Rhyan
Zweifler

Rhyan Zweifler has devoted her more than 30-year career to the nonprofit sector. She defines success by helping mission-driven organizations achieve meaningful, lasting impact. In January 2010, Ms. Zweifler launched Noetic Search, a full-service retained executive search firm serving the nonprofit sector. With candor, honesty, integrity, and unwavering commitment to its clients, Noetic Search identifies outstanding leaders and innovators for mission-driven organizations.

As an executive search consultant, she spent 5 years with The Boulware Group, working on searches in advocacy, civil rights, public policy, environmental action, and community development. As a female, minority-owned firm, The Boulware Group was well-regarded for its commitment to cultural, racial, and ethnic diversity and its keen ability to identify and place diverse leaders. Ms. Zweifler also served for ten years as a Principal at Kittleman & Associates, a premier national retained executive search firm exclusively focused on serving leading nonprofit organizations. Specializing in CEO and senior management searches, she successfully placed more than 170 national leaders for cultural, human service, educational, and grant-making organizations. She has overseen all aspects of the search process, from marketing and sales to client management to candidate sourcing, development, and closing.

Prior to her career in executive search, Ms. Zweifler worked with McPherson, Schultz, and Associates (today known as Schultz & Williams), a development consulting and advertising firm in Los Angeles, California. She advised social service agencies, public radio and television stations, museum,s and hospitals on complex campaigns and coached their teams on tactics to surpass donor engagement and commitment goals. She helped her clients uncover new opportunities through innovative marketing and fundraising strategies. She also held development positions at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles and the California Science Center (formerly the California Museum of Science and Industry).

Ms. Zweifler, a Chicago resident, received a Master of Arts degree in Museum Management from John F. Kennedy University Center for Museum Studies in Orinda, California, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art History from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. She is a member of the Network of Nonprofit Search Consultants and serves on the Knowledge and Thought Leadership Committee. She is on the Nominating and Board Relations Committee for Heartland Alliance. She was Chair of the Board Relations Committee for Heartland Alliance Health (HAH), the health care arm of Heartland Alliance. As Chair of Board Relations for HAH, Ms. Zweifler was responsible for Board recruitment. When she joined the Board in 2016, there were 17 members, of which four (4) were people of color (23.5%). In 2021, there were 19 Board members, of whom nine (9) are people of color (43.4%). Her past board leadership experience also includes serving on the Board and the Executive Committee of Redmoon Theater.