Grants Assistant

About Us

Climate Breakthrough is a global philanthropy supporting extraordinary climate leaders to pursue ambitious and transformative climate endeavors through the Climate Breakthrough Award: a multi-million-dollar, multi-year, flexible grant. Our mission is to make an outsized impact in resolving the climate crisis by freeing leaders to translate their boldest ideas into transformative climate action that swiftly and justly closes the gap between the world today and a sustainable future.

Headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, Climate Breakthrough is funded by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the IKEA Foundation, The Lemelson Foundation, Quadrature Climate Foundation, Oceankind, and Vere Initiatives. For more information, visit www.ClimateBreakthrough.org.

About the Role

Reporting to the Senior Grants Manager, the Grants Assistant will provide vital administrative and operational support to Climate Breakthrough’s grantmaking activities, ensuring smooth, accurate, and compliant processes across the grant lifecycle. Under the supervision and guidance of the Senior Grants Manager, the Grants Assistant will support timely disbursement of awards, management of grant reporting processes, management of contracts, and maintenance of up-to-date records in the internal database. The Grants Assistant will also ensure proper documentation, file management, and data security.

This is a great opportunity for someone who is familiar with grantmaking processes, experienced in operating grants management platforms and other digital tools, and is highly organized with excellent written and verbal communication skills.

The Grants Assistant’s work will be divided into the following areas:

Grants Administration

• Manage the Climate Breakthrough Award inquiries inbox, ensuring clear and timely communication with internal teams and external partners.
• Review supporting materials for completeness and follow up with grant applicants as needed to maintain efficient administrative workflow.
• In consultation with the Senior Grants Manager, maintain and update grantmaking procedure manuals.
• Track and review grantee payments and support collection of narrative and financial reports, sending reminders to awardees as needed.
• Coordinate with program staff about missing information and upcoming grant-related deadlines, as needed.

Contract Management

• In consultation with the Operations Manager, support the preparation of vendor contracts, internal contract workflow, and entry and management of contracts in the internal database.
• Collaborate with the Finance and Operations team to ensure timely processing of contractual payments and record transaction details in the internal database.

Information Management

• Maintain current payment records, contact details and other relevant grant information for all awardees.
• Provide technical support for grants data management and act as knowledge resource for Climate Breakthrough staff.
• Maintain the team’s internal data drive and database training guide, ensuring data security and clear file organization.
• Support the team with adhering to the organizational Document Retention Policy through regular training, protocol reminders, guidance documents, etc.
• This role will also provide ad hoc organizational support, as needed.

Qualifications

Successful applicants will have most of the following qualifications:

• At least one year of relevant experience in philanthropic grants management, contract administration, or similar fields, ideally with some international experience.
• The ability to manage a database and navigate program management tools. Any exposure to grants management platforms is a plus.
• Proven ability to handle multiple projects in a timely manner.
• Strong attention to detail and well-organized.
• Ability to maintain a high degree of discretion and confidentiality.
• Experience working collaboratively as part of a small team with strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills.
• Ability to prioritize, adapt to changes, and nimbly shift between projects.
• Comfort working in a fast-paced and changeable organization.
• Commitment to and enthusiasm for Climate Breakthrough’s mission.
• Cross-cultural sensitivity and awareness and commitment to justice, equity, inclusion, and diversity.
• Ability to travel nationally for work events (1-3x annual).
• Fluency in English required, other languages an asset.