Strategy & Impact Program Officer

ABOUT US 

Inatai Foundation is a growing 501(c)(4) philanthropic organization committed to working with communities to shift the balance of power to ensure racial justice and equity across Washington and beyond. We are hiring a Program Officer to join our expanding team. 

Cultivating a staff team that embodies the diverse experiences of Washington communities is essential to these aspirations. We strongly and sincerely encourage applications from people of color; individuals who are immigrants, bilingual, and multicultural; d/Deaf people and people with disabilities; members of LGBTQIA+ and gender non-conforming communities; and people with other diverse backgrounds and lived experiences. 

Visit our About Us page to learn more about our work, approaches, and values. You may also browse our Join Inatai page to understand our hiring process, work culture, and benefits.  

POSITION SUMMARY

The Program Officer fosters and maintains relationships with philanthropic partners grantees who focus on regional and national strategies to advance the Inatai Foundation’s evolving grantmaking and advocacy strategies in Washington. The Program Officer is an important external representative for the Foundation and a champion for the communities we serve. They serve as a critical bridge between the Foundation’s priorities and the priorities of the leaders, organizations, and communities we serve. 

The Program Officer’s primary role is to develop and hold relationships with philanthropic partners and grantees who primarily focus on regional and national strategies with implications and impact for Washington. The officer is responsible for developing and recommending grants that align with the foundation’s values, mission, 50 Year Vision, Grants & Action Plan, and the goals of individual portfolios and funds. The Program Officer role requires them to have fundamental political acumen at state and federal levels, familiarity with the philanthropic sector, awareness of organizing on regional/national levels; they synthesize that data into actionable information; and contribute to the foundation’s strategy development and implementation in support of Inatai’s mission and vision. 

This is a full-time, exempt position. Inatai is proud to be a statewide organization and we know there are talented leaders everywhere in our state. As we grow and learn, we know that we are better partners to communities and more strategic grantmakers when we have team members rooted in place and bringing their lived and learned experiences to our work. We are prioritizing the following geographies to ensure we are fully living up to our commitments to geographic equity.  

• The Olympic Peninsula, with special attention to Jefferson, Clallam, and Grays Harbor counties 

• North Central Washington, with special attention to Douglas, Chelan, Okanogan, and Kittitas counties 

• Northeastern Washington, with special attention to Pend Oreille, Stevens, Ferry and Lincoln counties 

In addition to these regions, we would like to give priority to candidates based in Adams, Asotin, Cowlitz, Lewis, Mason, Skagit, Skamania, and Whitman counties.  

We currently have offices in Seattle and Pasco. Team members connected to an office are expected to work in the office. Team members may be permitted – with supervisor approval – to work remotely up to two days per week. Periodic early morning, evening, and weekend hours will be required, and statewide and regional travel should be expected. 

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

Foster meaningful relationships and partnerships with philanthropic partners and grantees 

• Proactively build and maintain relationships and partnerships with values-aligned philanthropic peers to strengthen support for grantees that reflect the organizations, community leaders, and decision makers to whom Inatai is accountable 

• Maintain and grow relationships with current and prospective grantee organizations who focus on regional and national strategies related to power building, voter engagement, advocacy or narrative change which have implication and impact for Washington communities to whom Inatai is accountable 

• Travel, conduct independent research, organize and participate in meetings, attend events and gatherings to foster and deepen relationships with philanthropic peers, grantees, knowledge of their communities and contexts, and awareness of community strengths and aspirations 

Implement the strategies of grantmaking portfolios and funds 

• Contribute expertise and knowledge to strategy development and fund or portfolio implementation as part of portfolio taskforces, as assigned by a vice president or portfolio director 

• Lead and facilitate portfolio meetings, evaluation discussions, updates to strategy, development of trainings, and documentation of lessons from the portfolio 

• Study, understand, and apply Inatai’s values, approach to geographic equity, Grants & Action Plan goals, and focus on community power for racial justice and equity throughout work on various funds and portfolios 

• Co-lead in the planning and implementation of events, gatherings, and convenings of assigned grantmaking portfolios or contribution funds 

• Develop and document successful grant recommendations to support community-based organizations that align with Inatai’s values, goals, mission, and vision as well as the particular strategies of specific grantmaking portfolios and funds 

• Document and share grantee and community needs with appropriate Inatai stakeholders (grantmakers, policy and advocacy, capacity building, leadership programs, community engagement, CEO’s office) when there are opportunities to better or further support grantees and their communities 

• Invite and evaluate organizations’ applications for funding, grant reports, payment requests, and overall grant relationship with the foundation in order make effective and complete recommendations regarding their grants and funding 

• Maintain actionable, up to date contact, organizational, and related records and data in Inatai’s grantmaking database about each grant for which the officer is responsible 

Align Strategic Engagement Strategy  

•  Implement cross-departmental systems to ensure that grantees and Inatai team members can fully engage in trainings and conferences.  

