Director, Grants Management

About The Susan T. Buffett Foundation

The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation (STBF) is a private grant-making foundation with a U.S. home office in Omaha, NE and a global home office in Kigali, Rwanda. The Foundation’s staff is comprised of almost 90 individuals across two continents. With annual spending in excess of $1 billion, STBF is one of the largest private foundations in the U.S.

The Foundation is unusual for donors of such size as they have only two main areas of grantmaking: (1) supporting women’s health and reproductive freedom in the U.S. and around the world (2) to enable low-income students in Nebraska to attend and succeed in college. Unlike most foundations, STBF will not exist in perpetuity. After Mr. Buffett passes away (he is currently 94 years old), the Foundation’s grantmaking will grow substantially, then eventually sunset after approximately 10-15 years.

The Legal Unit

The Director, Grants Management will be a member of the Legal unit. The Legal unit provides responsive legal guidance in support of STBF’s mission and implementation of its programmatic and operational goals. The Legal unit provides comprehensive legal services to meet STBF’s legal needs, including contracts and grant agreements, the special rules applicable to U.S. private foundations, compliance with various Foundation policies, and employment matters. Legal offers efficient and reliable legal guidance, manages legal risk, and supports the development of solutions to support the foundation’s work, in collaboration and alignment with STBF’s other operational and programmatic teams and with a goal of shared accountability for mitigating risk and optimizing the foundation’s operational resources.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Vice President Legal & General Counsel, the Director, Grants Management will work closely with senior leadership and program staff, playing a key role in supporting the Foundation’s grantmaking practices, advancing continuous improvement in systems and processes, and creating a center of excellence for grants management.

The Director will be responsible for developing, implementing, and maintaining grantmaking processes and guidance, building a foundation-wide approach that strives for consistency while still allowing for program flexibility. In addition, the Director will act as a critical partner and respected resource for program teams who may need additional guidance regarding grantmaking compliance and/or due diligence.

Over the next year, a primary responsibility of the Director will be to lead a review of options to replace the Foundation’s custom-built grantmaking system, and if a new system is selected, to lead the implementation of the new system.

Key Responsibilities

Strategy and Leadership

• Establish and lead the execution of a long-term vision for a strategic grants management function that ensures alignment between the Foundation’s programmatic strategies/goals and grantmaking practices while centering the grantee experience and the Foundation’s values.
• Act as a strategic partner to senior leaders regarding efficient and effective grants management.
• Champion the use and continuous improvement of the Foundation’s grantmaking system and encourage broad user adoption across all Foundation staff.
• Strengthen internal partnerships through open communication that invites feedback and reflection.
• Contribute to and support institutional strategic planning by proactively identifying and implementing grants management tools, practices, and infrastructure that align with the Foundation’s current position and help prepare for future growth.

Grantmaking Systems and Data

• Guide a cross-functional team to ensure the Foundation’s grantmaking system meets the Foundation’s requirements, supports strategic goals, and promotes efficiency and transparency throughout the grantmaking process, including lead the design and implementation of a new grantmaking system, if one is selected.
• Own and oversee the institution’s grantmaking system, including managing vendor(s) relationship(s), licensing fees, and appropriately budgeting for enhancements.
• Partner with program staff and grantees to ensure active system use throughout the full grant lifecycle and identify any barriers to adoption or enhancement opportunities to undertake.
• Regularly test system releases and any implemented enhancements, and update system documentation accordingly.
• Track identified system issues, work with vendor(s) to resolve issues, if needed, and communicate resolution to relevant Foundation staff and grantees.
• Continually assess how well the grants management system and related tools are meeting the Foundation’s needs and perform discovery around new/evolving institutional needs and system best practices, including documenting requirements and process/workflow designs.
• Continually research and identify opportunities to incorporate new technology in the grantmaking system, including the use of AI and integrations/APIs.
• Oversee data management and data quality within the grants management system, including regularly reviewing and updating available and applied system codes and tags as well as their definitions.
• Create and generate routine grant data reports and analysis, including providing data for internal operational purposes, e.g., regular payment releases and cash flow reporting, annual board reports, 990-PF schedules, annual audit.
• Oversee the design and build of reports and dashboards for presentation of grant information, e.g., ad hoc reports for program teams and/or senior leaders.

Grants Management

• Collaborate with the General Counsel to provide resources and support for program teams regarding grant compliance questions (e.g., regarding specialized/sensitive grant terms and conditions, e.g., expenditure responsibility, lobbying, fiscal sponsorships, etc.).
• Develop, maintain, and continually evolve grantmaking policies, processes, tools, and guides for staff and grantees, e.g., internal review workflows, expenditure responsibility policy and process, grant amendment policy and process, fiscal sponsorship guidelines, award letters/grant agreement templates, lobbying policy and guidelines, etc.
• Train current and new Foundation staff on the grantmaking process, and the system, including effectively communicating grantmaking practice changes and promoting transparency and understanding of the beginning-to-end grantmaking process.
• Participate in program team meetings, as needed, to collaborate on pipeline planning/ budgeting, future commitments, renewals, and grant cycles/timing.
• Collaborate with senior leaders to facilitate tracking of annual grant commitments and payout projections against program budgets.

