ProInspire envisions an equitable and just society – free of systemic oppression where all people thrive. We activate leaders at all levels to accelerate equity in their work, within their organizations, and across the social sector. We design and deliver programming, consulting, and resources to support individual leaders, strengthen organizations, and influence and equip the sector. Our goal is for individuals at all levels in the social sector to have the competencies, confidence, and connections to accelerate equity and leadership. ProInspire’s values of equity, authenticity, collaboration, and courage are essential to who we are and what we do.

Founded in 2009 and based in Washington, D.C., ProInspire runs programs in multiple cities across the United States. We partner with leading local, national, and international nonprofits and foundations, including Arabella Advisors, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Communities in Schools, Kauffman Foundation, Kresge Foundation, Share Our Strength, and more. ProInspire’s funders include Annie E. Casey Foundation, American Express, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Hewlett Foundation, Kresge Foundation, and Meyer Foundation. Over 4,000 individuals have participated in ProInspire’s open enrollment and custom programs to-date. ProInspire was named by the Chronicle of Philanthropy as one of 7 Nonprofits to Watch in 2015, and as a Top-Rated Nonprofit from 2015 to 2018.

Are you passionate about leadership and racial and social justice within the social sector? Do you want to build structures for programs that support BIPOC leaders and strengthen organizations in creating more diverse, inclusive, and equitable cultures? Do you thrive on managing projects, navigating ambiguity, and bringing people together? 

If so, we’re looking for you…

ProInspire is seeking a Program Manager to play a key role in building our work to support individuals and organizations with accelerating racial equity through leadership. The Program Manager will have experience in project management and be able to support both in-person and virtual event planning, skill in building out processes and systems for participant engagement, an understanding of some approaches for growing open enrollment programs, and an interest in how to align logistics decisions to racial equity and wellbeing. The Program Manager will be expected to manage multiple projects at once, maintain effective relationships with key stakeholders (including clients/participants, consultants and staff) and adjust plans as new learnings cause project priorities to shift.  

As an organization, ProInspire has experienced a lot of change and transformation. We began our internal racial equity journey in 2015, where we built shared language and analysis on the antiquated and often harmful white dominant standards in the workplace that particularly harm people of color. We started to shift our offerings for the sector in 2018 to support our partners with their own learning and alignment around racial equity. Then, in 2021, we grew our team to expand our work and shifted to a co-leadership model. As we approach our 15th anniversary in 2024, we’re continuing to align internally and externally with our racial equity values and contributing to the growing coalition of Pro-Black organizations that center the needs of Black, Indigenous, and people of color in their work.

The Program Manager role will report to a Director on our team and work closely with staff based across the country, as well as ProInspire partners, funders, faculty, and consultants. 

• Salary: The starting salary is $79,250 per year, paid bi-monthly on the 1st and 15th of each month. We are currently completing our bi-annual market analysis on compensation and aim to implement changes for all staff on 10/1/2023.
• Benefits: We provide a robust benefits package with a focus on supporting our team’s well being and doing their jobs well. Benefits and additional cultural practices are described below.
• Travel: Work travel is required for delivering programs, conferences, and meetings; on average, 1-2 trips per month for in-person meetings internally and for engagements externally with our partners. There are also occasional events during non-standard business hours.
• Location: This is a fully remote position; we do not have a physical office space.
• Start Date: Flexible with target start date around October 1, 2023.

Responsibilities for this role include...

Client Projects (70%)

• Business Development and Partnerships: Conduct informational calls with nonprofit organizations seeking our services, align on goals, draft proposals and grant reports, manage contracting and invoicing with clients and consultants
• Project Management: Develop project plans and timelines, identify project risks and develop mitigation plans as needed, facilitate project meetings and follow up documentation, manage processes to recruit and communicate with participants (as relevant)
• Client Communication: Manage client and participant communication throughout projects, including planning check-in meetings, sending agendas, and follow-up
• Deliverables: Prepare client-ready deliverables for programs, including agendas, workbooks, presentations and other materials
• Virtual Implementation: Support implementation of programs and services, including logistics, participant experience, technology, facilitator support, and program evaluation
• In-Person Event Planning: Organize the logistics and experiential components of multi-day in-person programs to support relationship building and engagement, wellbeing and healing, and a connection to place and community

Internal Projects (15%) 

• Improve Processes:  Leverage project management skills to design new processes to support greater operational efficiency for staff and yield a better experience for clients/participants
• Identify and Implement New Tools: Design and implement roll out of tools to support collaboration among the team
• Accountability: Work with internal team to support organizational goals

Team Engagement (15%)

• Team Activities: Participate in regular retreats, weekly team meetings, etc.; contribute to board meetings, presentations, community events, and convenings, as opportunities align
• Internal Work: Engage in ongoing internal work around building a Pro-Black organization; push the organization to live into our values and our desired impact
• Staff Development: Share learnings and mentor people across the organization; participate in relationship building and knowledge sharing with peers across the sector

A few example projects where these responsibilities would be expected include:

• Developing project plans, managing communication and timelines, and supporting marketing strategy for a virtual open enrollment program on managing people and power
• Supporting foundation-sponsored programs with both in-person and virtual engagement, such as an 18-month community of practice for Black women climate justice leaders or a year-long community of practice for senior leaders of color from arts and human services nonprofits
• Managing preparation meetings and logistics for a comprehensive organizational change journey that includes work with client leadership, staff, and small teams
• Developing internal processes to streamline operations and improve collaboration among staff

What we're looking for in this role includes...

