Program Officer, International Funds

Position Type: Full-time, Salaried, Exempt

Location: Flexible (remote); Must be eligible to work in the U.S.

Starting Salary:

$108,000 – $135,000

Candidates will be reviewed on a rolling basis. The position will remain open until we have a sufficient pool of diverse candidates who meet the job requirements, at which point we may pause the review of new applications before the stated deadline. Please understand that you may not be contacted for several weeks after you apply.

Closing Date: Jan. 17, 2025

Ideal Start Date: March 15, 2025

About the Center for Disaster Philanthropy

CDP began in 2010 with the goal of pioneering the practice of strategic disaster philanthropy. Since then, it has grown in its ambition, envisioning a world where the impact of disasters is minimized through thoughtful, equitable and responsible recovery for all. CDP has a $35 million budget and a team of more than 25 staff members working remotely across the U.S.

CDP is a trusted partner, expert and authoritative resource helping hundreds of individuals, foundations and corporations boost the impact of philanthropic giving in response to disasters and humanitarian crises by supporting equitable recovery and addressing root causes of vulnerabilities worldwide.

In 2023, CDP awarded $22.1 million through 93 grants to 91 grantee partners worldwide, demonstrated thought leadership through 14 webinars, 128 blog posts, featured speaking engagements and other events, and served 20+ philanthropic partners through consulting efforts. In 2020, CDP was a featured nonprofit for the 14th Annual CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute. CDP has earned Charity Navigator’s Four-Star Charity rating, Candid’s Platinum Transparency seal and is a Better Business Bureau Accredited Charity.

As an organization grounded in racial and intersectional equity, our team members are deeply committed to strengthening communities most vulnerable to disasters because of systemic inequities. We are guided by our values of integrity, boldness and innovation, humility, and empathy in all that we do in pursuit of our mission.

Bottom line: We aspire to walk the talk of anti-racism and treat each other and our partners in ways that inspire trust, creativity, learning and care.

Be a part of our fast-growing team that offers countless ways to help communities thrive. Join us!

Responsibilities & Duties

The program officer, international funds, will interact with a broad range of internal and external constituents and play a key role in support of our mission to mobilize philanthropy to strengthen the ability of all communities to withstand disasters and recover equitably when they occur.

Reporting to the vice president of fund management and coalition building (FMCB), they will lead and manage international disaster recovery funds daily, working collaboratively with coalitions and systems & compliance staff to enhance the reach and effectiveness of CDP’s international grantmaking. In collaboration with the vice president and the rest of the FMCB team, the program officer will implement, monitor and refine international grantmaking strategies for CDP and communicate the same to other staff, the CDP board, nonprofit organizations, funders and other stakeholders as necessary.

Ultimately, this person works to allocate dollars for active funds in a manner that meets the needs for equitable long-term disaster recovery. Professionalism, the ability to cultivate relationships, and the flexibility to adapt to a growing organization’s changing needs and priorities are essential.

As a fully remote workforce, CDP prioritizes employee engagement and relationship building in service of a collaborative culture rooted in equity. To this end, in-person team retreats are scheduled throughout the year in different regions of the U.S. This role will be expected to attend 2-3 retreats per year, which average 3-5 days of travel. Additionally, the person in this role will be expected to plan for and travel to disaster-affected areas to assess funding needs and develop collaborative opportunities to support community recovery. Travel may include approximately 25 percent of the program officer’s time.

The successful candidate will display the following traits:

You want meaningful work that contributes to the betterment of society. You love being challenged, learning and growing. You have a natural collaborative style and understand that it takes a team. You are a detail-oriented self-starter with strong capacities in prioritization and decision-making. You have exceptional communication skills and the ability to multi-task. You are tenacious and not easily put off by the challenges inherent to working in the humanitarian grantmaking space. You can discern between what is important and what is urgent, and you are solutions-oriented.

The ideal candidate will be a strategic thinker with highly effective communication, fundraising, intuitive management and relationship-building skills. They must also be able to convey CDP’s mission in compelling ways to prospects and key stakeholders.

Primary responsibilities include:

The program officer, international funds will manage international grantmaking efforts and oversee the awards process for international funds. This includes leading needs-based visioning exercises and guiding focused grantmaking for specific types of disasters and in specific geographic areas—both existing funds and any newly created internationally focused pooled/collaborative grant funds. Additionally, the program officer will lead the stewardship of existing grantee partner relationships and manage and steward any new grants.

The program officer will be an active member of the FMCB team, which currently includes management and leadership responsibilities for the international funds program managers. This role serves as a trusted partner of the VP, FMCB to deliver against CDP’s priorities in alignment with our mission and values centering equitable, locally led recovery.

