Senior Specialist, People Growth & Belonging

Summary

The Wikimedia vision is a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge, and the People Growth & Belonging Team leads the Wikimedia Foundation’s effort to provide staff with the tools, opportunities, and learning materials needed to shape a welcoming and supportive workplace environment where everyone has the chance to thrive. 

This role will report into the Manager, People Growth & Belonging and is fully remote. The candidate will work closely with the wider People Growth & Belonging team to shape and drive key learning and development initiatives, including leadership development, staff upskilling, and global event learning tracks. They will lead strategy development, stakeholder engagement, and vendor partnerships while designing and executing programs that enhance the staff experience at the Wikimedia Foundation. This role will also collaborate with the broader People Department to develop, implement, assess, and continuously improve the organization’s staff development, organizational learning, and orientation programs.

You are responsible for:

• Leading the strategic design and implementation of our flagship, in-person leadership development program, ensuring its alignment with organizational goals and its impact on leadership capabilities. Act as the primary program lead, integrating content development, stakeholder alignment, and execution while managing vendors, logistics, and evaluation efforts.
• Owning the design and execution of staff up-skilling initiatives and development funds offered to our staff, overseeing vendor partnerships, internal communications strategy, training facilitation, and program measurement to drive engagement and continuous improvement.
• Being a learning design partner and advisor for our upcoming global, in-person staff gathering, shaping the learning track vision and working closely with project teams, and vendors to ensure high-impact sessions that align with organizational priorities.
• Being a learning design partner and a project coordinator for a Foundation-wide initiative to foster constructive interactions across lines of difference, collaborating with the project team, the project manager and with vendors to shape and deliver successful provisions which will ultimately help staff co-create spaces to have dialogue on various topics with respect and care for diversity of thought.
• Providing thought leadership and execution on instructional design, curriculum development, and facilitation techniques to elevate internal learning experiences across the organization.
• Being a facilitator for internal learning as needed.

Skills and Experience:

• Proven ability to manage multiple, complex projects to completion;
• Demonstrated success in managing org-wide L&D initiatives, ​​including navigating complex organizational landscapes and driving cross-functional collaboration with minimal oversight;
• Experience in designing and implementing learning and development strategies that address diverse and evolving staff development needs;
• Deep understanding of adult learning principles, facilitation techniques, and Learning Management Systems (LMS);
• Strong facilitation skills and ability to design and deliver engaging learning experiences;
• Experience in vendor management;
• Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, with experience integrating these principles into L&D programs.
• Versatility acting in both coordination and facilitation of training sessions;
• Ability and willingness to travel as needed;
• Fluent in written and spoken English.

Qualities that are important to us:

• Familiarity with the free knowledge movement;
• Experience in tech and/or not-for-profit organizations;
• Experience working across different sociopolitical and cultural contexts;
• Ability to adapt and pivot in complex environments.

About the Wikimedia Foundation

The Wikimedia Foundation is the nonprofit organization that operates Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects. Our vision is a world in which every single human can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. We believe that everyone has the potential to contribute something to our shared knowledge, and that everyone should be able to access that knowledge freely. We host Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, build software experiences for reading, contributing, and sharing Wikimedia content, support the volunteer communities and partners who make Wikimedia possible, and advocate for policies that enable Wikimedia and free knowledge to thrive. 

The Wikimedia Foundation is a charitable, not-for-profit organization that relies on donations. We re