district executive

retail store manager

director

development director

camp counselor

Boy Scouts of America

This job is nice as, aside from requiring a bachelor's degree, it requires next to no sales or management experience to start. This job is sink or swim and requires strong independence, so if you can work hard for yourself, you can hone your skills and get sales experience quickly. The team around you is generally young, fun and will make the extreme workload more bearable. 
The goals and expectations of you are grueling and you will receive little to no support from your management. Some of them want to help but will be unable to, usually due to incompetence or inexperience. You need to be able to figure things out on your own or get along well with your teammates so they can help you instead. Management is confused and inconsistent, and only exists to ensure tasks are completed to schedule. The company will tote your longevity and development but that is ultimately up to you...they really only care about bottom lines.
Your manager is not your only boss as you are also a customer service rep to your volunteers...of which you will have many and few will be helpful to you. The wants of each of your "bosses" will generally not align and so your workload will double if you care at all about the success of your program/ region.
Work schedule is flexible until you are needed to do something at the whim of your manager, then your whereabouts and calendar will be very closely monitored. You are expected to work nights and weekends. Recently I have worked close to 70 hours a week with no overtime or bonus. I have been successful in hitting goals and my rewards have been tremendous increases to those goals. You will receive small bonuses for large campaign successes ($1500 max, usually much smaller). You will receive some expense kickback for your car mileage, but it is not enough and you will drive A LOT.
Fundraising and program management is aggressive. This is not explicitly stated but the methodology of this Council is "burn and turn," this applies to employees, volunteers and donors alike. Those who perform are squeezed until they burn out and leave.
Some of the volunteers you will meet will become your biggest supporters and maybe even genuine friends. You will love spending time with many of the staff. If you are a genuine believer in the BSA (in most aspects it is an amazing program) then this is a way to support it while making an okay income. However, to make a career out of this instead of working at a more nurturing environment and volunteering for BSA on the side, you would have to either be a workaholic or truly just obsessed with all things Scouting. I love the Scouts, but I lose sleep and have become unhealthy over this job.
This is a decent entry level position in a job market where every single other job requires 2 years experience just to get an interview scheduled. My advice would be to get your 2 years experience here, then get out before management starts squeezing you as hard as hard as they possibly can and really makes your life miserable.

Scouting is one of, if not the greatest, organization for young men/youth today. Scouting as a profession, relates almost entirely to the "business side" of putting scouting units in our communities. To be successful as a professional scouter, one must consistently increase the number of units, consistently increase the number of scouts, consistently increase/cultvate/motivate/recruit the number of volunteers (from dads and moms who assist in the individual units to high level executives who can assist with district planning and district fund raising), consistently meet various fund raising goals, provide consistent, quality leadership to the assigned district, be an excellent communicator (written & verbal), and be accessible to numerous volunteers. All of these attributes are required to be a successful professional scouter. Those who don't consistently achieve success within the afformentioned areas do not stay. The Scouting professional is a great multi-tasker and his/her life revolves around what it takes to be successful within the assigned district. The toughest part of the job is balancing worklife with homelife. For me it was difficult to be successful on the job and have a homelife. The most enjoyable aspects of the job were working with an interacting with the wide variety of volunteers, successfully raising the money, and making numerous trips to Philmont Scout Ranch in NE New Mexico...both on business and also on 10 day backpacking trips. Given that the job is very "production oriented", it is also very, very stressful. Being very successful over a 9 year period, the organization/management also gave me extraordinary lattitude concerning leave from the job without loss of pay or vacation while burying and caring for 3 family members who passed on during my time on the job. Upper level management treated me exceptionally well in addition to seeing that I was highly compensated for the results of my efforts. In this regard, no other company raised my salary or gave me family leave to the extent that the Boy Scouts did for me!!

There is no typical day as a Boy Scout employee. One has to be very flexible and do what is necessary, within reason, of course, to get the job done. This job was an exceptional experience in teaching me how to work with people, lead them, cultivate them, and motivate them. In doing these things, many youth and adults were given a chance to grow in their personal abilities within their families and communities.