Sector Engagement

• Stay current on prevailing grants management practices and activities and translate them back to the Foundation to support continuous improvement.
• Actively participate in vendor and peer association communities (PEAK Grantmaking, TAG) to identify new grants management practices that can benefit the Foundation.
• Actively participate in grants management communities and conferences and share lessons learned with the Foundation.

Cross Collaboration

• Lead a small cross-functional team that strengthens coordination, information-sharing and continuous improvement across internal departments, including program units, Finance, and IT, as well as with external stakeholders resulting in a grantmaking system and processes that best meet the Foundation’s evolving needs.
• Liaise with Finance staff to ensure the grants management system supports timely payments of grants and programmatic contracts, as well as the availability of complete and accurate information to support cash flow reporting, annual board reports, 990-PF schedules, and the annual audit.
• Serve as the primary grantmaking system administrator and oversee ad hoc system configuration and version releases, collaborating closely with the Foundation’s IT function, communicating relevant updates to Foundation staff and grantees.

*These responsibilities may change or expand over time consistent with the Foundation’s needs and initiatives.

Background and Experience

Required:

• A minimum of 10 years of professional work experience with at least 5 years in a private foundation grant manager/officer role, including processing grants to organizations outside the United States. A deep understanding of grants management processes and related financial and legal compliance for private foundations, including the ability to clearly explain complicated legal terms and grantmaking requirements.
• Ability to communicate effectively with diverse stakeholders and the ability to make compelling, cogent presentations on complex topics.
• Exceptional interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills and the ability to build strong, collaborative relationships across global geographies and staff levels in a way that fosters mutual trust and respect.
• Skilled at balancing strategic vision with the detailed work required for successful execution.
• Strong financial and analytical skills and experience using data to drive process change and improvement.
• Inherent curiosity, an ability to listen, and a dedication to learning.

Preferred:

• Solid systems orientation with a track record of acting as the project manager to implement a grantmaking system and/or significantly enhancing an existing technology is strongly preferred.
• Experience training staff across global geographies and staff levels in using databases and other technology tools is strongly preferred.

Attributes for Success

• Strategic Decision-Making: A systems thinker who demonstrates sound judgment in aligning grant operations with the Foundation’s mission and priorities.
• Commitment to Equity: Embeds equity in grantmaking operations, ensuring processes are accessible, inclusive, and transparent.
• Collaboration: Builds strong cross-functional relationships with various internal and external partners.
• Grantee-Centered Mindset: Designs grantmaking processes that are respectful of grantees’ time, capacity, and lived experiences.
• Practical and Solution-Oriented: Supports program staff with clear, actionable guidance.
• Operational Excellence: Maintains meticulous attention to detail while managing high volumes of grant data, timelines, and compliance requirements.
• Technology Fluency: Understands how to leverage grants management systems to increase efficiency and transparency.
• Adaptability: Embraces change and leads thoughtfully through transitions of systems, models, and/or policies.
• Proactive and Resourceful: Consistently anticipates potential challenges and takes initiative to address them before they escalate.

Shared Values

A genuine understanding of, and appreciation for, the significance of our values: Mission, Respect for Donor Intent, Appetite for Risk and Tolerance for Failure, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Humility, Passion Tempered by Objectivity and Evidence, Compassion and Love of Humanity, Honesty and Integrity, Kindness and Respect, and Shared Accountability.

An alignment with the Foundation’s progressive values, including unambiguous support for individual reproductive freedom.

Inclusion Statement

The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation is committed to creating a workplace where employees thrive both personally and professionally. This includes not only creating a diverse team where everyone feels represented, respected, and included, but also embedding these values across our work and practices. All applicants should expect equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to protected characteristics.

Location

This role may be hybrid or remote, depending on the finalist. If the finalist is local to Omaha, they will be required to come into the Omaha office at least 1 day per week. If the finalist is remote, travel to one of the Foundation’s two offices (Omaha or Kigali) will be required on a quarterly basis at the very least.

Compensation

The Foundation is committed to pay transparency and fairness. The compensation range for this position is $210,000 – $310,000 per year, which reflects good faith estimate of expected pay. Where a candidate falls within this range will depend on various factors, including experience, skills, qualifications, and internal equity. While the Foundation aims to offer competitive compensation, not every candidate will receive an offer at the top of the range. Open conversations about compensation are encouraged throughout the hiring process.

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