LADF Director, Grants & Initiatives

Title: Director, Grants & Initiatives

Reports to: Chief Program Officer

Pay Rate: $115,000 - $140,000/year*

* Compensation rates vary based on job-related factors, including experience, job skills, education, and training.

The Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation (LADF) tackles the most pressing problems facing Los Angeles with a mission to improve education, health care, homelessness, and social justice for all Angelenos.  To support us in this mission, we seek a Director of Grants & Initiatives.  This position is responsible for overseeing the foundation’s grantmaking and initiatives. This role will manage the end-to-end grants process, from identifying potential grantees to evaluating the impact of funded programs. The Director will also play a crucial role in developing and managing initiatives that align with LADF's mission to improve education, health care, homelessness and social justice outcomes in underserved communities. The Director will work closely with internal departments and external partners to ensure that LADF’s resources are strategically deployed for maximum community impact.

Organization Summary

Reimagined in 2013, LADF has since raised over $204 million, including a $100 million pledge in 2024 by its Chairman Mark Walter and Dodgers Ownership, marking the largest contribution ever from an MLB ownership group to the organization’s charitable partner. Under its new strategic plan, “Lasting Impact for Los Angeles,” LADF is amplifying best practices, scaling solutions, growing its capacity, and refining its work with investments exceeding $60 million in its programs and grants to local organizations. To date, LADF has positively impacted over 10 million area youth. LADF is the proud recipient of ESPN's Sports Humanitarian Team of the Year, Robert Wood Johnson Sports Award, Beyond Sport's Sport for Reduced Racial Inequalities Collective Impact Award, and the Aspen Institute Project Play Champion.  

Core Responsibilities

 Grants Strategy:

• You will work in collaboration with the Chief Program Officer (CPO) to lead the strategy, planning, and execution of LADF’s grantmaking and initiatives, setting goals and priorities in alignment with organizational goals and priorities. You will coordinate with the Director, Programs to ensure alignment across the Programs department in service of department and programmatic goals. You will work with the CPO and executive leadership to identify new initiatives or transformative investments that address critical community needs in LADF’s focus areas and continuously assess and refine grant-making strategies to improve outcomes and ensure resources are directed to the most effective programs.

Grants Management:

• You will manage the grantmaking portfolio across each of LADF’s core focus areas with guidance from the CPO. You will oversee, direct and continuously refine the grant cycle review process, including sourcing potential grantees across focus areas, reviewing letters of intent and applications, conducting due diligence, maintaining efficient decision-making processes aligned with LADF’s outcomes, and ensuring compliance and proper stewardship of grants and reporting.  You will manage allocated budget for investments, ensure funds are allocated effectively and efficiently, and ensure accountability structures are in place aligned with key measurable indicators of sustained impact.

 Partner Management:

• You will research, identify and cultivate relationships with potential grantees, community organizations, and other stakeholders, proactively seeking out and supporting nonprofit organizations aligned with LADF’s focus areas and strategic plan. You will develop, foster, and maintain relationships with 100 grantees annually. You will collaborate with other members of the Programs team to share best practices for grant, grantee and partner management to establish a common and consistent approach in the way LADF works with its program partners.

Initiatives

• You will oversee, direct, and project manage all activations, including developing and managing workflow and processes for successful events. You will work in partnership with the Manager of Grants & Initiatives (MGI) and Initiatives, work with the Coordinator, Programs, Grants and Initiatives (CPGI) to manage the effective implementation of LADF Initiatives (LA Reads, Science of Baseball, College and Career Accelerator), including how to integrate initiatives across all program areas and partners (e.g. Dodgers Dreamteam and Dodgers Dreamfields). You will lead cross-functional teams to execute key initiatives, coordinating efforts across departments and with external partners.

 Evaluation & Impact:

• You will work with the Director of Evaluation & Impact to develop and implement systems for monitoring and evaluating the impact of funded programs in alignment with LADF’s evaluation and impact framework. You will work with the MGI and CPGI to manage and regularly update the grantmaking and initiatives database, trackers, and data collection tools in alignment with organizational best practices and goals.  You will prepare regular updates and presentations for key internal and external stakeholders to communicate the impact of LADF’s grantmaking and initiatives.  You will collaborate with the development and communications teams to highlight the success of grants and initiatives through various fundraising narratives and media channels.

 Organization and Team Leadership:

• You will directly supervise the MGI to advance LADF’s grantmaking goals and objectives and provide leadership and guidance to ensure the team’s professional growth and the successful execution of their responsibilities. You will manage Associates, consultants and executing partners assigned annually. You will collaborate with the entire Programs team to ensure there is alignment and intersection with the LADF grantmaking portfolio across all programs and initiatives.
• You will serve on LADF’s Leadership Team, which includes the CEO, COO, CPO and other Director-level team members across the organization to ensure organization-wide alignment and the modeling of best practices related to high-quality execution, knowledge sharing, and talent management. You will foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, and accountability within the department and LADF.  You will, when appropriate, represent LADF at meetings, conferences, and events to promote the foundation’s work and explore new opportunities for collaboration.

Qualifications and Experience Needed

We are looking for an exceptional leader who inspires and motivates others, sets a positive example, and drives results. You should have:

• Minimum of 5-7 years of experience in grant-making, program management, or a related field, preferably in a non-profit, foundation, or philanthropic organization.
• Proven experience in managing large-scale initiatives and programs with measurable impact.
• Experience and content expertise in at least one of LADF’s focus areas.
• Demonstrated experience leading and effectively managing a team including 2-3 direct reports.
• Experience navigating the Los Angeles non-profit and philanthropic community, including building new and leveraging existing relationships with community organizations, partners, or sponsors.
• Strong organization and project management skills with ability to track and manage multiple projects and processes and meet deadlines in a face-paced environment.
• High level of analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to use data to inform decisions.
• Proficiency in using grantmaking software along with other data collection and tracking tools.
• Strong background in monitoring and evaluation of programs, including data analysis and reporting.
• Outstanding interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills, including strong presentation skills and the ability to adapt to a wide range of communication styles.
• Ability to work in partnership with cross-functional leadership team to manage grantee and partner relationships collaboratively and provide strong organizational leadership.
• Ability to work both under supervision and independently, with creative problem-solving abilities and attention to detail.
• Ability to work a non-traditional schedule, which includes nights, weekends, and some home games (March - October)

LADF is firmly committed to providing equal opportunity for all qualified applicants from every background. The Foundation is also firmly committed to complying with all applicable laws and governmental regulations at the federal, state and local levels which prohibit discrimination, and which provide for reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities.

LADF considers all applicants without regard to national origin, ancestry-ethnicity, race, color, religion, creed, age, sex, gender (including gender identity and expression), sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy or related medical conditions, genetic information, medical condition, military or veteran status, citizenship status, marital status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable state or federal law. The Immigration Reform and Control Act requires that the Foundation obtain documentation from every individual who is employed which verifies identity and authorizes their right to work in the United States.

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LADF Values

Our core values are the fundamental beliefs upon which our foundation and its people operate.

We look for hardworking team members who share our passion.

Opportunity – We know that talent is evenly distributed, but opportunity is not.

Access – No recreational, education or health resource should be out of reach for any child.

Equity – We aim to level the playing field and make sure that every kid has a fair shot.

Collaboration – We believe that working well with others is the secret sauce to success.

Impact – The work we do must create meaningful progress that is measurable. We want to support proven programs.

Excellence – We hold ourselves to the highest standards across all of our work, striving for quality and credibility.

LADF is reviewing applications on a rolling basis. The preferred application deadline is 12/4/24.

Salary : $115,000 - $140,000