Managing Director of Programs

Managing Director of Programs

• Kataly Foundation
• August 26, 2024
• San Francisco, CA

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About Kataly Foundation

Kataly Foundation, a family foundation based in the San Francisco Bay Area, is committed to supporting restorative economics, environmental justice, mindfulness and healing justice, and racial justice. Founded in 2018 with the intention of spending out a $445 million endowment over a ten-year time horizon, this growing organization intends to support movements around these issues and serve as a progressive leader in philanthropy.

Kataly’s mission is to support and provide resources to communities and social movements that are exploring new solutions to persistent, systemic problems. Kataly does this while embracing its role and responsibility in changing systems that led to wealth extraction from these communities in the first place. We move resources to support the economic, political, and cultural power of Black and Indigenous communities and all communities of color. By transforming its own relationship to capital, the planet, and each other, the Kataly Foundation will redistribute and redefine wealth in a way that leads to transformation, abundance, and regeneration.

One important distinction of the Kataly Foundation is that its approach is meant to be inclusive of the communities it seeks to fund. Pursuing a “practitioner-funder” philosophy, the Foundation actively engages leaders in the fields it supports to help make grantmaking decisions. Kataly aims to center solutions where the problems are. In addition, the Foundation is committed to solidarity philanthropy practices: general operating support, creative use of capital, and a commitment to capacity building and network weaving.

Kataly’s Program Areas include:

Restorative Economies Fund: The Restorative Economies Fund (REF) invests resources into community-owned and governed projects led by people of color that create shared prosperity, self-determination, and build collective power. REF is an integrated capital fund, which means the Fund combines grants with non-extractive investments (loans, loan guarantees, lines of credit, etc.) and non-financial support including technical assistance or strategic advice.

Environmental Justice Resourcing Collective: The Environmental Justice Resourcing Collective (EJRC) is a group of nine women of color movement leaders who are resourcing work that builds power in communities of color, and grows movements for racial, social, economic, and environmental justice. The Collective funds work led by and for the communities most impacted by environmental racism, climate change, and unjust systems.

Mindfulness and Healing Justice: The Mindfulness and Healing Justice (MHJ) program supports community-based mindfulness programs, teacher training, leadership development, and healing justice practices for Black and Indigenous communities, and all people of color. MHJ centers mindfulness and healing in the service of racial justice, power-building, and collective liberation.

We’re working toward a world in which Black and brown people have the resources, power, and agency to execute their own visions for justice, well-being, and shared prosperity within their communities.

We believe our fates are intertwined and ensuring self-determination for communities of color is in service of our collective liberation.

Learn more about Kataly Foundation at .

The Opportunity

At this pivotal moment in Kataly's history, the Foundation seeks its first-ever Managing Director of Programs to support and amplify efforts across programmatic areas and within the organization broadly. As Kataly continues to engage actively in the process of distributing its resources, the Managing Director will serve as a critical connector and advocate for opportunities to collaborate across program teams in alignment with organization-wide strategic goals. As a thought partner and collaborative problem solver, the Managing Director will support Kataly's program teams to execute thoughtfully on their programmatic strategies, identify best practices and creative solutions for program-related issues, and serve as a voice and conduit to the Foundation's leadership team for needs, concerns, and questions that arise within the grantmaking areas.

Reporting to the Chief Executive Officer, this inaugural Managing Director will employ a flexible approach to managing program needs and work alongside the program team to promote the goals of the Environmental Justice Resource Collective, Mindfulness and Healing Justice work, and the overall Capacity Building program of Kataly. Acting as a guide and partner to the leaders of each program area, the Managing Director will manage the Foundation's programmatic initiatives with the expertise needed to directly engage in program-related work as needed.

As part of Kataly's leadership team, the Managing Director of Programs will provide clear, actionable thought leadership around program implementation, inspire program staff to achieve the Foundation's complex agenda, and broaden the organization's reach and impact. The Managing Director will serve as the central aggregator and generator of ideas around strategic implementation across all program areas.

They will have a tremendous impact by focusing on the refinement and optimization of day-to-day program leadership throughout the organization. Their strategic leadership will support Kataly's spend-down process, ensuring that emerging grantee needs are prioritized while also supporting the needs of program staff internally. Moreover, the Managing Director will actively partner with the autonomous grantmaking leadership of each program area to advocate on behalf of staff, ensuring that capacity and communications needs are met internally among staff and externally for grantees and the movements Kataly supports.

