How you move is why we’re here. ®

Now more than ever.

Get back to what you need and love to do.

The possibilities are endless...

Now more than ever, our guiding principles are helping us in our search for exceptional talent - candidates who align with our unique workplace culture and who want to maximize the abundant opportunities for growth and success.

If this describes you then let’s talk!

HSS is consistently among the top-ranked hospitals for orthopedics and rheumatology by U.S. News & World Report. As a recipient of the Magnet Award for Nursing Excellence, HSS was the first hospital in New York City to receive the distinguished designation. Whether you are early in your career or an expert in your field, you will find HSS an innovative, supportive and inclusive environment.

Working with colleagues who love what they do and are deeply committed to our Mission, you too can be part of our transformation across the enterprise.

Emp Status

Regular Full time

Work Shift

Compensation Range

The base pay scale for this position is $192,000.00 - $292,500.00. In addition, this position will be eligible for additional benefits consistent with the role. The salary of the finalist selected for this role will be determined based on various factors, including but not limited to: scope of role, level of experience, education, accomplishments, internal equity, budget, and subject to Fair Market Value evaluation. The hiring range listed is a good faith determination of potential compensation at the time of this job advertisement and may be modified in the future.

What you will be doing

ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT, DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

AND COMMUNICATIONS

Background

HSS is the world’s leading academic medical center focused on musculoskeletal health and care. With 161 years of institutional expertise, HSS treats individuals at 20 locations in the New York Tri-State area and south Florida and attracts patients from all 50 states and over 80 countries. At its core is Hospital for Special Surgery, on the Upper East Side of New York City, nationally ranked first in orthopedics (for the 14th consecutive year) and second in rheumatology by U.S. News & World Report (2023-2024), and as a best pediatric orthopedic hospital by U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Children’s Hospitals.” HSS has also been ranked the number one hospital for orthopedics worldwide by Newsweek (each year since those ratings were introduced four years ago). It is the only hospital of any kind in North America designated by the World Economic Forum to its Global Coalition for Value in Healthcare.

HSS performs twice as many orthopedic surgeries as the next highest-volume hospital and 20 times more orthopedic surgeries than the average U.S. hospital, including more hip surgeries and knee replacements than any other hospital in the US. HSS has the lowest complication and readmission rates in the nation and among the lowest infection rates. HSS was the first hospital in New York State to receive Magnet Recognition for Excellence in Nursing Service from the American Nurses Credentialing Center five consecutive times. An affiliate of Weill Cornell Medical College, in addition to its main campus in New York City HSS has over 20 facilities in New Jersey, Connecticut, and in the Long Island and Westchester County regions of New York State, as well as in Florida.

HSS is the provider of musculoskeletal care to more elite sports teams than any other hospital in the world. Members of HSS’s medical staff serve as physicians for the athletic programs of several colleges and universities and numerous professional sports teams, including the Brooklyn Nets, New York Giants, New York Knicks, New York Liberty, New York Mets, and New York Red Bulls. In addition, HSS serves as a FIFA Medical Center of Excellence.

In addition to patient care, HSS leads the field in research, innovation, and education; HSS is affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian and serves as a major teaching hospital for Weill Cornell Medical College. The Hospital also maintains relationships that span patient care, education, and research with Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Rockefeller University.

HSS has world-class research capabilities: the organization’s bench to bedside research drives innovation, best practices, and pathways toward treatment and cures. The HSS Research Institute, composed of 20 basic science laboratories and 300 staff members, rigorously investigates care delivery to continuously improve outcomes and is focused on leading the advancement of musculoskeletal health through prevention of degeneration, tissue repair, and tissue regeneration. The HSS Innovation Institute also works to realize the potential of new drugs, therapeutics, and devices, leveraging the Hospital’s musculoskeletal experience and data to develop and market new technologies, lines of business, and partnerships.

