Program Manager, Science Program

  • Full Time
  • Palo Alto, CA




  • Job applications may no longer be accepted for this opportunity.


Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation

Gordon and Betty Moore established the foundation to create positive outcomes for future generations. Guided by this vision and the Statement of Founders’ Intent , the foundation fosters path-breaking environmental conservation, scientific discovery, and preservation of the special character of the San Francisco Bay Area. We strive to make significant and durable impacts on the world.

Together, we work to honor the vision of our founders and serve as stewards of the resources they have entrusted to us. We establish specific strategies based on advice from experts, identify partners who share our goals and measure results along the way. We build relationships and fund work in areas where we hope to make significant impacts; and we know that working together expands our ability to drive meaningful change.

We believe there can be no lasting change for the good if that change is not just and widely shared. Comprehending and incorporating values of diversity, equity, and inclusion in pursuing goals and refining strategies is vital to achieving our desired outcomes. These values weave through what we do and shape how we operate.

The Opportunity

We are seeking a new Program Manager to join our Science Program Team as an operational, financial, and project manager. In this role you will help to enable effective Program-wide operations and enhance the connections between the Science Program Team and cross-foundation infrastructure teams.

As our ideal candidate, you have strong leadership, interpersonal and teamwork skills, with a flexible approach to collaborative problem solving. You are able to focus on tactical short-term details without losing sight of the big picture and long term goals. You have proven experience in project management and meeting facilitation, and you build trusted relationships with colleagues at all levels across an organization.

Reporting to the Director of Program Operations, you will work closely with the Science Program Directors, particularly the Team Captain, a role that rotates through the Directors. The Science Program has an annual grantmaking budget of approximately $140 million, an operating budget of approximately $5 million, and about 15 staff.

What You Will Do

Project and Financial Management

  • Serve as the centralized project manager across Science Program staff, tracking timelines and deliverables across program-level workstreams.
  • Develop tools, processes, and mechanisms for managing workflows, motivating the team, and maintaining coordination across Science Program activities.
  • Proactively plan and track team coordination, discussion points, decisions, and action items. Follow up on next steps with accountable individuals.
  • Actively communicate dynamic processes and workflows to the Science Program Team and to related departments.
  • Manage the Science Program’s grantmaking budget in coordination with the Director of Program Operations, Science Program Directors, and other Science Program staff.
  • Facilitate the Science Program’s special projects grant pipeline, coordinating processes and budget tracking of portfolios and individual projects.

Team Management and Facilitation

  • Partner with Program Directors and other team leaders on team processes and decision-making. Partner with the Director of Program Operations on budget and operational processes.
  • Strengthen leadership, team building, and staff development for the Science Program Team.
  • Manage Science Program Team meetings and annual off-site retreats, collaborating with the Science Program Team Captain, Executive Assistant, and others to set agendas and organize the team.
  • Support and facilitate specific projects and priorities for the Science Program (for example, “open science”).
  • With related departments such as grants administration and legal, and the Director of Program Operations, facilitate consistency and quality in grantmaking processes across the Science Program.
  • Collaborate with Science Program Team members and the Director of Program Operations to surface needs and improvement opportunities related to grant workflow. Proactively problem-solve and develop enhancements.

Strategy and Research Support

  • Facilitate processes with Science Program Team members relating to the identification and prioritization of new areas of opportunity to advance the frontiers of knowledge.
  • Coordinate external expert insights to inform internal idea generation, supporting the Science Program Team with targeted external consultations and periodic advisory input, and develop recommendations to enhance the Science Program approach to incorporating expert advice.
  • Support the program’s exploration of potential future opportunities through targeted research and analysis as requested. Help to identify key questions to be answered about opportunities through research and analysis such as landscape scans, synthesizing information from publications, interviews with subject matter experts, and convening experts and advisors. Develop polished work products summarizing team findings.

Qualifications

What you bring with you:

  • Minimum of five years relevant operational, budget, and complex project management experience.
  • Bachelor’s degree required, advanced management-related degree (such as MBA) a plus.
  • Experience working in matrix team environments, i.e., within and across teams.
  • Experience working in philanthropy, grantmaking, or the non-profit sector is beneficial.
  • Demonstrated robust analysis, writing and communications skills needed to examine Science Program opportunities, and ability to present findings in a compelling manner.

