by David Sullivan, Senior Advisor, SPARC
The Auxiliary Director role is different at each school, but there are some common elements associated with the work. Often the role necessitates deploying a divergent set of skills at the same time: Auxiliary Directors need to have mastery of granular functions to keep things running efficiently and safely, while at the same time be innovative big thinkers.
What does a successful Auxiliary Director need to be?
- An effective leader and manager who unifies a team behind a common goal
- A creative self-starter with an entrepreneurial mindset
- A strategic thinker with the ability to implement change that drives growth in participation and revenue
- An independent and strategic thinker capable of understanding the full scope of projects while seeing individual tasks through to completion
And if that weren’t enough…
What other skills does a successful Auxiliary Director need to have?
- The ability to design an experience, program, curriculum, or product, based on a deep understanding of audience and community values
- Business acumen, including a demonstrated ability to develop financial models for new programs and to manage a budget
- Expertise in marketing using a variety of technical resources including social media
- Excellent project management and organizational skills
- A history of fostering positive and collaborative relationships with all constituencies in an independent school environment (students, parents, senior leadership team, other administrators, faculty, and staff) through excellent oral and written communication skills
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to quickly and regularly adjust strategy based on the school’s needs
- A corresponding level of expertise on child development and education, appropriate for the school
For more on how to develop your professional skills, check out SPARC’s Event Calendar.
This document is the property of SPARC and may not be reproduced without prior written permission from SPARC.