Well first of all be prepared to give up 2 months of your life living, breathing and eating camp. This is both a pro- and a con. On one hand, it's an outdoor adventure filled with fun times, new friends, summer romance and educational experiences you never would have gotten at home, but on the other you may deal with home-sickness, and miss significant pop-culture events. You will not look glamorous on this job- so don't go in expecting to. You make long hikes and deal with campers all day, and then have a list of chores to do at night, so by the time you get to the showers around... oh.... midnight, which you have to go to in groups and the girls all collectively only got one, you're a sweaty smelly mess. On that note, you also could be waiting for everybody to finish showers until 2-3 am, and then making the short hike back to the girls cabin to sleep in a lumpy hospital-style cot with self-provided blankets to try to sleep and then get up at 6 to put your uniform on and attend the flag ceremony at 7am sharp. For this reason, many times you only showered every other day, or every 2 days. Laundry was difficult to do. There were 3 washers for the entire camp (and 2 dryers) to use and that meant if you didn't pull an all-nighter you were pretty much having to rely on faith to ever get your uniforms washed, which you had to purchase yourself.

Many of the materials I used to teach my merit badges I purchased from my own funds. I refused to go to chapel, because I am not religious and didn't think it was right that they forced it upon us, so I was required to pick up extra chores, and that didn't sit well with me. If they had given them to me separate from the fact I didn't want to go to chapel I wouldn't have minded so much, but the fact that that was the only reason really made me angry.

Also, you are fed fixed servings of a preset menu at specific times of the day. You only get seconds if there are any left over, and even then campers get to eat first. SO often times councilors were left hungry. Thus, any food kept in your cabin you had to buy, and you could also buy food at the snack bar too. This was another somewhat ridiculous expense.

However, aside from all of these minor flaws to the ordeal, the fact remains that I loved this place and all of it's wonder. I had a summer love for the first time here, and saw amazing views, heard legends of the area, made a 4 mile hike without my inhaler up the mountain, fell off the side of the mountain, almost died because a toy rocket went off in my face, made lots of new friends, got closer to old ones, and will never forget that summer. So it was worth it.

I'll start with the best parts of the job:
The camp I worked at was old yet beautiful. I enjoyed waking up in the morning, and for the brief time I was able to be outside, I enjoyed the scenery and feeling close to nature. I enjoyed limited time I got to spend with my fellow staffers, but that was few and far between. The very, VERY brief times I got to spend around campers was also nice. My trainer was very nice and insightful. I got to learn the history of the area too.

The worst parts:
When I was hired, I was given a very brief description of my duties. I was under the impression I had a set amount of time I'd be working, very few impressions of what I'd be doing, and that what I'd be doing would be simple tasks as a cook. I was expecting to have guidance and learn the ways of the Boy Scouts, as I was a Girl Scout prior, so I could better understand my role both in and out of kitchen, as well as social norms given it was my first time.

I was not given a tour of the camp, instead immediately thrown into the kitchen with little chance to get to know my fellow staffers. Everything was rushed, and we had very little time to get to know our work station in my position, as we had another group at the site with us during training week. Equipment broke down regularly (the camp is very, very old as well, so it is to be expected), and you are expected to be prepared to service sometimes 300+ campers as well as the staff at a given time. Expectations for the position were not placed until Week 4 of the season, which was a month and a half in. If you wanted to leave camp, the nearest town was 20-30 minutes away, and the nearest major city was nearly an hour away. Management was always swamped with issues within the camp itself, needing to cover positions that would suddenly be left open. Bullying was rampant, as many of the staffers were teenagers, but also from management.

Overall:
I want to make this very clear: This was simply my experience for one season at one camp. Your experience in the BSA will vary depending on location, and year. The program can be a wonderful experience, especially for young campers that don't get to see these places and experience what is out there. It can be very rewarding, but again, it all depends on where you go. Many of these camps are shutting down simply because they don't have the staff to accommodate anymore, nor the resources to uphold these camps, which many have been around for decades.

