The NoVo Foundation acts from the original meaning of philanthropy: the love of humanity.

Created in 2006 by Jennifer and Peter Buffett, NoVo is committed to advancing adolescent girls’ rights, ending violence against girls and women, advancing social and emotional learning, promoting local living economies, and supporting Indigenous communities.

We are a social justice foundation dedicated to catalyzing a transformation away from a world based on domination and exploitation, to one of partnership, collaboration, justice, and equity. We envision a world that operates on the principles of mutual respect, collaboration, and civic participation, thereby reversing the old paradigm predicated on hierarchy, violence, and the subordination of girls and women.

The scale of these ambitions guides our work with our grantee partners. Ours is both risk capital and patient capital; experimentation and new thinking are critical paths forward. Seeing the world as it is, and as it could be, inspires our shared work. Through all of our activities, we try to illuminate the possibility of a new paradigm, gather evidence of its existence, and establish pathways for its manifestation. We are humbled and honored to contribute to building a world based on compassion, justice, and love. 

For further details about the mission and vision of the NoVo Foundation please visit www.novofoundation.org. 
 

ABOUT THE ROLE - GRANTS SYSTEM ADMINISTRATOR  

The Grants System Administrator supports all aspects of the grants management database environment by evaluating and implementing strategic solutions to enhance the grantmaking processes. With a focus on the user experience, including staff and grantee partners, the Grants System Administrator will ensure that our grantmaking systems are deployed and used successfully. NoVo Foundation uses foundationConnect, an application built on the Salesforce platform.

Reporting to the Director of Business Application Technology, the Grants System Administrator works and cross-trains with the Technology Associate and two Grants Managers to support efficient and effective grantmaking operations at the Foundation.

You will be responsible for understanding available applications of the grants management system, evaluating existing processes and workflows, implementing new configurations and updates, and improving the end-user experience of the grants management system, including the grantee application portal. You will also be responsible for looking after contract and invoice processing within foundationConnect as this central database is used for contract management and payment processing in support of NoVo’s grantmaking.

The grants management system has the potential to provide rich information on our work and has incredible potential to inform grantmaking practice and effectiveness when designed and managed thoughtfully. You will serve as the data hub, making sure systems are set up to collect the right information in the right format. You’ll take the lead in developing tools to analyze and display data to help the Foundation determine whether grantmaking is streamlined, effective, and strategic.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES WILL INCLUDE:

• Assisting the Grants Management Team in maintaining data integrity of the grants management system and tracking of grants.
• Working with the grants management system vendor and consultant to identify and solve problems with the database.
• Installing, testing, and troubleshooting program and service pack updates and upgrades when released. Testing new configurations and workflows and communicating new database functions to staff.
• Serving as support desk agent, logging and providing initial triage and in-house troubleshooting for (internal and external) user problems and facilitating communication of larger tasks and issues to outside consultant.
• Developing and providing ongoing user training.
• Recommending and implementing logical evolutions in grant coding structure, field definitions, and authorizations.
• Working with Accounting and other operations team members to improve contract and invoicing processes as well as special projects as needed.
• Assisting with the development and deployment of workflow systems that span the grants lifecycle, including but not limited to grant agreement processing, initiating and recording payments made by stock transfers or wires, standard grantee communication, report processing, no-cost extensions, renewals, and close-outs.
• Creating a variety of customized data reports for internal and external use including official data sets to be used for portfolio analysis, board meetings, annual reports, financial audits, surveys, and other queries.
• Ensuring and maintaining the hygiene and integrity of electronic records, including having primary responsibility for developing strategies for quality control and data integrity.

WE’RE LOOKING FOR SOMEONE

 Who brings…

• Professional Experience - We are open to candidates of all experience levels and backgrounds but are specifically looking for individuals who have at least 2 years of professional experience with relevant Salesforce database administration experience. 
• Mission-alignment - Familiarity, passion, and a demonstrated commitment to NoVo Foundation’s mission and vision, a dedication to girls’ and women’s rights, including an explicit racial justice lens.
• Excitement for Technology and Systems - Excitement about using technology as a tool for good, to streamline processes, improve organizational performance, and allow teams to be more fully engaged in building supportive, values-focused relationships with partners.

 Who is…

• An Exceptional Project Manager – Plan according to timelines. Empower your team members to hit deadlines and keep projects on point.
• A Natural Detective – Dig into details. Uncover truths. Put together clues with your superb detective and research skills and discover new insights.
• A Logistics Genius – Live in the details. Be multiple steps ahead. Anticipate hiccups and be well equipped to jump into action.
• Passionate About Learning - The role requires ongoing training and education in best practices, compliance and due diligence and you need to be someone who is always looking to hone your craft.
• A Go-Getter - Resourceful and able to take initiative and drive work with moderate supervision and guidance.
• A Trusted Communicator – Communicate exceptionally. Build strong relationships and earn respect and trust.
• Intentional –  Working style is about creating order and planning ahead.  Think systematically and excel at establishing elegant processes.
• Discrete – Practice discretion, have sound judgment and integrity, and the ability to maintain confidentiality as needed.

OUR HIRING PROCESS

Our hiring process, managed by ReWork recruiting firm, is designed to give candidates insight into the nature of the challenges that we face in our daily work and bring into focus the candidates that we have learned will be most successful in this role and at our organization. Here are the phases of our process:

• Phase 1: Short, written exercises to assess technical knowledge & relevant experience - Early September
• Phase 2: A Trial Project that will mimic the role and allow candidates to showcase their skills - Late September
• Phase 3: Two 45-minute in-person interview with NoVo Leadership - Early October
• Phase 4: A final full-team interview - Mid October
• Phase 5: Our goal is to make offers soon after the final interview for a Late November start date in New York City.

We intentionally do not ask for a cover letter and do not truly consider resumes until Phase 3. This "bias blind" process is aimed at opening this opportunity to more candidates; reviewing applicants on performance assessments instead of resume proxies (e.g. where you went to school). 

HOW WILL WE KNOW YOU’RE THE RIGHT PERSON FOR THE ROLE?

If you want to learn more, please complete the simple initial application at:

http://rework.applytojob.com/apply/gnyb7mos5P/Grants-System-Administrator?source=NoVo

Applications must be submitted by Thursday, September 7th. We are reviewing applications on a rolling basis so we encourage you to submit yours right away.