Job Posting for Program Officer, US - Austin, TX at Michael & Susan Dell Foundation

Current Opportunity: Program Officer – Austin, TX

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation currently has a new Program Officer position open in Austin, Texas. This role requires that the person is based in Austin, and will report to a Portfolio Director on our US Programs team. We are seeking an individual who can see opportunity and work collaboratively with non-profit and private agencies, social entrepreneurs, government entities, and other implementation partners to design and sustain projects and programs that achieve results for disadvantaged children, youth, and families.

Our commitment is to drive measurable outcomes for our target communities through innovation,

collaboration, and partnership, all of which are key to enabling our mission. The Program Officer should be purposefully driven and passionate about tangibly accelerating opportunities for disadvantaged people in the United States. This position requires a natural leader with a wide range of skills from strategy formulation, operations consulting, and investment management. This role is cross-functional in nature, as the individual will work across multiple portfolio strategies, and requires a highly collaborative candidate with a “get things done” attitude. This role entails working hand-in-hand with partners, bringing the strategic ability to see across organizations and systems, making connections where others cannot.

What will you do?

Program Development: Proactively work with existing and new grantees, as well as mission-aligned entities and related stakeholders to continue to ensure the success of MSDF grants and investments. Build recommendations about the design, development, and scale of new models and practices that deepen impact and create opportunities to ensure more effective allocation of public and private resources.

Actively Manage Programs and Program Outcomes: Lead project management activities that deliver measurable (and sustainable) positive impact on children, youth and families through various interventions, work closely with investees and grantees to unlock value and support the growth of these organizations in key operational areas, and facilitate the overall program implementation with a fanatical eye for detail. Deploy agreed-to portfolio strategies in all projects managed.

Strategic Partnership Management: The work will also require close collaboration with partners to develop new innovations that further the Foundation’s portfolio strategies. Manage relationships with grantees and partners to ensure timely and regular engagement by setting agendas for check-in meetings, documenting progress and lessons learned, and providing analytical assessments to elevate opportunities for adaptive management and course correction.

Portfolio Assessment and Knowledge Management: Conduct rigorous appraisals of foundation-supported projects, driving active projects for maximum success and make hard choices to move away from ineffective initiatives, as appropriate. Make active use of external evaluation data to drive internal decision-making. Synthesize key findings and drive adoption of lessons learned within the foundation and beyond.

Communications: Communicate with leadership and peers regarding project development, connect with the internal Communications team on opportunities to elevate partners’ work, and represent the foundation on working groups, committees, and external events or conferences.

Education / Experience you will need to be successful in this role:

A mission aligned individual with a bachelor’s degree, a minimum of 6 years of experience leading/managing complex, integrated projects with clear, demonstrated outcomes.

Experience in management consulting, investment management, operations management or project management desired. An ideal candidate will bring a track record of delivering measurable outcomes in ambiguous and challenging contexts.

The ability to think strategically and conceptually, using strong analytical skills to identify and implement solutions to address complex business or societal problems, and then to effectively influence a wide cross-section of people. Highly developed organizational and prioritization to work in a fast-paced environment.

The successful candidate will possess the following skills and traits:

A true curiosity and commitment to finding more effective ways to offer children and families pathways out of poverty; a willingness and desire to engage fully in the challenges of this work and to communicate its lessons, successes, and conclusions.
Solid leadership skills, even in the absence of managing people directly.
Ability and willingness to manage work across multiple subject matter areas simultaneously.
Analytical, fact-based problem solving and implementation.
A strong attention to detail.
Learn quickly and connect learning to ongoing program and portfolio conversations.
An interest and comfort in using data and technology applications to improve outcomes for children and families.
A degree of personal organization and results-orientation that would allow success in a quantitative, outcomes-oriented environment and a proven ability to exercise sound judgment and work independently on complex initiatives.
Ability to project manage external vendors as well as foster internal and external stakeholder relationships.
Ability to demonstrate inclusiveness, collaboration, and respect across organizational interests.
An ability to dive into the details of a project when needed yet synthesize learnings to shape the overall strategy of our work.
A demonstrated ability to influence from the outside and achieve results regardless of whether you are the direct leader of the work.
Excellent oral and written communication skills with an emphasis on netting out complex problems to meet the understanding of a wide range of stakeholders.
Embody the highest levels of stewardship and ethical leadership in administering the foundation’s resources.
Agile and thoughtful while adapting to shifting priorities potentially at a rapid pace – comfortable dealing with the ambiguity inherent in the work.
Humility and an ability to empathize with partners and stakeholders.
Mastery of Microsoft Office suite, including the ability to perform advanced analytics in Excel and create articulate presentations in PowerPoint.

Travel requirements: 30% domestic travel.

About the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation

We are a diverse team with unique perspectives. We are united in our mission, our purpose, and our culture. We are driven by our ambition to identify, build, and enhance opportunities for the people we serve, and we are unwavering in our commitment to trust and uplift one another. The foundation is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status. We are committed to building a team and workplace that is enhanced by the breadth, depth, diversity, and capabilities of our teammates.

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation has adopted a hybrid working model combining in-office and virtual work.

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