Chief Strategic Partnerships, Advocacy & Voice Officer

Position Open Until Filled. Initial Deadline for Internal and External Applications: February 27, 2024

Are you a skilled professional who believes in lending your skills to end hunger? If so, consider being the Chief Strategic Partnerships Advocacy & Voice Officer for the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank.

The Chief Strategic Partnerships Advocacy and Voice Officer (CSPAVO) is accountable for the optimal performance of the Strategic Partnership, Voice, and Advocacy department - one of three interdependent mission impact departments of San Francisco-Marin Food Bank. The purpose of the department is to:

• Advance strategic partnerships, relationships, and coalitions.
• Build community power and successfully advocate for good public policy and responsive systems.
• Co-lead with the community in joint problem-solving.
• Co-develop and support the success of innovative community-designed and equity-centered initiatives.
• Mobilize and uplift community voice, informing San Francisco-Marin Food Bank’s continuum of programs and services
• Maximize, grow, and optimize collective resources in pursuit of our mission.

Reporting to the Executive Director, the CSPAVO is a critical member of the Food Bank’s Senior Leadership Team and the organization’s ability to be effective in its mission, initiatives, and priorities.

Who We Are: Our mission is to end hunger in San Francisco and Marin.

We envision: a just and equitable society that nurtures a resilient community. We envision a community where everyone will have access to nutritious food of their choosing and will be uplifted by a network of support. We work with our community to create lasting solutions to address both the hunger we see today, and the root causes that perpetuate food insecurity in our society. Every week, over 50,000 households count on us for food assistance. 60% of what we distribute is fresh fruits and vegetables.

Who You Are: The Chief Strategic Partnerships Advocacy Voice Officer of the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank will possess the following qualities, skills, and characteristics:

Strategic Leadership and Execution: The Chief Strategic Partnerships, Advocacy & Voice Officer will be a strategic thinker and a hands-on leader with the experience to understand and balance a complex array of organizational needs. A successful CSPAVO will be skilled at high-level shaping of strategy down to executing and sustaining process details.

Advancing Transformation through Collaboration and Relationships: The Chief Strategic Partnerships, Advocacy & Voice Officer will be a transformational leader who continuously builds trusted relationships internally and externally and will purposefully build networks and coalitions with an equity-centered approach. They will have exceptional political and social acumen. They will lead, enable, build, and maintain strategic alliances internally and externally and work together to achieve goals.

Empowering Leader: The Chief Strategic Partnerships Advocacy Voice Officer will bring energy to inspire the team and the community that the Food Bank serves to achieve new heights around equity and inclusion. This individual will be a proactive, collaborative change agent with the skills and courage to challenge and transform systems while simultaneously working with those systems to drive for improvement. They will be experienced in leading and managing organizational change, with a thorough, detailed, and wide-ranging perspective on the impacts of these changes on the culture and community. In serving their Department as its leader, the CSPAVO will inspire, motivate, and empower people to achieve organizational and professional goals. They will be a strengths-based coach and effectively manage their department’s employee experience and employee performance.

Passion for the Mission: The Chief Strategic Partnerships Advocacy Voice Officer will have a passion for the mission of SFMFB and the organization’s history, evolution, and potential for future impact. They will have a passion and curiosity for food systems and the possibility for food security/sovereignty and food banks within that vision. This leader will be driven by the opportunity to work collaboratively with others to break the systems that create the cycle of poverty, racism, and hunger for historically and systemically marginalized communities. They will feel a sense of ownership to accelerate change by motivating others to contribute to a shared vision and purpose.

What You Would Be Accountable for:

1. Department Leadership, Management & Effectiveness

• The optimal performance of the Strategic Partnership, Voice and Advocacy department,
• including both leading and managing the team
• Ensure clear department scope, charter, group agreements, norms
• Ensure effective work integration within department and within agency
• Making a direct, and impactful contribution to advancing the work of the team
• Being a responsive and proactive communicator – as a leader, manager, and individual
• Ensuring the effective management and stewardship of a strategic partners, developing synergistic possibilities
• Accountable for programmatic strategic plan contributions.
• Accountable for programmatic annual planning, execution, achievement of key results and priorities and reporting.
• Accountable for building, maintaining, evaluating, evolving, and growing impact of partnerships, policy, power building, and community voice.