I had the opportunity to promote and work at two different councils, each one very different. Overall, coworker are fun to work with and be around. A real team aspect.
Each day was something different and could depend on the time of year. What could often get in the way was volunteer drama that they expect the DE to solve despite 90% of the issues being between adults. I was always amazed at how adults cause the majority of problems in a child's program. That could get old.
There is also a lot that cannot be controlled, which is frustrating. A lot of work can be done with minimal results and sometimes units expect the DE to run everything for them, which is just not possible.
Being a DE is also a great learning experience. Sales skills are greatly developed as well as learning to manage your time, which is critical to being a business owner. Fiscal management as well as dealing with conflict are also developed.
Through my time, I have had different managers. Some great, some that are barely there, and micromanagers. The great ones offer their leadership and step in when needed while others do not work or step in too much, which creates problems with volunteers. But I have to say, the great ones inspire me to this day and are the reason I have had success since leaving the profession.
Workplace culture is mixed. I have had great ones that are inspiring, competitive, and team oriented while seen others that waste time with meetings or push hard at deadlines that have passed, putting everyone behind for several others.
The hardest part of the job can be differences between councils. With some, there is a sense of work/life balance while there are others that could pull you from dinner to handle what is really a minor issue. Every middle manager is different.
The fact that you are working for Scouting and get to work with amazing volunteers is the best part. There are so many inspiring people who put their heart and soul into this great program everyday.
In general, I had a mixed experience with the profession. It was a solid stepping stone to my current career but not one I wanted for the long haul as my family wanted to stay local, long-term. It is a great career for those who want to see the country or even the world.

The daily schedule of a District Executive at the Boy Scouts of America included office and field work. In the office administrational work was implemented, creating spreadsheets, phone calls, research and learning strategic ways to improve my District. In the field I was able to visit units not only for observation and filling out paperwork but if they needed any additional assistance. As a District Executive it is vitally important that I knew everything about my district and this was a great opportunity to build relationships with the people who are in my area. 

Working as a District Executive allowed me to specialize in recruiting membership by increasing adult volunteers to empower the District by fundraising, increasing manpower, maintaining and enhancing new relationships and continuing a quality program. 

Management style in our office is a team effort by each individual playing their part in managing their district in a timely matter. By back-dating my calendar, using Microsoft Outlook and keeping open communication with my Field Director allowed me to be successfully in accomplishing my goals. 

In the office our coworkers are in friendly competition, although each division is rated on a weekly monthly and quarterly basis, everyone is supportive in lending a helping hand when needed.    

The hardest part of the job for me was the traveling, ware and tear on my car. My district was 1hr 30min away from my home and 1hr away from the office.  

The most enjoyable part of this job for my was advertising, marketing and communications. I enjoyed making flyers, for writing up reports, press releases, and announcements pertaining to new products as well as exiting products (popcorn/scout fair). When I joined the Rotary Club I enjoyed building relationships with local business men, women and politicians including the Mayor. These relationships allowed me to enhance my District by having the right people to accomplish my quarterly and yearly goals.

One of the drawbacks to serving in the BSA as part of my LDS calling is the lack of a functioning Troop Committee for the unit. This ends up placing a lot of responsibility on me (or the scoutmaster in each LDS ward/troop) to ensure that activities happen or are planned. We try to have the youth leadership plan as much of the activities and campouts as possible, but it still feels like a lot of extra work is required to truly provide a successful scouting atmosphere for the boys...one which time doesn't really allow me to do (with a full-time job and young children at home) without a fully operational troop committee...which is not very likely to happen in most LDS troops.

I love the Scouting program, don't get me wrong. The Bushcraft aspect along with the call to adhere to high moral standards are some of the most important things that boys nowadays NEED to learn and have solidified in their lives before becoming adults...but the BSA has become a bit more complex than I remember when I was a boy, and is extremely difficult to run successfully without feeling like I'm "winging" everything each week/month. It could just simply be that my personal, family and work schedule don't jive well with the BSA leadership position I hold...but overall, I feel like I'm barely keeping this wonderful opportunity limping along for the boys. I feel like the program was stellar when I was a boy...perhaps it is more dependent on the internal drive of the collective group of boys in the unit more so than the adult leadership team...which drives the functionality and excellence of the implementation of the BSA program in an LDS troop.

But according to the trainings I've received as a Scoutmaster, it sure sounds nice to have a fully functioniong scout committee who help plan campout logistics, advancements, boards of review, chartering, etc. We have one or two committee members who help me with these tasks...so it feels like a lot of administrative burden held by a small number of adults...and it can get a little overwhelming at times...sometimes overshadowing the fun I get to have while working with the boys during activities and campouts.

This is a great job if you love working outdoors and with youth. I've had amazing experiences and memories I hold dear from working with all different kinds of youth, special needs, teenagers, and younger middle schoolers. They were all great. It's also a great place if you're quirky and have been a Boy Scout in the past. This isn't a job that someone in their professional full-time career should do, it's definitely a summer job for people just starting out, like college and high school students, but you must be at least 18 to work there. 

