Meet Feed My Starving Children
Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) believes hope starts with food. As a Christian nonprofit, FMSC is dedicated to seeing every child whole in body and spirit. FMSC works with food distribution partners that stay with communities for the long haul, empowering them to move from relief to development.
FMSC provides meals developed by food science and nutrition professionals to supplement nutritional needs and reduce problems with malnutrition. Their team and volunteers’ work allows children to grow, thrive, and develop to their full potential all around the world.
Needed: a visionary leader
Feed My Starving Children needed a qualified individual to serve as executive director and chief executive officer to lead their program, providing visionary leadership and strategic direction to ensure the organization’s mission and objectives are met. The CEO plays a pivotal role in maintaining and fostering a healthy, Christ-centered culture, defining strategic initiatives, and driving fundraising efforts.
The team needed a committed Christian with a passion for feeding the world’s hungry kids. In addition, this person would need an entrepreneurial mindset and at least a decade of leadership experience to help apply the skills required for the job at FMSC.
Many boxes to check
The search committee at FMSC reached out to Vanderbloemen’s team of experts to find the ideal candidate through Vanderbloemen’s candidate pool. Senior Executive Search Consultant Jay Mitchell partnered with FMSC’s team to break down exactly the type of person to look for who could lead the team successfully.
Jay and the team began to build a profile for their dream candidate. This person would need the proven ability to lead a healthy team culture for FMSC. They would need a myriad of skills necessary for overseeing fundraising, managing budgets, communicating effectively, and putting detailed plans into action. The right candidate would have many boxes to check.
Alongside Executive Search Recruiter Ellie Mixon, Jay and the team identified and interviewed a slew of qualified candidates. Vanderbloemen’s team interviewed 16 top candidates in what would be the first round of qualified candidates. They presented the top seven to FMSC’s search committee, which is all they needed to find their perfect match.
Jonathan checked them all
Nonprofit executive leader Jonathan “J.J.” Slag quickly rose to the top for FMSC’s search committee. He clearly had it all – including both pastoral and financial experience. Jonathan exceeded FMSC’s 10+ years of experience and educational requirements far beyond what they had expected. On top of that, his time at another Christian nonprofit meant he was already connected to FMSC’s leadership team through community events.
Having already spent much of his adult life in Minnesota, Jonathan and his wife already lived nearby in Andover, so he was ready to serve in his new role as executive director and CEO at Feed My Starving Children.
With their dream candidate safely chosen for this critical position, the nonprofit was finally set up for long-term success toward its mission.