Key responsibilities for this role include:

• Acting as a thought partner and strategic advisor to the CEO and leadership team;
• Managing and supporting three direct reports–Senior Program Officers for Mindfulness and Healing Justice and the Environmental Justice Resourcing Collective, and the Director of Capacity Building.
• Championing a spirit of collaboration and open communications across the Program team to help advance organizational goals and ensure continued trust and alignment among the staff;
• Managing, updating and executing on implementation plans in coordination with the Programs teams, CEO and leadership team;
• Coordinating the execution of key projects and initiatives, including Rapid Response grantmaking.
• Analyzing key data and reports to identify opportunities and challenges;
• Helping to address any culture/personnel issues, and keeping the CEO and People & Culture lead abreast of organizational climate;
• Coordinating programmatic related information and sharing with the Finance and Operations staff to shape organizational budgets and strategies;
• Representing Kataly at events and meetings to knowledgeably speak about the Foundation's work.
• Partnering with the CEO, leadership team and program teams to coordinate Kataly’s funder advocacy efforts, to share Kataly’s approach, and highlight our grantee partners with other funders.

Candidate Profile

While no one candidate will possess every quality outlined for this position, a successful candidate will bring many of the following professional competencies and personal attributes:

Passion for the Mission

The successful candidate will reflect integrity and commitment towards fulfilling the Foundation's mission of truly supporting communities to exercise their power and voice and moving the needle on critical issues facing the United States. This leader will believe deeply in the power of philanthropy, social justice, and the common good and demonstrate a passion for Kataly's program areas and organizational values. Through experience, whether professional and/or lived, the Managing Director will deftly demonstrate familiarity with and commitment to social justice concepts and frameworks such as racial equity, gender analysis, economic justice, and structural bias, consistent with the values and vision of Kataly. Through values-aligned practice, action, and communication, this leader will bring a demonstrated commitment to supporting and uplifting the expertise of Black, Indigenous, and people of color-led groups and formations.

Strategic, Adaptable, and Creative Problem Solving

The ideal candidate will lead with an entrepreneurial mindset, along with the knowledge, foresight, and clarity to inform decision-making around programming and strategy toward social change. This leader will act nimbly in adjusting to shifting priorities and deftly balance multiple tasks efficiently and effectively. Using keen analytical skills and excellent judgment, this individual will consistently take the initiative to anticipate needs and address them with complex and concrete, resourceful strategies - all while engaging fully alongside the CEO, leadership team, and staff. Within Kataly, this leader will be skilled at effectively driving toward consensus to enact operational change and optimize organization-level impact.

An Inclusive Collaborator Leading with Humility

Driven by a deep, relational understanding of a collective approach to movement-centered action, the ideal candidate will utilize strong emotional intelligence, demonstrable humility, and an orientation to listening to effectively engage and empower all communities within and beyond Kataly. Leading with humility and trust, the Managing Director will adeptly gain the confidence and respect of the Kataly team by fostering relationships and developing processes to ensure staff at all levels and from all backgrounds feel authentically welcome, that their contributions are valued, and deeply included as part of a diverse team. This leader's ability to inspire trust and build relationships with a diverse range of perspectives and collaborators, including senior leaders, team members, and external partners, will support collective action toward producing meaningful, impactful, and lasting change.

An Engaged Manager and Connector

With demonstrated success in building relationships and weaving connections within and across ecosystems of organizations, this individual will skillfully navigate complex landscapes with nuance and a keen understanding of various perspectives. Employing a keen ability to identify team and individual strengths as well as capacity gaps, this leader will work to motivate, manage, and lead the team to realize individual and collective goals and outcomes aligned with overall organizational strategy and vision. The ideal candidate will be a supportive and empathetic leader with the ability to provide constructive feedback to empower staff and cultivate an effective and collaborative culture that operates seamlessly across teams within the organization. Moreover, this individual will act as a supervisor, coach, and mentor to staff, creating and identifying opportunities for growth and development.

