Program Director

Responsibilities

• Ensure the Environment Program remains true to its guiding principles and strategies, while also driving the development of innovative initiatives to promote its ongoing impact and influence as a leader in addressing climate change globally and in conservation efforts of the western United States.
• Champion Hewlett’s mission and the work of its grantees and partners, and serve as an authentic and compelling internal and external spokesperson.
• Build and sustain a culture of curiosity, candor, integrity, and mutual respect, fostering collaboration and accountability across the program.
• Engage substantively with staff in the Environment Program, administrative staff from legal, communications, and grants management who are embedded with the Environment Program, and staff across the foundation’s programmatic areas; identify distinctive ways to create impact through internal partnership and collaboration, providing leadership, counsel, and support for interdisciplinary initiatives.
• Proactively develop and identify funding coalitions with a wide range of external partners, expanding the Environment Program’s reach and catalyzing greater impact in the field.
• Capitalize on the Environment Program’s strengths, specifically its ability to attract, retain, and develop top talent, creating conditions that allow members of the team to do their best work.
• Maintain a strong and successful relationship with Hewlett’s President and serve as a key member of senior staff.
• Develop relationships with other senior staff members and work collectively to advance institutional priorities.
• Identify, anticipate, and develop strategies and/or programmatic priorities to address changes in the philanthropic sector, as well as the social, political, legal, and economic landscape, which may impact the Environment Program, its strategies, and its priorities in the near or long term.

Skillset

• At least 20 years of impactful senior-level experience in public policy, philanthropy, nonprofit leadership, and/or government; a proven record of strong leadership, management, and operational acumen.
• Deep experience and subject matter expertise across multiple policy, technology, and institutional issues related to climate change and biodiversity conservation, including at the national and international level.
• A demonstrated ability to recruit, manage, and empower internal talent, building a strong team to operate collaboratively and perform at the highest level of leadership, quality, trust, and effectiveness.
• Experience serving as an inspiring and authentic leader, communicator, and relationship builder on behalf of an organization or cause; a track record of developing and deploying coalitions for collective action.
• Clear and persuasive oral and written communicator to a range of audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and execute strategy, manage and align resources, use data, implement plans with fidelity, identify challenges and assess progress, and address gaps to achieve strong results.
• Authentic demonstrated commitment to working across differences and ensuring that all team members are valued, and have the opportunity to succeed.
• Evidenced success in supporting action and progress within an organization.
• Experience or familiarity with philanthropy and the work of foundations and an understanding of how philanthropy can influence actions in policy and practice.
• Intellectual agility and the ability to analyze, think critically, and work across geographies and cultures with grantee partners, government, private sector, nonprofit, movement, and community leaders.
• Exceptional personal and professional integrity, judgement, and the highest work standards bring flexibility, good humor, high energy, humility, and an unwavering commitment to Hewlett’s Guiding Principles.
• Graduate-level academic degree in a related field.