Program Officer, US Southeast (FFJS)

Foundation for a Just Society; New York (NY); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Foundation for a Just Society seeks a Program Officer for the US Southeast and travel will be required. Based in New York City, you will review grant requests, perform due diligence, make grant recommendations, manage a diverse portfolio, and help implement regional strategies and capacity-building efforts.

The role emphasizes strategic analysis, collaboration with grantees, and leadership in philanthropy as part of the foundation’s Theory of Change, with strong written and verbal communication

Qualifications

• At least five years of professional experience in women's rights and LGBTQI rights work in the US Southeast, ideally within philanthropy.
• Ability to write and speak about social justice with an intersectional lens.
• Strong strategic and analytical thinking with excellent written and oral communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Update and revise portfolio strategy; analyze regional trends and key actors.
• Oversee all stages of grantmaking including due diligence, funding recommendations, and docket writing.
• Monitor grant implementation and evaluate performance; report progress to leadership and board.
• Attend board meetings and engage with the Board and partners throughout the year.
• Recruit and manage external consultant resources and ensure adherence to grant processes.

Skills

Grantmaking

Strategic thinking

Analytical skills

Communication skills

Diversity and inclusion

Tools

Grant management system

MS Office / Google Workspace

Job description

Foundation for a Just Society advances the human rights of women, girls, and LGBTQI people globally, with an emphasis on those experiencing the greatest levels of injustice and discrimination. We do so through supporting organizations that use innovative, intersectional, locally-rooted strategies that meet immediate needs while igniting long-term, structural change in communities and regions that have been overlooked by philanthropy. We seek to strengthen movements that create a world where all people are valued and lead self-determined lives.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Program Officer for the US Southeast, will serve as the key point of contact for organizations in the region, review grant requests, conduct due diligence, make grant recommendations, manage a diverse portfolio of grants, carry out and evaluate regional grantmaking strategies, and manage consultants. In addition, the Program Officer will contribute to the implementation of the other elements of FJS' Theory of Change (capacity building, strategic communications, and leadership in philanthropy).

The ideal candidate is a strategic thinker, analytical, highly adaptive, technologically savvy, an independent problem solver, meticulous, collegial, and thrives in a dynamic environment. The candidate has strong working knowledge of relevant movements in the US Southeast. This position requires international and domestic travel and is based out of New York City.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES + RESPONSIBILITIES

Grantmaking

• Update and revise portfolio strategy as needed; contribute to the development of in-depth knowledge and strategic analysis of assigned countries and region, including current trends, threats and opportunities, and key resource people and organizations.
• Implement grantmaking priorities for the region.
• Oversee all stages of grantmaking in regional portfolio(s), including solicitation, due diligence, assessment and evaluation, recommendations for funding, docket writing, and presentation to the CEO and Board of Directors.
• Monitor grant implementation and evaluate performance, including following up on grantee inquiries and site visits.
• Review and prepare analysis of progress and final reports from grantee partners to highlight achievements and lessons learned; prepare internal status reports and contribute to programmatic analysis for the Program Team and Board of Directors.
• Attend Board meetings to present recommendations and provide information and updates; interact with the Board of Directors throughout the year.
• Recruit and manage external consultant resources.
• Adhere to foundation grant management system and grantmaking procedures, including preparation of all relevant documents.
• Conduct outreach to countries and areas that are relevant for the portfolio.

Capacity Building

• Field emergent capacity building requests from current grantee partners.
• Work closely with individual grantee partners to build their organizational capacities.
• Develop a field-level capacity building approach for regional portfolio as relevant.

Strategic Communications

• Contribute to the advancement of our communications strategy, as guided by the Communications Team.
• Collaborate with the Communications Team to build the communications capacities of grantee partners and the women's and LGBTQI rights fields.
• Serve as an ambassador for the foundation’s mission to external audiences.
• Articulate trends and grantmaking priorities for the portfolio to outside audiences.

Leadership in Philanthropy

• Contribute to developing knowledge products for funder audiences that are grounded in FJS analysis and learning from our grantmaking practice and outcomes.
• Engage in relevant funder affinity groups and funder collaborations and focus on leveraging new and appropriate resources for women's, girls' and LGBTQI groups.
• Develop partnerships with other institutions to extend the impact of our grantmaking.
• Represent the foundation professionally at relevant meetings and conferences.

REQUIREMENTS

• Demonstrated commitment to the foundation's vision and deep alignment with its values.
• Sophisticated understanding of global and grassroots, intersectional justice movements, with an emphasis on the leadership of women, girls, and LGBTQI people from marginalized communities.
• Understanding of the role of philanthropy in effecting transformative change.
• At least five years of professional experience in women's rights and LGBTQI rights work in the US Southeast, ideally within the philanthropic sector.
• Substantive knowledge of and familiarity with relevant movements, grassroots groups, networks, and organizations in the region.
• Experience writing and talking about social justice using an intersectional lens; ability to convey the depth and complexity of issues in a way that remains accessible to broad audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to engage in strategic and analytical thinking.
• Exceptional written and oral communications skills.
• Eligibility to work in the United States.

PREFERRED ASSETS

• Ability to adeptly manage multiple projects simultaneously and precisely.
• Effectively manages competing priorities and can reprioritize tasks as needed.
• Excellent interpersonal skills that includes sensitivity to and respect for colleagues' time, work styles, and needs.
• Willingness to embrace critical feedback with a positive attitude.
• Takes initiative, is self-motivated, and has a desire to learn and improve skills.
• Shows discretion and ability to effectively manage confidentiality issues.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Spanish and English language fluency.
• Knowledge and familiarity with grantmaking processes and procedures preferred.
• Understanding of programmatic monitoring and evaluation.

COMPENSATION + CULTURE

FJS offers relocation support, a competitive salary, excellent benefits, generous vacation, and a collegial working environment. We employ a small staff and are dedicated to promoting an environment of collaboration and work-life balance.

FJS deeply values equity and inclusion and is committed to the recruitment and retention of individuals of underrepresented backgrounds, including gender identity and expression, race, religion, and sexual orientation.