Senior Program Manager, Special Projects

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative was founded by Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg in 2015 to help solve some of society’s toughest challenges — from eradicating disease and improving education to addressing the needs of our local communities. Our mission is to build a more inclusive, just, and healthy future for everyone.

The Team

Across our work in Science, Education, and within our communities, we pair technology with grantmaking, impact investing, and collaboration to help accelerate the pace of progress toward our mission. Our Central Operations & Partners team provides the support needed to push this work forward. 

Central Operations & Partners consists of our Brand & Communications, Community, Facilities, Finance, Infrastructure/IT Operations/Business Systems, Initiative Operations, People, Real Estate/Workplace/Facilities/Security, Research & Learning, and Ventures teams. These teams provide the essential operations, services, and strategies needed to support CZI’s progress toward achieving its mission to build a better future for everyone.

The Opportunity

CZI strives to be a learning organization that’s responsive to an evolving world, while also maintaining commitment to and focus on existing strategies. CZI’s Project Management function, “Special Projects,” oversees and manages organization-wide strategic internal operations projects to ensure complex, multi-stakeholder efforts are resourced appropriately. Special Projects takes on high priority org-wide internal operational projects, including complex cross-functional and cross-Initiative internal operational projects requiring centralized resources and coordination, strong project management and deep understanding of CZI strategy. 

Current projects include: implementing AI tools and systems in CZI’s operations and overseeing planning of CZI’s AI capacity; establishing values and ethos of CZI’s grantmaking principles; and providing internal training and education opportunities on impact investing. 

Past projects have included: overseeing rollout of CZI’s new “Total Rewards” benefits program; supporting organizational design during company-wide reorganizations; design and implementation of CZI’s exploratory investments in Climate; design support for CZI’s racial equity grantmaking approach. 

This role, reporting to the Director of Special Projects, is part of the Special Projects team within CZI’s Initiative Operations unit. Initiative Operations is a component of CZI’s Central Operations and Partners division.

What You'll Do

As Senior Program Manager, Special Projects, you will help build our internal Project Management function, “Special Projects”, focusing on high-priority, organization-wide processes, and structures. You’ll work in close partnership with program and initiative leaders across the organization, as well as with the Director, Special Projects, Head of Initiative Operations, and Special Projects team to scope and resource high-priority, cross-organizational special projects.

Process Development

• Scope new ideas to cut across organizational silos to encourage/increase collaboration and planning. 
• Develop internal-facing processes for emerging needs/priorities, pulling in relevant external experts and internal stakeholders throughout the process. 

Project Management

• • Drive and deliver program management and lead large, multi-dimensional cross-functional teams; oversee shaping of workstreams, plan deliverables and stage and execute strategies and plans involving multiple dependencies and stakeholders; establish priorities through evaluation of value / risk tradeoffs that address dependencies and roadblocks
  • Identify large opportunities for impact and build programs to execute against them; identify and mitigate complex program, people and organizational risks; advocate effectively for project integrity and efficiency
  • Design, manage and/or implement highly complex time-bound high priority projects in service of initiative and functional teams. May manage day-to-day execution of projects. 
  • Develop and maintain  project plans and other documentation; monitor and review project progress and timelines; adjust schedules and plans as needed; and identify and resolve issues to ensure project success.
  • Design and lead cross-functional team meetings and executive level reviews to facilitate effective and lasting decision making.
  • Ensure on time and on budget delivery of projects.

What You'll Bring

• 12+ years of total relevant experience; with 5+ years managing complex projects and cross-functional teams, whether as a direct manager or project manager
• Proven and strong track record of