The National Geographic Society is committed to increasing understanding of who we are as a species, and our relationship with the natural world through our Human Journey portfolio of projects and programs. Human Journey is a multi-million dollar portfolio of science, education and storytelling programs supporting projects in a range of fields that are helping us better understand ourselves, each other, our relationship with the planet, and the steps required for a more sustainable future. We do this because we believe that to effectively govern the planet we must understand who we are, have empathy for other cultures and species, understand the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead, and have a clear vision for the future world in which we want to live. We also want to help drive attitudes and innovations that will make this future possible.
Reporting to the VP, Operating Programs, the Director of Human Journey Programs will develop and lead a portfolio of projects. The Director is expected to oversee the execution of the Human Journey programs and projects, which includes playing a leadership role across the organization to ensure that programs achieve long-term impact with measurable outcomes. An early focus for the role will be refining the strategy for our flagship initiative, Being Human, which focuses on further defining the status and trends of the human condition through discoveries in human evolution and the documentation of past societies, and enhancing our understanding of the way in which humans settled the planet. The position will also work with the VP, Operating Programs and the Senior Director, Human Journey Grants to develop new projects that will deliver on the organization’s goals, and to ensure that program-related grants and grantees contribute directly to the programs’ impact metrics and goals.
Program Strategy and Development: (40%)
- Build and lead strategy for high-impact projects in the Human Journey portfolio. Responsible for the execution of programs and budgets across division and to meet outputs, outcomes and impacts within stated timeframes.
- Work with the VP Operating Programs and Senior Director, Human Journey Grants to assess and develop new project ideas. Lead the process from ideation through development and approval.
- Develop detailed multi-year program and project workplans - including cross-divisional budgets - with monthly reporting mechanisms. Make strategic and tactical recommendations for setting or changing programmatic direction. Ensure projects are being designed to meet organizational objectives, identifying clear measures of success and ambitious, attainable timelines for deliverables. Evaluate priorities based on strategic goals, impact potential and probability of success.
Partnership: (20%)
- Maintain and lead high level and high touch relationships with project-affiliated Explorer(s) in coordination with NGS Explorer Programs team.
- Identify and cultivate high-impact external partners and stakeholders, such as media companies, nonprofits, research institutions and others, to collaborate to amplify the objectives Human Journey programs and projects. Identify and cultivate new talent that could serve as a value-add to Human Journey Programs.
- Create and maintain strong working relationships with internal cross-disciplinary program team.
- Act as primary liaison with the NGS legal team for the Human Journey portfolio, drafting & executing legal documents and leading partner negotiations, drafting services and deliverables for contracts, as well as negotiating compensation for external staffing.
Leadership: (25%)
- Lead and mentor a high functioning team of programmatic staff, creating a culture of empowerment and accountability. Lead cross-departmental team and develop strong working relationships across National Geographic Partners (NGP), the media platforms of National Geographic, and NGS to create a dynamic network that cultivates innovation and team development.
- Represent Human Journey programs with internal executive leadership, as well as externally at conferences and events.
Outreach: (15%)
- Identify key opportunities for amplifying the program objectives with Development, Marketing, Digital and Communications team. Ensure all public engagement activities align with program strategy and outcomes.
- Oversee communication and information flow to internal stakeholders including Marketing, Communications, Partnerships, Education Digital and NGP.
- Identify key funding opportunities and activities for the Partnerships team. Provide program content and materials to be leveraged to key partners or donors.
- 8+ years demonstrated experience in development and management of complex projects with experience working with diverse and matrixed teams. Experience managing international projects; Asia-based preferred.
- Cross-disciplinary knowledge of science, communications and storytelling to support program objectives.
- Highly developed oral and written communications skills and ability to work with individuals and groups at all levels, including executive; demonstrated leadership/people skills.
- Ability to manage a high functioning team and oversee diverse activities while meeting deadlines and delivering quality results.
- Must have ability to work with scientific communities, journalists, photographers, business partners and international stakeholders to create innovative public-facing programs.
- Ability to manage multiple work streams while balancing competing priorities with attention to detail.
- Experience overseeing large, complex programs with multimillion-dollar budgets.