Katherine Houston Email & Phone Number

Boston, Ma, Us

As the Founder and CEO of Trove Philanthropy (with our first project being The Kind Favor), I have built a unique brand from the ground up, driven by a passion for creating thoughtfully curated gift collections that inspire connection and celebration. My role encompasses every facet of the business, from strategic vision to day-to-day operations.Key Responsibilities:- Strategic Leadership: Developed and executed the business strategy, focusing on brand positioning, breaking into the events market, and long-term growth.- Financial Management: Managed all financial operations, including budgeting, forecasting, and funding, ensuring the financial health and sustainability of the company.- Marketing & Branding: Created and implemented comprehensive marketing strategies across digital and traditional channels, growing our customer base and enhancing brand awareness.- Operations Oversight: Streamlined operations to maintain efficiency and ensure a seamless customer experience, from product sourcing to delivery.- Sales & Business Development (including Partnerships): Led sales initiatives, including direct customer engagement and partnerships, resulting in sustained revenue growth.- Purchasing & Vendor Relations: Handpicked and negotiated with vendors to curate a diverse and high-quality product selection that aligns with our brand ethos.

Reporting to the Board of Directors, I was responsible for the administration and strategy of the foundation, as well as the implementation and management of all aspects of the foundation’s programs.This was inclusive of, but not limited to the following: -Responsible for Vision, Strategy and Operations Management of the Organization -Oversaw operations and administration -Managed current and developed new programs-Developed and nurtured partnerships with universities, school districts and nonprofits -Communicated the vision and strategy to the community and board-Developed initiatives in alignment with the organization’s vision-The Acquisition and disbursement of science materials throughout California-Development of communication and promotional materials, such as websites, press releases and videos -Managed accounting and legal requirements -Developed materials for Synopsys Outreach Foundation and Synopsys Foundation board meetings

Foster City, California

Managed global Visa Corporate Responsibility programs including: Visa Volunteers, Visa Matching Gift, PAC Match, and Community Giving with an emphasis on building out existing programs toward global participation and increasing strategic focus on financial literacy and inclusion. I oversaw global employee responses in times of natural disasters and raise awareness among and engage staff in Visa Corporate Responsibility initiatives. This includes, but is not limited to, the following:-Lead Visa’s global Visa Volunteers and Matching Gift programs. These programs operate year-round in over 50 offices in 33 countries and engage over 35% of our 14k employee base. -Managed the strategic planning process and annual budget of the Visa Volunteers and Matching Gift programs (in excess of $2M/year). Directs community grants in our 8 largest offices ($1M budget/year). -Launched Visa’s PAC Charitable Match program in the US (started in 2017), distributing in excess of $40k in charitable giving within its first 3 months post activation. -Managed the global volunteerism and matching gift program technology (including platforms), communications (internal and external), recognition, and executive reporting. In 2017, launched a global combined Volunteering + Matching Gift SAS platform which increased the number of gifts YOY by 140%, office participation in both programs by 200%, and unique employee participants by 120% (Volunteering program) and 190% (Matching Gift program).-Planned and executed the community engagement aspect of Visa’s global sponsorships, including the Olympics, Special Olympics, Super Bowl, NFL, and the San Francisco Giants.-Guided the strategy and philanthropy of Visa’s 10 global Employee Volunteer Councils and 115 global office Volunteering Leaders– empowering the staff to be regional leaders in volunteerism and grant making.

San Francisco, California

•Managed Mozilla’s ‘MozCamp’ program - a global volunteer reward, training, and retention initiative that in 2012 was manifested through three large-scale (200-250) conferences in Buenos Aires, Warsaw, and Singapore. This role includes collaboration with all levels of the organization (from volunteers to Mozilla’s Steering Committee) as well as external stakeholders (such as telecommunications and PR partners) and managing a yearly event budget of nearly one million dollars. •Drove the conception, strategic planning, and launch of Mozilla’s ‘Firefox Student Ambassador’ University Program in Q2 2013. Through my continued management post launch, the program has successfully grown by over 5,000 members in its first 5 months. •Acted as Director of Communications on the 2013 Mozilla Summit, an global initiative to align Mozilla’s nearly 2,000 staff and volunteers that took place over a weekend simultaneously in Brussels, Toronto, and Santa Clara.

Menlo Park, Ca

•Drove the Senior Academic Leadership Candidate selection process for the Chair of Medicine and Urology •Acted as the primary point of contact for visiting candidates and guided them through all aspects of their visit to Stanford•Facilitated the Selection Committee’s review of and candidate decisions

•Researched, developed, and maintained community and corporate partnerships aimed at creating and expanding sustainable funding sources for Project Homeless Connect (PHC)•Planned and executed four successful fundraising events and a volunteer recognition event within my first six months. As a result of these events, the Project Homeless Connect fiscal account tripled•Coordinated and managed all day-of event logistics for Project Homeless Connect •Recruited 100% of organization’s volunteers and supervised volunteer involvement at every PHC•Organized and executed stewardship activities for the organization •Created and maintained a volunteer and donor database of over 1,000 individuals•Updated supporters quarterly through electronic and direct mailings •Created consistent messaging for PHC. Responsible for maintaining website, and writing copy for and distributing press releases, media advisories, and donor materials.

•Utilized Google’s AdWords in the $10,000 Community grant•Developed and launched new Google ad campaigns that maximize bidding and quality score•Worked with analytics manager to make suggestions for changes to willworkforfood.org•Tracked metrics on success of ad campaign

•Developed marketing materials for the center’s partners highlighting the strategy, implementation, and success of their fundraising efforts•Collaborated on the network’s marketing strategy, authored sections on prospective target audience and an extensive SWOT analysis of the organization•Produced executive summary on the fundraising strategies of comparative mental-health non-profit organizations

Developed and coordinated the company's on-line contests * Created a social media presence for the company on Facebook and Twitter* Wrote community press releases in order to increase brand awareness * Designed and prepared pamphlets advertising company products* Assisted in copywriting tasks, including product descriptions and on-lineadvertisements

Coordinated community events and expo appearances* Developed a social media presence for the company on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn* Created company blog and wrote press releases * Launched both on and off-line campaigns to increase company visibility * Assisted in the company's web site design revisions

•Worked directly in sales, assisting clientele in finding apartments and signing leases•Contributed to the design aspect of the web-site re-formatting project•Assisted in the creation and editing process of a roommate finder service

Boston College Center Of Corporate Citizenship Management Intensive, Corporate Citizenship, Certificate In Corporate Citizenship Management

*Developed advanced business skills (strategy, measurement, and communication) applicable to managing corporate citizenship programs..

Stanford Continuing Studies Program

RELEVANT COURSEWORK: *Decision Processes *Corporate Social Responsibility

Psychology And Spanish, Psychology, Spanish, Marketing

Activities and Societies: * James B. Angell Scholar * Student Health Advocates and Resource Exchange (SHARE) * American Advertising.

Education record

International Courses, Summer 2008 Studied cross-cultural communications through academic and regional experience