Executive Director

ABOUT FARM RESCUE

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Farm Rescue is a highly respected nonprofit dedicated to helping farm families remain viable during times of crisis. Founded in 2005 and headquartered in Fargo, North Dakota, Farm Rescue provides planting, haying, harvesting, commodity hauling, and livestock feeding assistance to farmers and ranchers who have experienced a major injury, illness, or natural disaster.

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With approximately $3 million in annual revenue, seven staff members, and more than 250 volunteers across the Midwest and Upper Midwest, Farm Rescue has assisted over 1,250 farm families since its founding. The organization currently operates in Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin, with Missouri recently announced as an additional service state beginning in FY27.

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WHY THIS ROLE IS COMPELLING​

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• Unique Mission: Farm Rescue is the only nonprofit in the United States providing hands-on operational assistance to farm families during times of crisis.
• Strong Industry Reputation: The organization is widely respected throughout the agriculture industry and supported by leading companies such as John Deere, Dekalb, Farm Progress, and Nutrien.

• Meaningful Impact: Since its founding, 97% of the assisted farm families continue operating their farms three years after Farm Rescue’s support.
• Significant Growth Opportunity: The organization plans to expand annual service capacity from approximately 50 farm cases to more than 100 within the next three to four years while doubling the annual operating budget.

• Leadership Opportunity: The Executive Director will have the opportunity to shape the next phase of growth for a mission-driven organization that serves rural communities across the Midwest.

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POSITION SUMMARY

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The Executive Director serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Farm Rescue and is responsible for the leadership, strategy, and fundraising of the organization. The President/Board will continue to work with Field Operations to efficiently deploy capital equipment to assist farm families, with the Executive Director leading the Field Operations Managers for all other assignments. The Executive Director reports to the Board of Directors and leads a team responsible for fund raising, marketing/communications, volunteer coordination, and financial administration. The Executive Director works closely with the Founder and Board to advance Farm Rescue's mission while ensuring the organization remains financially sustainable and operationally effective.

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KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

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Organizational Leadership

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• Provide strategic leadership aligned with board priorities;
• Translate board-approved strategy into operational plans and measurable goals;

• Recruit, develop, and lead a high-performing team;
• Build and achieve annual budgets, forecasts, and performance metrics;
• Foster a culture aligned with Farm Rescue's mission and values.

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Fundraising & Partnerships

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• Lead fundraising strategy including corporate sponsorships, individual donors, foundations, & planned giving;
• Create infrastructure and process to ramp Farm Rescue's individual donor programs;
• Cultivate and maintain relationships with major donors and agricultural industry partners;

• Recruit, manage and mentor development staff to achieve funding goals.

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Marketing & External Engagement

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• Increase awareness of the Farm Rescue mission across the agricultural community;
• Implement marketing strategies to dramatically increase funding, including digital campaigns, media outreach, events, and industry partnerships;
• Serve as a compelling spokesperson and evangelist for the organization.

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Program & Operational Oversight

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• Ensure effective and safe delivery of Farm Rescue's assistance programs
• With proper budget management, build out development, operations and marketing teams over the next 3 years to achieve the board’s vision of increasing funding and farm families assisted by 2X;
• Collaborate with the President/Founder to maintain strong field deployment capabilities

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First Year Priorities

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• Strengthen fundraising capacity with strategy to build the solicitation engine for the individual donor program;

• Recruit, manage & assist development team focused on corporate sponsors and foundations;

• Increase awareness through scalable communication and community engagement programs;

• Build a strong foundational culture with the staff to support future growth and to match Farm Rescue’s ‘Good Samaritan’ and high integrity values;

• Build internal systems and processes to support organizational growth.

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Candidate Profile

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The ideal candidate will combine agricultural credibility with nonprofit or business leadership experience. Successful candidates will bring a track record of sales/marketing/fundraising, entrepreneurial leadership, growth achievement, and relationship building.

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Qualifications Include: 

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• Bachelor's degree in business, management, agriculture, marketing, or related field

• Leadership experience in nonprofit or agricultural organizations;

• Demonstrated success in fundraising, sales, marketing and partnership development;

• Strong network and understanding of agriculture and rural communities, with farm background;

• Experience managing teams, budgets, and strategic initiatives;

• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills;

• Willingness to operate as a hands-on 'player/coach' leader in a growing organization

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Position Details:

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• Reports To: Board President and Board of Directors

• Direct Reports: Business Manager; Communications & Marketing Strategist; Development Officers (2); Field Operations Managers* (2); Volunteer Coordinator

• Employment Status: Full-time, exempt

• Travel: Approximately 25% for partner visits, board meetings, farm cases and agricultural industry events

• Location: Fargo, ND headquarters or work remote in ND, SD, IA, NE, IL, WI with convenient access to Farm Rescue’s service region.

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*Shared responsibility of managing Field Operations Managers with President/Board.

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