Main purpose of the role
The CIFF Climate team is driven by a vision of a climate-safe future for today\u2019s children and future generations. We support the urgent global transition to a net zero emissions society. We are committed to strategies that get to the heart of the greatest climate challenges and are willing to support new approaches to accelerate action and the step-change in ambition required to keep global warming below 1.5 deg C.
Working closely with the Global Director, Climate (Europe), and other Directors in the team, the main purpose of this role will be to manage CIFF\u2019s strategic communications and UK grants portfolios. The role-holder will provide senior management and leadership across both a specific portfolio of grants, as well as supporting broader team-wide efforts to increase the sophistication of our strategies and programmes, particularly with respect to global strategic communications and public engagement programmes. The role-holder will be able to deputise for the Director, Climate as required, and represent CIFF externally across a variety of meetings and geographies.
The role will include direct management of a high-quality portfolio of multi-year grants and investments, as well as indirectly managing and supporting other investments and programmes as required. This will require a long-term, evidence-based view on what is needed to achieve ambitious climate goals, deep knowledge and experience of communications and advocacy approaches, and the ability and humility to work with CIFF\u2019s strategic partners to build and support an effective and resilient civil society ecosystem.
The post-holder will act as an internal expert on the political economy of climate change in the UK, as well as providing cross-cutting thought leadership and connectivity to our sectoral and thematic investments in relevant areas, including but not limited to the energy transition. Experience of working in a European country, including at EU-level, would be an asset, though is not essential.
To thrive in the role, you will need to be motivated by fast-paced and diverse work that incorporates both your specialist subject knowledge (e.g. developing strategies, acting as the team expert) and high-quality programme and relationship management. Success in the role requires a highly-adaptable and resilient character, including the ability to learn and work effectively across new subject and thematic areas depending on business need. Relationship management and cultivation skills, and the ability to convene and facilitate conversations between diverse stakeholder groups will be particularly valuable.
Role\u2019s responsibilities
Strategy & planning
Lead on the development of climate change strategies related to UK and other countries, as required Horizon scan to identify the funding needs and field capacity/skills needed to achieve climate goals over the next 2-5 years including in, but not limited to, the UK Work across the global Climate team to build understanding, access to, and implementation of high impact strategic communications strategies Lead on the development and integration of robust public data and insights metrics/methodologies into CIFF\u2019s Climate Missions and national strategies, supporting the use of data and evidence to support programming and grant management Prepare and present high-quality analysis and research for the Board/Investment Committee, as required, to support strategic and operational planning. Lead the production of programme strategy and the associated evidence base, guiding and coaching other members of the climate team to provide relevant inputs, prior to a proposal\u2019s submission for approval. As a senior manager within the team, attend and proactively contribute to Climate Leadership Team meetings, including supporting organisation-wide risk management and external affairs. Input to organisation-wide strategy development and implementation, including but not limited to the UK, including the UK\u2019s role in responding to global challenges, e.g. international climate finance and global regulation.Programme development, delivery & performance
Personally manage a portfolio of live programmes with a value of c.$50-70m. Shape and harness CIFF\u2019s global strategic communications portfolio to help achieve the objectives of CIFF\u2019s Climate Missions, building strong working relationships with Regional Climate Directors and Managers, as required. Guide, coach and line manage members of the Climate team as required, maximising CIFF\u2019s impact and supporting the personal growth and development of team members. Against key corporate and / or sector team indicators and targets, monitor and report internally on the performance of assigned portfolio. Instigate course correcting action when targets are not being met or investments are not delivering as expected. Lead accountability for applying due diligence and risk management protocols appropriately throughout the development and delivery of proposals and programmes, to ensure the interests and reputation of the Foundation are protected. Conduct structured feasibility analysis on investment proposals, using an appropriate range of methodologies and techniques, to ensure they are based on logical and robust assumptions, which can withstand scrutiny from the Executive Team (ET) and CIFF Board. Lead work either with sector colleagues or independently, to prepare summary reports, board reports and portfolio investment reports, ensuring these are produced to a high-standard and in a timely fashion, often within tight timeframes. Lead the development of grant agreements, to forecast and process grant payments and to enable effective grant management and reporting within the organisation. Conduct regular reviews of the progress and performance of programmes under delivery to identify problems and delays, and work with partners to develop effective solutions (escalating to more senior colleagues for support and intervention, where required). Identify opportunities and options for improving processes, procedures and programme management approaches within (and beyond) the team, to support increased organisational efficiency and effectiveness.Sector knowledge and profile-building
