Open Positions

Open Positions

• General Volunteer
• Development Manager (Volunteer)
• Web Development Engineer (Volunteer)
• 3D Content Developer (Volunteer)

About AvaCon

AvaCon, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the growth, enhancement, and development of the metaverse, virtual worlds, augmented reality, and 3D immersive and virtual spaces. We hold conventions and meetings to promote educational and scientific inquiry into these spaces, and to support organized fan activities, including performances, lectures, art, music, machinima, and much more. Our primary goal is to connect and support the diverse communities and practitioners involved in co-creating and using virtual worlds, and to educate the public and our constituents about the emerging ecosystem of technologies broadly known as the metaverse.

As a non-profit organization, we are fortunate to be driven by our ideals and our passion for AvaCon’s mission rather than being driven by the bottom line.

Some of the benefits of working at AvaCon include:

• As a completely virtual organization, everyone at AvaCon works remotely, which means you have the flexibility to work from wherever best suits you (including at home in your PJs!). And unlike other companies that have both on-location and remote teams, you won’t find yourself at a disadvantage for not being in a physical office with the boss. At AvaCon, we believe the future of work can and should be accommodating to a variety of lifestyles, and we do our best to take advantage of virtual reality to make our physical reality and life/work balance better, too.

• Most of our project work also permits very flexible scheduling. So long as deadlines and milestones are met on time, you often will have the choice to work when you want as well as where you want. Are you a dedicated night owl? An early bird? Either way, chances are you can choose your own schedule to best fit your needs.

• Cutting-edge experience with cutting-edge technology. AvaCon’s mission is to help develop the metaverse of the future, and much of what we do involves working with technology developers and technology users to explore how virtual reality can and will impact everything from education to medicine, business and economics, politics, and so much more. If you consider yourself a futurist, are a passionate geek, gamer, or metaverse enthusiast, or are just curious about what the future of virtual reality holds, then you will love working at AvaCon.

• Creative, Collaborative, Innovative, Change Agent, Positive Disruption, Future Focused. If you’re tired of hearing these words said but not practiced, we invite you to join our team and learn what it’s like to work with people who value innovative thinking.

Ideally, you’ll have the opportunity at AvaCon to work the way you want to work and to learn and grow with us as we help shape virtual reality and the metaverse of the future.

AVACON IS AN EQUAL-OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER. All employment decisions at AvaCon are based on business needs, job requirements, and an individual’s skills, knowledge, abilities, job performance, and other appropriate qualifications, without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, age, sexual or affectional orientation, veteran status, gender identity and expression, or any other characteristic protected by law. AvaCon is committed to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Executive Order 11246, and any other laws or regulations relating to equal employment opportunity.

Staff & Volunteer Positions

• General Volunteer
• Development Manager (volunteer)
• Web Development Engineer (volunteer)
• 3D Content Developer (volunteer)

See the full position description below and then click here to apply for a position. You will receive more information when your application has been reviewed.

General Volunteer

AvaCon invites people passionate about the metaverse and virtual worlds to help us showcase all of the terrific work being done in OpenSimulator, Second Life, Unity3D, Mozilla Hubs, Utherverse, and other metaverse platforms. We’re also planning workshops and events that explore other immersive technologies, from beacons and location-aware devices, to gesture controls like the Kinect and Leap Motion, to the Meta Quest, HTC Vive, and Apple Vision headsets. We believe bringing developers and users together for great conversations will make a better metaverse!

If this sounds right up your alley, we especially need volunteers with great organizing skills who love to meet and work with people in multiple worlds, and who love to play with new immersive technologies.

Minimum qualifications: Should have experience with at least one but preferably multiple virtual world platforms. Must be highly comfortable using online web-based tools such as Google Docs, blogs, wikis, Twitter, and other social media technologies.

Preferred qualifications: The ideal applicant will be very experienced in using virtual worlds and immersive technologies, and have a good sense of humor, a strong work ethic, enjoy working with a team, and be passionate about virtual worlds and the emerging metaverse.

Click here to apply for this position. You will receive more information when your application has been reviewed.

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Development Manager (Volunteer)

The Development Manager serves as a key leadership team member and an active participant in making strategic decisions affecting AvaCon, Inc. This position is responsible for all fundraising and development activities in partnership with the leadership team. The successful candidate will help forge new relationships to build AvaCon’s visibility, impact, and financial resources, and will also design and implement a comprehensive plan for developing key external alliances by cultivating individual and philanthropic support, including the solicitation of major gifts, federal and state grants, special events, and corporate, government, and foundation support. The person filling this position will work closely with the Executive Board and other team members to strengthen the organization’s fundraising capacity and secure funding for new initiatives.

Responsibilities:

• Design and implement a development strategy for AvaCon, Inc. in consultation with the Executive Board and other team members.
• Form and manage a development team, including identifying needs for ongoing development and overseeing the development team once formed.
• Conduct research, prospecting, and applications to multiple donor sources.
• Build a robust donor base and maintain key long-term relationships with donors and prospects.
• Train and mentor development staff and communicate fundraising goals and progress within the organization.

Minimum qualifications:

• High energy and passion for AvaCon’s mission is essential, including the ability to work remotely with a globally distributed team.
• Skilled in creating powerful, compelling written and oral communications for fundraising. Ability to convey complex ideas through brief, simple materials.
• Proven success in development for nonprofits, including experience running successful campaigns and fundraising from multiple donor channels.
• A professional and resourceful style; the ability to work independently and as a team player, take the initiative, deepen current donor relationships, and forge new ones.
• A Bachelor’s degree in a related field OR an associate’s degree in a related field with two (2) years of previous professional experience OR five (5) years of previous professional experience. Â Experience must be in fundraising and development in a professional capacity.