Competencies

  • Ability to view the big picture and long-term goals while focusing on tactical short-term details.
  • Strong interpersonal and teamwork skills including the ability to build supportive consultative, non-hierarchical relationships with program colleagues and other cross-foundation staff.
  • Flexible and positive approach to problem solving in a collaborative team environment. Proven ability to motivate a group.
  • Comfort with ambiguity and willingness to adapt to change while also proactively helping shape future plans.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Ability to analyze, synthetize, and summarize complex topics into clear and accessible language.
  • Track record as a quick study who will be able to efficiently and thoroughly understand unfamiliar topic areas.
  • Excellent, well-developed project management skills.
  • Proven ability to manage and prioritize multiple time-sensitive tasks.
  • Experience with meeting facilitation and planning.
  • Works well both independently and as a collegial team member, challenges productively, and welcomes feedback. Willing to roll up their sleeves and dive into the work needed.
  • Strong computer skills, specifically in Excel and PowerPoint (experience with project management software a plus). Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite and other software applications including Box and Zoom. Experience with Smartsheet a plus. Interested in exploring and using innovative technology tools.
  • Willingness to support and promote the foundation and colleagues through commitment to the foundation’s goals for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
  • Personal motivation to support the foundation mission and goals, especially through science and the role of science in society.

Attributes

The ideal candidate will demonstrate the following attributes that describe how we at the foundation strive to do our work with each other and our partners.

  • Committed to Excellence
  • Passionate
  • Collegial
  • Open and Honest
  • Humble and Self-Aware

Compensation And Benefits

The Moore Foundation provides a generous total compensation package that includes a competitive salary and wide range of benefits to support your life, health, and well-being.

The expected salary range for this position is between $110,000 and $140,000 per year. Our job titles and salary ranges may span more than one career level, and the salary offered to a candidate will be determined based on factors such as the scope and responsibilities of the position, job related knowledge and skill set, depth of experience, certifications and/or degrees, and our practice of upholding salary equity within the foundation.

Our health benefits include employer-paid options for medical, dental, and vision insurance for employees and dependents; a mental wellness program; paid parental leave; employer-paid disability and life insurance benefits; and pre-tax flexible spending accounts for medical and dependent care expenses.

Other benefits include 6 weeks of paid time off per year and 10 paid holidays; a 401(k) retirement savings plan with a foundation contribution of up to 10% and a Roth 401(k) option; a matching gifts program for qualifying charitable contributions; hybrid work arrangements and a home office stipend; and a commuter benefits program.

To support you in achieving your career goals, the foundation offers a professional development program to all benefits-eligible employees that includes an annual financial benefit of $5,000 and paid time off to participate in educational programs.

Work Arrangements

This position is based at our main office in Palo Alto, CA. Under the foundation’s residency policy and hybrid work arrangements, you must reside within a reasonable driving distance of the foundation’s Palo Alto office, and you will be expected to work onsite a minimum of four days a month, the weeks of our May and November board meetings, and on periodic occasions throughout the year when foundation business needs require.

COVID-19

The Moore Foundation requires that all employees be up-to-date on their COVID-19 vaccinations as defined by the CDC, subject to reasonable accommodations for medical or religious reasons. Any employment offer will be contingent upon satisfactory proof that you comply with this requirement.

Application Process

The Moore Foundation is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes a diverse pool of applicants. We depend on individuals who possess varied skills, perspectives and expertise. We seek to recognize many forms of excellence in candidates, attract individuals with varied identities and backgrounds and enable all employees to feel they belong and can contribute to the mission of the Moore Foundation.

We do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, creed, sex, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions), national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, military or veteran status, marital status, registered domestic partner status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or on any other basis protected by applicable federal, state or local law. We also do not discriminate based on the perception that anyone has any of these characteristics or is associated with a person who has or is perceived as having any of these characteristics.

The foundation is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its programs and operations. As part of this commitment, the foundation will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations.

If a reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application process, please contact [email protected]. A request for accommodation will be responded to within three business days. However, non-disability related requests, such as following up on an application, will not receive a response.

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the ordinance.

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States.

To apply for this job please visit www.moore.org.