About GiveDirectly 

GiveDirectly (GD) aims to reshape international giving -  and millions of lives - by allowing donors to provide capital grants directly to the world’s poorest. The Brookings Institution estimates that $70B of cash transfers would be required to eliminate the poverty gap; the aid sector currently spends $135B each year, much of which is allocated to evidence-free interventions. GiveDirectly wants to change that, establishing a benchmark, and in the process accelerate the end of extreme poverty. GiveDirectly has raised over $400M in revenue (>$150M in 2020 alone), while being recognized as one of the most innovative non-profit companies by Fast Company. The growing movement toward cash transfers and GD’s role in that movement have also been featured in This American Life, Foreign Affairs, The Economist, and  Business Insider.

Cash transfers are at a potential inflection point:  COVID-19 has amplified the challenges of bulkier in-kind aid models, and governments are deploying cash as their most common tool of assistance to vulnerable populations. GiveDirectly has an opportunity to leverage its strong  track record (i.e. operations across 9 countries, >$250M transferred to over a million individuals, 13 randomized control trials), to both deliver immense impact and position itself as the premiere cash implementation vehicle globally. 

Role overview: 

As Partnerships Manager, you will help to drive new and innovative funding partnerships with foundations, companies, and governments. You will manage major grants with GiveDirectly funding partners, develop and maintain an organization wide pipeline of funding opportunities and build and scale partnerships internal tracking, reporting and analytics processes. You are highly organized, a strong verbal and written communicator and solutions oriented. 

Core functions will include: 

1. Pitch and Proposal Writing: 
   1. Owning end-to-end drafting of funding proposals, pitches and concept notes for a variety of audiences. 
   2. Partnering with funders and GD operations team to design core program parameters for proposals. 
2. Project & Knowledge  Management:
   1. Owning proposal development process - managing colleagues to deliver high quality responsive and proactive proposals. 
   2. Developing highest quality core content for the organization including e.g one pagers, proposal FAQs, standard pitch decks etc which reflects GiveDirectly’s brand.  
3. Relationship Management and Communications:
   1. Building and scaling systems for gold standard relationship management and grants administration (including regular update calls, customised proposals and reports). 
   2. Managing relationships with assigned funders including day to day informal and formal communications. 
   3. Managing ongoing grant agreements (e.g., reporting and compliance requirements). 
4. Donor Acquisition: 
   1. Running full sales cycles, building a coalition of funders passionate about direct giving. 
   2. Providing pitch materials for management team outreach to potential funders.
5. Pipeline Management and Analytics:
   1. Owning GiveDirectly’s fast-growing fundraising pipeline - tracking performance against ambitious fundraising goals. 
   2. Developing clear and accessible fundraising dashboards showing real time analytics of partnerships performance.

What we're looking for: 

An individual with a strong drive to take ownership, a desire to work in a fast-paced team, and an interest in building, managing and scaling key relationships and projects with partners and, in turn, maximizing GiveDirectly’s impact. 

Other things we’d like to see: 

• Excellent written and verbal communicator of complex work. 
• Exceptional organizational skills and solutions orientation.
• Strong interest in and aptitude for project management
• A proclivity for giving (and gracefully receiving) direct, honest feedback
• Ideally ~2 years of experience in a top private or public sector organization 
• Experience of working closely with governments / foundations and of managing large grants preferred, but not necessary

GD Values:

• Recipients first.

We prioritize recipient preferences over those of donors or ourselves.

We do not impose our preferences, or judgments, on the beneficiaries; instead we respect and empower them to make their own choices, elevating their voices in the global aid debate. This value is core to GiveDirectly’s identity as the first organization exclusively devoted to putting the poor in control of how aid money is spent. It comes at a potential cost, as it means that neither we nor donors get to set priorities (and we may even lose some “efficiency” in providing this option).

• Team next.

We do what’s best for organizational - not individual - success.

This is a team sport, where we will succeed (or fail) together. The best players are not those with the best individual statistics, but those with biggest impact on our overall performance. We avoid territoriality, self-promotion, and I’m above this attitudes.

• Be proactively candid.

We say what we believe, and are honest in sharing information.

Having confidence that other people are telling us what they truly believe, without gloss or omission, is critical to effective communication and to our ability to learn and grow from feedback. We owe it to each other - and our donors - to instill this confidence even though giving and receiving information candidly are unusual in both professional and social life, and can be very uncomfortable.

• Create positive energy  

We strive to be a source - not drain - of energy for our colleagues.

Our work is hard, practically and emotionally, and we cannot overemphasize the importance of maintaining a positive attitude, enjoying the company of our colleagues, and not taking ourselves too seriously. In doing so, we aspire to generate energy and excitement amongst our colleagues in pursuing our mission. This should not preclude candor, and we aspire to achieve both.

• Think rigorously; act quickly.

We are intellectually rigorous with a drive towards action - not debate.

We reason from first principles, grounding our decisions in objective claims about the world, rather than hard-to-disprove assertions or hierarchy. We aim to brainstorm inclusively and respectfully, but critically self-vet ideas we put forward, so as to ensure productive and prudent decision making.

Demanding this level of rigor forces us to think harder about decisions and our assumptions than we otherwise might. This is a real cost. It can be taken too far: it is possible to overthink decisions, and we avoid debate for the sake of debate. We are not here to philosophize or ensure consensus. We decide and act quickly, avoiding getting bogged down in debates.

• Accept reality. Propose solutions.

We do not dwell on problems. We work actively to create solutions.

There will always be an endless list of things to improve. We focus on the things that can be changed; find the most important of those things, and propose actionable answers. We do not allow “problems” to weigh us down and be a source of negativity. We are forward looking, which we believe not only leads to better team outcomes, but also creates a more enjoyable, energizing environment for all.

• Be productively ambitious.

We take the risks to pursue industry-changing success, not incremental progress.

We seek step-change improvements at all levels, and are willing to make big-bets; we do not accept complacency nor do we simply optimize existing processes. In doing so, we allow ourselves to dream big with a belief that perceived constraints are merely opportunities for creativity.

Such ambition not only requires hard work (i.e., this is not a 9-5 job), but also a willingness to accept and learn from temporary setbacks and failures. In accepting these failures, we’re conscious to not point fingers, nor obsess over “mistakes” made.

• Know yourself and grow.

We recognize and accept our imperfections with a focus on growth.

We are an organization of exceptional people and trust in each other’s abilities, yet we recognize that none of us is perfect. We strive to maintain an accurate understanding of our individual and institutional strengths and weaknesses, in order to position ourselves to maximize our chances of success.

At the same time, we seek personal growth for ourselves and our teammates. Feedback is given with a spirit of helpfulness, and sought out with a desire to learn.

**GD is committed to observing all local, national and international laws that protect children, vulnerable adults, and basic human rights of all.  GD is committed to a policy of “zero tolerance for sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment (SEAH)” and expects anyone who works for GD to uphold the protection and safeguarding of our recipients as a priority.**