APPOINTMENT OF CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever Ephesians 3: 20-21
CEO OF OPEN DOORS INTERNATIONAL Open Doors is seeking our next leader. Our next CEO will have a heart that is shaped by the suffering and strength of our brothers and sisters in the persecuted church. You will have been prepared in advance to lead us with gifts of wisdom and discernment, and possess the strategic clarity to cut through organisational complexity. Your ability to communicate will inspire our people through the next chapter of our story, and your relational gifts will cause those around you to develop and flourish. The calling of Open Doors is clear and the mission has been blessed with tremendous growth. However, the opportunity to stand with and strengthen the persecuted church grows each year, just as the intensity of persecution increases. We are aware of the challenges that face us as we connect the global Body of Christ in prayer and mutual boldness. There is need to adapt to models of devolved power while seeking the highest levels of stewardship and clarity about our mission scope and organisational alignment. We continue to live and work in dependence on the Lord, as people of prayer and people of the Bible, whilst pursuing excellence in professional processes and accountabilities. Please pray with us for the Lord s guidance as we invite people to consider this leadership opportunity. Should you feel stirred to explore this role personally, know that we have been praying for you. Please read further to learn more about this remarkable ministry and the context of this leadership role. 2
OUR CORE VALUES We are devoted to Jesus Christ and His commission We are motivated solely for the glory of God We are part of the Body of Christ; a people to people people We live and work by faith STRENGTHENING THE PERSECUTED CHURCH We are Persecuted Church driven We are people of the Prayer We are people of the Bible 3
ABOUT OPEN DOORS The work of Open Doors began in 1955 when a young Dutch missionary, now known as Brother Andrew, travelled to Poland and discovered for the first time the reality of Christian persecution. For more than 60 years, Open Doors has worked with churches and local partners to strengthen what remains (Revelation 3:2), providing Bibles, Christian literature, leadership training, livelihood skills and engaging in advocacy and quiet diplomacy. Open Doors International provides global coordination, direction and resourcing to a network of affiliated Development offices and Field programme offices with ministry in over 60 countries. The persecution of Christians is rapidly getting worse. Persecution is understood as any hostility experienced as a result of one s identification with Christ. The Open Doors World Watch List is published every year and lists the 50 countries worldwide where Christians experience the most persecution. In the last three years, the number of points required for a country to get into the Watch List have increased by over 50%. There are many millions more Christians today who are afraid to go to Church or no longer have a church to go to; who have to choose between staying faithful to God or keeping their children safe; who have been brutalised, lost their dignity or their liberty because they are followers of Jesus. In the face of this rising tide of persecution we delivered over 3 million Bibles, books and Christian resources, trained over 331,000 Christians and Church leaders, served 403,000 people in 2015 with relief aid, livelihood support and community development projects and advocated for those persecuted because of their faith. The needs of the persecuted church inspired countless Christians to pray and partner with the suffering Body of Christ which resulted in generous charitable giving of $115m. We do so because we believe that when one member of the Body of Christ suffers, all members suffer with it (1 Corinthians 12:26), all doors are open and God enables His Body to go into all the world and preach the Gospel. This is not about maintenance. It s not about keeping the church going, just so that believers can continue to hold meetings. It s about keeping the light of the world shining in some of the darkest places on earth. The witness of Christians in these places means that their families, their communities even their nations have the opportunity to encounter the living Jesus Christ. In the midst of great suffering the persecuted church today is not merely surviving, it is living and growing. 4