After a few years, the work became monotonous because the curriculum you develop to teach shooting sports (archery, rifles, shotgun, etc.) is relatively standardized. This was my first job as a supervisor of people and I didn't always feel trained for my job. Training centered more around the policies of the organization than how to be a good manager, but I was also twenty-two years old. Sometimes I felt like management played favorites and would give them opportunities I felt I was qualified to do. But, the daily work was great, you're outside on your feet, and working with kids who are amusing and quirky. 

But the montonous nature of the job wore on me, and while I enjoyed working with the kids, sometimes the interactions between the staff itself became toxic. the hours are long, you wake up at the crack of dawn and then have your eight hour shift, and then sometimes a shift after dinner to provide extra opportunities for the campers, and then hang out with your friends late at night. Then you had maybe a day off sometimes, because everyone's part of the team so we often worked partially on the weekends as well. After a while, everyone would kind of burn out. 

But, I met a lot of great people who are still some of my friends to this day. You get to be out in Wild West Virginia, nature's playground. There was plenty of time to explore and enjoy nature, when you weren't working and there was a lot to do in the area if you enjoyed nature, exploring hidden trails, and whitewater rafting. This can be a demanding job, but you make awesome memories that stay with you when you're older and stuck at a desk job. 
 

I was a full time Program Director for a small council. I loved my job, but I hated my job. I loved what I got to do, I got to get kids excited about the outdoors and teach them valuable life lessons. I got to talk to volunteers all day and camp all weekend. I got to benefit the local community. I got to live on a scout camp and have access to it 24/7. I got to see kids grow and improve from things that I did.

However... it’s  a double edge down sword here. National seems to constantly make things harder for local councils. The fall is recruitment season, everyday you’re wondering where to get the most amount of kids. Instead of being able to focus on bettering your units it’s you’re focused on recruiting numbers to keep your job. Then as soon as you’re done with that you’re pushed to get fundraising numbers so you can keep your job. There were no field officers in my council who worked less than 65 hours. My father also worked for the Scouts, and he still does. I saw him constantly coming home tired, and even now when we want to do something as a family it has to be planned specially around the hectic scouting schedule. He also has numerous heart-problems that are scouting related.  

Monday nights is Boy Scouts, Tuesday is cub scouts, Wednesday you have off, Thursday is round tables, Friday-Sunday you’re at camp. Rinse and repeat, depending on your council and districts.

At the local level this is a great organization. The Scouts do great work and you can really make a difference here. Just make sure you don’t loose yourself or your family as a professional in this organization. Professional Field Staff are asked to do way too much, with not enough time, with way too little compensation. Great people work here, even better people volunteer here, and the best people are the kids in the program. You’ll do a great job, just put the kids first and it’ll all come easy from there.

A typical day will have you divide your time by focusing on the four critical functions of district operations, which are Finance( fundraising) Membership ( recruiting youth and adults) Program ( Promoting the outdoor programs) and Unit Service ( working with your District Commissioner to oversee units ) . A good District Executive will spend parts of their day planning to be as efficient as possible in carrying out these duties. 

I learned that it can be difficult to be good at all four at the same time depending on the health and strength of your district. Some districts are poorly organized and financed some are well organized and well financed. Getting a top district assignment makes your job much easier than getting one that is hard to serve. 

The management culture is conservative and top down. If you are male and were a former Eagle Scout you have an advantage and upper management will give you the benefit of doubt in most cases. Coworkers are friendly but fiercely competitive so you must be sharp and alert at all times. 


The hardest part of the job is learning the 4 functions and doing them well. Fund development requires a skill set that forces you to build relationships with influential people that you will need to ask for money. Ideally you will learn to recruit influential people to serve on your committees to make the ask on your behalf and that takes time to master. 

The most enjoyable part of the job is gaining the  respect and admiration of volunteers and peers and if you are lucky the respect and honor of a scout you helped along his journey.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
District executive 107 salaries reported	$47,612 per year
Retail store manager 19 salaries reported	$24.18 per hour
Director 28 salaries reported	$73,670 per year
Development director 23 salaries reported	$62,615 per year
Camp counselor 3 salaries reported	$16.29 per hour

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