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Executive Director (ED) jobs: 1,853 open roles, pay, industries and skills

1,853 open Executive Director jobs (ED), taken from employers’ own career sites and checked to still be open. Also listed as ED, Executive Director and CEO, President and Executive Director. Listings that state pay show a median of $187,000 a year.

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The market for Executive Director work

Every figure is counted from verified open listings. Pay is what the employer advertises for the job.

Verified open Executive Director jobs
1,853

Source: NextChapter, checked against employer career sites, last 7 days.

See the detail →
Median pay in listings that state it
$187,000

Source: NextChapter verified openings.

See the detail →
State with the most openings
New York (276)

Source: NextChapter verified openings.

Industry hiring the most
Healthcare & Hospital Systems (30%)

Source: NextChapter verified openings.

Listings that are remote
30%

Source: NextChapter verified openings.

See the detail →
Listings that ask for an AI skill
5%

Source: NextChapter verified openings, read in full.

What a Executive Director does

C-suite role in Executive Leadership.

A non-profit, association or agency: its mission, budget, staff, fundraising and the board it answers to. At some banks and firms “Executive Director” is a senior rank instead.

Reports to the board of directors.

Other ways this role is written

  • Executive Director
  • ED
  • Executive Director and CEO
  • President and Executive Director

Listings under any of these titles are counted on this page. Assistant, associate, manager and staff titles are not.

Open Executive Director jobs

Verified against the employer’s own career site within the last week.

Showing the newest 15 of about 1,853 verified open jobs here. Search all jobs

Search all Executive Director jobs

Executive Director salary

From 408 open listings that state pay. Annual, in US dollars, base pay only.

Lower quarter
$135,000
Median
$187,000
Upper quarter
$250,000

Leadership pay often includes bonus and equity that a listing does not state. Treat these figures as the floor of the conversation, not the whole package.

Best industries for Executive Director jobs

Employers hiring the most, as a share of listings whose employer has a known industry. Median pay shown where at least 8 listings state it.

Where Executive Director jobs are

States with the most open listings; median pay where at least 8 listings state it.

Skills Executive Director jobs ask for

Named in the listings themselves, as a share of 402 Executive Director listings that name skills. Leadership listings name fewer skills than individual-contributor ones, so this is a signal, not a checklist.

Most named in Executive Director listings

  1. 1. regulatory compliance18%
  2. 2. strategic planning17%
  3. 3. budgeting14%
  4. 4. risk management13%
  5. 5. project management10%
  6. 6. forecasting9%
  7. 7. onboarding8%
  8. 8. treasury7%
  9. 9. procurement7%
  10. 10. crm6%

Across all Executive Leadership openings

  1. 1. strategic planning6%
  2. 2. regulatory compliance5%
  3. 3. budgeting5%
  4. 4. risk management4%
  5. 5. project management4%
  6. 6. forecasting3%
  7. 7. supply chain2%
  8. 8. procurement2%
  9. 9. excel2%
  10. 10. change management2%

AI skills for Executive Director jobs

Specific AI skills named in the full posting text, such as prompt engineering, AI governance or an AI tool. A general mention of AI does not count.

5% of 407 open Executive Director listings ask for a specific AI skill, against 2% of all Executive Leadership openings.

AI skills named most often

  1. 1. AI tools in daily work3%
  2. 2. Model training and deep learning1%
  3. 3. AI workflow automation1%
  4. 4. AI strategy and use cases1%
  5. 5. AI governance and risk1%
  6. 6. AI adoption and change management1%

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Job titles under Executive Director

The exact titles employers use, with their own job and salary pages.

Employers hiring for Executive Director roles

  • Confidential 168
  • JPMorgan Chase 149
  • Brookdale Senior Living 25
  • Testing Site - JPMC 22
  • Chase 20
  • Gentiva 15
  • Estee Lauder Companies 12
  • Estée Lauder 12
  • DSG Global 11
  • Kaiser Permanente 10
  • J.P. Morgan 9
  • March of Dimes 9

Recruiters who place Executive Director roles

Search firms with live public searches in Executive Leadership, counted from their own job postings, not self-described. Each has at least two at this level.

