Senior Program Officer for Advocacy

Senior Program Officer for Advocacy

The Eleanor Crook Foundation (ECF) seeks a Senior Program Officer for Advocacy to help advance ECF’s advocacy strategy in the U.S. and beyond. The Senior Policy Officer will work across the Eleanor Crook Foundation’s program teams and partners to develop and implement world-class strategies to drive attention, awareness, and action on the issue of global malnutrition.

Reporting to the Foundation’s Advocacy & Communications Director, the Senior Advocacy Program Officer will help to inform, shape, and execute ECF’s advocacy strategy - predominantly focused on the U.S. Government but also with the potential to include advocacy efforts in the United Kingdom and other donor markets, and to global philanthropies, multilaterals, and other institutions. The Senior Advocacy Program Officer will be responsible for direct engagement with and education of policymakers; research of complex issues and distillation of those topics into written thought pieces/advocacy briefs; and management of the Foundation’s advocacy grantmaking, ensuring sound stewardship of ECF funds.

This is an opportunity to think boldly and ambitiously about the future of global development and global malnutrition and leverage relationships across a robust network of partners – new and existing – to drive progress. This role requires strong collaboration with the foundation’s Research & Policy team. The Senior Program Officer should be comfortable in translating nuanced technical information for a more general policy and advocacy audience.

A successful candidate will have a deep commitment to global development and a “sick-of-business-as-usual” attitude, with an unrelenting desire to advance ambitious and creative ideas and collaborate across diverse stakeholders. A professional who is interested in an expanding portfolio and who wants to have a significant impact on global health and philanthropy will thrive. This position is based in Washington, DC.

About The Eleanor Crook Foundation

The Eleanor Crook Foundation was founded in 1997 with a single goal: to eradicate global malnutrition. We are a leading funder in the fight against malnutrition. ECF supports targeted advocacy to raise awareness and spur action, thoughtful policy analysis to assess the current landscape and propose audacious new solutions to global malnutrition, and rigorous research to test and scale up cost-effective interventions.

ECF is an active investor and our team of experts prides itself on being accountable and informed. We are a team of conveners, innovators, and problem-solvers, seeking to upend the status quo by identifying roadblocks to progress and brokering solutions. In 2017, the Foundation pledged $100 million towards the elimination of global malnutrition. Our growing endowment will allow us to keep fighting to end malnutrition for as long as it takes.

Roles and Responsibilities

Policy and Advocacy Leadership:

• Engage U.S. policymakers, decision-makers, and their staff, including in Congress and relevant Executive Branch Agencies.
• Monitor, analyze, and report on global development and global malnutrition policy developments to provide contextualized analysis to ECF staff and partners.
• Identify new opportunities to advance the fight against global malnutrition within ECF’s priority advocacy markets. Oversee the execution of strategies and tactics from the ground up.
• Establish and maintain strong working relationships with a wide range of potential partners to advance and nuance ECF’s strategic objectives and support our grantee efforts.
• Conduct relevant policy analysis and dream big about the future of global malnutrition and global health and development, offering creative and ambitious – but grounded and feasible - ideas for how to advance the issue.
• Develop written policy and communications documents, including talking points, briefing papers, and other materials, that can convey the nuance and importance of global malnutrition to target audiences.
• Convene and/or represent ECF in relevant meetings. Attend meetings, conferences, and events to stay abreast of global development policy. Confidently deliver remarks on behalf of the Foundation, as invitations and opportunities arise.

Grant Administration:

• Manage relationships with ECF advocacy grantee (or prospective grantee) organizations.
• Design new programs, grants, and partnerships. Identify and grow relationships with new partners and deepen relationships with existing grantees.
• Conduct due diligence in evaluating potential grantees in compliance with ECF’s policies and procedures. Provide clear, concise, and insightful written analyses and recommendations for funding.
• Oversee all monitoring and evaluation efforts for advocacy grants, including appropriate documentation, grant budgeting, and reporting. Improve operational efficiency and effectiveness.
• Identify synergies across grants and create and manage strategic fora for cross-grantee collaboration and learnings.
• Regularly represent the Foundation, including at coalition meetings and ECF-sponsored advocacy events. Use these engagements to further inform the foundation’s understanding of sector developments as well as grantee progress, concerns, and opportunities to drive impact.
• Maintain working knowledge of ECF’s research and implementation grants and findings for integration into advocacy efforts. Seek opportunities for interface and collaboration between ECF’s advocacy initiatives and ECF’s nutrition implementation and research grant portfolios.

Administration:

• Coordinate financial planning and management of ECF’s advocacy portfolio.
• Lead grant management, project reviews, and planning processes as needed.
• Actively participate in internal coordination and planning meetings.

Required Qualifications:

• Approximately 7-10 years of experience in international development policy or advocacy.
• At least 3 years of experience with grant compliance, reporting, and financial management.
• Extensive knowledge of US government international aid policymaking and funding processes.
• Experience on Capitol Hill or in the Executive Branch a huge plus.
• Prior professional experience working on global health and development. A strong interest in global malnutrition is a must!
• Proven experience working across multi-stakeholder processes. Demonstrated skill at delivering constructive feedback and representing organizations externally.
• A can-do, productive attitude. A self-starter who will come to the table with creative ideas and be open to collaborative brainstorming. Proven ability to adapt effectively to change.

Desired Skills & Attributes:

• Attentive to detail
• Adept logistician
• Excellent writer
• Capable policy researcher and analyst
• Composed negotiator
• Comfortable public speaker
• Socially perceptive
• Self Starter
• Intellectually curious
• Highly collaborative
• Strategic Thinker and Advocate
• Risk Manager
• Compassionate

Salary commensurate with experience. To apply, please send your resume and cover letter to: hiring@eleanorcrookfoundation.org.