Fund management

• Pre-identify and research organizations within each funded geographic region that have, or will likely, be critical to disaster response and recovery efforts.
• Maintain an awareness of critical recovery needs in ongoing disasters to guide grantmaking and advocate for fundraising.
• Establish relationships with nonprofits and potential grantee partners internationally and provide oversight, grants management and follow-up with grantee partners.
• Oversee grants management and stewardship of all new grants.
• Provide international grantee partners impacted by disasters valuable recovery resources: grantmaking, technical assistance, connecting/bridging tools or networks.
• Promote partnership and a culture of learning among grantee partners.
• Organize site visits to understand the needs of following disasters and aid in the identification and/or stewardship of grantee relationships.
• Oversee a consistent grantmaking framework, process and grantee relationship management grounded in equity, flexibility and stewardship. Model timely, effective, equitable grantmaking.
• Working with the FMCB team and within existing CDP systems, provide advice on improving processes that guide grants management for the funds.
• Manage all administrative and budget functions relating to the fund program and grantee partners, including but not limited to the use of CDP’s grant management database.
• In concert with other members of FMCB, seek to identify trends within grants made, including the impact of CDP as a grantmaker.

Thought leadership

• Develop and refine international funds strategies and ensure that outcomes and actions are resourced and well-implemented.
• Strengthen and deepen the network and capacity for response and recovery in disaster-affected communities internationally.
• Provide partners and communities with access to accurate and comprehensive information to prioritize post-disaster needs and identify and develop the resources needed for community recovery.
• Act as a guide for CDP the complexities of humanitarian crises and disasters, including the international response and recovery systems (UN, bilateral, coordination bodies, pooled funding mechanisms, etc.), and the response and recovery needs of communities.
• Understand the private international response and recovery systems (nonprofits, place-based funders, diaspora, community leadership, advocacy organizations, technical assistance providers, researchers, etc.) and how to match these systems with local community needs.
• In collaboration with the strategy & innovation team, engage in research and learning activities to enhance philanthropic engagement with equitable recovery from disasters and complex humanitarian emergencies.
• Develop and maintain an understanding of racialized and marginalized populations, including networks, key partners and critical post-disaster needs.
• Create opportunities for peer-to-peer connection around trends and critical needs for equitable disaster recovery internationally.

Team and organizational leadership and representation

• Work with the program officer, domestic funds, to integrate learnings, networks and resources globally.
• Represent CDP and its funds to the public, community leaders, nonprofit organizations, disaster experts and colleagues in philanthropy.
• Collaborate with the CDP communications and development teams to ensure that impact stories are captured and shared widely.
• In collaboration with the international funds team, the vice president and the president & CEO, develop methods and systems for analyzing grant impact and effectiveness so that CDP disaster recovery funds can continue to model disaster philanthropy.
• Educate donors and professional disaster organizations to increase donor/partner participation in disasters through informative, consistent, and engaging community impact stories and data.
• Support the establishment of new funds, including collaborative and pooled funds, and brainstorm other potential business models with the team.
• Provide regular content for CDP communications and learning mobilization (blog posts, speaking engagements, etc.)
• Support the implementation of CDP’s strategic goals and objectives.
• Support the needs of other teams at CDP.

Other duties as assigned

• Serve on committees, panels and task forces at CDP as appropriate and as available.
• Represent CDP positively and professionally in meetings and other external engagements.
• Perform other duties and job-related tasks that may be assigned.

This position reports to the VP, FMCB but works in service of the whole organization.

Required qualifications

• Progressive international leadership experience in disaster management, immediate response and/or long-term community recovery (10+ years preferred).
• A graduate degree in a related field is preferred; a bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience is required.
• Experience in grantmaking, a background in philanthropy or leadership experience in a nonprofit organization.
• Extremely high attention to detail and a strong sense of responsibility for one’s work.
• Managerial and leadership experience guiding a team (4+ years) while working cross-functionally with other teams.
• Excellent organizational, interpersonal and communication skills.
• Excellent analytical and critical thinking skills.
• Proven ability to manage multiple projects in a deadline-driven environment.
• Ability to work effectively within a geographically distributed team.
• Experience with BBGM and Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge software is a plus.

Preferred skills and qualifications

• Nonprofit work experience, including time tracking for restricted funding.
• Ability to think strategically about process improvement.
• Ability to work remotely with minimal direct supervision.
• Strong oral and written communication and interpersonal skills.
• Willingness to learn and grow.
• Commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, with a proven ability to create inclusive work environments.

Personal characteristics

• Commitment to the values intrinsic to CDP’s mission and strategy.
• Energetic and eager to tackle new projects and ideas.
• High tolerance of ambiguity and appetite to tackle issues constructively.
• A team player capable of cultivating productive relationships across teams.
• Sense of humor

The Center for Disaster Philanthropy’s work environment is safe and open to all employees and partners, respecting the full spectrum of race, color, religious creed, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, political affiliation, ancestry, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status and all other classifications protected by law in the locality and/or state in which you are working.