Preferred qualifications:

• A Master’s degree OR more than five (5) years of professional fundraising and development experience.
• Experience in planning, leading, and managing development projects, including tracking progress and reporting to senior managers/board of directors.
• Demonstrated excellence in organizational and managerial operations, effective at working with others to reach common goals and objectives.
• Demonstrated experience expanding and cultivating donor relationships over time.
• Ability to construct, articulate, and implement an annual strategic development plan.
• Prior experience with donor relationship management software. 

Click here to apply for this position. You will receive more information when your application has been reviewed.

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Web Development Engineer (Volunteer)

AvaCon seeks an experienced web development engineer who will serve as a key leadership team member and an active participant in making strategic decisions affecting AvaCon’s web services. In partnership with the leadership team, this position will lead the architecture, design, coding, and deployment of AvaCon’s web services and infrastructure, including opportunities to work with emerging and immersive virtual/augmented reality technology. The successful candidate will have experience with hands-on development programming and writing clean, testable, and well-designed code, but also be comfortable leading technical discussions and generating new ideas, gathering business and user requirements, and have project management and mentoring experience. The person who fills this position will work closely with the Executive Board and other team members to deliver innovative web services that facilitate the development and growth of the metaverse developer and user community.

Responsibilities:

• Lead the architecture, design, coding, and deployment of AvaCon’s web services and infrastructure, including collaborating on the development of new web services and applications.
• Form and manage a web services team, including identifying staffing needs for ongoing web development and overseeing the team once formed.
• Conduct business and user requirements analysis to design scaleable, supportable, and secure web services.
• Develop and implement comprehensive backup and disaster recovery plans, oversee implementation, and perform periodic audits to ensure compliance.
• Provide reports, statistics, and analytics information to senior leadership, and assist with strategic and tactical decision-making.

Minimum qualifications:

• High energy and passion for AvaCon’s mission is essential, including the ability to work remotely with a globally distributed team.
• A professional and resourceful style; the ability to work independently and as a team player, to take initiative.
• A Bachelor’s degree in a related field OR an Associates degree in a related field with two (2) years of previous professional experience OR five (5) years of previous professional experience. Â Experience must be in web development, software engineering, system administration, or some combination thereof.
• Experience implementing and managing source control tools and performing unit testing.
• Advanced experience building web applications that utilize PHP, Java, .NET, MySQL, JavaScript, or related web development languages or standards.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience in planning, leading, and managing web development projects, including tracking progress and reporting to senior managers/board of directors.
• Demonstrated excellence in organizational and managerial operations, effective at working with others to reach common goals and objectives.
• Formal education in advanced programming, database concepts, and networking is preferred.
• Previous experience with virtual worlds or virtual reality technologies a plus.

Click here to apply for this position. You will receive more information when your application has been reviewed.

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3D Content Developer (Volunteer)

AvaCon seeks an experienced 3D content developer to model, texture, and build in virtual environments. This position offers a wide variety of opportunities to apply your creativity and skills, including designing, storyboarding, and inspiring the visual elements of our virtual environments and experiences; developing hard surface and organic models, sets, and props; creating 2D textures and skins for 3D models; rigging and animating characters and NPCs; applying lightmapping and shading elements to scenes and sets; and working with a team of artists, programmers, and developers to create the best virtual experience possible within time and budget constraints. Preference will be given to applicants who have experience with the OpenSimulator or Second Life platforms and/or experience with Blender or Maya.  The ideal applicant has a great sense of humor and attitude, a strong work ethic, enjoys working independently or in a team environment depending upon the project, and is passionate about gaming, virtual environments, and the emerging metaverse.

Responsibilities:

• 3D modeling, texturing, shading, and light mapping; developing hard surface and organic models, sets, and props.
• Creating 2D textures, UV maps, and skins for 3D models.
• Conduct business and user requirements analysis to design virtual experiences that meet stakeholder needs.
• Design and storyboard concepts prior to construction, and present design ideas to stakeholders for feedback and critique.
• Coordinate with artists, programmers, and developers in a completely virtual team environment.

Minimum qualifications:

• High energy and passion for AvaCon’s mission is essential, including the ability to work remotely with a globally distributed team.
• A professional and resourceful style; the ability to work independently and as a team player, to take initiative.
• Experience with Maya, Blender, or 3DS Max.
• Experience with Adobe Creative Suite, including 2D texture design for 3D models.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, particularly the ability to convey design ideas in concise, concrete terms.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience in planning, leading and managing 3D development projects, including tracking progress and reporting to senior managers/board of directors.
• Demonstrated excellence in organizational and communication skills, effective at working with others to reach common goals and objectives.
• Knowledge of or previous experience with 3D content pipelines is a plus.
• Experience sculpting in Zbrush or Mudbox is a plus.
• Ability to sculpt, rig, and animate character models.
• Drawing, sculpting, painting, and other traditional fine arts skills a plus.
• Formal education in fine arts, graphic design, game design, or related fields is preferred.

Click here to apply for this position. You will receive more information when your application has been reviewed.

AVACON IS AN EQUAL-OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER. All employment decisions at AvaCon are based on business needs, job requirements, and an individual’s skills, knowledge, abilities, job performance, and other appropriate qualifications, without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, age, sexual or affectional orientation, veteran status, gender identity and expression, or any other characteristic protected by law. AvaCon is committed to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Executive Order 11246, and any other laws or regulations relating to equal employment opportunity.

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