Program Coordinator, Midwest

Energy Foundation’s mission is to serve the public interest by building a strong clean energy economy. Energy Foundation supports education and analysis to promote non-partisan policy solutions that advance renewable energy and energy efficiency while opening doors to greater innovation and productivity—growing the economy with dramatically less pollution. We are a complex, multi-site, multicultural nonprofit organization with big plans for the future. Now into the tenure of a new CEO, Energy Foundation has embarked on a major strategy refresh, a prioritized commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), and rapid geographic expansion.

For more than 25 years, Energy Foundation has supported grantees to help educate policymakers and the general public about the health and economic benefits of a clean energy economy. Our grantees include business, health, environmental, labor, equity, faith, and consumer groups, as well as policy experts, think tanks, universities, and more.

Our comprehensive approach advances energy efficiency and renewable energy in the power, transportation, and buildings sectors. Working together, our Policy and Public Engagement programs focus on developing innovative policies and campaigns to help propel clean energy development in these sectors, while our Strategic Communications Program develops powerful narrative and communications strategies designed to build support for our work regionally and nationwide. Our States and Regions Team is a cross-disciplinary team of policy, communications, and campaign experts dedicated to advancing strong state and regional climate and clean energy policies.

Energy Foundation’s founding office is in San Francisco, CA, with regional offices in Raleigh, NC; Chicago, IL; Washington, DC; and Las Vegas, NV.

Energy Foundation is looking for a hyper-organized, detail-oriented, and creative problem-solver to join our Midwest Regional Team as the region’s first Program Coordinator (PC). The PC will support our Midwest Office’s internal coordination, maintain the region’s multi-million-dollar budget, and work closely with other regional offices and headquarters (HQ) in order to facilitate an efficient, ambitious, and fun Midwest team. Much of the PC’s time is focused on project and budget management as well as some limited grantmaking on the most complex grants in the region. Other key duties include running weekly team meeting agendas, managing the annual planning and budgeting process, and office administration.

Reports to the Senior Regional Director, Midwest, and is a member of the U.S. Programs team.

Grantmaking

• Maintain the real-time integrity of the Midwest Office budget across all relevant platforms.
  • Manage quarterly Midwest Office budget recalibrations.
  • Serve as primary point of contact with HQ in troubleshooting the most challenging grants and Funder Initiated Projects (FIPs).
• Coordinate the grant and FIP timeline for the year such that grant renewal conversations begin two months ahead of time and FIP renewal conversations begin at least one month ahead of time.
• Assign funding sources to grants/FIPs from across over a dozen funding initiatives related to the Midwest to maintain maximum flexibility and ensure spending is tracked against any relevant funding restrictions.
• Work with the Senior Regional Director to create summaries of grant portfolios or initiatives to share with Energy Foundation’s Midwest Office, HQ, or funding partners, as necessary.
• Oversee the quality and integrity of the Midwest Office grantmaking mechanics to ensure timely and smooth integration between HQ and the Midwest Office in moving resources to the field.
  • Train and update Midwest staff on new tools, best practices, and processes.
  • Relay information and feedback to the HQ Grants and Finance teams on systems challenges and potential solutions on issues broader than specific grant/FIPs.
  • Document and formalize processes for ongoing use and for sharing with other regions.
• Achieve a level of expert knowledge on the new grantmaking system, GivingData, to support Midwest staff in fully utilizing and integrating the new tools into the region’s work.
• When necessary during times of high volume of grantmaking, assist the Senior Program Associate and Program Associate in executing grants/FIPs.

Project Management/Internal Coordination

• Serve as Midwest Office lead on internal office coordination
  • Organize and facilitate weekly Monday Team Check-in.
  • Coordinate and support other Midwest Office colleagues in preparing Wednesday and Friday “deep-dive” check-ins.
• Design and coordinate key processes for the Midwest Office:
  • Annual Strategic Planning Process.
  • Annual Budget Planning Process.
  • Long-term Planning Process, in partnership with Policy Program Director.
  • State Director search process, in partnership with Campaigns Program Director.
  • State Director training process.
• Design and coordinate the process of Priority State Launch(es) across Energy Foundation staff, grantees, and funders.
• Serve as the primary point of contact between the HQ Operations Team on projects or processes that are not grant- or FIP-specific (e.g., G&A budgeting, software transitions, new grant application templates).
• Assist the Senior Regional Director in facilitating greater integration with colleagues at HQ on various projects and processes.
• Ensure effective coordination and integration within the Midwest Office, including implementing tools and systems to support collaboration and information-sharing (e.g., Asana, Evernote, Drive, Box).
• Serve as the primary liaison, point of contact, and coordinator for IT, office space, etc.

External Coordination

• Coordinate the biannual Midwest Energy Grantees and Advocates (MEGA) Conference
  • Retain consultants/vendors.
  • Identify and secure venue.
  • Design project timeline.
  • Interface with other relevant Energy Foundation staff across the organization.
• Support the Senior Regional Director in establishing and/or maintaining region-wide coordination structures, and leading related grantmaking and contract execution processes for related effort.

Build the Team

• Coordinate internal Midwest Office events and trainings, (e.g., annual retreat, “fun days,” DEI workshops).
• Generate and implement ideas for systems, program, and operational improvement.
• Maintain collaborative relationships with peers and colleagues. Contribute to a positive working environment.
• Deliver constructive feedback to colleagues up and down the org chart.
• Conduct basic research to support strategy and grantmaking.
• Formulate own learning and development plan, with assistance from the supervisor and others. Identify and seek out professional development opportunities, including networking, informational interviews, training, projects, etc.

Strategic Partnerships

• Manage Midwest-specific elements of funder proposal timelines and integrate into ongoing Midwest Office priorities to ensure timely transfer to Strategic Partnership team for formal submission.

• Demonstrated knowledge and experience with complex project management, customer relations, matrixed organizations, and at least an intermediate knowledge of clean energy and climate subject matter.
• Technical skills: advanced skills using Microsoft Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook, preferably in a Mac environment; familiarity with Google Drive, Docs, and Sheets, and Box. Experience using cloud-based relational database systems, such as Salesforce, preferred.
• Multitasking: experience supporting multiple priorities and juggling a variety of tasks for one or more individuals in a team environment.
• Demonstrated and constant attention to detail.
• Ability to work proactively and with limited guidance on diverse array of projects.
• Expected travels.

Other Requirements

Ability to travel 4-6 times a year for 2-3 business days at a time.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is required to spend extended hours at the computer.

This position requires low to moderate levels of domestic travel.

The Energy Foundation’s Midwest regional office is located on the historic “Magnificent Mile” of Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago, IL. The office environment is in a shared work space with an open office, with moderate noise levels, a small conference room, shared kitchen facilities, and a collegial atmosphere. On occasion, there are activities or events after work hours.

Energy Foundation staff work in service of a clean energy future for all. We are committed to creating a diverse environment and are proud to be an equal opportunity employer.