Programme Operations Specialist

About the Internet Society Foundation

The Internet Society (ISOC) supports and promotes the development of the Internet as a global technical infrastructure, a resource to enrich people’s lives, and a force for good in society. Our work aligns with our goals for the Internet to be open, globally connected, secure, and trustworthy. We seek collaboration with all who share these goals.

Together, we focus on building and supporting the communities that make the Internet work; advancing the development and application of Internet infrastructure, technologies, and open standards; and advocating for policy that is consistent with our view of the Internet.

The Internet Society Foundation is a newly formed, non-profit organization that works in concert with the Internet Society. It exists to demonstrate and support the positive difference the Internet can make to people everywhere and promote the development of the Internet as a global technical infrastructure, a resource to enrich people’s lives, and a force for good in society.  

About the position

The Programme Operations Specialist acts as a link between Operations and the Programme Office of the Internet Society Foundation (the Foundation).  Sitting within the Operations functional area of the Foundation’s organizational structure, the Programme Operations Specialist provides significant support to or takes the lead on the Foundation's technical operations while also administering the grant making process critical to programme implementation.  This position provides direct service to internal and external stakeholders and supports the grants management operations, procedures, and systems.

The Internet Society Foundation awards and manages grants in five programme areas and also funds sponsorships for Internet Governance Forums (IGFs) and Schools of Internet Governance.  The responsibilities of this position are focused on those Internet governance sponsorships and four of the five programme areas.  These include: SCILLS (Strengthening Communities / Improving Lives & Livelihoods), Research, BOLT (Building Opportunities & Leveraging Technology), and RARE (Resiliency and Responding to Emergencies).  For these the Operations Specialist provides all administrative support: from acceptance of applications through grants awards, evaluation and reporting. 

The Programme Operations Specialist is a flexible individual with a strong customer service-oriented skill set who thrives in a fast-paced, globally diverse setting and is comfortable working in a start-up environment.  A solid history of collaboration within and among teams is a must, as well as demonstrating initiative and resourcefulness.

Location

Open

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Technical Operations:

• Fluxx System Administration: mastering and managing the Foundation’s grants management system to meet requirements and ensuring data integrity
• In coordination with the Senior Grants Manager, document, prioritize, and execute system configuration needs
• Work with Programme Officers to document programme-related Fluxx requirements and configure/ update programmes in Fluxx
• Maintain and ensure proper procedures are in place and consistently followed in Fluxx, including but not limited to award notifications, grant agreements and grant reporting; assess ways to streamline procedures
• Serve as primary contact for the Fluxx Helpdesk inbox. Responsibilities include responding to and resolving external (grantee & reviewer) issues as well as internal (staff) issues and configuration requests. Provide guidance and coaching to applicants to support successful applications. Field, and refer as necessary, follow-up questions from potential grantees, awardees, and unsuccessful applicants
• Provide technical training, as necessary, on grants applications, management, and reporting requirements. Train and support grantee & reviewer users’ experience in the Fluxx system and assess processes as needed
• Provide training for new staff members on use and functionality of Fluxx
• Conduct grantee and fiscal sponsor due diligence to verify eligibility including but not limited to 501(c)3 equivalency and grantee mission alignment. Conduct organizational research as needed and manage NGOsource requests and relationship
• Liaise with Accounting team to ensure proper compliance screening measures are completed and adhere to U.S. sanctions requirements

Programme Functions:

• Coordinate and manage the internal and external review process, including assigning applications to the appropriate reviewers, ensuring reviews are submitted on time, and summarizing review feedback for grantees
• Manage pre- and post-grant processes for all grants, including determining workflows for grant proposal intake and review; grant approvals and agreement/contract set up and routing, and ensuring grant close-outs are processed accurately
• Ensure payments and grantee reports are scheduled. Ensure grantee reporting is submitted per schedule and payments issued as needed. Coordinate with the Accounting Team to ensure successful execution of the grant payment process
• In coordination with the Programme Officers, manage the programmes’ grantee correspondence via Fluxx, including deadlines, internal and external evaluation, and requests for information
• Serve as point of contact for translations for Fluxx-related items for all programmes
• Escalate issues to Senior Grants Manager (system & processes) or Programme Officers (programme related) as needed
• Provide additional support for all programmes and Grantee community as needed
• Other duties as assigned

Desired Qualifications

• Knowledge and a high comfort level of working in a Grants Management System, CRM, AMS or other relational contact databases. Experience using a funder’s grants management system is a plus
• Capacity and willingness to learn the Foundation’s funding priorities, processes and procedures, and methods to assess progress and outcomes
• Capacity to understand the perspective of applicants, as well as the grantees’ operational environment
• Familiarity with the characteristics of a quality application
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
• Demonstrated ability to work in a fast-paced multi-cultural environment with geographically diverse individuals and organizations
• Strong organizational skills. Ability to perform and prioritize multiple, constantly changing tasks concurrently with an excellent attention to detail
• Excellent interpersonal, written and verbal communication skills in English is required.  Additional languages will be considered a plus
• Commitment to the Internet Society Foundation’s organizational mission, vision and values
• Experience working with a globally distributed team across multiple time zones
• Ability to travel occasionally

Compensation and benefit package for this position will be competitively commensurate with the successful applicant’s qualifications. 

Applications will be evaluated until the position has been filled. The list of applicants will not be posted publicly and will be reviewed in confidence by members of the evaluation committee.