Organisational Context The past decade has seen our work grow exponentially in financial terms, global reach, and the diversification of our services. The nature of Open Doors International s work has also evolved rapidly. Its aim is to best serve the growing network of field offices and development offices. There is a vibrant culture of prayerful and spiritual unity, ambition to do all we can to strengthen the persecuted church, and an inspired faith fuelled by the continuous testimonies and witness of our persecuted brothers and sisters. Now is the time for greater maturity, maintaining our identity (as described by the Core Values), our zeal for creative development, our capacity to grow well and respond fast, but adding the wisdom to read the times, a deeper strategic clarity about how to deliver our objectives in such dynamic global contexts, and a greater stature in our external profile to help connect the Body of Christ as we both awaken and mobilise the church and as we strengthen the persecuted church. We want our Christian faith identity to be integrated as our primary motivation. This will express itself in this order: A love for Jesus, a love for the church, a calling to serve the persecuted church, a passion for the ministry of Open Doors. We want an international leader with cultural sensitivity to cherish the expressions of the Body of Christ in every continent. We want a leader to infuse the organisation with confidence, vision and a clear strategy for the future. We want to build internal capacity to respond more quickly to what the Lord and colleagues are developing under our strategic vision. We want to see an organisation with clear and appropriate global governance working in harmony. We want to grow sustainably and limit the operational pains of rapid growth. We want to strive for measurable, lasting, transformational impact among our project participants through high quality programming that remains driven by the requests of the persecuted church. We want to be harnessing technology to improve organisational effectiveness and efficiency. We want to help develop the next generation of Open Doors leaders. We want to ensure that Open Doors is influencing global faith leaders and mobilising the worldwide Body Of Christ on behalf of the persecuted church. The task of delivering services to the persecuted church remains a huge challenge. Doing so across such a large portfolio of international contexts is exhilarating but also very demanding. We work through a workforce of excellent staff, seeking to maximise the work we can do within the financial constraints of a $115m global organisation. Open Doors International is now seeking a CEO to lead within this exhilarating and faith-filled context of missional ambition and growth. 5
CEO ROLE DESCRIPTION We are seeking a CEO with a living Christian faith, who is able to bring courageous and inspiring leadership to our work. He or she will be able to relate to Christians from different church backgrounds, with a heart and passion for strengthening the Persecuted Church and to see it vitally connected to the rest of the Body of Christ. The CEO will be highly relational to shepherd a people to people people! He or she will have a servant-hearted authenticity and high emotional intelligence. They will think and act innovatively, strategically and boldly. The CEO will report directly to the Chair of the International Board. The CEO provides strategic leadership to the Executive Leadership Team, which includes the Chief of External Services, Chief Operations Officer, and Chief Financial Officer. Though we recognise that the Lord will equip the leader He calls, and that the mix of experiences and gifts of leadership will be uniquely formed in the leader of His choosing, the Board of Open Doors International identifies these four key areas of leadership as the CEO s responsibility: 1. Spiritual Leadership Above all else, Open Doors needs a leader whose heart seeks hard after the Lord and whose character has been refined in this pursuit. The CEO of Open Doors will be: A man or woman whose character conforms to scriptural standards of personal leadership. Joyfully submitted to the authority of scripture and passionate about the word of God. Tested and seasoned through times of trial and testing that has resulted in humility, tender-heartedness, and confidence in His unchanging love and constant faithfulness. A global thinker, active in reading the times and identifying trends and opportunities that will affect strategic direction. Burdened for the persecuted church; active and engaged in carrying this burden. A listening heart, gifted with wisdom and discernment. Generous in their openness to seeing real faith in Jesus in a range of denominational and cultural expressions. Someone who leads from a place of prayer and inspires persevering and prevailing prayer in those around them. 6
2. Visionary and Strategic Leadership Open Doors faces the challenges and opportunities of the future with great purpose. We will need a leader who is both gifted with vision to see future possibilities and also able to shape the strategy to take people on the journey of realising this better future, through the grace of God and His blessing of the plans laid before Him. The CEO of Open Doors will be: Working with the wider leadership of Open Doors to discern the future direction and focus of the organisation. Articulating a clear and compelling vision and inspiring all stakeholders towards it. Anticipating changes of a global or organisational nature to ensure that Open Doors is responding to the real needs of the persecuted church with courage and agility. Cultivating an environment of innovation and thought leadership that will bring about new ways of fulfilling our mission. Creating new models for global mission, including ministry operating models, governance models, funding models and able to think through the risks and advantages of these models. Leading a unified strategy process that brings organisational clarity to the mission. Evaluating progress against those strategic objectives, growing a culture of transparency, accountability and high performance. 7
