Our Culture

Our collaborative, innovative and equity driven culture empowers our staff to grow through individual development opportunities, team retreats and cross-departmental partnerships. We continue to evolve our culture by attracting and retaining new talent with valuable experiences and insight. To that end, we are launching a new learning cohort consisting of two Relationship Manager positions who will work closely with established grantmaking and community impact leaders at the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation to prepare them for careers in philanthropy. This experiential learning cohort is designed to be an entry-level on-ramp for individuals new to philanthropy. In order to continue cultivating new talent at the Foundation and for the philanthropic sector, the Relationship Manager position will have a term-limit of six years, after which, the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation will work with the individuals to help them transition to their next leadership role.

Position Mission Statement:

The Relationship Manager will be active in advancing the Foundation’s grantmaking by stewarding relationships with and overseeing grantmaking to a wide range of nonprofit organizations within their portfolio, effectively addressing a variety of needs across Minnesota to strengthen local communities. 

About the department:

The Community Impact team is the community knowledge hub of Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation. Comprised of individuals representing wide-ranging experiences, this team works closely with nonprofit organizations and leaders across Minnesota to learn about opportunities and needs in order to strengthen local communities.  The team also manages grantmaking for the F. R. Bigelow Foundation and Mardag Foundation and leads community initiatives.

This position is responsible for:

Program Management/Administration

• Oversee active grants, review grant reports, monitor and evaluate progress of grantees and provide clear communication and guidance to grantees and other interested parties.
• Work with director to actively develop, implement, and manage community initiatives and other special funding opportunities including fundraising, budgeting, aligning activities to outcomes, measuring and reporting.
• Coordinate with philanthropic services to support donor driven initiatives and engage donors in supporting community initiatives.
• Analyze and synthesize assigned grant requests, resulting in concise grant summaries and recommendations for board action.
• Contribute to and look for process improvements that will enhance the user experience from board, grantees, nonprofits and staff.

Community Partnership

• Interface with internal and external constituents to build positive relationships toward achieving the goals and objectives of each Foundation.
• Cultivate and steward community, nonprofit and grantee relationships.
• Promote a culture of learning by serving as both a learner of and a resource on community issues for staff, donors, nonprofits and grantees.

Communication

• Develop strong communication with internal and external constituents, sharing content, opportunities and insights using convenings, emails and blogs.

Demonstrate core organizational values in performing all duties. How we do our work is as important as what we do.

Position requirements include:

• Undergraduate degree with at least two years of experience in nonprofit organizations or community engagement preferred or equivalent years of relevant experience for candidates without an undergraduate degree.
• Confidence and competence in learning new content areas.
• Experience in assisting nonprofit organizations with their capacity-building efforts.
• Research and networking skills and an exceptional ability to analyze and synthesize information.
• Excellent writing skills including writing reports, case studies, blogs, recommendations or other materials for decision makers including board of directors or community leaders.
• Confidence and competence in learning and using existing and new technologies, experience with systems and technology to enhance processes.
• Demonstrated ability to effectively and proactively interact, communicate, and collaborate on multidisciplinary teams and with people from cultural backgrounds other than your own.
• Ability and willingness to adapt to change.

Preferred requirements:

• Experience leading or managing projects, budgets and outcomes. 

Typical physical requirements for this position include:

• Ability to work at a computer workstation in an ergonomically correct environment.
• Light lifting of materials and equipment in the typical work environment.
• Occasional out of town travel.

As part of this experiential learning cohort, we will help you grow your skills to:

• Effectively cultivate and steward relationships with grantees, nonprofit leaders, and other external partners.
• Review grant applications, understand financial statements, draft effective summaries, and manage a grantmaking portfolio within a team of experienced program officers.
• Understand the roles and opportunities of a community foundation and private foundations, senior leaders, and the boards of directors.
• Appreciate the importance of donor relationships and the function of philanthropic services department at the Foundation.

Classification: Exempt; Full-time

Term Limit: Minimum three years; maximum six years. The term limit applies only to positions within the Program Officer team.

Deadline to Apply:

Please submit all application materials by July 24, 11:30am CST.

The work of our organization changes as we continuously seek to have greater impact. All of our team members must be flexible and able to adapt to short and long-term shifts in their job duties.

We consistently work to make our community a stronger, more equitable place. In order to fulfill our mission, we understand that employing a diverse team of knowledgeable, passionate individuals who reflect our community is vital. To that end, the Foundation’s staff consistently works to ensure that our recruiting activities and hiring plan align with our commitment to equitable hiring practices.