The Walton Family Foundation is seeking a skilled, highly motivated and entrepreneurial individual to join the foundation’s Bentonville, AR. office as a Program Officer for the Home Region Program.
About the Walton Family Foundation
Sam and Helen Walton had an unshakeable belief in the power of people to transform their own lives. As Sam said, there is no limit to what individuals can accomplish if “given the opportunity, the encouragement and the incentive to do their best.” Today that “no limits” philosophy is carried forward by their descendants through the Walton Family Foundation.
Since 2000, the foundation’s grantmaking has grown from $50 million to an anticipated more than $400 million in 2015. With grantmaking projected to exceed $2 billion over the next five years, the foundation continues to move forward with increasing intensity, focus and commitment to sustaining the Walton’s timeless entrepreneurial values and their deep dedication to making life better for individuals and communities alike. By working with grantees and collaborating with other philanthropic organizations, the foundation is focused on making a positive difference in three primary program areas of collective interest to the Walton Family:
K-12 education
Freshwater and marine conservation
Quality of life initiatives in Arkansas and the Mississippi River Delta Region
In addition to these program areas, the foundation also supports grantmaking interests of individual and groups of Walton family members, as well as independent foundations created by family members. These individualized giving areas represent a high growth area of the foundation.
During 2016, the foundation plans to invest over $400 million in domestic and international projects that address significant social and environmental issues. The foundation continues to implement and expand grantmaking to fund a positive difference in many diverse communities – and in the lives of the people who call these communities their home.
Headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas, with offices in Washington, D.C., Jersey City, New Jersey and Denver, Colorado, a staff/consultant base of approximately 80 associates conducts the day-to-day operations of the foundation.
About the Home Region Program
The Home Region’s goal is to honor the Walton Family’s special and ongoing commitment to the region where they launched one of the best known American business success stories, by creating and sustaining long-term economic development for residents and business in the area. The Home Region’s annual grant budget is in excess of $40 million.
The Home Region accomplishes this goal through two initiatives:
• Northwest Arkansas – by attracting and retaining top talent at all levels and ensuring the long-term viability of the region by investing in four major strategy areas that have been shown to impact both current quality of life and the long-term economic viability of the region and its residents.
• Delta Region of Arkansas and Mississippi – by addressing key basic needs in targeted counties in order to establish a base on which future economic development can occur by investing in a strategy for Pre-K-12 educational improvement in the broader Delta geography, and three specific strategies targeted to Phillips County, Arkansas, and Coahoma County, Mississippi, where the foundation has worked for a number of years to develop an understanding of the communities, their leaders, and the issues they face.
Program Officer Position
The Role
The Program Officer will help manage a diverse portfolio of municipal and non-profit grantees. Program Officers work in a small, entrepreneurial team. Specific duties include the following:
• Refine and implement the Home Region Preserve a Sense of Place Strategy. The purpose of this strategy is to preserve a sense of place in Northwest Arkansas through quality urban planning by investing in alternative transportation options, downtown revitalization, and green space preservation. The vision is to continue to position Northwest Arkansas as a desirable region for businesses and residents to grow and/or relocate because of the quality of the built and natural environment. A priority of this strategy is the development of the multi-use trail network in the region. A key role for the program officer will be engaging community partners and seeking grantees to execute against the overall strategic goals.
• Help manage relationships with grantees, potential grantees, and other partners. This will include performing due diligence and shepherding proposals through the foundation’s approval process, conducting site visits, providing guidance and working with grantees to achieve significant impact. In addition, this position will continue to develop and build new relationships with a broad network of partners who can leverage the foundation’s goals.
• Effective team member. The success of the foundation’s Home Region strategy is built on a strong team culture that values partnership and provides support through honest and respectful feedback. Team members are held to high performance expectations that includes a mindset focused on personal and professional development.
• Other projects and assignments. These may be requested by the foundation’s board, Executive Director or Director of the Home Region Program.
Professional Qualifications and Personal Attributes
The program officer should ideally possess the following professional qualifications and personal attributes:
Personal Attributes
• Demonstrated interpersonal skills combined with an ability to listen to others and learn from their best ideas.
• An engaging presence, possessing political savvy and a demonstrated track record of success communicating effectively with people from different sectors of society.
• Strategic thinker, who will be capable of deploying an innovative program framework and vision.
• Proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint
The program officer will be required to be based in the foundation’s Bentonville, Arkansas office and will report directly to the Home Region Program Director.
Compensation
The Walton Family Foundation offers an excellent benefits package and a salary which is commensurate with experience.
Basic Qualifications
The position calls for a solid understanding of grant making. The role requires self-direction and decisiveness combined with flexibility and a capacity to give and receive feedback graciously. The foundation seeks to recruit individuals with superior interpersonal and communication skills, a respectful but analytical approach to the work of grantees, and a proven ability to work effectively as part of a team. The Program Officer should ideally possess the following professional qualifications and personal attributes:
• Bachelor’s degree required; relevant master’s degree or higher preferred.
• At least five years of work in a professional urban planning setting or related field
• Excellent written skills and experience in producing both brief and longer written products in a timely fashion for internal and external audiences.
• Experience in managing complex, high-stakes projects.
• Oral communication skills, with experience in public speaking that emphasizes conveying complex issues to internal and external audiences.
• Proven skills in organization and time management.
• Demonstrated capacity to work as part of a team, as well as independently.
• Intellectual agility and the ability to analyze, think critically and understand progressive urban planning principles and issues.
• Unquestionable ethics and personal integrity.
Additional helpful experience includes:
• Developing alternative transportation systems, including trails and mass transit.
• Open space preservation
• Development and/or construction.
• Management/strategic planning consulting.
• Nonprofit management.
• Grants management.
