VICE PRESIDENT OF PROGRAMS

THE ORGANIZATION

GCIR envisions a society in which everyone thrives no matter where they were born. To make that vision a reality, we galvanize philanthropy to advance immigrant justice and belonging. As the nation’s only immigrant-focused philanthropy-supporting organization (PSO), we work with our more than 130 member institutions, the 1,200 individual grantmakers in our network, our partners in the field, and other PSOs to mobilize funder resources on the most pressing issues facing immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.

In 2017, Inside Philanthropy named GCIR the Funders’ Affinity Group of the Year for leading funder pushback to anti-immigrant policies. In 2021, as we enter a new era for our organization and our country, we will build on our 30-year history to drive short- and long-term immigrant-related philanthropic investments and advance a vision for a just, equitable, and inclusive society for all.

Our work in the philanthropic sector is grounded in the following values:

Justice: We are committed to racial, social, and economic justice.

Belonging: We believe that belonging is essential to building strong communities and a healthy democracy.

Humanity: We believe that everyone is connected by our shared humanity.

Courage: We believe that taking risks is imperative to achieve a just and equitable society.

Solidarity: We are united with other movements and communities in the pursuit of civil and human rights.

The GCIR staff comes from all walks of life, many of us with immigrant and refugee backgrounds and some of us with non-traditional career paths. We have an office in the San Francisco Bay Area and remote staff in New York and Washington State. GCIR members are local, state, regional, and national foundations who transcend issue area, geographic region, and ideological categorization. For more information, visit www.gcir.org.

THE ROLE

Reporting to the President, the Vice President of Programs plays a critical strategic leadership role in three areas: program and policy strategy and development, funder education and engagement, and funder mobilizing and organizing. As a member of GCIR’s Management Team, the Vice President of Programs will evaluate current programs, introduce leading-edge practices from the immigrant justice field, and play a key role in shaping GCIR’s long-term strategy. This position will influence and inform the programs portfolio, oversee the program team and budget, and represent GCIR’s programming and impact to external audiences, including funders, partners, and the board of directors. The ideal candidate has demonstrated success in leading program strategy and experience managing remote teams; is committed to nurturing a collaborative work environment; and excels at devising and implementing creative solutions in a complex nonprofit setting.

Leadership and Management (30%)

• In partnership with the President and other senior leaders, develop and implement GCIR’s strategic goals and priorities.
• Supervise and lead the four-person programs team, overseeing the goals, activities, performance, and development of direct and indirect reports. Manage consultants as needed.
• Strengthen the capacity and cohesion of the programs team based on a model of distributed responsibility and shared leadership.
• Foster a dynamic, inclusive, and equitable organizational culture centered on justice, belonging, humanity, courage, and solidarity.
• Ensure optimal cross-departmental coordination, strategy development and alignment, joint problem solving, and a healthy workplace culture.
• Provide leadership and stability in times of volatility and transition through shared and distributed decision-making responsibilities.
• Advance diversity, equity, and inclusion and demonstrate an understanding of how race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and age shape experiences with power and access to opportunity, particularly in the U.S. context.
• Coordinate the work of various internal ad hoc cross-departmental teams to ensure optimal effectiveness and efficiency.

Programs and Policy (40%)

• Develop a vision and strategy for program growth and evolution, which will involve planning, understanding, and defining program challenges and growth opportunities.
• Lead and oversee the design, implementation, and evaluation of GCIR’s programmatic and policy activities that galvanize philanthropy to address urgent and persistent needs and invest in the long-term movement for immigrant justice.
• Provide deep content expertise to a diverse set of stakeholders on a range of issues by monitoring local, state, and federal immigration policy developments; tracking other developments in the immigration field and in philanthropy; and identifying emerging trends, opportunities, and promising practices to ensure that GCIR can respond effectively to a dynamic policy environment and philanthropic ecosystem.
• Engage in critical thinking, innovate, and focus on influence and impact in programming.
• Cultivate and maintain relationships with colleague affinity groups, immigrant and refugee organizations, local, state, and federal government agencies, and other strategic allies and stakeholders.

Funder Engagement and Organizing (30%)

• Lead and oversee the design, implementation, and evaluation of GCIR’s informational resources that are focused on substantive grantmaking guidance.
• Contribute to institutional messaging and communications, including providing immigration content expertise and recommendations for funder action.
• Organize funders to encourage strategic, aligned grantmaking.

THE IDEAL CANDIDATE

Required Skills and Experience

• Minimum 10 years progressive program experience in nonprofits with a focus on immigration and social justice.
• Deep knowledge of immigration issues and trends, a track record of advocating for positive change with diverse audiences, and a sophisticated understanding of the complex intersection and interplay of immigration with other issues and movements.
• Minimum five years of management and supervision experience, demonstrating strong management skills; a respectful and supportive leadership style; and the ability to motivate and develop direct reports and to build reciprocal, collaborative, and accountable relationships.
• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field.
• Agility and ability to quickly course correct in changing and complicated political environments and communities, both internally and externally.
• Ability to effectively resolve problems and exercise informed judgment that balances multiple needs, priorities, and interests.
• A genuine appreciation of different perspectives and the skill to influence diverse stakeholders to find common ground and work toward shared goals.
• Innate orientation toward collaboration and openness to feedback from colleagues.
• Proficiency in Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint and openness to working with a wide range of project management and communications tools (e.g., Slack, Box, Trello).
• Ability and willingness to travel an average of twice a month to meet stakeholders, represent the organization, or speak at conferences. (We recognize that Covid-19 may continue to limit travel in the short term.)

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Master’s degree in a relevant field.
• Familiarity and comfort with the unique dynamics in philanthropy, and an understanding of how GCIR’s intermediary role can create opportunities to advance a progressive agenda in the sector.
• Experience within a philanthropy, philanthropy-supporting organization, or other grantmaking nonprofit.
• Demonstrated experience in effectively managing and supervising staff and projects in multiple locations.
• Experience working in an organization with multiple offices and with a remote supervisor and direct reports.

LOCATION

GCIR currently has a physical office in Petaluma, California. We also have two staff members who work outside of the San Francisco Bay Area region. Candidates based in other locations in the United States are also invited to apply.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

The salary range is $115,000 to $130,000, depending on years and type of experience, as well as level of education and training. GCIR offers a competitive salary and an excellent benefits package, including employer-paid health insurance, 401(k) contribution, generous vacation, mental health days, and sick time, one week off between Christmas and New Year’s Day, support for professional development, and an employee matching-gifts program.

TO BE CONSIDERED

GCIR is committed to building and retaining a talented, diverse, and inclusive team. Our team members represent diverse backgrounds, bring a wide range of educational, professional, and lived experiences, and contribute expertise from varied disciplines within the philanthropic, nonprofit, public, and corporate sectors. We welcome candidates of all races, ethnicities, nationalities, religions, abilities, sexual orientations, and gender identities and expressions. We strongly encourage people of color, women, LGBTQ individuals, those from immigrant and refugee backgrounds, differently-abled people, formerly incarcerated people, and people of any and all traditionally marginalized identities to apply. Applicants will not be discriminated against because of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, religion, national origin, disability, ancestry, marital status, veteran status, medical condition, or any protected category prohibited by local, state, or federal laws.

Please submit a cover letter and resume to GCIR’s recruiting consultant, Jenn Raley Miller, at [email protected]. This position will remain open until the right candidate has been identified; however, for priority consideration, candidates are encouraged to submit materials by Monday, February 15, 2021. In your cover letter, please explain why you are interested in this role and how your experience and skills are relevant. No phone calls or email inquiries please.