3. Representational Leadership The CEO will be an advocate for millions of our brothers and sisters in the persecuted church. We will need someone who can speak compellingly and with great personal authority. The CEO of Open Doors will be: Influencing and inspiring global church leaders in partnership with our Development Offices. Impacting as they communicate in written and spoken word. Skilled at internal communications within a globally dispersed and culturally diverse context. Resonant with our diverse range of stakeholders. Able to inspire faith and hope in those around them. A credible and authentic ambassador with winsome gentleness. Able to build and nurture purposeful relationships with other leaders in the global church. 4. Organisational Leadership Open Doors is now stewarding an annual budget of over $115m with 1,000+ staff based in over 60 countries. The CEO of Open Doors will be: Establishing a culture of high trust, high accountability and high performance. Managing senior leaders that are empowered and equipped to lead both people and processes to a place of organisational alignment. Taking the ultimate responsibility for the timely execution of major change projects. Creating an agile organisation with lean processes. Ensuring a level of process and administration that appropriately holds in tension the need for stewardship and risk taking. Valuing decisions made through community rather than unilaterally. Collaborating and maximising the benefit of a global governance structure and not fight against its constraints. Providing unifying leadership to the organisational challenges of coordinating Development offices and Field programme offices. 8
PERSONAL SPECIFICATION Open Doors believes that spiritual maturity, character and behaviour are as important as competence, and that it is important for the CEO to have, develop and model a number of personal attributes: A devoted follower of Jesus. A heart to serve the persecuted church. A seasoned leader, skilled and experienced in managing a large and dispersed team. Able to build strong relationships across cultural boundaries. Able to empower others and intentionally develop future leaders. Lead sensitively, yet prepared to make tough decisions and have hard conversations. Strong personal discipleship and accountable relationships within a church community to enable resilience. Emotionally intelligent and aware of the impact of their leadership and people management. Proven experience of negotiating and influencing at a senior level, combined with strong interpersonal and collaboration skills. Demonstrable ability to work in healthy partnership with others such as the governing board and senior colleagues. Able and willing to travel internationally circa 25% of the year. Key Skills and Experiences Extensive management experience in varied international contexts. Having built a strategy and seen it implemented and fruitful. Operationally confident to oversee change and enhancing organisational effectiveness. Proven ability to work with financial leaders to manage a multi-million dollar budget and develop strong and empowered teams which excel at collaboration and cross-organisational working. 9
God has put the body together, giving greater honour to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ. 1 Corinthians 12 HOW TO APPLY Open Doors International will offer a competitive salary for the post in addition to appropriate relocation costs. The role is likely to be based in one of our global hubs: Netherlands, UK or USA. Applications should be sent by email to opendoors@macaulaysearch.com and must be received by 5pm GMT on the 3rd of April 2017. Your application should comprise: A mandatory covering note of not more than two pages outlining your motivation and relevant experience for the role. This covering letter should also include the names of your three referees. Please note these referees will not be contacted until late in the process and with your prior agreement. The names and details of your referees will be held in strictest confidence. A full CV/Resume, including educational and professional qualifications, a full employment history showing the more significant positions, responsibilities held and relevant achievements. First Interviews will be conducted by Macaulay Search. Shortlisted candidates will be invited to a Skype Interview with the Open Doors International Selection Committee in early May. Finalist Candidates will be asked to come to the Netherlands for 2.5 days of meetings with Staff and Board Members on the 15th-17th of June 2017. The Open Doors International Selection Committee are very aware that this is a two-way discernment process. The successful candidate will be expected to take up the post CEO as soon as is reasonably possible. Thank you for taking the time to prayerfully consider this opportunity and to learn more about the work of Open Doors International. 10