Philanthropic Strategy Associate

Slingshot Memphis

Slingshot Memphis is a nonprofit professional services firm that is revolutionizing poverty-fighting effectiveness. Our analytical and outcomes-driven approaches help ensure people experiencing poverty receive the most effective interventions to enable them to thrive.

Unlike business, medicine, and many other sectors that have established, objective processes for measuring outcomes, the poverty-fighting ecosystem hasn't developed these same standards. This has made it nearly impossible to know which programs and services most effectively reduce the social and economic gaps in Memphis, TN. Slingshot has addressed this by developing a new, standardized methodology to measure poverty-fighting effectiveness.

Slingshot’s services lines (program evaluation & improvement, philanthropic allocation advisory, and social impact projects) help us achieve three primary objectives in order to realize our mission:

1. Equip decision-makers with the insights and tools to make more evidence-based decisions
2. Increase the allocation of financial resources to the most effective poverty-fighting efforts
3. Improve the effectiveness and outcomes of poverty-fighting efforts

Each of our service lines is enabled by the knowledge and insights derived from our proprietary poverty-fighting impact studies. These are 3–5 month projects with poverty-fighting organizations to evaluate their effectiveness and measure their impact. The results of the impact studies identify opportunities that can enhance the outcomes poverty-fighting organizations create for their participants, help philanthropists identify nonprofits that are best positioned to achieve their desired objectives, and identify the root causes that decision-makers need to address to see lasting change.

Philanthropic Strategy Associate

Slingshot seeks a gifted advisory professional to support the creation of philanthropic allocation strategies that maximize the social impact of philanthropy. These philanthropic strategies “activate” high-capacity individuals, foundations, and corporations to incorporate the knowledge Slingshot has developed to most effectively allocate their philanthropy to achieve intended poverty-fighting outcomes. The Philanthropic Strategy Associate is responsible for supporting the execution of multiple engagements at a time—ensuring meetings, materials, and communications are seamless, polished, and effective.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary coordinator for all philanthropic strategy engagements
• Support the development of exceptional client relationships by researching their situations, understanding their aspirations and needs, and responding to their requests
• Contribute to the development of philanthropic allocation strategies by participating in problem solving sessions with the leadership team and clients
• Ensure exceptional client meetings by creating high-quality meeting materials and managing meeting follow-up responsibilities
• Manage engagement work plans and timelines, ensuring leadership and other team members understand and meet critical deadlines
• Facilitate input from relevant team members and resources across Slingshot’s work
• Develop internal frameworks and resources that can be used to consistently conduct advisory engagements in a high-quality manner across clients
• Support the leadership team in developing new philanthropic advisory engagements by meeting with philanthropists and drafting engagement proposals
• Uphold a high level of confidentiality, discretion, and professionalism in all interactions

Qualifications

• Passion for fighting poverty, innovating new solutions, and building equity
• Exceptional relationship management skills that incorporate advanced emotional intelligence, empathy, and the ability to work with diverse personalities
• Demonstrated experience working with high-net-worth clients
• Strong organizational skills, with experience managing multiple workstreams
• Self-directed and self-motivated, with a track record of identifying opportunities and implementing solutions that improve outcomes
• Strong collaboration skills and the ability to work with a team to meet objectives
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal skills
• Proven ability to operate with professionalism, discretion, and sound judgment
• High integrity and strong commitment to confidentiality
• At least 5 years of financial advisory, account management, or similar work experience
• Relevant bachelor’s degree required, with postgraduate degrees viewed favorably

If you are interested, but do not have all of the qualifications, we would like to hear from you.

Professional proficiency in English required; additional language proficiency is a plus