Overview
ABOUT THE POSITION
The Director of Strategic Grantmaking will lead LKFLT’s work to expand, deepen, and strengthen the embrace of
applied Jewish wisdom by (1) identifying and supporting exceptional examples of applied Jewish wisdom work
with financial and other support, and (2) leveraging those investments to amplify our impact through fieldbuilding and narrative change. Working in close partnership with LKFLT’s exceptional Program Director, the Director of Strategic Grantmaking will oversee a robust portfolio of grantee-partners and participate actively in shaping and refining LKFLT’s holistic changemaking strategy. Across all of this work, the Director of Strategic Grantmaking will stay abreast of—and contribute to—the evolving zeitgeist of the Jewish education sector and other fields in which Jewish wisdom plays (or could play) a role. This position is based in Brooklyn, New York; reports to the President; and is a full-time, exempt position.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Lead Development and Implementation of Grantmaking and Changemaking Strategy
- Lead the development and implementation of a grantmaking strategy—well-integrated with LKFLT’s
other strategies (currently including a philanthropic prize, periodic convenings, etc.)—that maximizes the value of LKFLT’s resources in service of our mission. - Oversee the full arc of the grantmaking pipeline (budget management; opportunity identification and
assessment; relationship and proposal development; LKFLT staff and board engagement; grantagreement and -deliverables development; grantee-partner stewardship, technical assistance, thought
partnership, capacity-building, and accountability; and reporting, learning, and evaluation), with the
support of the Chief of Staff on grants management and the Director of Learning and Strategic
Communications on learning and evaluation. - Continuously scan the fields in which Jewish wisdom plays (or could play) a part and share analysis and
synthesis of relevant emerging trends in those fields with LKFLT board and staff to enhance our work. - Stay abreast of emerging trends in philanthropy—both within and outside the Jewish community—and
infuse relevant learning into LKFLT’s work. - Build relationships of trust, shared learning, and interdependence with LKFLT’s grantee partners and
peer funders to co-create collaborative impact. - Foster collaboration, shared learning, and innovation among Jewish social-impact organizations and
funders engaged in applying Jewish wisdom. - Partner with the Program Director to refine the foundation’s prize philanthropy strategy and ensure its
integration with our broader grantmaking portfolio to maximize its value in support of LKFLT’s mission
and the field. - Collaborate closely with the Director of Learning and Strategic Communications to align programming
with learning and strategic communications to advance the foundation’s mission holistically, including
continuous improvement of foundation programming and synthesis of evidence-based and actionable
learning to share with and influence the fields in which we operate. - Represent LKFLT with individual grantee-partners and prospective grantee-partners, in public fora (e.g.,
conferences), and with media as appropriate to advance the foundation’s mission and to cultivate
thought leadership. - Participate actively in the professional development of LKFLT colleagues and in the development and
cultivation of LKFLT’s board-staff team and culture.
ABOUT YOU
You’re excited about the mission of Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah. You believe that Jewish
wisdom can offer guidance and inspiration to help people live better lives and shape a better world, and you’ve
got experience bringing Jewish wisdom to bear in those ways. You’re a sophisticated social-change strategist
with both big ideas about how philanthropy and other programmatic tools and tactics can be employed to make
change, and experience (both successes and failures) putting those ideas into practice. You also bring a healthy
sensitivity to the complex power dynamics in play between grantmakers and the organizations they fund. You’ve
got real community-organizer chops and a deep belief that people working in partnership and collaboration with
both traditional and surprising interlocutors can accomplish much more together than they can alone. You are
decisive and have an intuitive sense about when you need to seek counsel and when you should just make a call.
You’re intensely curious, eager both to learn new things and to regularly question your own assumptions. You
hold the big vision and the day-to-day details in mind simultaneously. You seek out and appreciate working with
people whose experience and expertise are different from—yet complementary to—your own.
REQUIREMENTS
Credentials and Experience
- Bachelor’s degree required; graduate degree preferred.
- 10+ years of professional experience, including significant experience in—and understanding of—the
Jewish community and Jewish communal landscape. - Demonstrated experience with social-change strategy development and implementation required;
experience with grantmaking and field/network-building a significant plus. - Significant experience and expertise in education—particularly Jewish education—a plus.
- Demonstrated experience with public speaking, group facilitation, and/or teaching required.
- Track record of demonstrating sound judgment (e.g., by making appropriate decisions, anticipating problems, and innovating creative solutions) and prioritizing and completing tasks in a skillful and timely fashion.
Knowledge, Skills, and Competencies
- Excellent oral and written communications skills, with demonstrated capacity to present complex
information in clear, concise, and persuasive ways. - Strong interpersonal, team-building, negotiating, and organizing skills. Ability to collaborate and build
partnerships around common interests and goals. - Skill in process-level thinking (i.e., ability to optimize systems and resources and anticipate critical next
steps). - Comfortable with ambiguity; able to decide and act without having the full picture; embracing of risk
and uncertainty. - Demonstrated facility reviewing and interpreting social-impact-organization budgets and other financial
documents. - Strong foundation in Jewish text and tradition a plus; deep commitment to Jewish pluralism required.
- Impeccable integrity, discretion, and tact.
- A good sense of humor.
- Working knowledge of Microsoft Office 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, OneDrive), and other
productivity software. - Willingness to travel domestically approximately six to nine times annually.
WHY THIS ROLE IS COMPELLING
Working directly with an experienced leader and manager, LKFLT President Aaron Dorfman, you will play a key
role in shaping the strategic direction of the foundation, build relationships with a diverse array of partners in
the philanthropic and social-impact sectors, design and lead a high-impact grantmaking portfolio and other
programs, and help influence the Jewish communal zeitgeist in meaningful ways.
A successful candidate will develop a broad set of professional skills, honing them to the level of excellence in a
demanding and supportive environment. You will be part of an accomplished and diverse six-person team in
which each individual is committed to her/his own rapid development as well as to that of the team.
This role offers a competitive salary and an outstanding benefits package including medical, dental, vision,
disability and life insurance coverage, 401(k), health and/or flexible savings account, paid vacation, and an
exceptional work environment, including healthy and delicious breakfast and lunch every work day.
aaron@lippmankanfer.org
About Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah
ABOUT LIPPMAN KANFER FOUNDATION FOR LIVING TORAH
Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah (LKFLT) works to help Jews and fellow travelers apply Jewish
wisdom to live better lives and shape a better world. In growing numbers, Jews and others who are exploring
both traditional and new ways to engage with Jewish teachings and practices are drawing on these experiences
and sensibilities to shape their thinking and behaviors. LKFLT supports the professionals and organizations
leading this work through grantmaking, convenings and network building, thought leadership, and strategic
communications. As part of this four-pronged strategy, LKFLT runs the Lippman Kanfer Prize for Applied Jewish
Wisdom, and publishes and supports research on applied Jewish wisdom in the field. For additional information,
see the foundation’s website: www.lkflt.org
In our fifth year as an independent foundation, LKFLT is working both to refine our strategy and impact and to
build our organizational infrastructure and systems to ensure efficient and effective operations over the long
term. LKFLT has a sister foundation—Lippman Kanfer Family Foundation (LKFF)—which is dedicated to building
and sustaining a multi-generational family culture of tzedakah (philanthropy) through thematic issue-based
grantmaking and support of the vitality of Jewish communities where Kanfer family members live, especially in
their hometown of Akron, Ohio. The family behind LKFLT has also established a family office / management
services firm, which provides IT, HR, finance, and accounting support to the foundations.