Director, Partnerships & People

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Arnold Ventures (AV) is a philanthropy that supports research to understand the root causes of America’s most persistent and pressing problems, as well as evidence-based solutions to address them. By focusing on systemic change, AV is working to improve the lives of American families, strengthen their communities, and promote their economic opportunity.

Position Overview

The Partnerships & People department serves as a hub for cultivating strategic partnerships that advance AV’s mission, fostering a strong, values-driven culture, and supporting and developing a high-performing and mission-aligned team.

The Partnerships function works to position AV as a leading connector of ideas and people across sectors. It guides strategic efforts to advance the organization’s policy priorities and drive impact through thoughtfully designed convenings and relationship-building across a range of engagement opportunities and formats. The People function works to inspire and empower AV’s team members to innovate and develop bold solutions to achieve lasting change. This includes recruiting and developing a strong team, enhancing internal communications and engagement, reinforcing AV’s core values, and building systems that enable teams and individuals to operate effectively.

The Director, Partnerships & People will play a critical strategic and operational role in advancing the department’s integrated model. Serving as a key partner to the EVP, the Director will ensure that the team’s initiatives— from large-scale convenings to day-to-day operations—are executed with excellence. The Director will facilitate cross-functional coordination, develop and maintain systems, and support a range of projects at various stages of their life cycle. This individual will report into the EVP, be based in AV’s Houston office, and will be required to travel to support Partnerships & People initiatives as needed.

Core Responsibilities

• Support the EVP in advancing strategic priorities and coordinating across the department, ensuring the team operates with clarity and accountability
• Bridge programmatic and operational teams to keep Partnerships initiatives aligned with AV's policy priorities, so that strategy and execution move in lockstep
• Design, plan, execute, and assess AV-branded events, ensuring they advance strategic objectives
• Develop event content, including agendas, run-of-show documents, staffing plans, and speaker coordination materials, setting up internal and external stakeholders for success
• Oversee event logistics, vendor relationships, contracts, and budgets, delivering events on time, on budget, and without operational gaps
• Implement systems, tools, and processes that improve project tracking, documentation, information flow, and cross-functional coordination
• Manage onboarding and coordination of external partners and vendors, ensuring alignment with AV's policies and practices
• Produce timely reporting and synthesize updates for AV leadership as needed
• Support the department’s internal operations and special projects, including strategy and budget planning, internal communications, and organization-wide development activities
• Assist the EVP with agendas for team meetings, retreats, and teambuilding activities, fostering a culture of collaboration and continuous improvement across the department

The salary range for this position will be $130,000-$160,000.

Required Qualifications

• 7+ years of relevant work experience, preferably in positions involving operational and project or event management, writing and communications, and working with diverse stakeholders across public, private, and/or philanthropic sectors
• Exceptional project management and organizational skills including demonstrated experience managing complex, multi-stakeholder events or convenings of 100+ attendees from ideation through execution
• Background operating in policy, advocacy, or mission‑driven environments, with an understanding of how external convenings and partnerships connect to broader strategy objectives
• Experience managing cross‑functional workflows and implementing operational systems
• Excellent oral and written communication skills including the ability to distill content into clear materials for internal and external audiences
• Strong leadership, people management, and relationship‑building skills with a track record of managing external partners and vendors while maintaining accountability to timelines and budgets
• Ability to work independently and thrive in a fast‑paced, deadline‑driven environment
• Flexibility to travel and work occasional evenings and weekends as needed

Benefits Overview

AV is committed to providing a robust and comprehensive benefits package to eligible employees. Our current benefits package includes 100% paid employee premiums for medical, dental, vision, basic life, and short‑ and long‑term disability insurance; 20 days of paid time off, 16 paid holidays (including a winter break from December 24 to January 1), a hybrid policy that includes four days in office and one flexible day for remote work, and a summer schedule with alternating Fridays off beginning on Memorial Day and ending on Labor Day; paid parental leave; a 401(k) retirement savings plan with an employer match, profit‑share contribution, and immediate vesting; pre‑tax transit benefits; a professional development stipend; a charitable giving stipend; and an employee assistance program. In addition, a relocation bonus is available for candidates who will move for a position.

Our Culture and Core Values

Our culture seeks to inspire and empower our people to innovate and develop bold ideas that will help AV achieve lasting impact. Our culture, and the core values that support it, should create an environment that spurs our team to think outside the box, feel comfortable pushing the boundaries of what is possible, and signal confidence in our team’s ability to make change happen through our philanthropic efforts. Although not an exhaustive list, below you’ll find examples of AV’s work culture.

• We are adaptable and comfortable with ambiguity
• We are intellectually curious, open‑minded, objective, humble, collegial, and receptive to feedback
• We are action‑oriented with strong self‑direction and self‑motivation skills with the ability to work simultaneously on multiple projects
• We are able to interact confidently and collaboratively with team members and navigate relationships with external experts, government leaders, advocates, and individuals

AV’s values reflect who we are as an organization, help us accelerate our strategic goals, strengthen our resolve, anchor us to our mission, and guide our decision‑making. The successful candidate will also demonstrate the following core values that inspire the AV team to make a difference.

• Respect for Ourselves & Others
• Depth of Thought
• Clear Communication

AV is an equal opportunity employer, committed to an inclusive workplace. We are seeking applicants from a variety of backgrounds and with a variety of experiences and perspectives. Candidates who have been impacted by the systems we are seeking to change are strongly encouraged to apply. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, gender identity or expression, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, military/?veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

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