ZRG Aspen Leadership Group Seeking Chief of Development for the American LGBTQ+ Museum
July 15, 2026 – ZRG Aspen Leadership Group was recently retained by the American LGBTQ+ Museum to lead in its search for chief of development. Jeanette Rivera-Watts is leading the assignment. Reporting to the executive director, the chief of development will provide the leadership, direction, and coordination of fundraising strategies and activities to advance the mission of the American LGBTQ+ Museum.
Working with a team of three full-time staff and two consultants, they will be responsible for managing all museum fundraising, including campaign fundraising for a $30 million comprehensive campaign, board of directors fundraising, individual major gifts, annual fundraising (direct mail), corporate fundraising and engagement, government fundraising, memberships, all donor communications, and donor cultivation events.
The chief of development will be a high-energy, seasoned development professional with a proven track record in major gift fundraising (ideally campaign fundraising) in the museum or cultural sector, researching and building strong relationships with current and prospective donors which translate into significant sustainable philanthropic support. Working closely with the executive director, the board, and senior staff, the chief of development will be the catalyst for helping American LGBTQ+ Museum achieve its financial goals. They will be an integral part of the senior leadership team and a key player in the growth and expansion of the organization in donor markets across the U.S.
A minimum of 10 years of progressive experience in multifaceted development work with a major metropolitan museum, performing arts center, or arts and culture nonprofit is required. The American LGBTQ+ Museum will consider candidates with a broad range of backgrounds.
The American LGBTQ+ Museum is a bold new institution dedicated to preserving, investigating, and celebrating the dynamic histories and cultures of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people. The museum will tell the community’s evolving histories in their own voices as they envision a world in which all people work toward and experience the joy of liberation.
Ms. Rivera-Watts serves as managing associate and director, search management with Aspen Leadership Group, where she develops outreach strategies to build and refine candidate pools and establishes enduring relationships with ALG candidates in the process. She has served Aspen Leadership Group since 2020 and is an AIRS-certified Diversity and Inclusion Recruiter. She is also a member of Aspen Leadership Group’s Inclusion Council. Ms. Rivera-Watts has 13 years of experience in the non-profit sector, including 11 years in the field of advancement.
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ZRG, founded in 1999, is a fast-growing global talent advisory firm with the financial backing of private equity investor RFE Investment Partners. It provides a full suite of executive, middle management, and customized search solutions through its offices in North America, Europe, South America, and Asia. The firm finds leaders across a broad spectrum of business markets, including aerospace, consumer, education, healthcare services, and solutions, industrial, life sciences, non-profit, private equity and venture capital, and technology. ZRG is based in Rochelle Park, NJ.
Recently Acquired
Last year, ZRG has acquired Aspen Leadership Group, a search firm focused on placing and supporting top fundraising leaders and executive talent in educational institutions and the broader non-profit sector. Hunt Scanlon Ventures, the Greenwich, Connecticut-based human capital M&A advisory firm, served as an advisor on the deal.
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“The addition of Aspen Leadership Group is nothing short of transformative,” said Larry Hartmann, CEO of ZRG. “Their expertise in development and advancement is the perfect complement to our growing education practice, and as we roll into 2025 we are unlocking the collective power of these exceptional niche businesses under the unified banner of ZRG’s education practice, creating unmatched solutions for academic and non-profit leadership.”
Aspen Leadership Group, established in 2013, conducts a wide range of searches across the fundraising, education and non-profit sector and is widely considered the eminent leader in its field. Its clients include Brown University, PBS, Robin Hood, the Humane Society of the United States, the Leakey Foundation, Carnegie Mellon University, and the Denver Zoological Foundation, among others.
Related: Hunt Scanlon Launches Training Program for Executive Recruiters
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
