We seek an operationally minded and highly tech savvy leader who wants to help build solutions that ultimately advance the social sector. This is an excellent opportunity to exercise and grow your COO, client service and technology strategy skills in a complex social enterprise.  Working across multiple issue areas, you will help quickly launch, scale, and manage operations for a variety of client philanthropic initiatives, including donor collaboratives, advocacy campaigns, and new nonprofit organizations. You will also  provide the technology vision needed for the team to sustain its rapid growth.  We need your skills to quickly build the technologies, systems, and internal capacity that will enable us to more effectively serve the sector. We need a leader with experience growing teams and developing team members, a person who combines entrepreneurial spirit with an eagerness to help our clients accomplish greater good.  If you want the opportunity to work with a fast-growing team reshaping the charitable sector, then this job is for you. 

About Arabella Advisors

Arabella Advisors helps foundations, philanthropists and investors who are serious about impact achieve the greatest good with their resources.  We help our clients imagine what’s possible, design the best strategies, learn what works best, and do the work necessary to realize their visions.

Our staff is a team of passionate problem-solvers—mission-driven and action-oriented—with a unique combination of experience in philanthropy, business, nonprofits, government, finance, law, and other fields. We combine creative, strategic thinking with knowledge and networks developed through decades of hands-on experience.

The fastest-growing philanthropic advisory firm in the nation, Arabella is also a certified B Corporation. Our leadership team, advisors, colleagues, and staff are fundamentally concerned with social change. We share a desire to make a difference and apply an outcomes-focused approach. Our internal culture supports employee passions, enables continuous learning, and fosters innovation, risk taking, and fun—even as it emphasizes excellence.

About the Managed Nonprofit Organizations

Arabella Advisors provides operations and management support to multiple public charities, including the New Venture Fund, the Windward Fund, and the Hopewell Fund—all 501(c)(3) public charities—and the Sixteen Thirty Fund, a 501(c)(4).These managed organizations house new and innovative public interest projects and nonprofits, as well as coordinate collaborative initiatives between donors and administer grants programs. This type of structure is commonly referred to as fiscal sponsorship, and candidates are highly encouraged to research fiscal sponsorship prior to a first interview.  The managed organizations provide support to a diverse range of projects, including many focused on conservation and global health.  The organizations have also provided fiscal sponsorship to projects focused on voter registration, public policy, education, disaster recovery, and music and the arts.

Essential Responsibilities

Technology Strategy Leadership (~25%)

• Provide vision and leadership in technology strategy and planning to support client services that incubate, launch, and grow a wide range of charitable and advocacy initiatives

• Identify technology solutions to scale all aspects of client service and contribute to the team and organization’s significant year-over-year growth by innovating our systems, operations and processes
• Contribute to team and organizational strategy, and oversee the achievement of the team’s technology objectives and performance metrics
• Working closely with the Director of Information Technology, provide oversight to ensure successful technology implementation
• Direct the team supporting internal and external client service technologies

Client Services (~25%)

• Oversee the delivery of excellent client services for a broad portfolio of grant-making, incubation, and fiscally-sponsored projects
• Provide expert guidance to clients in the areas of donor and grant/contract management, capacity building, and financial and legal compliance. Help projects solve problems even as they implement.
• Cultivate strong relationships with clients, donors, and philanthropic partners

Management (20%)

• Supervise team members, in particular those who provide client and staff technology implementation and support, including an extensive focus on developing, motivating, and mentoring direct reports
• Identify rising stars on the team, and support strategies to retain them
• Identify, recruit, coach and support staff across the team

Marketing and Business Development (~15%)

• Work closely with Managing Directors and other team leaders to inform and support business development, with a focus on explaining and promoting the organization’s best-in-class technology solutions
• Maintain familiarity with ongoing relevant sector research and share with team and clients
• Contribute to thought leadership
• Represent the firm at conferences and events

Organizational Growth (15%)

• As a member of the Managed Organizations leadership team, contribute to team and organizational strategy, and oversee the achievement of important team objectives
• Contribute to the team and organization’s significant year-over-year growth by innovating our systems, operations and processes
• Contribute to the development and management of the team’s ongoing structure, annual objectives, and key business performance metrics
• Develop and share relevant and valuable expertise

Essential Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Graduate degree in relevant field (e.g., business administration, nonprofit management, and public administration) or equivalent experience
• Experience in philanthropic or nonprofit sectors—operational leadership in nonprofit organizations or experience in social sector consulting are preferred
• At least 10 years of work experience with steadily increasing job responsibility, including extensive people management experience
• Proven expertise with technology planning and implementation
• Broad base of knowledge in information technology tools and trends
• Excellent communication skills, including writing skills, and demonstrated ability to structure large amounts of information into written documents that are clear and easy to understand
• Ability to work creatively and analytically on solving complex strategic issues related to technology
• Ability to manage and lead a complex project, to oversee and delegate to others on the team, and to meet deadlines
• Significant experience designing and implementing operational improvements and innovations
• Exposure to a fast-growing organization
• Extensive experience providing high-quality customer service in fast-paced sophisticated environments
• Experience with grants or contracts and knowledge of general terms
• Competent in managing and understanding mid-sized budgets
• Knowledgeable of sales processes

Other Highly Preferred Knowledge, Skills and Experience and Key Characteristics

• Lean, Six Sigma or similar certification, and experience implementing such principles in growing organizations
• Excited about compliance and contracts
• Take pride in providing exceptional service
• Desire to lead a growing team in a dynamic office
• High emotional intelligence
• Constantly seeking to innovate
• Able to quickly adapt to changing circumstances
• Sense of humor      

A Career with Arabella Advisors

We are committed to having a passion-driven, inclusive, fun, transparent, collaborative, and healthy culture.  We invite you to visit our careers website to learn more about our people, culture, and work. However, we thought you should know that Arabella is committed to providing excellent benefits to our employees.  For you and your eligible dependents, we provide a competitive package that includes health, vision, dental, and prescription insurance. We also provide you disability coverage; life insurance; personal and volunteer leave time; a 401K match that you are eligible to receive when you start; funds for professional development; and a fitness benefit.

We also are committed to building a firm that is diverse and inclusive. We invite our clients and employees to be fully themselves. By integrating diversity, equity, and inclusion into our work, we benefit from increased knowledge, creativity, flexibility, and organizational and individual growth. We expect all Arabella staff to share this commitment.

Directions

Candidates must submit a resume and one-page cover letter to be considered for the position. The cover letter must address: 1) your client management experience and philosophy; 2) your supervisory experience; and 3) how this job fits with your career path. We will disregard candidates that do not submit the appropriate materials.

While Arabella is open to individuals from various locations applying to join our team, please note that we generally are unable to pay for relocation expenses.