GORDON AND BETTY MOORE FOUNDATION
PROGRAM OFFICER
WILD SALMON ECOSYSTEMS INITIATIVE
The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, a non-profit, philanthropic organization based
in Palo Alto, California has launched a search to recruit a Program Officer for the Wild
Salmon Ecosystems Initiative.
Overview
Established in September 2000, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation seeks to
advance environmental conservation and scientific research around the world and
improve the quality of life in the San Francisco Bay Area. The goal of the Foundation’s
Wild Salmon Ecosystems Initiative is to maintain a healthy North Pacific salmon
ecosystem by establishing core protections for habitat and fish, and cultivating
frameworks for natural resource management decision-making which will reinforce those
protections. The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation is among the top ten largest
foundations in the U.S. and one of the largest funders of environmental conservation
and non-biomedical science in the world.
The Foundation is devoted to the inspirational vision articulated by our founders:
“creating positive outcomes for future generations.” This vision guides our mission: “to
achieve significant, lasting and measurable results in environmental conservation,
science and the San Francisco Bay Area.” A set of core values—impact, integrity,
disciplined approach, and collaboration—directs our work.
The Foundation carries out its work through the following frameworks:
Initiatives. Initiatives are built around well-developed strategies for concentrated
investments, focused on the long-term and achieving significant impact. Initiatives are
characterized by a portfolio approach to grantmaking, and other engagements of the
Foundation, to pursue ambitious, large-scale outcomes. Initiatives constitute about
80% of the Foundation’s grantmaking.
Stand-alones. The Foundation devotes about 20% of its grantmaking to
experimentation, focused innovation, and agile response to time-sensitive, high-impact
opportunities in its three areas of focus.
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Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
 Headquartered in Palo Alto, CA
 Over $5 billion in assets
 Annual Foundation budget of ~$250 million
 ~80 employees
 Three program areas
 Environmental Conservation
 Science
 San Francisco Bay Area
For more information, please visit www.moore.org.
Program Officer Position
Reporting to the Program Director of the Wild Salmon Ecosystems Initiative, the
Program Officer is responsible for developing and implementing strategies to achieve the
goals of the Wild Salmon Ecosystems Initiative Grant Portfolio.
The Wild Salmon Ecosystems Initiative’s theory of change is that we can help to halt the
trajectory of decline in salmon ecosystems, and to maintain reliable salmon production
at the North Pacific scale, by taking advantage of the continued social and economic
value placed on salmon in order to establish frameworks for natural resource
management decision-making which will protect adequate amounts of habitat and fish
from the successive assault of accumulated impacts. Key Initiative strategies include:

Strengthening management frameworks for protecting salmon ecosystem
function in target geographies

Engaging proactively with industry, government, and other key stakeholders to
shape salmon-friendly models of natural resource development

Building the capacity of the field to disseminate promising management models
and perpetuate conservation gains
The Program Officer will have specific responsibilities in the following areas:

Contribute to development of the Initiative’s overall strategic framework

Identify, develop, and source a portfolio of grants that advance specific Initiative
strategies

Maintain solid knowledge of the field and key emerging trends
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
Carry out activities beyond grantmaking to help drive change in the Initiative’s
problem space (e.g. convening, facilitating, networking)

Develop effective monitoring and evaluation plans, and oversee ongoing adaptive
management of grants, activities, and strategies

Manage external relationships with grantees and other key partners in support of
Initiative goals

Coordinate with internal staff to complete grantmaking and monitoring processes

Participate in periodic presentations on Initiative strategy and progress to the
Board, senior management, and other Foundation staff

Be an effective contributor on of Program and Foundation wide issues beyond
the Initiative as required
Professional Qualifications and Personal Attributes
The successful candidate will possess the following personal competencies and
attributes:
Strategic planning and implementation

Demonstrates critical thinking and analytic rigor in framing problems,
synthesizing information, and proposing solutions

Creates innovative strategies based on synthesis of internal and external
stakeholder input, and practices effective adaptive management in the face of a
complex, changing environment

Effectively employs innovative tools beyond grantmaking to achieve impact

Contributes thought leadership/partnership to help advance the overall strategic
framework of the Initiative

Coordinates with team and support staff to prioritize and multi-task
appropriately; independently delivers high quality products in a timely manner
External Influence/Leadership


Understands and respects the power dynamics inherent to funder-grantee
relationships, and uses good judgment to constructively influence the community
Initiates and maintains effective and trust-based relationships with grantees
other key partners
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

Establishes credibility and demonstrates ability to influence external thought
leaders / stakeholders
Proactively expands and/or deepens current network
Knowledge

Demonstrates deep understanding of the systems the Initiative is trying to
influence, and the key players within them

Knows how to seek expert guidance from outside of the Foundation when
knowledge is not possessed internally

Can proactively identify implications of new knowledge on initiative’s goals,
strategies and/or grants
Communications and Teamwork

Presents both oral and written materials effectively

Projects credibility and confidence when representing the Initiative in key internal
and external settings

Synthesizes complex information and creates well-written documents tailored to
the specific audience

Operates as a team player; anticipates unmet needs within the Initiative and
working proactively with colleagues to ensure that they are addressed

Demonstrates commitment to the Foundation’s values, mission, and approach;
puts the interests of the Foundation and the team before one’s own agenda and
needs
Beyond these personal competencies and attributes, the Program Officer should ideally
possess the following professional qualifications:

Advanced degree in an environmental conservation or other relevant field.

Working knowledge of the Initiative’s key issue areas (habitat protection, natural
resource governance/management, salmon fisheries), with deep expertise in one
or more areas

Direct experience with efforts to influence natural resource management through
advocacy, policy-making, and/or stakeholder engagement
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
An active professional network and experience working in one or more of the
Initiative’s priority geographies: Alaska, British Columbia, and the Russian Far
East.
Compensation
Compensation for the Program Officer includes a competitive base salary, a performance
incentive plan, and an excellent package of health, pension and other benefits.
Interested candidates should send a brief cover letter and resume to:
Daniel Sherman
President
Explore Company
E-mail: resumes@explorecompany.com
Fax: 301.933.8990
Please include Moore Foundation-Wild Salmon Ecosystems Initiative in the
subject line.
The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation is an equal opportunity
employer. All correspondence will remain confidential.