Be CIFF\u2019s national expert on UK climate policy and politics, keeping abreast of developments, establishing appropriate information gathering networks and channels to deepen professional knowledge and skills, and sharing knowledge appropriately across the CIFF climate matrix structure. Using this credibility, proactively contribute to the development of thought leadership, PR, marketing and advocacy materials, to support CIFF\u2019s ambitions to scale-up, mainstream and leverage additional support for its initiatives, with minimal Director oversight.Stakeholder and partner management
Work directly with, and support CIFF\u2019s CEO and Chief Ecosystem Development Officer & Executive Director Climate, in their capacities as Board members and sector experts, including preparing high quality briefing notes and sharing updates on key developments within your immediate portfolio. Conduct rigorous research and evaluation of potential grantees, using agreed corporate protocols and techniques, to assess their suitability and credentials for collaborating on CIFF initiatives. Apply CIFF\u2019s agreed account management disciplines and approaches in all dealings with programme partners and stakeholders, to ensure productive and professional relationships are maintained in a coordinated and strategic manner. Cultivate and maintain strong working relationships with peer foundations, working closely with the Partnerships team. With a variety of external audiences, develop and maintain strong partnerships and act as a knowledgeable resource about CIFF\u2019s programmes and priority areas.Membership and leadership of the team
Be a role model to less experienced team members, demonstrating CIFF\u2019s leadership behaviours and providing mentorship to aid their growth. Adopt a coaching approach with colleagues which instills a culture of openness and trust, embraces diverse thinking, and encourages continuous improvement and learning \u2013 particularly on land-use and finance.Requirements
Skills & Experience
Geographical experience/expertise Experienced leader of significant projects and programmes. Significant, proven experience in climate policy, political strategy and working internationally. Strong understanding and experience of designing and implementing strategic communications programmes and projects, including advocacy. Significant experience in corporate communications and/or public affairs, preferably gained in-house with a large, complex organization or matrix-based structure. Demonstrable experience in analysis and due diligence; policy, planning and programme delivery, all within the climate or public policy sectors. Knowledge of evidence bases pertaining to programme design and implementation, and belief in the importance of evidence-based decision making. An innovative and entrepreneurial thinker with a pragmatic and solution-oriented mindset Ability to analyse an organisation\u2019s strength of management, vision and adaptive capacity. Ability to recruit, guide, influence and/or advise management teams to effectively implement programmes Effectively champions and promotes causes \u2013 credible, humble and professional, ability to always present the Foundation\u2019s programmes in a compelling way to engage the audience Skilled in relationship building and strengthening; able to influence others and work collaboratively, uniting groups with a shared purpose English is CIFF\u2019s business language \u2013 we expect all of our people to display outstanding verbal and written communication skills across all aspects of their role. Fluency and ability to work competently in a second European language would be beneficial though not essential. Capacity to work in a range of cultural, political and socio-economic contexts, adapting style and approach appropriately and in a culturally sensitive manner to maximise effectiveness IT proficiency (most specifically in Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint) A proven self-starter, who works with pace and resilienceKey working relationships
CIFF Climate Directors and Chief Ecosystem Development Officer & Executive Director Climate Other CIFF teams \u2013 particularly CEO Office, External Affairs, and functional teams (e.g. legal, HR, finance) Other funders and global NGOs / stakeholder organisations National governments and local NGO partners in priority geographies Research and academic institutions active within sector specialismManagement dimensions
Responsibility for personal portfolio c. $50-70m Potential line management of team members, as required
Benefits
The starting salary for this role is GBP 82,000.
CIFF operates a hybrid work policy across all locations, which means employees work in the office and some of the time from home. We are happy to provide more information on this as part of the recruitment process.
Alongside a competitive salary, we offer a generous benefits package here at CIFF that includes, but is not limited to the following.
Annual leave - 25 days per annum. Increasing by 1 day after each year of service to a maximum of 30 days. Bonus - CIFF currently operates a discretionary bonus scheme. Training allowance Wellbeing allowance Life insurance Medical insurancePlease submit your application on or before 25th June 2025. CIFF reserves the right to close the job advert early if we receive a high number of suitable applications.