Director, Incubation, Strategic Planning and Incubation

Position Overview

The Director of Incubation is an integral member of the Strategic Planning and Incubation team, overseeing new and established incubating initiatives and projects and onboarding of new initiatives.  In addition, working with the Vice President, Strategic Planning & Incubation, they will support the recruitment and outreach to potential new initiatives and projects.  In addition, they serve as the internal focal point for UNF’s currently hosted initiatives to ensure they receive excellent support and operational from the UN Foundation operational teams.

The Director is responsible for managing the team responsible for grants management, project management, and financial support for a portfolio of initiatives as well as Pan-Foundation partnerships and special projects. They will liaise with leaders from UNF’s hosted initiatives and operational teams. The Director of Incubation reports to the Vice President, Strategic Planning and Incubation and works closely with internal clients across the Foundation, including the executive team, team leaders, and other operational teams on an ongoing basis.

This position is based in Washington, DC (hybrid/in-person work schedule).

Essential Functions

• Oversee a portfolio of incubating initiatives and special projects by facilitating start-up activities and ensuring effective operational support services throughout the initiatives’ relationship with the Foundation
• Serve as internal focal point for UNF’s hosted initiatives to ensure they receive excellent services and support from UNF’s operational teams
• Oversee support for pan-UNF partnerships through the entire partnership lifecycle, including proposal development, award, implementation and close-out, financial and programmatic management support, and liaising with partners and internal stakeholders
• Lead in developing operational policies and procedures for UNF’s hosted and incubating initiatives, including onboarding procedures and policies for new initiatives and guidelines for hosted initiatives around fundraising, communications, partner vetting, and adherence to UNF’s policies and procedures
• With the Vice President, serve as an advisor to leaders for incubating initiatives around issues related to governance, operational structure and model, strategy, and monitoring and evaluation.
• Oversee the development of presentation and pitch materials  for prospective partners interested in incubating and hosting initiatives at the Foundation
• Oversee the vetting process for potential new initiatives to ensure they are in line with the mission and values, as well as the business model and fiscal goals of the Foundation
• Provide first-class, excellent customer service in communicating and liaising with potential initiatives as well as established initiatives and alliances hosted at the Foundation
• Oversee and manage a team that supports incubating initiatives and special projects, providing full-scale operational support including grants management, budgeting, financial management, and administrative support
• Problem-solve any issues that arise with respect to activities funded by key partners, including agreements, ensuring internal adherence to donor-specific rules and regulations, and any other issues, all with a first-class customer service demeanor
• Liaise between project leaders and operational teams to ensure smooth execution of special projects and successfully launching incubating initiatives
• Manage and support the SP&I team as it manages the UNF Due Diligence process and responds to donor due diligence and compliance questions
• Lead and support projects to improve organizational effectiveness and efficiency
• Manage other staff, as appropriate
• Other duties as assigned

Selection Criteria

• Bachelor’s degree required; focus in the field, with a demonstrated background in data analysis, finance, or other analytical fields
• 10+ years of progressive experience in a related filed, preferably in nonprofit management or operations including 3+ years of demonstrated experience in entrepreneurial/start-up environments, including setting up full-scale operations of nonprofit organizations or onboarding new initiatives to existing operational structures
• 4+ years of management experience preferred
• Experience working internationally preferred
• Experience supervising, mentoring, and managing a team of professionals
• Demonstrated knowledge and familiarity with the landscape of nonprofit fiscal sponsorships and hosting arrangements
• Exceptional operations and project management skills, including analyzing budgets and agreements
• Outstanding interpersonal and customer service skills, with the demonstrated ability to work effectively at all levels of the organization; collaborative and inclusive, relationship builder
• Demonstrated skills in nonprofit business development, including strong proposal writing and reporting experience
• Demonstrated experience in building monitoring and evaluation frameworks and indicators strongly preferred
• Proven ability to manage multiple competing priorities while continuing to provide excellent customer service to all stakeholders
• Ability to work with executive staff to prepare analysis and information to inform and advise effective decision-making, especially as it relates to taking on new initiatives
• Ability to develop, maintain, and enjoy effective working relationships with people from a wide variety of organizations and with a wide variety of functional expertise
• Superior communication skills (listening, speaking, and writing)
• Demonstrated discretion with sensitive organizational information and strategic planning
• Flexibility and a team player
• Self-starter
• Ability to work under pressure and handle stress

Benefits & Compensation 

For full-time, benefit eligible employees, UNF offers an excellent range of benefits, including:

• a choice between two health plans through UnitedHealthcare (PPO or HDHP with HSA)
• dental insurance
• vision insurance
• flexible spending accounts
• 403b retirement savings plan with a generous matching contribution
• group term and supplemental life insurance
• short-term disability
• long-term disability
• health club discounts
• commuter subsidy
• back-up care
• employee assistance program

Additionally, all benefit eligible employees have 12 paid holidays, 20 vacation days, 10 sick days, 3 personal days, and 8 weeks of family leave care.

The United Nations Foundation is proud to be an equal opportunity and affirmative-action employer. The United Nations Foundation provides equal employment opportunity to all employees and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.