Director of Grants Management (JPBF)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The JPB Foundation (JPB), one of the largest grantmaking private foundations in the United States, seeks nominations and applications for the position of Director of Grants Management (Director). Reporting to the President and Chief Operating Officer, the Director will lead JPB’s grants management operations, including supporting the administration of more than $250+ million in grants each year, improving all aspects of the grants administration process, and providing support and trainings to grants management and programmatic staff.

Based in New York City, JPB’s mission is to advance opportunity in the United States through transformational initiatives that empower those living in poverty, enrich and sustain our environment, and enable pioneering medical research. JPB’s three program areas are Poverty, Environment, and Medical Research. As the foundation continues to grow and deepen its mission impact, it is looking for a passionate, mission-aligned grants management leader who can help steward and transform how grants management is positioned and performed at JPB.

The incoming Director will be an experienced philanthropic grants management leader with expertise in effective grants life-cycle administration and compliance for varying types of grants and grantees. She/he will bring strong financial analysis acumen and grants management experience to partner with leadership and staff in assessing grantee capabilities and sustainability and providing them process and systems support. The ideal candidate will be passionate about systems improvement, customer service, analytics and learning, and process documentation. The Director will drive continuous improvement efforts in grants administration through best practices, understand the intricacies of JPB’s funding work across its portfolios, and work collaboratively with JPB leadership and staff to achieve the Foundation’s strategic goals. Given JPB’s investment and transition to Fluxx, its new grants management system, two years ago, the ideal candidate will also bring prior experience with the implementation and/or utilization of this technology platform.

Organizational Overview

The JPB Foundation was created in 2011 with an endowment bequeathed by Jeffry M. Picower. Led by Barbara Picower as President and Chair, JPB reflects and sustains the philanthropic spirit that animated Jeffry and Barbara’s history of giving.

JPB directs its giving to three program areas— promoting opportunities for people in poverty, advancing medical research, and enabling a healthy environment. Through sustained focus over time, the foundation seeks to make a significant difference across related systems, organizations, and fields throughout the United States. Through sustained relationships, JPB now supports a portfolio of nationally recognized and emerging organizations.

JPB leverages a lean staff, consultants, and high-level Advisory Committees composed of distinguished experts from a variety of disciplines within each program area. To provide vital guidance to JPB’s leadership as the Foundation implements, evaluates and expands its programs, in 2018 JPB invited national experts to a new joint Advisory Committee for the Poverty and Environment Programs. The Advisory Committee counsels JPB on strategies for achieving impact.

Reflecting its core values, JPB’s grantmaking is guided strategically and operationally by the following objectives:

Building agency – raising the voices and power of communities most impacted to identify needs and resources, mobilize, and formulate solutions.
Promoting justice – advancing and defending the rights of people and communities to enable access to opportunities.
Generating public will – educating audiences to shift narratives and raise awareness of needs and solutions.
Supporting research – originating and distributing research and knowledge to inform stakeholders’ actions.
Scaling and replicating – developing effective programs with high potential to expand impact.
Field Strengthening – supporting diverse leaders, organizations and sectors to grow a healthy progressive infrastructure.
Encouraging collaboration – fostering connectivity across organizations to effect systems change on a grander scale.

More information about The JPB Foundation can be found at: jpbfoundation.org

Opportunities and Challenges Facing the DIRECTOR of grants management

Working closely with the President and JPB Leadership Team, the Director will advance the Foundation’s overall strategies and goals through effective grants management across all program areas. The Director will have the opportunity to build on and enhance JPB’s grants management operation while fully integrating its grants management policies, processes, data and procedures from previous years to Fluxx.

The Director will be entrusted with improving grantmaking workflows and processes, leveraging data and insight, and building a culture that values the importance of efficient, flexible, information-rich grants management practices. In doing so, she/he can expect to engage with the following challenges and opportunities:

Support the CEO, Leadership and Staff in Planning, Compliance and Due Diligence

In partnership with JPB leadership, help to develop annual giving targets; monitor allocations to ensure targets are on track.
Serve as a trusted advisor to the President and senior leadership regarding all issues of compliance.
Review grant agreements and contracts, including evaluation of terms and conditions for business risks, soliciting and documenting feedback from internal partners and clients for input into the negotiation process, and documenting review and approval of agreements for execution.
Liaise with external counsel when necessary, based on review and knowledge of IRS compliance and regulations, to raise concerns to outside counsel and ensure follow through on resolutions as needed.
Provide direction and guidance on due diligence and compliance, review procedures to ensure adherence to federal and state legal and tax requirements, as well as grants department best practices, for all grants proposals and approved grants, and for all grantee reporting.
Identify, develop, implement, and communicate appropriate compliance policies and procedures and to assess potential risks.
Continually stay abreast of new developments in grant management best practices and Fluxx software releases and their applicability to the needs of the Foundation.

