Executive Director

Executive Director | Adamant Music School

The Executive Director (ED) is the primary administrative and operational leader of AMS. This is an extraordinary opportunity or a success-driven leader to continue the School’s drive toward long-term sustainability, supported by a dedicated board of directors.

The Organization

Founded in 1942, the Adamant Music School (AMS) is a piano sanctuary nestled in the Green Mountains of Vermont. Our mission is to provide an immersive, supportive, and non-judgmental environment, offering diverse programs that cater to everyone from

conservatory-level competition winners to dedicated piano enthusiasts. In the last 2.5 years, the school has made transformative advances in bringing our institution from near closure to a vibrant and growing non-profit organization; we are now seeking the next leader to maintain this momentum in our journey toward becoming fully self-sustainable. With a 130-acre campus featuring over 40 grand pianos, 28 practice cabins, private sleeping rooms, and a communal dining hall, Adamant is becoming more widely known as a “hidden gem” of the classical music world.

The Role

The Executive Director (ED) is the primary administrative and operational leader of AMS. This is an extraordinary opportunity or a success-driven leader to continue the School’s drive toward long-term sustainability, supported by a dedicated board of directors. This is a hands-on, high-initiative role; the ED does not just manage operations but serves as the primary driver of revenue growth, institutional sustainability, and the professionalization of our development efforts.

Key Responsibilities

• Program Expansion & Enrollment: A two-fold approach focused on both adding new piano programs and maximizing student enrollment within each existing program.

• Development: building donor programs and securing competitive grants.
• Campus Monetization: Marketing the campus to outside organizations for weeks that our piano programs are not in session.

Operational & Strategic Leadership

• Strategic Execution:
  Provide leadership for executing strategic direction and day-to-day operation.
• Fiscal Management:
  Manage the school’s operating budget year around and for summer music programs.
• Automation:
  Leverage our digital systems (e.g., RegPack, CRM, Website) to ensure seamless applicant registration, adjudication, and payments. Utilize CRM data to achieve communication and philanthropic goals.
• Contract Negotiation:
  Manage all third-party agreements and vendors, ensuring high-value service delivery and meticulous attention to detail in all contracts.
• Volunteer Engagement:
  Lead volunteers and establish pertinent task group meetings to support school initiatives.

Campus & Personnel Management

• Campus Oversight and Staff Leadership: Oversee the 130-acre campus, ensuring professional maintenance of the grounds, buildings, and piano inventory. Manage and oversee the year-round, part-time facilities manager, operations manager, and support consultant.

Seasonal Expectations

Summer Season:
The ED works remotely the majority of the year but is expected to live on-site at the Adamant campus for no less than half of the summer sessions (approximately 7 weeks). Housing and meals are provided during this time.

• Daily Operations: Lead all daily operations of summer programs.
• Summer Staffing: Hire and manage summer support, including a Program Coordinator and Program Assistant, Piano Technician. With support of the operations manager, hire housekeeping staff, a chef, kitchen support and grounds keeping.

• Remote Oversight: When not on-site, ensure a high-caliber coordinator and assistant run programs successfully while providing remote guidance.

• Performance & Outreach: Oversee all public performances and coordinate concerts throughout central Vermont to enhance the school’s presence and community engagement.
• Enhanced Experience: Implement policies and best practices to ensure an exceptional faculty and student experience.

Off-Season

• Artistic Recruitment: Select and hire faculty and teaching artists for the upcoming summer.
• Student Recruitment: Lead marketing and communication efforts to ensure full enrollment.
• Admissions: Manage the student adjudication process utilizing automated systems.
• Revenue Generation: Actively solicit outside organizations for campus rentals.
• Development: Create and lead hands-on donor programs and head all grant submissions.

Candidate Attributes & Qualities

• High Resourcefulness & Strategic Discernment: The Executive Director must be exceptionally resourceful. While expertise in every nuance of non-profit management is not expected, the successful candidate must possess the discernment to recognize knowledge gaps as well as the professional network to recruit, hire, or consult with the right experts at the right time.

• Creative & Growth-Oriented Thinking: We seek a visionary who looks at every operational facet—from marketing to facility usage—through the lens of strategic improvement. The ED must proactively identify creative solutions to drive the organization toward long-term financial self-sustainability.

• Outcome-Driven Leadership: The ideal candidate is inherently motivated by successful results. They possess a “whatever it takes” mindset to meet enrollment targets, fundraising goals, and operational milestones, ensuring the school’s mission is backed by measurable success.

• High-Performance People Management: The ED must be an effective mentor who hires and empowers passionate, skilled personnel. We require a leader who provides robust support for their team while maintaining high standards of accountability; this includes the ability to make difficult personnel decisions when staff are unable or unwilling to align with the school’s ambitious goals and work ethic.

• Delegation & Supervision: The ED must be capable of delegating tasks, supervising the team, and ensuring everyone has what they need to succeed.

• Organizational & Technical Proficiency: The ED must have superior organizational abilities for maintaining complex schedules and data, and is proficient in Google Suite and other administrative software.

• Agility & Problem Solving: The ED must be capable of adjusting to changing priorities and fast-paced program demands and can quickly identify and resolve logistical or interpersonal issues as they arise.

• Composure & Professionalism: The ED must maintain composure and a professional demeanor during stressful situations.

• Logistical Foresight: The ED must pay close attention to logistics, scheduling, and event details to ensure smooth operations and be capable of anticipating potential challenges and implementing solutions quickly and effectively.
• Institutional Stewardship: The school’s mission and interests must be the Executive Director’s primary professional priority. Every decision, artistic, financial, or operational, should be filtered through the singular goal of preserving and advancing the legacy of Adamant Music School above any personal interests.

Experience & Background

• Entrepreneurial Business Leadership: The ideal candidate is a proven leader with a track record of driving success for a business or non-profit corporation. We are seeking an entrepreneurial Executive Director who has managed all facets of an organization, from financial responsibility to operational logistics, and understands how to scale a mission-driven entity to new heights.

• From Vision to Execution: Candidates must demonstrate practical experience in converting a high-level vision into a tangible reality. This entails having a portfolio of successful outcomes where opportunities were identified and and projects implemented that yielded financial or operational success.

• Diverse Professional Backgrounds: We value diverse leadership experience. This role is well-suited for individuals who have previously excelled as a Business Owner/Entrepreneur, General Manager/Marketing Executive, or an Executive Director or multi-faceted Development Director.

• Artistic Context: While this is primarily a business and operational leadership role, an appreciation for the principles of our founder and for classical music is required. Success in this role depends on the ability to bridge the gap between business and musical artistry.

Yearly Salary and benefits:

• $100K – $120K depending on experience
• Payment for medical coverage
• Three weeks paid vacation and holidays.

To Apply

Please submit a resume and a compelling cover letter outlining your relevant business leadership experience and your interest in the Adamant Music School to hr@adamant.org.

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