Set Vision and Direction: 10%

• You have experience with meeting facilitation, training, or consulting, particularly around racial equity and leadership
• You can connect small decisions and components of projects to the bigger picture, and how each piece fits into the organization’s larger strategic goals
• You are aligned with our evolving vision and excited to support our transformation as a pro-Black organization
• You have an entrepreneurial spirit and desire to expand our impact

Organize and Plan: 40%

• You have 3+ years of work experience managing projects from end to end, with attention to detail and towards defined outcomes
• You are proactive in thinking through what is needed to achieve project goals and able to hold multiple projects at one time and plan out work accordingly
• You are strong written and verbal communicator, with experience preparing information that is communicated externally, such as proposals and presentations
• You are motivated to build new processes for program management, with skills in using software to do so, such as Salesforce, Asana, and Slack

Allocate and Track Resources: 10%

• You can support new program development and resourcing strategies
• You understand how to track resources to stay within budget
• You can navigate the complexity of holding deadlines and efficiency with being responsive to needs and open to new information that may shift the plan
• You are willing to explore new ways of being that build a sustainable workplace and sustainable resourcing, including managing your own time and energy

Design and Facilitate Engagements: 20%

• You are able to think and execute quickly and effectively
• You can manage virtual and digital facilitation tools, such as Jamboard, Menti, Zoom breakout rooms, and are open to trying new ones to achieve results
• You understand that operational and logistical elements of programs enhance outcomes and experience for participants in programs, virtually and in-person
• You authentically dive into work about the role that identity and race plays inside organizations, and are able to speak from your lived experience

Develop Self and Others: 20%

• You are responsive, attending to relationships with clients and your teammates to build relationships and work with people at all levels in organizations
• You are able to work independently and maintain productivity with colleagues in different locations
• You bring integrity, humility, resilience, and passion for ProInspire’s mission
• You don’t have all the answers, but are willing to figure things out and navigate emergence in the work

 What you will gain from this role

• Impact: You’ll have the opportunity to advance leadership, equity, and inclusion in the social sector and see the impact you have on individuals and organizations through their engagement in our programs.
• Build on Strengths: You will have the opportunity to leverage your strengths and lived experience to deepen skills and to shape your own career path with support from colleagues.  
• Learning: You will continuously be learning as you support your colleagues and partners and through your own professional development.  
• Visibility: You will have the opportunity to represent the organization with partners, build relationships, and expand your network.
• Collaboration: You will have shared responsibility for implementation of specific projects and autonomy to figure out how to approach your work.

Why should you work with us

At ProInspire, we believe that people are the most important asset to delivering our mission and we strive to make ProInspire a great place to work. ProInspire values equity, authenticity, collaboration, and courage. In our benefits and HR policies, this means:

• We prioritize approaches that serve all of us and promote our collective impact, first meeting the needs of staff who experience marginalization or oppression because of their identities and those who have the least access to decision-making power.
• We identify both individual and team-wide solutions, recognizing that we have different needs and providing flexibility and support for each other.
• We share transparently about the opportunities and limitations we face as a small nonprofit organization, engaging each other in the process to shape our approach and priorities.
• We think creatively and with an abundance mindset about how our policies can help us meet our goals, identifying how various solutions can strengthen our culture.

Position Details 

• Salary: The starting salary for the Program Manager is $79,250 per year, paid bi-monthly on the 1st and 15th of each month. We are currently completing our bi-annual market analysis on compensation and aim to implement changes for all staff on 10/1/2023.
  • As part of our commitment to equity, we believe in providing employees a fair market rate with support for wellbeing and to do our jobs well.  We also know that salary negotiations reward individuals from dominant demographic groups and further disenfranchise people from marginalized communities. We update our compensation annually and go through tremendous effort to figure out the right salary that is fair and equitable; we don’t negotiate on compensation. Employment with ProInspire is at-will; you may leave or be terminated at any time and for any lawful reason. 
• Benefits: We provide a robust benefits package with a focus on supporting our team’s well being and doing their jobs well. Benefits and additional cultural practices are described below.
• Travel: Work travel is required for delivering programs, conferences, and meetings; on average, 1-2 trips per month for in-person meetings internally and for engagements externally with our partners. There are also occasional events during non-standard business hours.

Be Well and Whole Benefits: All staff members have what they need to take care of themselves, recognizing the wholeness of who we each are, our personal wellbeing, and how that may impact us at work and in our lives outside of work.

• Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance with an employer contribution of 100% for individual employees and 50% for dependents
• Life Insurance, Short-Term Disability, & Long-Term Disability with Employee Assistance Program at no cost to employees
• Parental Leave: 16 weeks of paid leave (inclusive of Short Term Disability benefits) and up to 6 months of total time off which may include unpaid leave, state-specific benefits
• 401k plan with a safe harbor non-elective 3% contribution
• Wellness Fund $100/month or $1,200/year

Do Jobs Well and Grow Benefits: All staff members have what they need to do their jobs well, do their best work, and grow individually as we grow collectively - including accommodations for needs and functional roles and considerations for growth within role, organization, and towards career goals.

• Laptop Reimbursement Fund every 3 years
• Remote Work Technology Stipend: $50/month or $600/year
• Team Workplace Fund: resources to set up a home office, cover office supplies, or to gain access to a local office space (ex: co-working space membership or drop-in)
• Professional Development Fund: $1,000/year
• Participation in Team-Wide Retreats and Learning Sessions & Sector-Wide Conferences: includes team-based and individual learning opportunities

Additional Culture Practices: Note that we are currently reviewing our PTO policy to ensure alignment with values in outcomes and experiences; we will be moving into an updated approach for 2024.

• Unlimited PTO: includes vacation, sick, mental health, family care, etc.
• Org-Wide Holidays & Digital Detox Windows: minimum 20 days that we are “closed” including 10 Holidays and 2 Detox Windows
• Flexible Work Schedules: Includes flexible structure of work week/days & space for learning/collaboration with core hours for meetings and expected 35 hours per week capacity for all employees