Administrator, Grants Management, MacArthur Foundation - Hybrid (Chicago, IL)

The Grants Management department partners with Program teams to maximize the effectiveness and impact of MacArthur’s grantmaking. Grants Management works to continuously improve the Foundation’s grant operations and processes, advises on best grantmaking practices including compliance-related concerns, and manages grantmaking data and information in support of a learning culture and improved grantmaking.

The Administrator, Grants Management will report to the Associate Director, Grant Operations and will provide grants management support across a select portfolio of grants. In addition, the Grants Administrator will provide administrative support to the grants management team. This entry-level role provides an excellent opportunity to learn about foundations, grantmaking operations, and grants management systems.

Job Description

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Grants Management

• Enter grants data in the grantmaking system ensuring that grant records are complete with current contacts, coding, payments, reporting requirements, and documentation

• Review grants data and triage coding questions with the data management team.

• Follow-up and update grantee contact records based on research from the data management and guidance from staff

• Follow-up and correspond with grantees and Finance regarding outstanding payment forms and changes to authorized banking contacts to expedite payment processing

• Help to ensure that grantee requirements are received and approved. 

• Work with staff to reconcile and close grantee records at regular intervals throughout the year

• Serve as floating staff to support the team during workload spikes and absences. 

• Support the review and responses to letters of inquiry (LOI)

• Communicate on routine inquiries from applicants, grantees, and Foundation staff

Administrative and Communications

• Provide administrative and logistical support to the grants management team, including scheduling and travel arrangement

• Offer support during team meetings by crafting agendas and taking notes on decisions and action items

Foundation and Sector Engagement

• Participate in Foundation-wide meetings, cross-department committees, training programs, and other tasks, as needed

• Participate in professional development opportunities to stay up-to-date on developments in the field and compliance requirements

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree or equivalent combination of education and 1-2 years work experience

• Proactive, self-motivated, and team-oriented work style

• Excellent customer service orientation and strong written communication skills

• Excellent attention to detail and follow-through

• Proficient in all Microsoft Office applications

• Aptitude and interest in learning and working in databases

• A strong interest in philanthropy, grants management, and/or nonprofit organizations

• Commitment to equity demonstrated in lived experiences

• Oriented toward personal and organizational learning and growth

Preferred Qualifications:

• Prior administrative experience or similar activities, and

• Prior experience performing data entry

The position is hybrid and based in Chicago, Illinois.

Annual salary for this role will start at $73,900.

Physical Requirements and Work Environment

The work environment is an office setting.  Intermittent physical activities will include bending, reaching, sitting, and moving around the office during working hours.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable a person with physical disabilities to perform the job.

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PROGRAM OFFICER, EVALUATION - OFFICE OF EVALUATION, The MacArthur Foundation

Program Officer for Evaluation

The Program Officer for Evaluation will have the responsibility for supporting monitoring and evaluation activities with program staff and the Director of Evaluation. 

 

The Program Officer will support the Director of Evaluation in framing evaluations of the Foundation’s programs, providing support in the oversight and management of major program evaluations and contributing to the development of guidance for program staff around evaluation.  This may include the development and facilitation of reflection, learning and/or review sessions around evaluation findings or the use of evaluation in program planning and implementation. 

 

The Program Officer will build relationships with prospective evaluation consulting resources and partners in the field and provide support in the management of evaluation contracts including planning and convening meetings, tracking budgets, and reviewing invoices.  The Program Officer may be involved in other aspects of strategy development and/or planning for monitoring and evaluation.

 

As the Foundation is in the process of reviewing its protocols, tools and technology to support monitoring efforts, this person will play a significant role in the development of the Foundation’s approach to monitoring as it relates to evaluation.  As the MacArthur Foundation designs a new grants management system, there is considerable room to reimagine the data visualization opportunities for monitoring and evaluation to further increase its accessibility, value and integrated use in decision making.   

 

This person will provide technical assistance and support to program staff around grants having a research or evaluation component or a unique requirement with regard to monitoring as well as provide one-on-one assistance to grantees around research and evaluation questions as requested. 

 

The Program Officer’s work entails a significant outreach component both within the Foundation, across Programs, and externally in the field of philanthropy evaluation. In addition to assisting in the crafting of monitoring and evaluation approaches, the Program Officer is expected to engage actively with program staff, potentially prospective and existing grantees and with a wide range of experts in the field of philanthropy evaluation, so as to help formulate feasible monitoring and evaluation approaches and facilitate successful achievement of monitoring and evaluation objectives.

 

The broad goals and responsibilities for the Program Officer include the following:

 

Immediate Goals:

• Establish, develop, codify and institutionalize a set of standardized monitoring practices for the MacArthur Foundation. 

• Help develop a typology for the MacArthur Foundation’s grantmaking which would yield a range of monitoring practices.

• Help clarify expectations for monitoring and help put in place a set of guidelines for program staff, evaluation staff and grantees to follow. 

• Work directly with the MacArthur Foundation’s grant management and knowledge management systems and seek ways to enhance and improve their capabilities.

• Negotiate and navigate various departments within the MacArthur Foundation to ensure that monitoring practices are integrated into these systems as they are developed and deployed.

• Help insure the productive implementation of monitoring practices to and support its alignment with program goals (or strategies).  As such, this work would include deep engagement around grantmaking at the program/strategy level.

 

Responsibilities:

• Support a portfolio of evaluation contracts.
• Provide support to program staff with respect to monitoring and evaluation, as directed.
• Support grant management, knowledge management and monitoring system’s design and implementation.
• Provide support around the development of communications and learning opportunities related to monitoring and evaluation findings and products.
• Partner with program staff to support the monitoring of grants in existing portfolios, as directed.
• Represent the foundation at monitoring and evaluation meetings as assigned.
• Travel domestically and internationally in connection with the program staff’s monitoring and evaluation needs; may require international travel.

 

Professional Qualifications and Personal Attributes

Beyond these goals and responsibilities, the Program Officer should ideally possess the following professional qualifications and personal attributes:

• A deep commitment to the core values and principles of the MacArthur Foundation.
• Depth and breadth of knowledge of evaluation as represented by increasing responsibility for design, implementation, and management of a broad range of applied evaluation tools, methodologies, and techniques. Experience with research design including both qualitative and quantitative techniques.
• Demonstrated ability to involve and work collaboratively and effectively with peers in joint and shared efforts - Organization savvy and superlative interpersonal and facilitation skills.
• Highly developed and demonstrated project management skills.
• An ability to perform effectively under pressure and to practice strong organizational skills when faced with multiple time-sensitive priorities.
• Excellent writing and public speaking skills.
• The highest level of personal and professional integrity and quality standards.
• Excellent judgment, flexibility, good humor, high energy level, modesty, and graciousness.

 

The Program Officer, Evaluation search is being conducted by the Explore Company. To apply for this position, send a cover letter and resume to resumes@explorecompany.com

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