Job Information
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Senior Program Manager, Global Business Design in Seattle, Washington
The Foundation
We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. We believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve. We provide an exceptional benefits package to employees and their families which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with no premiums, generous paid time off, paid family leave, foundation-paid retirement contribution, regional holidays, and opportunities to engage in several employee communities. As a workplace, we’re committed to creating an environment for you to thrive both personally and professionally.
The Team
The Business Operations division drives several enabling capabilities that maintain the foundation’s operational infrastructure and programmatic impact. We strive to enable mission focused work by maintaining an efficient, well-run global organization where employees can thrive and make their best contributions! Our goal is to provide innovative solutions to support the overall priorities, allocation, and leadership agenda with the highest standards of integrity and operational excellence! The division comprises Information Technology (IT); Facilities, Events, Travel, and Security (FETS); the Office of the COO (OCOO) inclusive of Global Business Design (GBD). The broader OCOO has a remit for division effectiveness as well as playing a critical role in enabling initiatives with increasing complexity and need for collaboration, design, and implementation across operations functions. This team will support and enable the division to carry out its remit of optimizing operations to facilitate programmatic impact by providing solutions that will keep up our evolving business needs.
Your Role
As the GBD Senior Program Manager, you will play a pivotal role in driving the development and execution of key initiatives that support our mission and strategic objectives. Your responsibilities will include identifying high-impact opportunities, designing effective programs, and setting long-term objectives to address complex challenges within the organization’s business operations.
In this role, you will lead the planning and execution efforts to establish and optimize solutions that take on critical challenges and unlock opportunities foundation wide. Success in this position requires a balance of big-picture thinking, attention to detail, and the ability to navigate complex, cross-functional landscapes, all while delivering meaningful and lasting impact.
You will partner closely with leadership and collaborate with various functions across the foundation, maintaining credibility and influence with collaborators. Your focus will not only be on what needs to be accomplished, but also on how the work is implemented, ensuring that the approach is lined up with our values and cultivates a collaborative, supportive, and impact-oriented environment.
What You’ll Do
Integrating Solutions Across Diverse Teams: Bring together teams with diverse perspectives from various global offices, as well as affiliate organizations, to collaboratively design and implement cohesive solutions. Foster an inclusive environment where different viewpoints are valued, ensuring that initiatives are comprehensive, culturally informed, and aligned with global goals while addressing local needs.
Strategic Planning: Assist in the planning process by gathering data, conducting analysis, and contributing to the development of strategies that line up with our objectives. Collaborate with key partners to identify priorities, assess risks, and provide actionable insights that help shape long-term plans and guide leadership in making informed decisions.
Workshop Design and Facilitation: Design and facilitate workshops that bring together cross-functional teams to collaboratively vet approaches, explore solutions, and reach consensus. Apply structured frameworks and interactive techniques to guide discussions, align diverse perspectives, and drive toward actionable outcomes that support organizational objectives.
Executive Communication and Presentation: Develop and deliver high-impact communications and presentations for senior leadership, distilling complex information into clear, concise, and actionable insights. Facilitate executive decision-making by presenting strategic recommendations and key data in a compelling, easy-to-understand format that aligns with our priorities and goals.
Leadership Through Influence: Cultivate strong relationships across teams and lead through influence by inspiring collaboration and consensus. Drive alignment on key initiatives by effectively communicating vision and strategic priorities, empowering teams to take ownership and achieve shared goals without relying on formal authority.
Transformational Change Management: Collaborate across operations, programs, and regional and country leadership to drive essential transformations focusing on addressing the underlying causes of challenges, reducing operational disruptions, and strengthening our ability to lead and maintain change in alignment with regional and national contexts.
Measurement and Evaluation: Establish clear success criteria and apply a data-driven approach to measure and evaluate program effectiveness. Leverage analytical insights to assess performance against goals and provide informed recommendations that align with organizational priorities.
Continuous Improvement: Apply lean methodologies to optimize processes and enhance operational efficiency. Drive continuous improvement by solving operational challenges and implementing strategies that streamline workflows and support sustainable and scalable solutions.
Systems Thinking: Understand the formal and informal intersections and interdependencies to frame the problem in the best way, evaluate issues, see downstream affects, and identify future implications across the end-to-end system to help prioritize solutions.
Organizational Connector: Serve as a connector within the foundation by maintaining knowledge of major updates and initiatives, ensuring critical information is communicated effectively to relevant partners.
Your Experience
A sample set of qualifications has been included based on a Senior Technical Advisor posting:
Bachelor’s degree, Advanced degree preferred.
5+ years of foundation experience, or equivalent experience.
Strong skills in Microsoft Office (e.g., Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel, SharePoint (able to build simple sites, and PowerPoint); experience with Mural or other work-shopping tools preferred.
Proven ability to solve complex problems using a structured approach. Expertise in process improvement, business analysis, and strategic business planning to drive organizational success.
Demonstrated success in influencing and aligning stakeholders with diverse perspectives and without direct reporting lines.
Experience leading transformative projects that span multiple functions within an organization, from strategic planning through to implementation.
Adept at developing and delivering senior leadership-level presentations and communications.
Demonstrated practical global experience, with a deep understanding of diverse cultural, socio-economic, and political landscapes. Strong interpersonal skills and a commitment to navigating cross-cultural environments with empathy and respect.
Expertise in program management, continuous improvement, and enhancing organizational agility.
Skilled at assessing the scope and complexity of initiatives and allocating resources effectively, considering timing, capabilities, and strengths.
Ability to quickly identify and communicate frameworks for analyzing issues and driving results. A strategic thinker with a track record of aligning initiatives with broader organizational goals.
Must be able to legally work in the country where this position is located without visa sponsorship.
The salary range for this role is $166,300.00 to $249,500.00 USD. We recognize high-wage market differences in Seattle and Washington D.C., where our offices are located. The range for this role in these locations is $181,200.00 to $271,800.00 USD.
As a mission-driven organization, we strive to balance competitive pay with our mission. New hires salaries are typically between the range minimum and the salary range midpoint. Actual placement in the range will depend on a candidate’s job-related skills, experience, and expertise, as evaluated during the interview process.
Hiring Requirements
As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment will be contingent upon successful completion of a background check.
Candidate Accommodations
If you require assistance due to a disability in the application or recruitment process, please submit a request here.
Inclusion Statement
We are dedicated to the belief that all lives have equal value. We strive for a global and cultural workplace that supports ever greater diversity, equity, and inclusion — of voices, ideas, and approaches — and we support this diversity through all our employment practices.
All applicants and employees who are drawn to serve our mission will enjoy equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to race, color, age, religion, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and prior protected activity.