All Executive Leadership search firms

Conferences for Executive Director leaders

Events tagged for Executive Leadership, with dates, cost and how to speak.

  • Biotech Showcase

    Jan 11 to Jan 13, 2027 · San Francisco, CA

    Paid ticket. Early bird saves up to $400 by Nov 13; prices on the Registration Options page, not read. Digital Partnering Jan…

  • J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference

    Jan 11 to Jan 14, 2027 · San Francisco, CA

    By invitation only. Invitation only; invitations are not transferable.

  • RILA Retail CEO Forum

    Jan 30 to Feb 2, 2027 · Palm Beach, FL

    By invitation only. Pricing not listed on the page read.

  • Acquire or Be Acquired

    Feb 7 to Feb 9, 2027 · Phoenix, AZ

    Ticket $2,695 to $4,595. Early individual $2,695 (to Dec 11, 2026), standard $2,795; group 3+ $2,495/$2,595; non-banker…

  • CERAWeek

    Mar 8 to Mar 12, 2027 · Houston, TX

    Ticket $2,250 to $11,000. Executive Conference pass (includes Innovation Agora): $8,500 through Nov 20, 2026; $10,000 Nov 21 to…

  • Gartner Data & Analytics Summit

    Mar 8 to Mar 10, 2027 · Orlando, FL

    Ticket $4,175 to $4,925. Public-sector $4,175; early-bird $4,475; standard $4,925. Complimentary pass per 3 paid team…

Showing 6 of 63 conferences, 63 with dates announced.

All conferences

Training for Executive Director leaders

AI and Executive Leadership courses from named providers, with cost shown.

All 2 Executive Leadership courses

Podcasts and media Executive Director leaders follow

Hand-picked, each checked to be live. Links go to the publisher.

  • HBR IdeaCast

    Podcast · Alison Beard and Adi Ignatius, Harvard Business Review

    Interviews with researchers and executives on management, leadership and strategy.

  • Masters of Scale

    Podcast · Reid Hoffman

    Interviews with founders and CEOs on how companies grow.

  • The Knowledge Project

    Podcast · Shane Parrish, Farnam Street

    Conversations with executives and investors about decision making and leadership.

  • Fortune CEO Daily

    Newsletter · Fortune

    A daily newsletter on business news for executives.

  • Harvard Business Review

    Publication · Harvard Business Publishing

    Articles on management, leadership and strategy.

  • Chief

    Community · Chief

    A membership community for senior women leaders, with coaching and peer groups.

Executive Director questions

What does a Executive Director do?
A non-profit, association or agency: its mission, budget, staff, fundraising and the board it answers to. At some banks and firms “Executive Director” is a senior rank instead. Reports to the board of directors.
What does ED stand for?
ED stands for Executive Director. The same job is also written Executive Director and CEO, President and Executive Director.
How many Executive Director jobs are open?
1,853 verified open Executive Director jobs, each checked against the employer’s own career site within the last week.
How much does a Executive Director make?
Among 408 open Executive Director listings that state pay, the median is $187,000 a year, and half of listings fall between $135,000 and $250,000. This is pay the employer advertises for the job, not total compensation such as bonus or equity.
Where are Executive Director jobs?
New York (276), California (241), Florida (195), Texas (191) have the most open Executive Director listings. About 30% of listings that state a work arrangement are remote.
Which state pays a Executive Director the most?
Of the states with enough listings that state pay, Massachusetts has the highest median at $255,000.
Which industries hire for Executive Director roles?
Healthcare & Hospital Systems (30%), Financial Services & Banking (17%), Non-profit & Social Impact (16%), Education & EdTech (14%), as a share of listings whose employer has a known industry.
What skills do Executive Director jobs ask for?
The skills named most often in open Executive Director listings are regulatory compliance, strategic planning, budgeting, risk management, project management.
Do Executive Director jobs ask for AI skills?
5% of 407 open Executive Director listings read in full name a specific AI skill. The most common is AI tools in daily work.

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