Description

POSITION DESCRIPTION - OVERVIEW

The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation welcomes dynamic, mission-driven individuals to apply for the role of Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer, joining an iconic American cultural institution at a moment of growth and transformation. Guided by a new strategic plan and a vision for a better world shaped by Frank Lloyd Wright’s legacy and ideas, the Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer (VP/CMO) will lead marketing, communications, and licensing, helping translate the Foundation’s objectives into disciplined growth and greater impact. The VP/CMO will strengthen the Foundation’s brand, expand audience engagement and earned revenue, and develop licensing and brand partnerships that extend the reach and impact of Frank Lloyd Wright’s work. The VP/CMO will work collaboratively across the Foundation and with external partners to ensure strong alignment, thoughtful coordination, and consistent expression of the Frank Lloyd Wright brand and mission.

ABOUT THE FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT FOUNDATION 

Established by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1940, the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation is entering a new chapter of growth and impact. Our vision is a better world shaped by Wright’s legacy and ideas, inspiring how we live, learn, and build. Our mission is to connect people to the continued relevance of Wright’s architectural legacy; preserve the buildings, landscapes, and collections of Taliesin and Taliesin West; and advance the impact of architecture and design. We embrace Wright’s philosophy and transform it into actions for a thriving future.

The Foundation stewards Taliesin and Taliesin West, Wright’s homes and studios and two components of the eight-site UNESCO World Heritage property The 20th-Century Architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright. Through Preservation, Public Engagement, the Taliesin Institute, as well as through licensing, brand collaborations, and strategic partnerships, the Foundation expands access to Wright’s ideas and advances their relevance to contemporary life and the future of architecture and design.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategic Leadership & Vision

• Develop and execute a comprehensive marketing and communications strategy that enhances public perception, increases national and international brand visibility, and drives audience engagement.
• Craft and manage marketing programs aligned with the Foundation's mission and strategic plan, driving visitation to Taliesin West (AZ) and Taliesin (WI), expanding digital engagement, and strengthening the relevance of Wright’s ideas for contemporary audiences.
• Collaborate closely with the President/CEO and senior leadership to advance and operationalize strategic-plan priorities within the VP/CMO’s areas of responsibility, establishing annual goals, measurable outcomes, and cross-functional initiatives as appropriate.

Marketing & Communications

• Oversee integrated marketing and communications, including digital, social media, public relations, advertising, graphic design, and enterprise brand standards, ensuring a unified institutional message and experience.
• Lead efforts to strengthen and elevate the Foundation’s brand through creative marketing campaigns that reach new and existing audiences, position Taliesin and Taliesin West as distinctive cultural destinations, and extend the relevance of Wright’s ideas nationally and internationally.
• Staff and serve as the principal staff liaison to the Foundation Board’s Brand Stewardship Committee, engaging committee members as strategic thought partners in strengthening the brand, protecting its integrity, and extending the organization’s reach.
• Provide institutional marketing, brand, and communications support for major Foundation programs, initiatives, and strategic partnerships, including work led by Advancement, Public Engagement, Taliesin Institute, Preservation, and external collaborators, ensuring thoughtful positioning, audience strategy, and coordinated communications support.
• Serve as a senior ambassador for the Foundation, representing its brand and mission with media, institutional and commercial partners, and other external stakeholders as appropriate, in coordination with the President/CEO and senior leadership.
• Supervise the production of the Frank Lloyd Wright Quarterly and other editorial materials.
• Establish metrics for success and lead market research initiatives to measure and adjust strategies based on data-driven insights.

Licensing & Earned Revenue

• Grow and diversify the Foundation’s strategic licensing portfolio to materially increase earned revenue, expand audience reach, and strengthen the Frank Lloyd Wright brand in support of the Foundation’s mission.
• Leverage licensing as a form of media and audience engagement, using products and partnerships to connect Wright’s ideas with new and existing audiences.
• Identify and pursue high-value licensing and brand partnerships that significantly expand reach and recurring earned revenue while protecting and elevating the Frank Lloyd Wright brand.
• Negotiate and manage licensing agreements, ensuring the integrity of the Frank Lloyd Wright brand across commercial and non-commercial uses.
• Work with licensees to develop products that align with the Foundation’s values while expanding retail channels.
• Monitor compliance with licensing agreements and oversee intellectual property protections.

Team Leadership

• Inspire and manage a high-performing team in marketing, communications, and licensing, fostering collaboration across departments.
• Set clear priorities, goals, and accountability for the marketing team, ensuring disciplined execution and alignment of outward-facing communications with organizational strategy.
• Collaborate with leaders across the Foundation, including Advancement, Public Engagement, the Taliesin Institute, and Preservation, to advance shared institutional priorities and provide appropriate marketing, brand, creative, and communications support.

Requirements

CANDIDATE QUALIFICATIONS AND QUALITIES

Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree required; master’s degree in marketing, communications, business, brand management, or a related field preferred.
• Substantial senior-level professional experience in marketing, communications, brand management, digital marketing, and related functions is required, with a track record of translating strategy into measurable audience and earned-revenue growth.
• Demonstrated experience with licensing, intellectual property, consumer products, and brand partnerships is required; experience stewarding an iconic, heritage, design, lifestyle, or other highly recognized brand is highly desirable.
• Experience with strategic oversight of retail, ecommerce, merchandising, or direct-to-consumer functions is a plus.

Skills & Attributes

• Dynamic, creative leader with strong interpersonal skills and the ability to inspire and influence diverse stakeholders.
• Hands-on management style with a collaborative, solutions-oriented approach.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, and a talent for storytelling.
• Passion for the Frank Lloyd Wright legacy and a commitment to preserving and promoting his vision.
• Comfort operating at the intersection of mission, cultural stewardship, brand, and commerce, with the judgment to pursue growth without compromising the integrity of Wright’s legacy.

DEPARTMENT STRUCTURE

In addition to the Vice President, Chief Marketing Officer, the Marketing Department consists of four (4) FTEs, including a Director of Licensing, an Industrial Designer, a Digital Marketing Manager, and an Integrated Marketing Manager. A search is currently under way for the Integrated Marketing Manager position.

SALARY AND BENEFITS

The target salary range for this position is $145,000 to $165,000 annually, depending on experience. A comprehensive benefit package is also provided, for which a general overview can be found on the Foundation’s website at www.franklloydwright.org/careers.

LOCATION

This position is based out of the Foundation’s corporate headquarters in Scottsdale, AZ and allows for limited hybrid presence. Travel within the US is associated with this role, including, but not limited to Taliesin in Spring Green, Wisconsin.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT

The physical demands and work environment described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this job.

Physical demands: While performing the essential functions of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools or controls; reach with hands and arms; occasionally climb stairs; balance; stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl; and consistently talk or hear; and rarely taste or smell. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.

Work environment: While performing the duties of this job, the employee is exposed to weather conditions prevalent at the time. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

Travel: Up to 30% within and outside Arizona.