Program Manager, Investments, Stanford Impact Labs -Hybrid Opportunity
The School of Humanities and Sciences (H&S) is the foundation of a liberal arts education at Stanford. The school encompasses 23 departments and 25 interdisciplinary programs. H&S is home to fundamental and applied research, where free, open, and critical inquiry is pursued across disciplines. As the university's largest school, H&S serves as the foundation of a Stanford undergraduate education no matter which discipline students pursue as a major. Graduate students work alongside world-renowned faculty to pursue and shape foundational research that leads to breakthroughs and discoveries that shed new light on the past, influence the present, and shape the future. Together, faculty and students in H&S engage in inspirational teaching, learning, and research every day.
Stanford Impact Labs
The world's biggest social problems are complex, multi-faceted, and pervasive. No academic center, company, or organization can solve systemic issues - such as economic inequality, inequitable access to health care and education, and racial discrimination - alone. We need leaders with different skills and experiences to come together to generate fresh insights, evidence, and action to make progress. Stanford Impact Labs (SIL) was created to help make such progress possible.
A major initiative at Stanford University, SIL invests in mission-driven teams of researchers and practitioners from government, business, nonprofit organizations, and philanthropy. These teams (we call them impact labs) work together on social problems of their choice, where practical progress is possible. With our support, these impact labs rapidly develop, test, and scale new solutions to social problems that affect millions of people worldwide. Learn more about our work athttps://impact.stanford.edu/.
Stanford Impact Labs (SIL) is an equal-opportunity organization committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. To that end, we encourage people from underrepresented backgrounds to apply for open positions. Please submit your resume and a response to the 3 questions below in lieu of a cover letter through the Stanford Career Portal.
Position Summary:
The Program Manager, Investments, will own the operations and management of Stanford Impact Labs' grantmaking process and drive strategic initiatives across the university to increase the impact of SIL's grantees. This role will support the Director of Investments & Accountability at a unique time of dramatic growth in the organization and our investments. Over the past year, SIL's portfolio of investments in impact labs has doubled in size, with plans for continued growth over the next few years. The Program Manager will design and execute operational improvements to help the SIL investments team work more efficiently and effectively.
Core duties include:
Investment Operations Management - You will manage and improve on the operations of SIL's investment process and portfolio management-where we deploy roughly ~$10 million annually in grantmaking across three funding opportunities. As part of SIL's investment approach, you will coordinate the application process from end to end, from the initial request for proposals to signing of investment award agreements. You will demonstrate independence, initiative, and judgment in establishing workflows and coordinating effort across five functional teams within Stanford Impact Labs for nine to twelve month funding cycles. As an example, an important part of this role will be efficiently and effectively identifying, recruiting, and engaging over 70 subject matter experts each year to help SIL make decisions about how to direct its funding..
Lab Support Services You will independently manage and continuously refine a suite of lab support services to help amplify the impact of the teams we invest in. This suite of support currently includes SIL staff, external consultants, and add-on financial support. You will monitor our portfolio of investments to understand the roadblocks and risks to impact that our investees face and refresh our suite of lab support services over time.
Strategic Initiatives
Cohort Experience: This role co-leads the development and delivery of workshops and curricula for active investments, in collaboration with the Director of Innovation and Partnerships.
As part of SIL's work to lower the barriers to partnership-based research, you will directly support the Faculty Director in engaging senior university stakeholders to make it easier to conduct partnership-based research at Stanford. You will also support SIL's portfolio with the tools and guidance to navigate existing university processes.
Knowledge Management: You will lead management of systems for application and portfolio management, as well as our relationship management software (Salesforce).
You will be responsible for community management of a new affiliate network, serving 100+ university scholars with programming and resources relevant to partnership-based, impact-focused work.
*Other duties may also be assigned.
Education & Experience
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
Education & Experience:
Bachelor's degree and three years of relevant experience, or combination of education and relevant experience.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
Demonstrated ability to prioritize own work and multi-task.
Demonstrated excellent organizational skills.
Demonstrated ability to take initiative and ownership of projects.
Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
Ability to routinely and independently exercise sound judgment in making decisions.
Demonstrated experience working independently and as part of a team.
Relevant subject matter knowledge.
Ability to direct the work of others, for jobs requiring supervision.
Preferred Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
You are meticulous, detailed-oriented, and organized. You have project management experience and a demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines in dynamic environments independently.
You are eager to learn and improve. You have demonstrated experience proactively finding opportunities to improve the efficiency of processes in pursuit of an overarching goal.
You solve problems. You have demonstrated creativity, critical analysis, initiative, judgment, and decision-making skills. You are able to overcome obstacles and accomplish goals. You are focused on results, and willing to try new approaches to achieve those results.
You are self-motivated and take initiative. You have demonstrated your willingness to roll up your sleeves and complete the small tasks, as well as the large ones.
