Philanthropy Operations and Grants Manager

About the Role The Philanthropy Operations and Grants Manager serves as the operational foundation of the philanthropy platform, owning the end-to-end grantmaking lifecycle, supporting the systems and infrastructure that keep the team running, and translating data into actionable insight. This role combines day-to-day execution with a strategic perspective on how operations can drive greater impact, efficiency, and learning in a family office environment. The successful candidate is detail-oriented, analytical, tech-savvy, and able to work independently while partnering with leadership on scalable processes and governance. What You'll Do

• Own end-to-end execution of philanthropic commitments from approval through payment and close-out, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and strong internal controls.
• Manage a grants pipeline to ensure visibility and updated tracking of all active investments, including grants, gifts, sponsorships, and amendments.
• Generate grant agreements, gift letters, sponsorship agreements, and amendments; engage proactively with internal stakeholders and grantees to finalize agreement details, including deliverables, payment schedules, and reporting requirements.
• Track payments over the course of grants to ensure partners have sufficient funds to complete grant deliverables.
• Serve as a point of contact for grantees on operational and administrative matters.
• Lead periodic reviews of the grantmaking lifecycle to identify areas of improvement, balancing compliance and risk-management with effort required by staff & grantees.
• Serve as the primary administrator of the grants management system – owning configuration, data integrity, user access, and ongoing improvement.
• Play an active role in the evaluation and selection of the grants management platform, bringing a perspective on operational requirements and user experience.
• Proactively solicit feedback from internal and external users to ensure the system continues to meet evolving needs; manage relationships with external vendors to support updates and enhancement; research and recommend new tools that could improve workflow, visibility, and/or learning.
• Develop internal documentation, training, and onboarding for philanthropy staff.
• Provide troubleshooting and guidance for staff navigating the platform.
• Bring curiosity around technology and have a willingness to learn new systems quickly.
• Operate with independence, sound judgement, and professionalism in a family office environment. What We're Looking For
• Bachelor's degree required.
• 7+ years of experience in grants management, philanthropy operations, program administration, or a closely related operational field.
• Strong systems orientation: demonstrated experience at building, administering, and improving operational platforms and processes.
• Fluent with technology and able to learn new tools quickly.
• Experience with grants management systems or CRM platforms required.
• Exceptional attention to detail and comfort with both qualitative and quantitative data.
• Project management skills and able to prioritize and effectively track and manage multiple workstreams.