Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to transforming, inspiring and saving lives in the Palm Beaches and 70 countries around the world. Each year, the Jewish Federation inspires thousands of community members to contribute, volunteer, and participate in programs that generate $50 million, thereby creating a significant impact within the community.

The Palm Beach Center to Combat Antisemitism & Hatred and Community Affairs was created to expand our leadership role to address acts of hatred against the Jewish community. The Center will significantly impact and influence both the Jewish and general Palm Beach communities by taking a proactive stance against antisemitism. The Center’s programs and initiatives will serve as a model for other Jewish communities across North America. The Center focuses on two strategic priorities: Strengthening safety and security and building relationships beyond the Jewish community. The Center operates as a department of Federation’s integrated Financial Resource Development (FRD) team.

This newly created position will have the opportunity to innovate and ideate, while building a grantmaking program. The successful candidate will be detailed-oriented and enjoys shaping new initiatives while stewarding relationships with grantees and other funding partners.

Reporting to the Operations Manager, the Program Officer is a key member of a collaborative team responsible for key programmatic initiatives and the overall grant administration process of the Center. This grant process includes creating competitive applications, shepherding grants from proposal to payment and closure. To be effective in this position, the Program Officer must work collaboratively across multiple departments and constituents, demonstrate a deep understanding of the needs of grantees, donors, and other stakeholders, and ensure those perspectives are incorporated into the grant making process. While multiple parties may participate in the execution and oversight of the grant, the Program Officer has accountability for actively planning, implementing and monitoring projects and the entire grant lifecycle ensuring funds are effectively allocated and expected outcomes monitored. The Program Officer will work collaboratively with the Operations Manager in formal budget planning to understand financial needs and allocate funding grants accordingly.

The Program Officer will be the initial point of contact for grant inquiries to the Center. This includes inquiries from external organizations receiving grants from the Center as well as internal grant inquiries from other members of the Federation team. This position will forge philanthropic partnerships among Foundation Colleagues, and other external partners to identify emerging needs. And most importantly, will exhibit the professionalism required to work with a volunteer selection committee.

The successful candidate will be part of a team that collaborates extensively with colleagues across Federation, including in Financial Resource Development (Annual Campaign, Development Services, Marketing, Events, and more) and other key offices throughout Federation, including Finance.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

The Center as a Grantee:

• Works collaboratively across the Federation, specifically the Director, Grants & Stewardship to research and identify potential funding sources to grow the Center’s programming.
• Responsible for overseeing the Center’s grantee process, from identifying external grant opportunities to ensuring compliance with grant requirements.
• Build and nurture relationships with funders and partners, including regular communication and updates to identify emerging needs and opportunities for collaboration.
• Maintain appropriate tracking systems of record to enable program evaluations to measure success and ensure compliance with grant requirements.

The Center as a Grantor:

• Work with the Executive Director and Operations Manager to identify funding opportunities within the Center’s priorities and mission.
• Manage a sustainable application process and set guidelines for grant submittal.
• Identify and conduct due diligence on potential grantees. This work includes facilitating project planning, ensuing adherence to guidelines, creating pertinent documentation, monitoring and evaluating grantee outcomes.
• Collaborate with External Affairs to promote Center’s priorities, grant process and market opportunities.
• Liaise with Operations Manager to ensure the integrity of the grant data and in developing and maintaining a system of record for grant information, submissions, progress, analysis and reporting.
• Provide feedback and analysis to guide recommendations to a volunteer selection committee for review and selection of grant recipients.
• Produce all grant making reports and perform qualitative and quantitative impact analysis as needed.

Additional Program Management and Grant Management Activities:

• Work with Executive Director to develop programming that aligns with mission and can be delivered within budget with a high impact.
• Engage in ongoing learning and seek opportunities to increase efficiencies and initiate actionable steps to improve grant process
• Keep up-to-date with changes in grant funding policies and best practice procedures and recommend changes for new and existing grant policies
• Work with Operations Manager to ensure compliance with relevant tax laws governing grants and source of funding.
• Collaborate with Center leadership and FDR to ensure the highest level of donor satisfaction with grant process to ensure philanthropic intent.
• Collaborate with Finance to review and approve payments, including vendor invoices, reimbursements, and other accounts payables and receivables.
• Serve as a back-up for operational core functions as required and assist the Operations Manager and Executive Director in various assignments as needed.

Qualifications and Success Factors:

• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree (MBA, related advanced degree/certification) preferred.
• Preference will be given to those with five or more years of related work experience, preferably in non-profit or foundation environment with ability to identify and facilitate grant making opportunities or equivalent combination of relevant education, experience and skills required.
• Good working knowledge and interest in the Jewish culture and community and commitment to the goals and values of Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County.
• Ability to cultivate trusted relationships and work collaboratively as a member of a team and build partnerships to meet shared objectives.
• Demonstrated effectiveness at project management with ability to design, implement, and direct multiple projects, setting deadlines and ensuring program accountability.
• Excellent interpersonal, organizational, written, and oral communication skills. Creative thinker with excellent analytical, problem solving and customer service skills.
• Strong knowledge of basic office computing, including MS Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams), Zoom and basic database skills required.

Work Environment:

Position is eligible to work from home occasionally in accordance with Federation policies. When working from home, employee must:

• Follow all Federation policies and procedures,
• Be available to other employees during Federation’s normal business hours,
• Not work from a public place (e.g. coffee shop, library, etc.) and/or join a public, unsecure wi-fi network when working with sensitive or confidential information,
• Coordinate with IT department to maintain appropriate computer equipment and connectivity.

The Jewish Federation of Palm Beach County is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

The duties and responsibilities described are not a comprehensive list and additional tasks may be assigned to the employee from time to time at the Federation’s discretion. Employment is at-will, and this job description is not an employment contract and nothing herein shall be deemed to create in any way whatsoever an employment contract.