The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, based in Menlo Park, California, seeks a Program Associate to support the Environment Program’s Climate and Energy strategy – Multilateral & Climate Finance portfolio.


About the Foundation

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation invests in creative thinkers and problem solvers working to ensure that people, communities, and the planet can flourish. Together with our partners, we are harnessing society’s collective capacity to solve our toughest problems — from the existential threat of climate change to persistent and pervasive inequities, to attacks on democracy itself. A nonpartisan philanthropy, the Hewlett Foundation has made grants in the U.S. and globally for nearly six decades based on an approach that emphasizes long-term support, collaboration, and trust.

Globally, we make grants to address both longstanding and emerging challenges like our efforts to advance gender equity and governance, reimagine the economy and society, and reduce the growing threat of climate change. Our U.S. efforts prioritize strengthening democracy, advancing education for all, and supporting community-led conservation. In the San Francisco Bay Area we call home, we make grants to support meaningful artistic experiences in local communities and support regional foundations working on critical issues such as housing. All of our grantmaking also invests in advancing racial justice and in strengthening the effectiveness of our grantees, and of philanthropy itself. The Hewlett Foundation’s assets are approximately $12.8 billion with annual awards of grants totaling more than $600 million. More information about the Hewlett Foundation is available at: www.hewlett.org

The foundation has approximately 130 employees, in programmatic, operational, and investment roles, located in the San Francisco Bay Area. Across the organization, our employees are challenged with meaningful work, have the resources for ongoing professional development and learning, and contribute to a collegial and engaging environment where they can thrive. We are committed to fostering a culture of inclusion as part of our guiding principles and encourage individuals with diverse backgrounds and experiences to apply.

About the Environment Program

The Environment Program focuses on climate change and clean energy, as well as Western conservation. We are committed to clearly identifying our goals and measuring progress toward them. Our team is made up of 13 program staff, plus additional staff from the communications, grants management, and legal departments. Additional information about the Program is available here, and the Climate and Energy portfolio here.

About the Position

The Program Associate reports to the Program Officer overseeing the multilateral and climate finance grantmaking portfolio. This role will administer grants; manage the portfolio’s budget; sustain relationships with key partners and stakeholders; and contribute to strategy development, implementation, and evaluation.  

The Program Associate will work directly with the program’s grantees, and manage all administrative aspects of the grantmaking process, including communications regarding proposals, budgets, and grant reports. The Program Associate may also research issues, programs, and organizations related to portfolio and to the Program’s climate and energy strategies.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

The Program Associate’s duties will include, but not be limited to:

Grants Administration and Contracts

• Manage a high volume of grants through the full grant lifecycle, from the proposal application process to grant reporting, payment processing, and closing of grants.
• Manage, track, and forecast the portfolio’s annual grants budget and cash disbursement schedule.
• Organize, compose, and manage communications with current and potential grantees.
• Participate in meetings between Program Officers and grantees, providing strategic support and thought partnership.
• Act as liaison between the portfolio and the foundation’s Grants Management and Legal departments for relevant program grant processing, including those related to scheduling reports and payments, grantee tax information (domestic and foreign), and the resolution of legal issues.
• Stay up to date on legal compliance issues that the grant portfolio presents and continue to develop expertise in managing complex compliance issues.
• Work with Program Officer to effectively prioritize workload, implementing processes to help triage deliverables to meet internal and external deadlines.
• Prepare consulting agreements and serve as point of contact for consultants, including in the tracking and processing of invoices.

Programmatic and Strategic Support

• Support the Program Officer in funder convenings, meetings, and maintaining funder relationships by researching background information and compiling reference materials as needed.
• Travel to and participate in select US and international climate events, conferences, convenings, and grantee visits in support of the portfolio’s needs.
• Support the Program Officer on strategic initiatives, including but not limited to assisting with strategy refreshes for the portfolio, as needed.
• Participate in teamwide projects, such as team retreat preparation, grantee convenings, and assisting with new staff onboarding, as needed.
• Support the foundation and Environment team’s commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion. 

Qualifications

We know some strong candidates may not have all the qualifications listed below. Please consider applying if you have most of the following: 

• 2-5 years’ experience providing complex administrative support.
• Bachelor’s or Associate’s degree desired.
• Demonstrated ability to work across cultural contexts.
• International work experience desired
• Excellent administrative and project management skills and experience, including the ability to plan and manage projects both independently and with colleagues.
• Experience in budget management.
• Strong commitment to the environment and combatting climate change, prior experience and/or demonstrated interest in global/multilateral climate policy and/or climate finance/sustainable finance a plus.  
• Ability to meet tight, sometimes simultaneous, deadlines with a keen ability to prioritize and partner with others to meet common goals.
• Ability to work as a contributing member of a team to deliver philanthropic services in a clear, efficient, collegial manner.
• Strong oral and written communication skills.
• Experience in MS Office: Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Adobe; experience with Salesforce is a plus.
• Experience in web-based document management tools and practices; willingness to learn new software tools and use them for program support.
• Proficiency with problem-solving, analysis, and applying an appropriate level of judgment.
• Experience with grants processing and grants database a plus.
• A commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Positive attitude, sense of humor, and a commitment to being part of, and building, a positive work environment.

Physical Demands/Work Environment

 
The physical demands described are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

The position is based in Menlo Park, California. Staff are working in a hybrid environment and currently expected to work from the Hewlett Foundation office at least 2-3 times per week (Tuesdays and Wednesdays are required). While performing the duties of this position, the employee is required to spend extended periods of time at a computer.

Compensation and Benefits

The Hewlett Foundation is committed to providing compensation that is competitive within the philanthropic sector. We offer a generous total compensation package that emphasizes both base salary and comprehensive benefits. The salary range for this role is $100, 000 – 110, 000. Offers are based on the candidate's years of experience and our practice of maintaining salary equity within the foundation.

To Apply

CEA Recruiting is assisting the Goldman Environmental Foundation with this search. To be considered for this position, interested candidates must follow the link below to submit a resume, cover letter, and salary requirements through CEA’s job portal. Please direct all applications and inquiries to CEA Recruiting. This position will remain open until filled. Applications received before April 3, 2026, will be given priority; later submissions will be reviewed as needed until the position is filled.

Apply Here

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation embraces the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion, both internally in our hiring process and organizational culture, and externally, in our grantmaking and related practices. We are an equal opportunity employer, and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, cultures, and experiences.

CEA Recruiting works with leading environmental nonprofits, foundations, and businesses to recruit top talent and design effective organizational staffing strategies. For more information, visit www.cearecruiting.com.