2. Budget & Oversight

• Developing and meeting department budget; supporting identification and development of funding to resource priorities
• Accountable for the effective implementation of resource sharing initiatives with partners
• Responsible for negotiating and managing supplier/contractor relationships and the performance of contracts consistent with the agreed upon scopes of work
• Ensure compliance with all agency and department policies and procedures

3. Supervision & Coaching

• Hiring, coaching, supervising, providing learning and development opportunities, contributing to and supporting engagement, clarifying roles, and delegating assignments.
• Supervise and coach the Associate Director Community Building and Associate Director of Public Policy and Advocacy, and other staff as needed, to ensure their success in their roles and their growth and satisfaction as leaders at the Food Bank.
• Accountable for effective performance management, overseeing annual employee evaluations, salary adjustments and promotions for department staff.
• Accountable for creating a positive working environment and a well-functioning department and teams.

What You Would Be Doing Right Now

• Ensuring the effective piloting of innovative service models in partnership and co-leadership with community
• Mobilizing with community to identify and advance public policy priorities
• Building and advancing strategic partnerships
• Uplifting community voice and applying the learnings
• Driving transformation to address both the causes and consequences of food insecurity

What Else You Should Know:

All internal candidates must apply using their Food Bank work email within ten business days of posting to be considered.

Core Work/Essential Responsibilities:

• Skilled at meeting design, meeting process and facilitation.
• Experience with both leading and co-creating community organizing, system advocacy, policy, and political campaigns.
• Political acumen and sector awareness.
• Expert at establishing trusted and effective relationships with community members, SFMFB partners, and staff toward the goal of increasing community engagement and co-creation.
• Demonstrated understanding and practice of equity-centered community design.
• Working alignment with SFMFB mission and values.
• Collaborating and engaging with Partners and with other staff who have similar or shared job functions and/or programmatic objectives.
• Driving partnerships with colleagues to develop strategic direction and initiatives as part of annual planning process.

Key Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities:

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite
• Work integration and alignment. Managing through others and effective oversight.
• Project management, follow through, initiative and execution.
• Ability to work and interact well with individuals (staff, volunteers and participants) from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds in a culturally diverse environment.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including exceptional presentation skills for diverse audiences and large groups.
• Experience and skill in conflict resolution, de-escalation techniques, and having difficult conversations.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and always demonstrate professional ethics and diplomacy.
• Interest in hunger, food justice, and food sovereignty.
• Excellent interpersonal, customer service, and problem-solving skills
• Minimum eight (8) years of applicable experience in advocacy, community organizing, public policy, and non-profit program leadership at a senior/executive level, including multi-agency collaboration and coalition building.

Prior experience working with/for SFMFB is a considerable asset. Experience in a leadership role with hunger relief/poverty/equity programs preferred. Experience building strong partnerships with community-based organizations is preferred. Senior leadership and non-profit management experience is required. BA or equivalent combination of skills and experience.

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS: N/A

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT: T his position is set in a Hybrid environment. The physical and environmental demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. This position is a full-time, exempt position. Candidates should have experience working with community-based organizations and low-income communities in San Francisco or Marin. The position requires the ability and willingness to work a flexible schedule, including periodic evening and weekend hours. Based at the SFMFB Office/Warehouse at 900 Pennsylvania Ave in San Francisco. The position will have duties performed remotely. Requires a valid CA State driver’s license and an insurable driving record. Work is performed in an office with adequate lighting, heating, and ventilation. Work may also be performed in community settings, including outdoor food distributions, with variable weather conditions. Requires maintaining professional and positive working relationships with internal and external contacts. Requires attending events and meetings outside of the workplace occasionally on weekends and evenings, depending on the availability of community partners and community members. May act as SFMFB representative at events that require following high standards of behavior and with respect to current local county public health social distancing guidelines. The position will interact with a wide variety of people, including community partners, community members, donors, volunteers, board members, and the general public.

SALARY: The position is an exempt executive-level role for an experienced senior leader. The salary range is $175,000 to $210,000 annually.

BENEFITS All positions are offered generous holiday and sick time as well as retirement savings. This position also qualifies for medical, dental, life, long-term disability, and vacation time.

The San Francisco-Marin Food Bank is an Equal Opportunity Employer and we value having staff who come from communities that we serve. We especially encourage people of color, folx from the LGBTQIA2+ community, and people with disabilities to apply. In accordance with and in support of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we encourage formerly incarcerated individuals and those with arrest and conviction records to apply.