HSS collaborates with medical centers and other organizations to advance the quality and value of musculoskeletal care and to make HSS care more widely accessible through the HSS Education Institute, a source for outstanding initiatives in education, training, research, and information for local, national, and international communities. Academic programs are a core offering of the Education Institute; for over 150 years, HSS has trained the minds, hearts, and hands of some of the finest orthopedic surgeons in the nation and is consistently ranked as the country’s top Orthopedic Residency Program. A steadfast commitment to excellence in education dates to the Hospital’s earliest traditions and continues to influence its mission and vision.

While HSS is today’s world leader in musculoskeletal care, research, education, and innovation, the organization is seeking to position itself for the future by capitalizing on its strong foundation while exploring new opportunities for service. Leveraging HSS’s unparalleled knowledge and expertise, these new ventures will include for-profit lines of business, products and services, and continued expansion of the HSS network of leading orthopedic providers across the globe.

HSS Florida

HSS Florida provides state-of-the-art care from the world’s leading academic medical center focused on musculoskeletal health. Prior to opening an ambulatory surgery and outpatient care facility in West Palm Beach in 2020, more than 3,000 Florida residents travelled to NYC for HSS care each year. In 2023, in collaboration with Naples Community Hospital on Florida’s southwestern coast, HSS at NCH began operations. At both locations, HSS offers the same superior quality of surgical care, rehabilitation, and other services that patients need and expect from HSS anywhere.

HSS Orthopedics at Stamford Health

A collaboration between HSS and Stamford Health, initiated in 2017, brought HSS services to the population of southern Connecticut. Under the collaboration, Stamford Health has adopted HSS’s best practices across its entire orthopedic service line, and HSS orthopedic specialists see patients at HSS Stamford at Chelsea Piers, Hamden, and Wilton. If surgery is necessary, HSS surgeons operate at the award-winning Stamford Hospital and Stamford Health Tully Health Center.

Position Mission

The Assistant Vice President, Development Programs and Communications (AVP) is a new position that offers an exciting opportunity for an accomplished and innovative professional to lead development communications and stewardship, special events, and annual fund activities that raise critical funds for strategic priorities, drive pipeline development, and maximize donor engagement. Collaborating with colleagues across the organization, the AVP envisions, inspires, creates and delivers a best-in-class donor experience that raises HSS’s profile as the national leader in orthopedics.

The AVP, Development Programs and Communications reports to the Chief Development Officer. Other positions reporting to the Chief Development Officer include:

• Vice President, Development
• Assistant Vice President, Development Operations
• Assistant Vice President, Individual Giving

The AVP, Development Programs and Communications leads a team of 10 FTEs including the following direct reports:

• Senior Director, Development Stewardship and Communications
• Director, Annual Fund
• Director, Bike HSS
• Executive Director, Special Events

Candidate Qualifications

The successful candidate will ideally possess the following qualifications and experience:

Education & Experience

• A bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, or a related field is required; a master’s degree in one of these areas is preferred.
• Eight or more years of progressive management experience in healthcare fundraising, marketing and communications.
• Energy and drive to succeed in HSS’s dynamic, fast-paced entrepreneurial environment.

Capabilities

• Demonstrated success designing, implementing, and evaluating strategic communication campaigns and events including message development and deployment across multiple mediums.
• A persuasive storyteller with evidence of crafting clear, action-oriented messaging to engage donors and prospects.
• Deep knowledge of industry best practices and a continuous improvement mindset to bring all perspectives to decision making, challenging self and others to think outside the box.
• Solid background in program and project management including planning, budgeting, resource allocation, stakeholder engagement, risk management, prioritization and decision-making.
• A strategic thinker with a performance and growth mindset who aligns communications and programs with broader organizational goals.
• A collaborative approach to working with executive and medical leadership, development colleagues, and staff, earning their respect through careful listening and bringing authority and expertise to solutions.
• An enlightened and transformational leader who can motivate, engage and build trust across diverse stakeholder groups.
• Data driven with a commitment to constant evaluation and using metrics and ROI to measure achievement.
• A confident and courageous leader who challenges up and sideways.
• Dedication to developing and empowering a motivated, high-performing team through effective leadership and mentoring in a culture of trust, openness, collaboration and mutual respect.
• Commitment to creating collaboration through transparently sharing information with colleagues and team members and promoting and modeling team above self-behavior.
• A superior communicator and presenter who uses data to convey a message that excites and motivates others and is easy for diverse audiences to understand.

