Grants Manager

Grants Manager 

Department: Finance & Operations (F&O) 

Reports to: Senior Director of Grants Management  

Status: Full Time, Exempt 
 

About the Skoll Foundation 

In 1999, Jeff Skoll created the Foundation to build a sustainable world of peace and prosperity for all. The mission of the Skoll Foundation is to catalyze transformational social change by investing in, connecting, and championing social entrepreneurs and other social innovators who together advance bold and equitable solutions to the world’s most pressing problems. By identifying the people and programs already enacting positive change throughout the world, the Foundation empowers them to extend their reach, deepen their impact, and fundamentally improve society. 

The Skoll Foundation has invested approximately $965 million worldwide, including the Skoll Award to 165 social entrepreneurs and other social innovators. 

This is a full-time position based in Palo Alto, CA. For more information on the Skoll Foundation, please visit skoll.org.  

Position Description 

The Grants Manager, who reports to the Senior Director of Grants Management (Senior Director), is responsible for the efficient and effective implementation of the Foundation’s policies and procedures related to grants management. S/he collaborates with and builds interdependent working relationships with other teams to facilitate responsible and efficient grantmaking across programs. As the primary point of contact on grant compliance, Grants Manager ensures that the Foundation adheres to legal requirements for private foundations and incorporates effective philanthropic practices. In addition, the Grants Manager may lead or support Foundation-wide projects and initiatives related to process improvement, technology, procedures, and/or grant data.   

Primary Duties and Responsibilities 

• Serve as a primary point of contact for grants management, engaging with program staff throughout the grant life cycle.   
• Partner with program staff on resolving potential issues and challenges that may be presented by a particular grant or grantee circumstance. 
• Review grant recommendations and files, ensuring that grants move expeditiously through the review and approval process with a particular focus on timeliness, quality, and consistency of grants processing.  
• Monitor active grants for key issues such as equivalency determination renewals, unsigned agreement letters, payment contingencies or overdue reporting requirements. Work with program staff to address and resolve open issues. 
• Review grants to confirm compliance with IRS regulations and Foundation requirements. Refer special cases to Senior Director or legal counsel as needed and work toward resolution.  
• Partner with Senior Director on designing optimal processes and standards appropriate for the Foundation’s innovative grant making environment and implementing quality support systems and workflows.  
• Support the adoption and usage of grants management systems by internal staff, which includes implementing technology changes or enhancements, and developing resources and relevant approaches to learning to provide training.  
• Prepare Skoll Foundation’s 990-PF statements 11 and 12 and Skoll Fund’s 990 grants statement annually. Support Senior Director with the annual audit. 
• Develop reports and other tools to ensure data integrity, analyze and convey trends to highlight useful information to support decision-making.  
• Working with the Senior Director, write, implement, and monitor policies to support grantmaking.. Collaborate with finance, program, and other departments as needed to with an orientation toward continuous improvement.  
• Prepare monthly cash forecast for scheduled payments and update three-year rolling forecast for liquidity planning.  
• Oversee efficient coordination of grant payments as requirements are fulfilled to ensure timeliness and accuracy. 
• Provide ongoing guidance and training to Foundation staff on effective grantmaking practices, compliance, and processes. 
• Prepare grant documents for the Board docket. 
• Perform other assignments from the Senior Director as needed.  

Qualifications 

While no one candidate will embody all the qualifications enumerated below, the ideal candidate will possess many of the following professional and personal abilities, attributes, and experiences: 

• A deep passion for social entrepreneurship and the Foundation’s mission. 
• Minimum of five years of professional experience in nonprofit or philanthropy sector. Prior grants management experience preferred; familiarity with exempt-organization rules and regulations a plus. 
• Demonstrated knowledge of grantmaking approaches and processes of private foundations, and ability to monitor and apply federal regulations.   
• Strong knowledge of Salesforce, FoundationConnect or other grants managements systems, with a track record of improving and enhancing existing technologies and developing new solutions.  
• Excellent organization, financial and data management, project management, problem-solving and workflow/process design skills.  
• Exceptionally strong interpersonal and diplomacy skills and the ability to interact effectively with individuals at all levels of the organization. 
• Demonstrated ability to take initiative, exercise judgement, prioritize, manage multiple complex projects/assignments, and set/meet deadlines with an orientation toward results.  
• High standards, integrity, humility, sense of humor, adaptable, and comfortable working in and thriving in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment.  

Applicants 
The Skoll Foundation is an equal opportunity employer. We embrace and encourage our employees’ differences in age, color, disability, ethnicity, family or marital status, gender identity or expression, language, national origin, physical and mental ability, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, veteran status, and other characteristics that make our employees unique. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply.    

Apply at https://jobs.jobvite.com/skoll/jobs by submitting your resume and cover letter within one document. In your cover letter indicate your passion for the mission and your fit for the role. We will contact qualified applicants.   

Applicants with disabilities may be entitled to reasonable accommodation under the ADA and related state laws. A reasonable accommodation is a change in the way things are normally done which will ensure an equal employment opportunity without imposing an undue hardship on the company. Please contact hr@skoll.org if you need assistance completing any forms or to otherwise participate in the application process.