Program Director, Portfolio Management (55720-MN)

OFFICE LOCATION Arlington, Virginia, USA This is a virtual position that is flexible within the Americas where TNC has an established entity. This position is not eligible for relocation, visa or immigration assistance. #LI-REMOTE #PDN WHO WE ARE The mission of The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is to conserve the lands and waters upon which all life depends. As a science-based organization, we develop innovative, on-the-ground solutions to the worlds toughest environmental challenges so that people and nature can thrive. Our work is guided by our values, which include a commitment to diversity and respect for people, communities, and cultures. From a rewarding mission to career development and flexible schedules, there are many reasons to love life #insideTNC. Want to know more? Check out our TNC Talent playlist on YouTube to hear stories from staff or visit Glassdoor. One of TNCs primary goals is to cultivate an inclusive work environment so that employees around the globe have a sense of belonging and feel that their unique contributions are valued. We know well only achieve our mission by hiring and engaging a diverse staff that reflects the communities in which we work. Recognizing that people bring talent and skills that have been developed outside the scope of a job, we take a holistic approach to recruitment that considers life experience in addition to the professional requirements listed in our postings. Please apply – wed love to hear from you. WHAT WE CAN ACHIEVE TOGETHER TNC spends up to $1B every year in its effort to advance its mission of conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. In 2021, TNC committed to a set of incredibly audacious 2030 goals in order to better guide the organization towards greater impact. To meet our goals, it is imperative that TNCs portfolio of global conservation work delivers the level of conservation impact that our planet requires. In conjunction with the launch of the 2030 Goals TNC launched the first ever organization-wide practice of portfolio management (PM). Three years in, the PM function at TNC is at a critical junction, helping TNCs regional and global leadership as well as middle management utilize the full power of the portfolio management approach to better manage the performance of the organizations teams and business units towards achieving our 2030 goals by evaluating progress and supporting prioritization and de-prioritization of work that informs resource allocation at each level of the organization. The Program Director is a member of the Conservation Impact System Team in the Chief Conservation Office (CCO). They report to the Managing Director of Portfolio Management and will be responsible for the implementation of Portfolio Management, which entails: supporting the organization in its evaluation of strategies that happens at the business unit level (Strategy Reviews), the conservation prioritization and de-prioritization decisions that are made based on those evaluations (Portfolio Reviews) as well as the resource allocation decisions and fundraising focus that result from those prioritization. They are responsible for implementation of the Portfolio Review process alongside and in support of the organizations conservation leadership. The Program Director is responsible for implementing the management processes that enable a shared understanding of prioritization and performance by the Chief Conservation Office, Executive Team (ET), Board, and leaders throughout the organization. They are responsible for understanding the current state and performance of TNCs portfolio of conservation strategies in order to assess their impact and return on investment. They are responsible for ensuring all PM practices, especially Strategy Reviews, are fully integrated with the Conservation Impact System, generating accelerated learning and adaptive management of our highest impact strategies. They partner internally and externally to advance the rigorous, ev dence-based assessment of performance and impact in the conservation space, with the goal of directing resources towards the most promising conservation solutions. WERE LOOKING FOR YOU The Program Director is responsible for oversight and improvement of the management processes that enable effective Portfolio Management across the organization. They will also be responsible for understanding the current state and performance of TNCs conservation portfolio, assessing and benchmarking performance, adjusting and implementing reviews of the portfolio with conservation leadership, and facilitating/tracking the multi-million-dollar discretionary funding process for TNCs highest impact strategies as well our highest potential impact strategies. The amount of the discretionary funding has been $25-$50M per year. The future allocation amounts are to-be-determined. Portfolio Management plays a central role in influencing TNCs 2030 Campaign. This role will collaborate with Development and Finance to ensure that we are directing a disproportionate amount of our financial resources to our highest impact work. Additionally, because Portfolio Management is playing an increasingly important role in helping steer the organization towards the achievement of our 2030 goals, this role will employ change management best practices to ensure the shift in how TNC works is durable and embedded in the organizations processes, systems, and culture. The Program Director should surface best practices from within and outside TNC on portfolio management. The Program Director should possess excellent attention to detail and an ability to manage complexity and interdependencies across a variety of workstreams. It is preferred that the Program Director has experience with lean and agile approaches to project management. RESPONSIBILITIES & SCOPE Guide and facilitate the portfolio review process for TNC, setting minimum standards for business units across the organization and coordinating the CCO and Executive Teams engagement in those reviews. Organize, synthesize, and present Portfolio Management process, results and learnings and risks to TNC executive leadership as they pertain to Portfolio Management. Develop and rollout frameworks that assist leadership and conservation teams with evaluating progress (Strategy Reviews), conservation prioritization decisions, (Portfolio Reviews), and resource allocation decisions (Budget Reviews and Fundraising Focus). Be the primary partner to Development and Finance to ensure that the outputs of Portfolio Management are impacting the organizations resourcing (budgeting and fundraising). Develop and rollout communications strategies that build understanding and inspiration of the role that Portfolio Management can play in helping us achieve our 2030 goals. Facilitate resource allocation decisions with the CCO, and partner with the Chief Finance Office on resource allocation processes using conservation information at an ET level. Develop and disseminate tools and frameworks for Portfolio Management at TNC, including through identifying and reporting best practices internally and in other external impact-oriented organizations. Convene relevant internal parties to share best practices and learnings. Capture TNCs Portfolio Management process and share our tools and resources with external organizations attempting to follow a similar path. Employ change management best practices to ensure Portfolio Management is driving the organizational change the CCO envisions in a durable and lasting way that impacts our processes, systems and culture. Lead business requirements for internal information technology systems that support measuring performance of units and strategies. Support and at times, lead collaborative efforts with other teams within the CIS to help provide a holistic system of support for conservation managers and teams. Track learning and feedback as the function continues to test frameworks/app