinate relationships and member engagement through testimony, talking points, comment letters, issue briefs, alerts, calls to action, and timely Board updates.

Serve as Spokesperson

• Serve as a primary spokesperson for ZAA with members, policymakers, regulators, allied organizations, media, and the public.
• Clearly articulate ZAA’s mission, standards, accreditation role, policy positions, and member impact.
• Represent ZAA at conferences, hearings, public forums, industry events, and strategic partner discussions.
• Strengthen ZAA’s reputation as a credible, professional, standards-based organization.
• Ensure ZAA’s accreditation, animal welfare, conservation, education, professional development, and animal management priorities are effectively represented in public messaging, strategic relationships, member communications, and external engagement.

Generate Revenue

• Develop and execute a multi-year revenue strategy that supports ZAA’s mission, advocacy, member services, accreditation work, and long-term sustainability.
• Grow revenue through membership, accreditation, sponsorships, conferences, partnerships, grants, education, publications, programs, and other Board-approved opportunities.
• Personally cultivate sponsors, partners, donors, vendors, and other revenue relationships.
• Improve the financial performance and strategic value of conferences, events, and member programs.
• Work with the Board and staff to establish revenue goals, pricing strategies, value propositions, sales responsibilities, forecasts, and financial reporting expectations.

Desired Experience and Qualifications

Required Experience

• Significant leadership experience in an association, trade association, professional society, federation, nonprofit, advocacy organization, or comparable member-based organization.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, manage, and hold people accountable in a small-to-mid-sized organization.
• Experience working with a Board of Directors, volunteer leaders, committees, members, staff, consultants, and external partners.
• Proven ability to translate strategic direction into priorities, execution, accountability, and measurable results.
• Experience managing or coordinating advocacy, public policy, regulatory, legislative, government affairs, or external affairs work.
• Demonstrated success building relationships with members, prospects, policymakers, industry partners, sponsors, or other key stakeholders.
• Strong financial literacy, including experience with budgets, revenue goals, forecasting, expense control, and financial reporting.
• Excellent written, verbal, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Ability and willingness to travel regularly for legislative work, member recruitment, conferences, strategic meetings, and external representation.

Strongly Preferred Experience

• Successful experience growing an association or member-based organization comparable to ZAA’s current size and stage of development.
• Executive leadership experience in a trade association, agricultural association, animal-industry or livestock organization, wildlife or conservation organization, accreditation or certification body, advocacy coalition, or another highly regulated member-based organization.
• Experience in an agriculture-related, animal-related, wildlife, zoological, conservation, natural resources, land use, outdoor, food production, or similarly regulated industry.
• Experience leading an organization or industry through legislative pressure, regulatory scrutiny, activist campaigns, media challenges, or organized opposition.
• Experience working with lobbying firms, legal counsel, government affairs consultants, political coalitions, regulatory agencies, or legislative committees.
• Experience recruiting members, growing accreditation or certification participation, increasing retention, and improving member value.
• Experience generating non-dues revenue through sponsorships, conferences, partnerships, grants, education, programs, or vendor relationships.
• Experience serving as a public spokesperson for an organization, industry, association, or cause.
• Demonstrated success in organizational growth, external positioning, and revenue development within a nonprofit, association, or other mission-driven organization.

Candidate Profile

The strongest candidate will be:

• A builder who can help ZAA grow in membership, influence, revenue, and organizational maturity.
• An Integrator who can take direction from the Board and turn it into priorities, ownership, and results.
• A relationship-driven leader who enjoys recruiting members, cultivating partners, and representing the organization externally.
• A confident advocate who understands legislative pressure and can coordinate a disciplined response.
• A strong communicator who can speak with credibility in front of members, policymakers, regulators, media, and allied organizations.
• A disciplined executive who can lead through others and avoid becoming consumed by routine administrative work.
• A practical strategist who understands both mission and money.
• A steady leader who can operate in a controversial or high-pressure environment without becoming reactive, defensive, or distracted.
• A member-focused executive who understands that the association exists to serve, represent, strengthen, and grow its membership.

Compensation and Structure

The starting salary range for this position is expected to be $190,000 to $215,000, commensurate with experience and qualifications.

ZAA may consider additional flexibility for an exceptional candidate with demonstrated success growing a comparable association, leading advocacy efforts, recruiting members, strengthening external relationships, and generating revenue.

This is a full-time executive leadership position. The role may be remote or location-flexible, but significant travel should be expected for legislative activity, member recruitment, conferences, Board meetings, industry events, and strategic relationship development.

How to Apply

Interested candidates should submit a resume and cover letter describing their relevant association leadership experience, membership growth experience, advocacy or public-policy experience, and interest in serving as Executive Director of ZAA.

Application materials may be submitted to: info@zooassociation.org

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.