Great Lakes Program Officer (Erb Family Foundation)

The Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation

The Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation has made more than $200 million in grants to improve the quality of life for residents in Southeast Michigan and the Great Lakes region since launching its grantmaking in 2008. 

In 2022, the Erb Family Foundation announced its plans to shift from a perpetual foundation to a spenddown model and conclude its grantmaking by 2034-2035. 

The grantmaking priorities for the Foundation’s spenddown center on six areas of focus: Great Lakes, Arts and Culture, Alzheimer’s Research, Sustainable Business, Democracy, and Legacy Giving. In addition to its grantmaking, the Foundation will work closely with grant partners to learn how to better invest in their organizational health and long-term durability. Across all its activities, the Foundation’s goal is to inspire a new generation of leaders and philanthropic partners to carry on Fred and Barbara’s passions long after the Foundation is gone.

This work is guided by the Foundation’s mission and vision:

The Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation envisions a flourishing, healthy, and resilient Great Lakes ecosystem and a culturally vibrant, sustainable southeast Michigan. Toward this end, we strengthen the cultural and environmental organizations that share our vision to make this a reality for generations to come.

And also by its values: 

to make a lasting transformative difference; embrace possibility; work and learn in partnership; and pursue fairness and respect. 

The Program Area 

The Foundation’s commitment to the Great Lakes centers on two priorities:

1. Support people, organizations, and institutions working to achieve a flourishing, healthy, and resilient Great Lakes ecosystem at different scales. 
2. Strengthen efforts to address environmental harms and adapt to future challenges faced by Great Lakes communities and ecosystems. 

This work is viewed and addressed through the lenses of environmental justice and climate resilience. 

The Opportunity 

Now in its final decade of operation, the Foundation has increased its grantmaking, including new funding directed to the Great Lakes focus area. To meet this need, the Foundation is expanding its Great Lakes team; the Great Lakes Program Officer, a new position, will report to the Senior Program Officer and work in partnership with the current Program Officer and a Council of Michigan Foundation Philanthropy Fellow to administer the Great Lakes funding priorities. 

Core Duties and Responsibilities

• Actively participate in learning about Great Lakes organizations and community needs and goals and share out that information regularly—in writing, meetings, presentations, and site visits—with the Great Lakes team and Foundation leadership
• Develop and maintain ongoing relationships with prospective and current grant partners; offer thought partnership, feedback, introductions, and other resources to support partners’ organizational strength
  • Actively seek out opportunities for grantees and other partners to learn from one another and collaborate
• Manage the logistics and workflow associated with a portfolio of grants
  • Guide existing and new grant partners through the grants and reporting processes
  • Participate in due diligence activities
  • Write grant recommendations, review proposals and reports
  • Ensure timely, responsive communication and honor deadlines with both internal and external partners
• Stay up to date on current and emerging Great Lakes issues through active engagement in the field (e.g., attending stakeholder meetings, talking to funder partners, and conducting research as needed)
  • Partner with the Foundation’s communications team to help disseminate topical issues and areas for public engagement 
• Regularly interact with and learn from funder colleagues who have shared priorities and/or grant partners in common
• Represent the Foundation (independently and/or with colleagues) at meetings, convenings, conferences, and other events
• Actively support and contribute to the Foundation’s communications activities

Qualifications and Skills

• Personally passionate and knowledgeable about Great Lakes issues (ideally) and/or issues related to overall water health and sustainability. 
• Demonstrated experience in building strong, positive, and collaborative relationships by being an active empathetic listener, maintaining openness to new ideas and perspectives, and encouraging thought partnership
  • A collegial spirit in sharing and receiving ideas, information, and feedback; commitment to resolving conflict productively
  • Proven track record of working effectively and collaboratively across lines of difference, which could include race, gender identity, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, class, and ability
• An understanding of best practices in nonprofit management; experience with organizational capacity building and professional development is a plus  
• Eager to engage in conferences and meetings;  energized by meeting new people and forming new relationships
• Willingness to contribute to the Foundation’s culture of communication and curiosity and to think creatively; capacity to get up to speed quickly on new subject matter
• Strong writing and verbal communication skills and the ability to apply them across varied functions internally and externally
• Ability to maintain the highest levels of integrity, ethics, discernment, diplomacy, and strict confidentiality
• Demonstrated experience managing multiple priorities, deadlines, and a demanding workload
• Highly proficient with Microsoft 365 including Teams, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook; experience with Adobe and/or CRM or database management (such as a grants or donor management system) is a plus
• Able to learn new software and comply with administrative protocols
• Ability to understand nonprofit financial statements, audits, and tax return is a plus 

Education and Experience

The ideal candidate will have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree and at least five years of experience addressing Great Lakes or water issues. 

They will have curiosity about other issues addressed by the Foundation such as the arts, sustainable business, democracy, and/or Alzheimer’s research.

Candidates with an alternative but comparable level of experience are encouraged to apply.

Work Arrangements, Compensation, & Benefits

This is a full-time hybrid position that will be based in Royal Oak, Michigan. Attendance at evening and weekend events and occasional travel should be anticipated.

The annual salary for this position begins at $100,000 and may be adjusted according to qualifications and experience. The Foundation’s comprehensive benefits package includes employer-paid health, dental and vision insurance, paid time off, and a generous 401k retirement plan (including company match). 

To Apply

Please utilize this online portal to submit a cover letter and resume.

Erb Family Foundation is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, age, citizenship status, and genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.