Program Assistant, Gender Equality

Gates Foundation; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 43,000 - 61,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive benefits package

50% in-office work

Job summary

The Gates Foundation is seeking a Program Assistant in Seattle to provide comprehensive administrative and logistical support to multiple principals within the Gender Equality Office of the President. The role requires managing calendars across time zones, coordinating onboarding for new hires, and assisting with team events while maintaining a positive team culture.

The position is based in our Seattle office with a 50% in-office requirement.

Qualifications

• Some experience in an administrative job for a complex and fast-paced organization.
• Experience working with MS Office suite, especially Outlook, and including Copilot, Claude, and other AI tools is strongly preferred.
• Experience setting priorities and meeting deadlines while balancing multiple competing priorities.
• Strong initiative, organizational skills, and ability to work autonomously and cross-functionally while remaining flexible to changing tasks and priorities.
• Demonstrated knowledge of how to build and maintain productive working relationships in matrixed environments.

Responsibilities

• Core Administrative Support: Provide comprehensive administrative support by managing high volumes of email, tracking priorities, handling expenses and reimbursements, and engaging in special projects as needed.
• Leverage technology, AI tools, automation and digital tools to streamline support, ensuring efficiency and accuracy.
• Calendar Management: Provide high-level scheduling and calendar support for multiple principals across time zones, coordinating complex meetings and managing calendars.
• Continuous calendar conflict management and meeting prioritization.
• Division/Team Support: Support team effectiveness and culture by serving as a resource on business operations and collaborating with leadership on team culture initiatives.
• Support onboarding of new team members and coordination of team events and meetings.
• Communication: Ensure clear, timely, audience-appropriate communications and maintain liaison with internal and external partners.
• Demonstrate professionalism and discretion with sensitive information.

Skills

Administrative support

Calendar management

Communication

MS Office (Outlook)

AI tools (Copilot, Claude)

Tools

Copilot

Claude

Job description

The Foundation

We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. We believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve. We provide an exceptional benefits package to employees and their families which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with no premiums, generous paid time off, paid family leave, foundation-paid retirement contribution, regional holidays, and opportunities to engage in several employee communities. As a workplace, we’re committed to creating an environment for you to thrive both personally and professionally.

The Team

The Gender Equality Division’s mission is to ensure women and girls in Africa and South Asia can enjoy good health, make their own choices, earn their own money, and be leaders in their societies. When women and girls have an equal chance to thrive and lead, everyone benefits. The Gender Equality Office of the President creates an enabling environment and a strong business engine that drives forward the achievement of the GE Division’s goals. This is achieved through four core pillars: President Enablement & Engagement (includes the Division’s Strategic Partnership and the GE Presidents external and internal engagement), GE Division Experience & Engagement (includes president support, executive and leadership team engagement, division communications, and division culture, norms, and DEI efforts), Centralized Business Capabilities (includes rhythm of the business, division guidance for Strategy Reviews and Annual Planning, and knowledge management), and a Strategic Advisory Function whose primary remit is to provide timely, responsive strategy and decision support capabilities to the GE President and to cross-division strategic areas of work in alignment with division impact goals.

Application Deadline

Application Deadline: Monday, November 16, 2026

Your Role

The Program Assistant plays a key role in providing comprehensive administrative and logistical support to multiple principals, including those in leadership positions, as aligned with the organization’s evolving staffing model. The Assistant is responsible for managing complex calendars, scheduling a high volume of meetings across multiple time zones, and helping principals stay aligned with their most important priorities. In addition to supporting individuals, the Assistant may contribute to team operations by coordinating onboarding meetings for new hires, assisting with planning and logistics for team events and meetings, and helping to cultivate a positive and well-connected team culture. As part of the Gender Equality Office of the President, the Assistant sits within the centralized support team and as such, is assigned to support programmatic teams within the Gender Equality division.

*Please note that this position is based in our Seattle, WA office and must adhere to 50% in office work. Relocation assistance is not available for this position.

What You’ll Do

• Core Administrative Support Provide comprehensive administrative support by managing high volumes of email, tracking priorities, handling expenses and reimbursements, and engaging in special projects as needed
• Leverage technology, Artificial Intelligence (AI), automation and digital tools to streamline support, ensuring efficiency and accuracy
• Calendar Management Provide high-level scheduling and calendar support for multiple principals —including those in leadership — by coordinating complex, high-volume meetings across time zones, managing calendars, prioritizing tasks, and ensuring effective communication and conflict resolution
• Continuous calendar(s) conflict management and meeting prioritization
• Division/Team Support and Coordination Support team effectiveness and culture by serving as a resource on business operations, participating in assistant meetings, and collaborating with leadership on team culture initiatives
• Support new team members with onboarding meeting coordination
• Communication Communicate effectively with principals to ensure clarity on questions, conflicts, and trade-offs related to calendar management, facilitating informed decision-making
• Provide clear, timely, and audience-appropriate communications for all inquiries and requests, while maintaining consistent communication with internal and external partners
• Demonstrate professionalism and use discretion with sensitive information

Your Experience

• Some experience in an administrative job for a complex and fast-paced organization
• Experience working with MS Office suite, especially Outlook, and including Copilot, Claude, and other AI tools is strongly preferred
• Experience setting priorities and meeting deadlines while balancing multiple competing priorities
• Strong initiative, organizational skills, and ability to work autonomously and cross-functionally while remaining flexible to changing tasks and priorities
• Demonstrated knowledge of how to build and maintain productive working relationships in matrixed environments

**Must have unrestricted work authorization in the country where this position is located. The Foundation does not provide immigration-related sponsorship for this role. This includes direct company sponsorship and any work authorization requiring a written submission or other immigration support from the company (eg: H-1B, O-1, L-1, E, OPT, STEM-OPT, CPT, TN, J-1, etc.).

#LI-TL1

Salary range

The salary range for this role is $31.44 - $44.04 USD. As a mission-driven organization, we strive to balance competitive pay with our mission. New hires salaries are typically between the range minimum and the salary range midpoint. Actual placement in the range will depend on a candidate’s job-related skills, experience, and expertise, as evaluated during the interview process.

Hiring Requirements

As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment will be contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

Candidate Accommodations

We’re committed to providing an inclusive and accessible hiring experience for all candidates. If you have a disability or medical condition and need an accommodation at any stage of the application or interview process—such as an ASL interpreter, alternative interview format, or physical accessibility support—we’re happy to help. Please contact [e-mail] with the position number and a brief description of your accommodation needs. Requests will be handled confidentially.

Inclusion Statement

We are dedicated to the belief that all lives have equal value. We strive for a global and cultural workplace that supports ever greater diversity, equity, and inclusion — of voices, ideas, and approaches — and we support this diversity through all our employment practices. All applicants and employees who are drawn to serve our mission will enjoy equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to race, color, age, religion, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and prior protected activity. Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, we work with partners to create impactful solutions so that people can take charge of their futures and achieve their full potential. In the United States, we aim to ensure that everyone—especially those with the fewest resources—has access to the opportunities needed to succeed in school and life.

Based in Seattle, Washington, the foundation is led by CEO Mark Suzman, under the direction of Bill Gates and our governing board.