You are committed to inclusion. You work to make people from different experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives feel welcome, valued, and cared for. You value equity and demonstrate a willingness and excitement and ensure that diverse perspectives inform our investment process.
You are a clear communicator. You have demonstrated superb communication skills, including synthesizing, interpreting, and presenting complex information to a variety of audiences, both in writing and verbally.
You build effective relationships. You have demonstrated the ability to influence colleagues at all levels and collaborate effectively across functions. You share information and resources generously and work for mutual success with internal and external partners.
Candidates will only meet some requirements. We encourage applications from people who are a good fit - through work experience, volunteering, and other personal experiences - who will grow and thrive in this position.
While we're open to a variety of different candidates, this job could be an excellent fit for a number of different profiles, including people who (a) want a foothold in philanthropy in a small but growing entrepreneurial organization; (b) are passionate about operations in mission-driven organizations; or (c) other candidates who are interested in social change, evidence-informed policy, research, public policy or higher education.
*Other duties may also be assigned.
HOW TO APPLY
We will review applications on a rolling basis and encourage interested candidates to apply as soon as possible. We plan to stop accepting applications May 20th, 2023. Please submit the following via the Stanford Career Portal:
A 1-2 page resume highlighting examples of relevant skills and experiences
In lieu of a cover letter, please attach a document with your answers to the following questions (no more than two paragraphs for each). Please note that only candidates who submit responses will be considered:
Please describe a time that you built a process or improved on an existing process. What problem were you trying to solve? What were your results? How would you improve that process further?
Please describe a time when you encountered an obstacle to your work. What was the obstacle? How did you address it? What did you learn?
Please describe a time when you addressed a miscommunication with a colleague. What were the circumstances? What was your role? How did you help resolve it?
The hiring process will involve a work trial intended to give you a sense of what working at SIL is like. The work trial will involve a written task and a simulated work meeting. In addition, there will be at least 2 additional interviews after the work trials. We will check references for final candidates only.
Learn more: To ensure equitable access to information about this job, we're unable to hold individual informational interviews. Instead, we encourage all interested candidates to join us for an open webinar on Friday, April 28th at 12:30p PT, where we'll provide more information and take questions. Please register here. After April 28th, you may view the recording at the same link.
The expected pay range for this position is $66,100 to $107,000 per annum. Stanford University provides pay ranges representing its good faith estimate of what the university reasonably expects to pay for a position. The pay offered to a selected candidate will be determined based on factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the qualifications of the selected candidate, departmental budget availability, internal equity, geographic location and external market pay for comparable jobs.
Visa sponsorship is not available for this position. Applicants must be authorized to work in the US to be considered for this position
This is a 100% FTE, 1 year fixed term exempt position with the possibility of renewal. This position will be based on the Stanford campus and is a hybrid position, with 2-3 days of in-person work and 2-3 days of remote work per week.
If you believe that this opportunity is a match for your knowledge, skills and abilities, we encourage you to apply. Thank you for considering employment opportunities with the School of Humanities and Sciences.
Why Stanford is for You
Imagine a world without search engines or social platforms. Consider lives saved through first-ever organ transplants and research to cure illnesses. Stanford University has revolutionized the way we live and enrich the world. Supporting this mission is our diverse and dedicated 17,000 staff. We seek talent driven to impact the future of our legacy. Our culture and unique perks empower you with:
Freedom to grow. We offer career development programs, tuition reimbursement, or audit a course. Join a TedTalk, film screening, or listen to a renowned author or global leader speak.
A caring culture. We provide superb retirement plans, generous time-off, and family care resources.
A healthier you. Climb our rock wall, or choose from hundreds of health or fitness classes at our world-class exercise facilities. We also provide excellent health care benefits.
Discovery and fun. Stroll through historic sculptures, trails, and museums.
Enviable resources. Enjoy free commuter programs, ridesharing incentives, discounts and more
The job duties listed are typical examples of work performed by positions in this job classifications and are not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, tasks and responsibilities. Specific duties and responsibilities may vary depending on department or program needs without changing the general nature and scope of the job or level of responsibility. Employees may also perform other duties as assigned.
Consistent with its obligations under the law, the University will provide reasonable accommodation to any employee with a disability who requires accommodation to perform the essential functions of their job.
Stanford is an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
Why work at Stanford?Stanford University has changed the world, over and over again.We are one of Silicon Valley's largest employers - and also one of the most unique. Our mission is to educate future leaders and promote interdisciplinary, world-class research and teaching. This passion makes Stanford an intensely creative, rewarding, and challenging place to work. At the same time, our traditions of respect and collaboration sustain a humane, supportive environment in which to pursue your life and your career.At Stanford you'll work with bright, diverse, dedicated people. You'll find encouragement to learn and grow. You'll enjoy excellent benefits and an outstanding environment. How will it change you?
