Head of Grantmaking Operations in New York at Jobgether

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Head of Grantmaking Operations based in United States.

The Head of Grantmaking Operations will build and lead the operational infrastructure supporting a rapidly expanding grantmaking function.
Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, this senior leadership role combines grants operations, US charitable law expertise, risk management, and organizational design.
You will own the full grant lifecycle across a growing portfolio, ensuring funds move efficiently, accurately, and compliantly toward high-impact opportunities.
The role requires strong judgment across domestic, international, individual, and non-standard grants, including complex structures that require creative but compliant solutions.
You will lead and develop the Grants Operations team while partnering closely with grantmakers, finance, leadership, and external stakeholders.
This is a high-leverage opportunity to design scalable systems, strengthen controls, and shape how ambitious grantmaking operates as funding and impact grow.

• Own the full grantmaking lifecycle across multiple funds, including intake, diligence, structuring, approval, payment, monitoring, reporting, and closeout, while establishing the standards, controls, workflows, and risk posture that govern the function.
• Partner proactively with Program Officers and fund leaders to understand the objectives of each funding program and design appropriate workflows, risk ownership, decision rights, and operating processes around those goals.
• Ensure complex or higher-risk grants are appropriately structured from the outset, identifying potential compliance, operational, and legal challenges early and developing practical paths forward.
• Partner closely with Finance on payment requests, supporting documentation, approvals, system records, and financial reconciliation, while monitoring committed, disbursed, and projected grant funds against rapidly growing funding targets.
• Serve as the internal authority on US charitable grantmaking, advising leadership on permissible funding activities and conditions, including grants to organizations that are not US public charities.
• Own the grants diligence framework, OFAC and sanctions screening, audit-ready recordkeeping, and broader compliance processes, applying sound risk judgment while determining when specialized external legal counsel is necessary.
• Lead cross-border grantmaking by addressing both US charitable requirements and recipient-country restrictions, including rules concerning registration, foreign funding, and onward distribution of funds.
• Oversee grants to individuals as a compliant grant category, including charitable class considerations, objective selection criteria, distinctions between grants and compensation, and applicable overseas withholding and reporting requirements.
• Advise on donor-advised fund grantmaking and help evaluate potential future structures such as a dedicated DAF, c4 granting, recoverable grants, program-related investments, fiscal sponsorship, regranting arrangements, and pooled funds.
• Lead and develop the Grants Operations team, currently consisting of two team members, building a capable and experienced function that can support increasing grant volume and complexity.
• Serve as a senior point of contact for grantmakers and other stakeholders, providing clear guidance, decision thresholds, and constructive support while navigating sensitive or high-stakes discussions.
• Facilitate close collaboration between grants operations and the broader funds team to ensure organizational grantmaking objectives are achieved efficiently and consistently.
• Design and improve scalable grantmaking systems, determining which activities can be streamlined or fast-tracked and where senior judgment and additional controls are required.
• Codify operational knowledge into SOPs, templates, internal guidance, and onboarding materials while establishing scalable processes that support consistency and efficiency.
• Set direction for the architecture of the grants function, including grants-management systems, technology and software usage, documentation standards, and board reporting processes.
• Collaborate with program leaders and fund managers to strengthen monitoring and evaluation processes and assess whether grants are achieving their intended outcomes.

• Substantial hands-on experience with US charitable grantmaking gained within a foundation, large nonprofit, regranting organization, donor-advised fund sponsor, or professional practice serving such organizations; depth and quality of experience are more important than a specific number of years.
• Deep working knowledge of domestic 501(c)(3) grantmaking, grants to non-charitable entities, grants to individuals, international grantmaking and recipient-country requirements, public charity lobbying restrictions, and donor-advised fund rules.
• Ability to distinguish legal requirements applicable to public charities from practices that may originate primarily in the private-foundation environment, applying the appropriate framework to each situation.
• Demonstrated experience structuring non-standard or complex grants, including situations where the appropriate compliant mechanism is not immediately obvious and requires careful analysis, creativity, and sound risk judgment.
• Proven ability to transform manual operational processes into streamlined, scalable, or automated systems while preserving appropriate human judgment and controls.
• Strong judgment and credibility, with the ability to make, explain, and defend difficult compliance and operational decisions while recognizing when an issue requires external legal counsel.
• Ability to influence Program Officers and senior fund leaders without direct authority, leading through expertise, clear communication, sound reasoning, and practical guidance.
• Experience managing, coaching, and developing people, combined with enthusiasm for building and growing a high-performing grants operations function.
• Strong organizational and systems-thinking abilities, with the capacity to manage multiple complex workstreams while maintaining accuracy, compliance, and appropriate documentation.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex regulatory, legal, financial, and operational considerations in clear, accessible language.
• Familiarity with effective altruism cause areas such as animal welfare, AI safety, global health and wellbeing, or the effective altruism community is a bonus.
• Experience operating a fellowship or individual-grants program at scale is advantageous.
• Experience establishing or operating a donor-advised fund, c4, or other non-standard grantmaking vehicle is a plus.
• Must be a US resident who can act on behalf of a US-based charitable organization, including performing activities such as opening financial accounts or serving as a representative where US residency is required.
• Willingness and ability to travel approximately 3–4 times per year, including several international trips for team retreats and other events.

• Total compensation of $157,435, comprising a $143,123 base salary and a 10% unconditional 401(k) contribution.
• Private health insurance.
• Flexible working hours within a fully remote US-based environment.
• $6,000 annual professional development allowance to support continued learning and professional growth.
• $6,000 annual mental health support allowance.
• Extended parental leave.
• Ergonomic equipment to support a productive remote workspace.
• 25 days of paid vacation.
• Approximately 3–4 work-related trips per year, including opportunities to participate in team retreats and international events.
• Significant leadership and organizational influence within a rapidly scaling grantmaking function.
• Opportunity to build systems and teams that enable high-impact funding to scale efficiently, responsibly, and compliantly.
• Exposure to complex domestic and international grantmaking, alternative funding structures, charitable compliance, and strategic organizational design.
• Collaborative work with grantmakers, finance professionals, senior leadership, and experts across a range of high-impact cause areas.