Provide Effective Planning, Reporting and Analysis to Support Strategic Grantmaking

Create and maintain a capability to provide timely and relevant data to stakeholders across the organization that promotes learning, improves grant processing time, and systemizes internal communications.
Be the organization’s expert on data reporting out of Fluxx and coach Grants Management team members on analytics best practices.
Review and finalize board book for each of the six annual Board Meetings.
Work with Grants Manager in the creation and implementation of ongoing and uniform reporting packages regarding all aspects of grantmaking.
Lead efforts to optimize grants and funds management through streamlined workflows, seamless hand offs and enhanced reporting.
Implement process to analyze financial reports of potential and current grantees, identify compliance issues and problem areas, and work with programmatic staff to resolve them.
Direct the efficient flow of grants through their lifecycles, ensuring proposal and reporting compliance, adherence to grant agreements, and timely and accurate processing.

Develop Grants Management Team Members and Foster Seamless Collaboration with Peers

Establish and maintain a strong working relationship with the finance team and senior staff.
Develop and manage a high performing team, whose work is effectively aligned and integrated for successful attainment of organization-wide and team goals.
Mentor, guide, and purposefully develop each individual team member professionally.
Identify management and leadership opportunities for Grants Management team to improve their individual efficiency and effectiveness, as well as the efficiency and effectiveness of the Foundation.
Work closely with Foundation colleagues to identify and facilitate cross-functional and cross-discipline learning and growth opportunities.
Develop strong training, user guidance, and “task aids” to strengthen user skills and mastery with Fluxx throughout the organization.

Evaluate and Maintain Policies and Systems for Grants Management Effectiveness

Oversee and develop all policies and procedures to support Grants and Contract Management.
Continually monitor operations and process performance by collecting and assessing qualitative and quantitative metrics.
Build and maintain feedback mechanisms to ensure early detection of end-user problems. Proactively adjust service, training, and communications to support program objectives.
Evaluate, improve and enhance workflow processes. Continually improve process for grants management workflows and systems through maximizing the capability of Fluxx.
Review and present regular analyses of the Foundation’s grantmaking for the President, Board of Trustees, and external audiences.

QUALIFICATIONS OF THE IDEAL CANDIDATE

While no one candidate will embody all the qualifications enumerated below, the ideal candidate will have many of the following professional and personal abilities, attributes, and experiences:

12+ years of grants management experience with a deep understanding of grants processes and related financial and compliance issues, with a preference for private foundation-related grantmaking experience.
Knowledge and experience with Fluxx grants management highly preferred. Experience in refining, integrating grants management processes and implementing Fluxx highly preferred.
Strong financial acumen, particularly around organizational and project budgets and financial sustainability of grant-seeking organizations.
Demonstrated ability to develop and implement complex projects, preferably within a philanthropic or large, research-intensive institution.
At least 5 years of staff management experience, including proven track record in staff development.
Strong understanding of 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations and how private foundations function in a regulated field.
Strong systems orientation, with a track record of improving and enhancing existing technologies, developing new solutions, and building awareness, willingness, and skills among users to fully utilize new technologies.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a proven ability to present material in an understandable manner to management, and the program and grantee community.
Proven organization and planning/time management skills; ability to meet deadlines.
Excellent diplomatic, problem solving, meeting facilitation, negotiation, and conflict resolution skills.
Exceptional analytical and conceptual skills.
Highly collaborative, hands-on leadership style and track record.
Bachelors' Degree or equivalent experience in related field.

TO APPLY

This search is being conducted with assistance from Linh Nguyen and team members of NPAG. Due to the pace of this search, candidates are strongly encouraged to apply as soon as possible. Nominations and applications including a cover letter describing your interest and qualifications, your resume (in Word format), and where you learned of the position should be sent to: [email protected]. In order to expedite the internal sorting and reviewing process, please type your name (Last, First) as the only contents in the subject line of your e-mail.

The JPB Foundation is an equal opportunity employer and proudly values diversity.