New Easter Seals Leader Seeks to Make Organization Relevant to Today’s Donors
By Alex Davidson
Contributor
February 8, 2015 | Read Time: 2 minutes
Randy Rutta, president, Easter Seals
Background: After 33 years at the charity, Mr. Rutta last month took the reins at the nearly century-old organization, which helps people with autism and other disabilities. Mr. Rutta most recently held the role of chief strategy officer, a job that was created for him, and he has served as the executive vice president for public affairs. He spent more than two decades working in government relations at the Washington office of Easter Seals and was heavily involved in pushing for passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990.
Education: He earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology at the University of Minnesota and a master’s degree in politics from Catholic University of America.
His challenge: To make the charity relevant to today’s donors. Although donations grew 6.8 percent in 2013, the most recent year for which figures are available, nearly 16 percent of it came from direct mail, and those donors have a median age of 74, according to the organization.
Next steps: He plans to identify the kinds of people most likely to support the charity’s mission and find ways to appeal to them, especially by revamping the organization’s website and using social media as well as continuing experiments to help supporters raise money online from friends and relatives. He expects to start by focusing on potential supporters in Generation X, people now in their mid-30s to 40s. “We are creating opportunities for people to get involved,” says Mr. Rutta.
Salary: He declined to reveal it. His predecessor, James Williams, who will now lead the Easter Seals Foundation, received $1,036,963 in total compensation in 2013, the most recent year for which figures are available.
Books he’s reading: For Love of Country: What Our Veterans Can Teach Us About Citizenship, Heroism, and Sacrifice, by Howard Schultz and Rajiv Chandrasekaran. Mr. Rutta liked the book so much he sent it as a holiday gift to dozens of Easter Seals board members and leaders of affiliates that serve military members and veterans.
