Senior Program Officer, Giving by All, Philanthropic Partnership Team

Foundation Summary:

We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: that people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. By building a global and cultural workplace that supports greater diversity, equity, and inclusion — of voices, ideas, and approaches — together with our employees and partners, we can help all people improve their lives from poverty and health to education. As an organization we offer hybrid work arrangements, generous PTO (Paid Time Off), 15% contribution to your retirement fund (no match needed), a diverse and inclusive workplace backed by 11 Employee Resource Groups and embed DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) in everything we do.

Leadership and Culture

Our culture shapes our choices about what we do and how we do it. We believe that energized people, working well together, fueled by great leadership in an inclusive environment can do extraordinary things. We expect foundation employees to intentionally and consistently embody our values of optimism, collaboration, rigor, innovation, and inclusion.

Division Summary:

The mission of the Global Policy & Advocacy (GPA) division is to understand and shape the public policy debates affecting the foundation's work, build support for its major program and policy objectives, and develop partnerships and alliances that can advance the foundation's objectives nationally and globally. Because the foundation's resources alone are not enough to solve the challenges ahead, GPA also supports advocacy efforts to engage diverse stakeholders and promote innovative solutions that advance our program goals. We work in close partnership with grantees, our colleagues in the Global Health, Global Development, Global Growth & Opportunity, U.S. and Gender Equality programs and Foundation Communications to build the environment in which all people have the opportunity to lead healthy and productive lives.

Team Summary:

Philanthropy thrives in the presence of bold thinking, effective tools, robust networks, and inspiring narratives that nurture a culture of giving. The Philanthropic Partnerships team serves as a resource to those who want to achieve more with their giving and invests in organizations that help donors overcome common obstacles. We believe that when people have the right innovations, information, and inspiration, their giving can advance equity and accelerate the pace of positive change in the world. Our team seeks to enhance and enable generosity at all levels of wealth and in multiple regions around the globe. We support programs that provide donors with resources to make informed decisions about giving, encourage innovations and policies that enable philanthropy, and support cultural norms around generosity.

Role Summary:

The SPO will lead efforts of the Philanthropic Partnerships Team to encourage everyday giving in the United States and connect that work to subinitiatives focused on U/HNW donors across the team. This individual in this role will strategically develop and manage one or more portfolio of grants and contracts within the Giving by All (GBA) and Narratives subinitiatives initiative. The Giving by All subinitiative supports efforts to increase collective giving to advance equity. The SPO will partner closely with team leadership to set the overall goals for the initiative and closely monitor progress towards those goals for continuous refinement and improvement of strategy. The position is either located in Seattle, WA or Washington, D.C., the will report to the Deputy Director of Giving Ecosystems and Giving by All.

Core Responsibilities

• Develop, manage, resource, and implement a program area that aligns with foundation strategy and is operationally integrated with other foundation programs. Contribute to the design of new strategies, collaborations and implementation plans to ensure long-term sustainability and impact.
• Negotiate, execute, and manage complex portfolio of grants and performance-based contracts. Review letters of inquiry and grant proposals and provide clear, concise and insightful written analyses and recommendations for funding.
• Consult with grantees and other partners to maximize impact of projects and ensure grants are meeting strategy goals. This may include: site visits, providing operational guidance and convening meetings of key stakeholders.
• Develop and maintain partnerships with key stakeholders in the field, including for-profit companies. Support network of grantees and partners through communications, connections and convenings.
• Represent the foundation to key program-related external constituencies, as appropriate, on committees related to area of expertise and responsibilities of the position and in public events.

Core Knowledge and Skills

• Demonstrated track record of thought leadership and innovation in philanthropic sector. Significant exposure to issues related to the practice of philanthropy with an emphasis on the everyday giving segment of the market, the operations of charities, donor behavior and digital products to advance everyday giving.
• Proven ability to lead and influence others in a constructive manner and to build and sustain collaborative relationships.
• Familiarity with the global landscape of philanthropy channels, players and infrastructure, particularly in the US.
• Experience as technical resource to teams and leadership on impact and decision analyses.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, able to effectively synthesize information to reach diverse audiences and build consensus
• Knowledge methods of impact evaluation, operational research, and modeling.
• Strong quantitative analytic skills.
• Creativity and ability to easily adapt to changing environment
• Intellectual quickness, curiosity, discipline, resourcefulness and resilience.
• Discretion in managing confidential and sensitive initiatives and relationships
• A sense of humor and flexibility to adapt to a very dynamic environment
• A deep commitment to and passion for the overall mission of the Philanthropic Partnerships Team, and an approach consistent with the foundation’s guiding principles
• Ability to travel up to 25% domestically and internationally

Education and Experience

• Advanced degree with 7+ years of experience, or equivalent experience
• Experience developing and managing complex partnerships with multiple parties across sectors
• Demonstrated experience in innovation—creating something new (org, product, program, initiative, etc), taking risks, continually assessing progress and adapting approach dependent on data and feedback.
• Previous grantmaking experience required, particularly experience managing a portfolio of philanthropic investments towards a common set of goals

Hiring Requirements

As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment will be contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

Depending upon your work location, we may require proof of full vaccination against COVID-19 and any recommended booster doses. All employees based in the United States are to provide proof of full vaccination upon hire and any recommended boosters, subject to applicable laws.

Accommodations

If you require assistance due to a disability in the application or recruitment process, please submit a request to hr@gatesfoundation.org.

Inclusion Statement

We are dedicated to the belief that all lives have equal value. We’re committed to creating a workplace where employees thrive both personally and professionally. We also believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve—in race, gender, age, cultures and beliefs—and we support this diversity through all of our employment practices.

All applicants and employees who are drawn to serve our mission will enjoy equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to race, color, age, religion, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and prior protected activity.