The Othering & Belonging Institute (OBI) at UC Berkeley is a uniquely engaged think and do tank that brings together researchers, organizers, stakeholders, communicators, artists, and policymakers to identify and eliminate the barriers to an inclusive, just, and sustainable society. Its growth has been driven in large part by its original research and visionary frameworks on Belonging, Othering, Bridging and Breaking which has defined and shaped major conversations on belonging across sectors. The Institute is a globally recognized leader of the Belonging framework and continues to play a significant role in transforming local, national and global policies, practices, laws, and structures.

OBI seeks a Deputy Director of Strategy & Program to lead the organization’s program team. The new Deputy will work across the organization to lead, align, and manage the Institute’s programs for greater impact. As a people centered leader, the Deputy will manage a driven and highly functioning program team. They will also serve as an ambassador of the Institute in external relationships with partners and funders. The Deputy will report, and be a strategic advisor, to Director john a. powell and will work collaboratively with other Institute leadership including the Research Director, who oversees the Institute’s research, the Faculty Director who manages the faculty cluster initiative, and the Chief of Staff who directs finance and administration.

 

Specific responsibilities include:

Organizational Strategy and Development

• Lead the program team in a collaborative refinement and reformulation of organizational priorities and strategy through translating the Director’s high-level vision into organizational strategies, outcomes, and directing staff resources towards these priorities.
• Work collaboratively and in partnership with other senior leaders on identifying and executing organizational priorities and plans.
• Design and lead new programmatic initiatives to grow and create belonging and bridging at different levels and across sectors for example community, government, corporate, and philanthropy.
• Lead and facilitate processes for alignment and collaboration across program teams to ensure Institute programs add up to more than a sum of its parts through facilitating connections, bridging projects and programs, maintaining information flow, and sharing and leveraging OBI’s collective work and functional expertise towards organizational outcomes.
• Provide organizational leadership in ensuring the Institute is regularly evaluating its impact and adjusting priorities and resources when necessary.
• Implement organizational systems and processes that support collaborative program development and relationship-building to build out new program and research offerings including with the Associate Director and Faculty Cluster.

 

People and Team Development

• Manage, coach, and supervise multiple senior staff who each oversee a program, series of projects, staff, and budgets of various sizes.
• Partner with OBI senior leaders to strengthen organizational culture to foster a work environment that embodies the values of the Institute.
• Serve as a mentor through thoughtful opportunities for leadership development, identifying pathways for different types of leadership and organization-wide professional development strategies and opportunities for Institute staff. Partnerships, Engagement, and Fundraising
• Manage and hold key partnerships with external stakeholders and organized communities.
• Identification, engagement, and development of new strategic partnerships at the organizational level.
• Cultivate opportunities that position the Institute for greater impact through partnerships with national organizations, member-based organizations, corporations, and foundations, among others.
• Build and maintain relationships with Institute funders and work closely with the Director and Chief of Staff to build out the Institute’s fundraising strategy and team.
• In conjunction with members of the Senior Management Team and the broader team, expand and diversify the funding base/pipeline to increase major initiatives and existing collaborations.

 

The Deputy Director of OBI will possess the following attributes and competencies:

Passion for the Mission and Advocate of Social Justice and Belonging The Deputy will have strong interest and knowledge, or the ability to develop an understanding, of the Institute’s mission, vision, core areas of research and programming, and its belonging and bridging frameworks. They will have a deep analysis and understanding of the social justice and racial equity ecosystem, power structures, and their own relationship to belonging and bridging. They will represent OBI with unquestioned integrity, ethics, and values and embody the organization’s mission and values.

 

A Strategist and Builder

The Deputy understands that strategy is a practice, not just a plan. They will have extensive experience developing strategies for success, regardless of domain. As a builder of the organization, they will be great at navigating complexity and ambiguity to problem-solve and reach desired outcomes. They will be experienced at assessing programmatic work and team function into strategic  and tactical decisions. The Deputy will be able to see the larger strategic picture and apply focused energy to expertly organize and execute the tactics. As an individual, they will be dedicated to growing and learning and will be curious about the organizations and the people they work with. The Deputy thinks critically, anticipates unintended impacts of decisions, engages constituents, and identifies ways to connect OBI’s work to the work of others.

 

Relationship Builder and Ambassador

The Deputy will be able to translate and advance OBI’s values, vision, and efforts across a set of external partners. They will have demonstrated experience initiating, cultivating, and expanding organizational partnerships. They will enjoy serving as an external ambassador and representing OBI to partners and the broader community. The Deputy will have experience fundraising and/or building strategic initiatives with nonprofits, foundations, campaigns, and/or government entities. They will be a compelling written and verbal communicator. The Deputy will have strong emotional intelligence, discernment, and the ability to manage  relationships with a movement building perspective.

 

Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience, with the range beginning at $140,000. For information on the comprehensive benefits package offered by the University visit: https://ucnet.universityofcalifornia.edu/compensation-and-benefits/index.html

Koya Partners, the executive search firm that specializes in mission-driven search, has been exclusively retained for this engagement. Alex Corvin of Koya Partners has been exclusively retained for this search. To express interest in this role please submit your materials here, or email Alex directly at OBI@koyapartners.com . All inquiries and discussions will be considered strictly confidential.

Koya Partners is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals living with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual living with a disability and need assistance expressing interest online, please email NonprofitSearchOps@divsearch.com . If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.