In addition, strong candidates will offer:

• A collegial work style and a sense of humor;
• A mature capacity to hold and move through complexity;
• A creative and innovative approach to problem solving the helps the Foundation to live into our values and deepen our impact;
• Strong self-managed work ethic and highest level of personal and professional integrity;
• Highly organized with an attention to detail, ability to meet or exceed deadlines, and a commitment to rigor and excellent work product;
• Strong time management skills and the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously;
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; and
• Proven project management skills, from design to implementation.

The above offers an aspirational view of the ideal candidate profile; we encourage applications from candidates with a wide range of experiences and backgrounds, especially those from underrepresented groups. The Kataly Foundation is deeply committed to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion and seeks to have a diverse and inclusive workforce to promote effective work in partnership with all communities and population groups.

All job applicants and employees must be currently authorized to work in the United States for any employer on a full-time basis without the need for visa sponsorship now or in the future. Positions at Kataly are not eligible for employer visa sponsorship, and Kataly will not sponsor applicants or employees for work-related visa status.

Compensation & Benefits

Salary for the role is anticipated to range from $240,000 to $260,000, commensurate with experience. Kataly offers a comprehensive benefits package.

• Group Insurance Benefits: Fully paid premiums for group health, dental, vision insurance, long-term disability, life insurance, and a supplemental health insurance plan intended to cover a substantial portion of out-of-pocket costs from the primary health, dental, and vision plans.
• Kataly 401k Contribution: An employer 401k contribution of 15% of salary (up to the legal maximum), regardless of whether an employee makes their own contributions to the plan.
• Paid Time Off (PTO): A generous PTO program that can be used for any purpose.
• Paid Sick Time (PST): PST accruals for time off separate from and in addition to PTO.
• Other Time Off: At least 11 paid holidays, a two-week operations shut-down during the last and first week of the year, full days off to vote or work at the polls, and two floating holidays.
• Reflection Week: A week where employees are free from their usual meetings and deadlines to engage in deep reflection around a topic related to their work at Kataly.
• Paid Leaves of Absence (LOA): Up to four months paid LOA for pregnancy disability (from day one of employment); up to four months paid LOA for family and medical leave (after one year of employment), and up to eight weeks of unpaid personal leave.
• Employee Discretionary Grants Program: A discretionary grants program for employees to direct grants to organizations of their choosing.
• Professional Development Budget: An annual allocation for employees to attend job-relevant conferences, meetings, seminars, and other educational events or to engage an executive coach to work on a work-related topic.
• Home Work Space Budget: A generous budget when an employee first joins Kataly to create a comfortable, safe, and efficient home workspace.
• Work From Home Monthly Allowance: A monthly allowance for employees to pay a reasonable percentage of business-related expenses incurred from working from home (e.g., wireless plan, internet plan, utilities, etc.)
• Cell phone: Money towards a new cell phone (owned by the employee) every three years.

Contact

Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group has been exclusively retained for this engagement, which is being led by Michelle Bonoan and Chartise Clark. Submit a compelling cover letter and resume by . All inquiries are strictly confidential.

Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals living with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual living with a disability and need assistance expressing interest online, please email . If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.

Kataly Foundation is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes applicants of any race, creed, color, religion, ethnicity, national origin, income class, political affiliation, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, veteran status or marital status, as well as applicants who have been previously incarcerated. We are committed to equity, diversity and inclusion throughout the organization and believe strongly in the increased effectiveness that comes from a diverse workforce, and strongly encourage those from historically under-served, underrepresented or marginalized communities to apply. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, or disability status.

About Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group

Koya Partners, a Diversified Search Group company, is the nation’s premier search firm dedicated to mission-driven leadership. Since its founding in 2004, Koya has had an exclusive focus on mission-driven clients and was founded on the belief that the right leader can transform an organization and have a deep and measurable impact on our world. Koya works with nonprofits & NGOs, responsible businesses, and social enterprises in local communities and around the world.

Diversified Search Group is consistently recognized by Forbes on its top 10 list of “America’s Best Executive Recruiting Firms” and is an industry leader in recruiting transformational leaders for a changing world. The firm is deliberately different in its approach, with best-in-class teams who have decades of experience in cultivating inclusive leaders, understanding the dimensions of diversity, and building equitable teams.

Learn more about Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group via the .