• Co-lead logistical coordination, grantmaking, and event attendance in line with our 50-year vision strategy.  

• Support the coordination of events and recommend those for team members to attend, along with follow-up actions.  

• Develop reports, trainings, and grant recommendations based on the findings.   

Internal leadership 

• Proactively share lessons and field trends with stakeholders in other areas of Inatai 

• Identify and disseminate emerging trends in the sector, relevant case studies, and other topics of interest related to the Foundation’s work 

• Participate actively in regularly-occurring Inatai team meetings and retreats; department meetings, retreats, and events; as well as internal workgroups where there is time and capacity to engage well 

Field leadership 

• Participate in external meetings, workgroups, funder affinity groups, and events on behalf of Inatai based on expertise and capacity to engage well 

• Build and enhance relationships with community leaders, organizational leaders, and funding partners across the state, in service of Inatai grantees and their success 

• As requested and when aligned with Inatai goals, represent the Foundation to a diverse range of partners as requested, including local business leaders, government officials, or other collaborators 

Additional Responsibilities  

• Support for convenings on behalf of the division 

• Identification and development of skill-building supports for internal team 

• Speak or write on behalf of the foundation as an occasional spokesperson, as assigned or approved by a member of the leadership team 

• Participate in occasional board meetings, public events, or private events as a representative of Inatai’s grantmaking team 

QUALIFICATIONS

• Understanding of state and federal politics 

• Experience with regional or national nonprofits 

• Familiarity with non-profit structures and the national/regional organizing structure  

• Knowledge of Washington state communities and hunger to learn more through meetings, travel, and engagement with community leaders, decision makers, and allied funders  

• Multiple years’ experience leading a nonprofit organization or government department as a senior executive with a broad range of responsibilities and high degree of autonomy (CEO, executive director, senior director, department head, or similar) 

• Working knowledge of nonprofit finances, leadership and management, IRS regulations, and programmatic work—used in a program officer position to understand grantee needs, strengths, aspirations, and community-drive priorities 

• Ability to synthesize knowledge gained through written materials (e.g., grant applications), conversations (e.g., meetings with grantees), independent research (e.g., news articles, social media, discussions with community leaders), and financial statements (e.g., grant reports) into coherent stories, assessments of organizations and needs, and recommended action  

• Ability to proactive engage and manage relationships effectively with multiple peer philanthropic partners and regional and national grantee leaders 

• Ability to navigate difficult and challenging relationships and conversations, especially conversations about expectations, accountability, and actionable commitments to racial justice in our work 

• Ability to learn, explain, and apply our analysis of geographic and racial equity and other power building analysis to the work they are engaged in 

• Strong written and verbal communication, including presentation skills 

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and SharePoint) and Adobe (Acrobat DC) and ability to adapt to new technologies 

• Willingness to take part in occasional meetings and events outside of core business hours 

• A deep commitment to equity and racial justice, and strong alignment with our organizational values 

• Ability to authentically connect the Foundation’s mission and aspirations with one’s own personal experiences 

• Demonstrated ability to cultivate relationships and work effectively and respectfully with politically, ideologically, culturally, and geographically diverse people and communities 

• Knowledge of, or a strong desire to learn about, the needs of communities across the state who are most impacted by structural inequities 

• Enthusiasm for traveling throughout Washington and engaging with communities that may be different from your own (travel is estimated at 45-60% for this position) 

COMPENSATION

In addition to a positive and flexible work culture, we attract, retain, and motivate exceptional people with an equitable and competitive compensation package. Salary ranges are set according to an explicit compensation policy, and relevant data are reviewed when setting ranges for each position. The salary range for this position is $128,000 to $138,000. A compensation enhancement is provided to employees with indigenous or advanced language proficiency in more than one language that they utilize to advance the Foundation’s work across Washington.  

We offer a comprehensive benefits package that includes fully paid medical/dental/vision coverage for employees and dependent children (and partial coverage for partners and spouses), a 10% retirement contribution, generous time off (29 days of flexible paid time off, eight paid holidays, and a year-end office closure from December 25 to January 1), paid family and medical leave (12 to 18 weeks), a transit pass (where available), and support for ongoing professional development.  

TO APPLY 

Please submit your resume and a cover letter expressing your specific interests through our online application portal. Priority will be given to applications submitted by Friday, April 18th, 2025. You will receive an automatic acknowledgment of your application once you submit your materials, and you can expect updates from the Foundation every two to three weeks once the priority deadline has passed. 

We are committed to creating conditions where all candidates are able to fully express their talents and potential and invite you to let us know if there are any accommodations that we can provide to support you in your pursuit of this role. 

Thank you for your interest in joining Inatai Foundation!