Director, Post 9/11 Veterans (SFF)

The Schultz Family Foundation; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

The Schultz Family Foundation seeks a Director, Post 9/11 Veterans to lead the ongoing development, refinement and implementation of the Foundation's Veterans initiatives. You will shape a catalytic philanthropic portfolio, engage private sector leaders, and work with a diverse network to empower veterans and their families as they transition to civilian life.

You will manage external relationships, oversee grant development and program evaluation, and lead a small team reporting to the

Qualifications

• Ten years of leadership experience across private, public, or nonprofit sectors, including military family experience preferred.
• Proven track record in building cross-sector partnerships and managing complex initiatives.
• Strong strategic thinking with ability to translate vision into programs and budgets.
• Experience guiding grantmaking and philanthropic investments in veterans-focused work.
• Excellent interpersonal and written communication skills with diverse audiences.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Foundation's Veterans portfolio strategy and operations to drive outcomes for transitioning service members and families.
• Shape investments and partnerships to align with strategic goals and budgets.
• Manage grantee relations and provide grant development guidance to staff.
• Oversee portfolio budgeting and performance metrics; drive learning and evaluation.
• Develop cross-sector collaborations and national strategies with external partners.
• Form a nationally recognized Veterans Advisory Board and represent the Foundation externally.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic thinking

Analytical skills

Relationship building

Communication

Grant making experience

Education

Master's degree

Tools

Grant management software

Job description

The Schultz Family Foundation , established in 1996 by Howard and Sheri Schultz, creates pathways of opportunity for populations facing barriers to success. By investing in innovative, scalable solutions and partnerships, the Foundation aims to help unlock people's potential and in doing so, strengthen our businesses, our communities, and our nation. The Foundation focuses its efforts on two groups with enormous promise: the2.8million post-9/11 veterans and theapproximately 250,000 service members that will transition fromactive, National Guard, or Reserve dutyback to civilian life each year and the 4.9 million youth and young adults aged between 16 and 24 who are out of school and out of work.

Post 9/11 Veterans and Their Families

Post-9/11 veterans are returning to civilian life with diverse skills and tremendous potential, but many experience difficulties when they leave military service and transition to civilian life. The Foundation's investments focus on ensuring the transition experience is as seamless and successful as possible by supporting service members before they transition and reintegration strategies that help veterans and their families navigate services post-transition. These investments enhance and accelerate employment opportunities through innovative training and career placement programs and coordinated access to services. To further these efforts, the Foundation works to ensure that employers and civilians understand the strengths and talents of our veterans, and the contributions they can make when they return home. The Foundation's programs support not only transitioning service members but also military spouses.

Opportunity Youth

There is a group of young people that are disconnected from the systems that were built to serve them. These individuals are often born into situations that make pathways to opportunity challenging. The Foundation believes that one's potential should not be determined by their zip code and that this generation of young people represent assets that can have a significant impact on the future of our country. Through its Opportunity Youth portfolio, SFF forges unique partnerships and invests in clear pathways to employment. The portfolio also focuses on innovative initiatives in areas such as mentorship, job readiness, and access to housing – all of which endeavor to empower Opportunity Youth and helps to close the opportunity gap for young people.

The Foundation aims to achieve the following:

Lifting Populations Out of Risk: Our social contract needs rewriting - there's so much potential that tends to be the overlooked. The Foundation works to identify solutions that move people from crisis to stability, to help them get the fair shot we all deserve.

Realizing Economic Justice: The transformative power of jobs—for employers, employees, and communities alike— a job with meaningful opportunities for advancement is still the best social program there is.

Harnessing the Power of Private Sector Engagement: Knowing what's possible when business leaders care as much for their community as they do for their shareholders, the Foundation is galvanizing a movement to compel businesses to do well by doing good.

Building Solutions at Scale: The opportunity gap is getting larger. We need to move beyond solutions that serve few to ones that impact many.

Proving Efficacy is Price of Admission:The Foundation evaluates impact through the lens of both social and business value. Doing good isn't enough. Metrics are used to ensure that investments are leading to real impact and proves that hiring from these talent pools is good for business.

Changing Hearts and Minds:The Foundation lifts up stories of success and hope vs. dysfunction and despair, harnessing the power of narrative to show what's possible if we work and think out of the box.

The Foundation will achieve these goals by focusing on populations of untapped assets, proving efficacy of investments, and driving impact on an individual level and at scale.

