Senior Associate, Board Relations and Development

Position Overview:

Reporting directly to the Chief Development Officer (CDO), the Senior Associate, Board Relations and Development supports the advancement of organizational priorities by providing critical operational and administrative support, enabling the CDO to dedicate more time to strategic priorities and business development initiatives to achieve ambitious fundraising goals.

The ideal individual will have exceptional judgment in a diversity of situations, with strong written and verbal communication, executive administrative, organizational skills, and the ability to maintain a realistic balance among multiple, time-sensitive, priorities. This individual should be able to hold information in confidence and behave with tact and grace; the strongest candidates will demonstrate an ability to build internal relationships to ensure that the work is aligned effectively across teams and seamlessly lead through influence to ensure objectives are met. This individual is critical to ensuring that workflows involving the office of the CDO come together in an efficient and timely way that ensures successful outcomes while building positive organizational culture and trust amongst colleagues and teams.

The role collaborates closely with the Rainforest Alliance (RA) Board of Directors, Board Committees, and the Executive Office (EO) on all board-related matters to plan and schedule meetings; request, organize, and prepare materials; ensure Board governance and compliance to policies and processes; provide effective communication, event coordination, and meeting management; and supervise logistical tasks. This role plays a crucial role in facilitating collaboration between the organization's Board and the various departments or teams within the organization. This position ensures that the Board's decisions, guidance, and initiatives are conveyed to relevant internal stakeholders while also providing the Board with insights, updates, and feedback from RA leadership. Travel will be required for Board meetings and RA events.

Key Responsibilities:

Board Relations (50%)

• In collaboration with the CDO, Chief Strategy Officer, and Corporate Secretary, coordinate Board meetings; includes working with stakeholders to create agendas, scheduling, driving preparation of required materials, distributing and maintaining materials, and providing logistical support.
• Regularly communicate key updates, strategic initiatives, financial information, and decisions made by the Board to appropriate departments, teams, and stakeholders within the organization. Ensure accurate and timely distribution of relevant materials.
• Maintain accurate records of Board meetings, decisions, and actions; prepare meeting minutes, resolutions, and other relevant documentation as needed to ensure transparency and accountability.
• Assist in the onboarding and orientation of new Board members, providing them with necessary background information, context, and resources to quickly integrate into their roles.
• In coordination with the Board Chair and Executive Office, facilitate goal setting and assessments of the full Board collectively, members individually, Committees, Board officers, and alignment with Annual Plan.
• Draft Board updates on behalf of CDO in coordination with relevant colleagues and develop Board outreach materials.
• In close collaboration with relevant team members, ensure that Board-related digital platforms (e.g., Confluence, SharePoint, LiveBinders) remain up-to-date and effective. Support information sharing and governance processes.
• Develop and maintain a knowledge management system for Board-related materials, ensuring accessibility, institutional continuity, and documentation of Board Members information, Board History, key decisions and lessons learned.
• Handle sensitive and confidential information with the utmost discretion and professionalism, adhering to ethical and legal standards.
• Maintain working knowledge of latest and best practices in Board affairs and share with Executive Office and Board as relevant.

Development and Executive Support (50%):

• Provide comprehensive administrative support to the Chief Development Officer.
• Build, be responsible for and drive the CDO’s calendar, including ensuring sufficient preparation for meetings.
• Draft, proofread, and prepare correspondence, reports, and presentations to include talking points for internal and external stakeholders.
• Support CDO priorities through high-level technical writing, creating PowerPoint presentations, drafting talking points, conducting research, and other tasks.
• Assist CDO with internal and external meetings, including preparation of meeting strategy and briefing documents, agendas, taking and transcr