Posted on Posted by

Oakland, CA; Remote

Director, Democratizing Development Program, Neighborhood Funders Group

The Organization

:  Neighborhood Funders Group’s mission is to organize philanthropy to support grassroots power building so that Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities and low-income communities thrive. As a leading philanthropic network, NFG brings together funders to learn, connect, collaborate, and mobilize resources with an intersectional and place-based focus and to explore shifting power and philanthropic resources toward supporting racial, economic, gender, and climate justice movements across the United States. With 142 institutional members and over 1500 individuals participating in our programming each year, NFG addresses timely issues such as gentrification and displacement, racial justice, multiracial rural organizing, and the changing landscape of workers’ rights. NFG’s 17-person staff are former and current grant makers, organizers, and advocates, based in various locations across the country, with a headquarters office in Oakland, CA.

ABOUT THE DEMOCRATIZING DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM:  NFG’s Democratizing Development Program (DDP) brings together place-based and national funders to provide learning, analysis, and mutual support to move more resources to equitable development and community power building strategies for housing justice, community ownership and equitable, sustainable development.  Involvement in DDP enables funders to take action and partner with other equity-centered funders to shift philanthropic analysis, practice and resource allocation to strategies that: protect and preserve affordable housing solutions that address gentrification and displacement; support community development and ownership models that allow residents to influence local decisions and create long-term benefits; see housing justice as intersectional and a key driver of health outcomes; value equitable development and racial justice strategies in place; and build partnerships that advance community power building and organizing as solutions to the most pressing policy issues.

For more about NFG, visit www.nfg.org.

Position Overview

RESPONSIBILITIES:  The DDP Director is supervised by the Vice President of Programs and works closely with the DDP co-chairs and Coordinating Committee to manage the program and administration of the group. The Director will also lead a significant portion of the local and national funder organizing work of NFG’s Amplify Fund, a funder collaborative that supports Black, Indigenous, people of color and low-income communities to build power and to influence decisions about the places they live and work.

The Director will be a:

FUNDER ORGANIZER

  • Work to drive philanthropic interest and dollars to community power building for housing justice and equitable development in alignment with NFG’s goals, vision, and Theory of Change.
  • Track major developments affecting housing policy, community ownership, health and housing, equitable development and racial justice in place by connecting with leaders of funder affinity groups, collaboratives, organizing networks, or other social justice organizations. Keep DDP members apprised of critical events, important issues, innovative practices, and policies.
  • In consultation with DDP committee members and with logistical support from other NFG staff, organize meetings, programming, learning tours, convenings and webinars to broaden understanding and interest in philanthropy for increasing resources to housing justice and equitable development.
  • Develop written content and updates about the DDP program for communications (internal and external) in collaboration with NFG staff.
  • Forty percent of the Director’s time will be to work closely with NFG’s Amplify Fund, to integrate the funder organizing work of DDP and Amplify, including:
    • plan and lead learning visits to Amplify Fund places with Amplify Fund Steering Committee members and other funders
    • organize and execute virtual learning and other funder events highlighting Amplify Fund grantee’s work integrating it into DDP’s overall analysis and work
    • foster local/place-based funder learning across Amplify places and more broadly with DDP members
    • attend and contribute to and learn from Amplify Fund’s steering committee meetings and grantee learning spaces, and
    • represent Amplify Fund with partners.

RELATIONSHIP BUILDER

  • Facilitate connection among DDP Coordinating Committee and broader membership in ways that move them towards more strategic, aligned priority setting and action.
  • Provide guidance and facilitation support to DDP co-chairs and committee members and NFG in planning and execution of programs.
  • Manage consultants leading various research and communications efforts supporting DDP.
  • Maintain the financial well-being and stability of the program in collaboration with the DDP co-chairs and active members and maintain timely communications regarding budgetary status and updates with the Vice President of Programs and Vice President of Operations.
  • Manage all financial information, develop budgets, and keep co-chairs and committee informed of the program’s financial status, with support from NFG.
  • Maintain relationships with current DDP funders and build relationships with new ones.
  • Manage the growth of the coordinating committee and commitment of its members to the program’s success; manage committee leadership changes and pipeline.
  • Lead external and internal communications for the program in coordination with the communications department when appropriate.
  • Manage and help supervise the work of NFG Program Manager assigned to DDP.
  • Collaborate with NFG’s Vice President of Programs to align program strategy with NFG’s overall strategy.

NFG AMBASSADOR

  • Build upon NFG’s reputation as a trusted resource in the philanthropic sector through DDP and Amplify programming and relationships.
  • Participate in planning and execution of NFG’s biennial national conference.
  • Work with other NFG staff and DDP leadership to provide integration and connection between DDP, Amplify Fund and other NFG programs.
  • Represent DDP (alongside Coordinating Committee and NFG members) in conferences, funder meetings, with colleagues in other funder networks, and with media, grantees, and others (includes responding to inquiries and strategically positioning DDP with various audiences).
  • Support the NFG, Amplify Fund and DDP members to expand the understanding and interest of other NFG members, individual donors/funders, and other funder affinity group members in rural multiracial organizing through collaborative programs and other strategies.

CORE COMPETENCIES

Strong candidates are those who are—

  • Recognized leaders and well-versed on current issues and debates around ways to achieve housing justice, community ownership and/or or equitable development;
  • Demonstrated experience with centering community-led organizing and power-building within an ecosystem of solutions to housing insecurity and intersecting inequities;
  • Practiced in relationship building, nurturing and catalyzing coalitions, collaborations or communities of practice with a shared purpose;
  • Knowledgeable about philanthropy with some fluency in how foundations are structured and how the sector is organized;
  • Engaging facilitators who are skilled in leading inclusive processes for group agreement on strategy, collaboration and action;
  • Energized to envision bold but achievable possibilities for action and catalyze others toward leadership and movement;
  • Able to review and synthesize multiple sources of information and data in order to recognize patterns, identify additional information or data needed, and draw conclusions;
  • Able to ascertain the priorities of a group, craft persuasive written or verbal communication to illustrate those priorities as well as develop and deliver a variety of content to reach the broader funder community;
  • Strong project-managers who have attention to detail, organizational skills, and the ability to direct projects with many moving parts; and
  • Open to experimentation, learning, and adjustments along the way; ability to push
    through ambiguity to deliver results.

QUALIFICATIONS

  • At least 7 years of experience in housing justice organizing and policy work.
  • At least 3 years of experience working in the philanthropic sector is required and may include grantmaking foundations, intermediaries, collaborative funds, and/or affinity groups.
  • Strong interpersonal, writing, analytical, and organizational skills.
  • At least 5 years of experience managing projects and/or collaboratives.
  • Familiarity with housing justice issues, organizations, foundations, and government agencies.
  • Demonstrated experience and comfort with facilitating committees or coalitions.
  • Facility with technology and comfort with a virtual office.
  • Flexibility and comfort with overlapping projects, competing deadlines, and multiple stakeholders.
  • Subject to changing public health guidelines and NFG COVID-related policies, it is expected that this position will require travel.

How To Apply

Please send a cover letter indicating interest in the position and how your skills and experience apply, resume, brief writing sample, and two references to ddp@nfg.org.

Please visit https://www.nfg.org/jobs/director-democratizing-development-program to view the full job description.

Sign up