ABOUT THE POSITION

The Director, Post 9/11 Veterans (Director) will lead the ongoing development, refinement and implementation of the Foundation's Veterans initiatives. Our returning service members have diverse skills demanded by today's civilian labor force, including impressive work ethics, leadership, and strategic problem-solving abilities. SFF's Veterans initiative is designed to recognize and employ these unique traits to empower veterans and their families after they have served our country and make our nation better and stronger.

The Director will shape and manage a catalytic philanthropic investment portfolio that drives strong outcomes for veterans and their families transitioning to civilian life. In addition, the Director will represent SFF, serving as an external voice and a thought partner to the wide range of organizations and individuals - corporate, philanthropic, political, nonprofit, and others - invested in advocating for and serving America's veterans.

Working closely with a high-performing, entrepreneurial, and collaborative team, the Director will work to ensure the Foundation achieves its goals. The Director will report to the Foundation's Executive Director and manage a small team.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Program and Portfolio Strategy

• Manage a national portfolio of investments focused on innovative, scalable and sustainable pathways for social and economic mobility for veterans and their families
• Drive and shape investments that lead to supporting our nation's veterans, assessing investment opportunities and partnerships to ensure strategic and budget alignment
• Steward relationships with existing grantees and intermediaries, ensuring that grantees have the resources, financial and otherwise, they need to succeed in meeting their goals
• Oversee the investment portfolio budget, anticipating implications with changing scenarios
• Evaluate ongoing program strategies, results, and metrics, and proactively make recommendations for strengthening the impact of the portfolio while also contributing to the internal team's ongoing learning and evaluation efforts
• Support program staff with grant development and grant management, as needed, and oversee the preparation of grant documents and reviews

External Leadership and Relationship Building

• Serve as a leader in this space, driving and collaborating on national strategies with a wide range of leaders spanning corporate, government, and non-profit sectors
• Cultivate cross-sector partnerships with business leaders, policy-makers, other veteran-focused organizations and the veteran community
• Develop deep, transformative relationships with private sector leaders; building strong relationships with external partners in the private sector is key to the long-term success of this initiative
• Form a nationally recognized Veterans Advisory Board, charged with providing strategic guidance to the Foundation; the Veterans Advisory Board will convene regularly, be integrated with SFF's work, and act as advisors and advocates for SFF's programs

Communications

• Lead and contribute to national discourse on topics related to veterans, representing SFF with the highest level of professionalism, connecting with external partners, at conferences and events, and through the work of the Veterans portfolio
• Communicate the strategies, learning, and impact of Post 9/11 Veterans initiatives in grant making and management activities, and through strategy papers, impact reports, and other written materials for internal and external stakeholders (e.g., Board of Directors, Executive Director, etc.) to drive internal initiatives and contribute to the national discourse
• Advance the narrative about the Veterans strategy by working with senior leadership and other team members, including preparing talking points, briefing materials, strategic presentations and recommendations on salient program issues, strategies, and other relevant topics
• Disrupt current systems with innovations to foster lasting results, utilizing tools such as digital platforms and multi-sector partnerships

CANDIDATE REQUIREMENTS:

The ideal candidate will possess the following:

• Ten years minimum of leadership experience in the private, public, and/or nonprofit sector(s) (ideally all three), with experience serving in our nation's military and/or as a military spouse
• Track record of success working and building collaborative partnerships with government leaders at all levels, the private sector, other funders, nonprofit advocates, and community stakeholders
• Exceptional strategic thinking, paired with strong analytic skills and the ability to synthesize information
• Demonstrated experience with start-ups and building transformation from idea generation, to proof of concept, and then to scale
• Proven ability to lead and be part of an entrepreneurial team, with a track record of effectively coaching and managing others
• Collaborative approach; comfortable wearing many hats within a small, close-knit team while bringing the skills, sensitivity, and confidence to tap into the assets each team member brings to the mission
• Familiarity with the military and veteran community and related services, including an understanding of the issues veterans and their communities face, and knowledge of public and private funding streams
• Experience with grant making and/or other aspects of organized philanthropy a plus
• Excellent interpersonal, written and verbal communication skills and the ability to communicate with diverse audiences
• Experience setting goals and objectives, prioritizing and structuring action plans, managing budgets and work activities
• Passion, humility, integrity, flexibility, a sense of humor, and a commitment to the work of the Foundation; combines seriousness of purpose with lightheartedness and fun
• Master's degree in related field preferred

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:

Salary and benefits will be competitive and commensurate with experience.

Schultz Family Foundation is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, marital status, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other protected status. Employment is contingent upon the successful completion of a comprehensive background check.