Personal Characteristics

• High sense of purpose and urgency.
• An entrepreneurial spirit.
• Learning agility and intellectual curiosity.
• Self-awareness and high emotional intelligence.
• Creative and flexible.
• Unquestionable personal integrity.
• Critical thinker.
• Collaborative and articulate.

First-Year Aspirations

The new Assistant Vice President, Development Programs and Communications will be expected to achieve the following goals in the first twelve to eighteen months of their tenure:

• Build rapport and instill confidence with the Chief Development Officer, development team, and key stakeholders throughout the organization.
• Refine the HSS value proposition message for donors and prospects broadly, and specifically around key strategic fundraising communications, events, and programs.
• Oversee the creation of custom communications that cultivate the HSS donor and prospect base broadly, steward donors individually, and educate and inspire grateful patient prospective donors about the importance of philanthropy.
• Further define and build a donor stewardship program that utilizes best practices and creates standards across giving levels, with a particular focus on donors of $1M and above.
• Provide strategic guidance and oversight for a variety of fundraising and stewardship events that focus on advancing strategic fundraising initiatives, growing the donor pipeline, stewarding donors, and building culture.
• Oversee BIKE HSS and develop a growth plan to maximize the potential of Bike HSS, a unique peer-to-peer fundraising program that culminates in an annual New York-based cycle/walk/run event dedicated to advancing research and driving innovation to power the HSS mission. The event is the primary driver of new donors into the HSS development program each year. Conduct a brand evaluation and strategic re-brand transition for BIKE HSS.
• Guide the annual fund, which raises unrestricted support through mail and email, emphasizing renewals and strategic growth of the donor pipeline through planned giving.
• Create and execute on a robust corporate giving strategy that builds on the success of BIKE HSS and other events.
• Assess and improve development communications including refreshing the HSS Foundation website and working closely with Marketing on the area’s Web presence, the annual report, and graphic design elements.
• Ensure the appropriate alignment and allocation of resources and personnel across development programs and communications.
• Serve as a trusted strategic partner to the Chief Development Officer, Vice President Development, and executive and medical leadership in evolving development strategies.
• Incorporate HSS’s regional markets fundraising to ensure consistency and alignment with HSS development strategies.
• Partner with fundraising leadership colleagues including VP Development and AVP Individual Giving, to ensure Development Programs and Communications teams are effectively supporting their programs and strategically aligned with goals and direction of the principal gifts and major gifts programs.
• Partner with operational leadership colleagues, including AVP Operations, to ensure the operations and data team are effectively supporting development programs and communications.
• Actively participate with other development and fundraising colleagues in defining new priorities after the recent successful building campaign, focusing on wellness and prevention and leaning into new revenue models.
• Recruit, mentor, develop, evaluate, and retain an industry-leading team with a strategy and growth mindset.
• Develop and implement metrics to measure success and create accountability for assigned development activities.
• In collaboration with development leadership and the fundraising strategy team, ensure programs drive a culture of philanthropy and strategic engagement of key stakeholders.
• Passionately embody and model the purpose and mission of Hospital for Special Surgery.

Non-Discrimination Policy

Hospital for Special Surgery is committed to providing high quality care and skilled, compassionate, reliable service to our community in a safe and healing environment. Consistent with this commitment, Hospital for Special Surgery provides care, admits, and treats patients and provides all services without regard to age, race, color, creed, ethnicity, religion, national origin, culture, language, physical or mental disability, socioeconomic status, veteran or military status, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other basis prohibited by federal, state, or local law or by accreditation standards.

Read Full Description