JOB TITLE: Director of Institutional Impact 

REPORTS TO: Executive Director

POSTED: October 17, 2023

CLOSING DATE: November 13, 2023

Our Organization

The Center for Good Food Purchasing uses the power of procurement and partnerships to create a transparent and equitable food system for people, animals, and the environment. We do this by helping major institutions nationwide adopt and implement the Good Food Purchasing Program. 

Over 65 institutions in 25 major US cities have enrolled in the Program. With a collective annual food spend surpassing $1 billion, these institutions and cities are committed to directing their purchasing power toward the five Program values: local economies, environmental sustainability, valued workforce, animal welfare, and nutrition. Using the Program’s metric- and data-driven framework, they measure and improve food purchasing practices over time.

We also work with national partners, local grassroots coalitions, and institutions to shift toward values-based purchasing from farm to fork, and to build a cohesive network movement in support of more resilient and equitable food systems.

Director of Institutional Impact Summary

The Center for Good Food Purchasing seeks a highly motivated and adept leader with deep experience harnessing the individual and collective purchasing power of major institutions to create equitable food systems and improve conditions along food supply chains. 

The Director of Institutional Impact will lead the team responsible for building the capacity of institutions and their vendors to align their food purchases with the Program’s five core values. The Impact team offers enrolled institutions training, technical assistance, peer-learning opportunities, and a variety of tools to help translate data into action. 

Specifically, the Impact Team serves as the primary liaison with our institutional participants, working with them to develop short and long term implementation strategies to improve their Program performance, and to identify opportunities for collective action regionally and/or nationally. The Director of Institutional Impact is part of a cross-functional team, working in close coordination with our departments of Engagement, Assessment & Analytics, Policy, and Communications. Together, these teams empower leaders within institutions to become changemakers and collaborate with community partners to build sustainable, just food systems, using procurement as a primary lever to advance local priorities. The Director of Institutional Impact is also uniquely positioned to translate implementation obstacles and opportunities into data and stories that inform local, state, and national policy.

This is a remote role that requires occasional travel. The Center for Good Food Purchasing is based in the Bay Area of California. 

Essential Functions

Training & Technical Assistance

  • Oversee one-on-one technical assistance and action planning for enrolled institutions (including direct support by the Impact Team and coordination with issue area and value chain experts to provide targeted support).
  • In collaboration with Center staff, maintain and expand the library of tools and resources to support successful Program implementation across various sectors such as schools, hospitals, and carceral institutions.
  • Work with regional clusters of enrolled institutions, policymakers, and community partners to set aggregate targets across institutions. Identify and implement individual and collective programmatic, policy, and investment strategies to achieve aggregate targets.
  • Document successful strategies to inform Program development and policy recommendations.
  • Work with the Center’s Director of Engagement to support alignment of priorities and activities between institutions and community-based partners.
  • Work with the Assessment & Analytics team and enrolled institutions to translate assessment results and data into short- and long-term action plans.  

Peer-Learning

  • Develop programming for and facilitate national Good Food Operator’s peer-to-peer bi-monthly learning video conferences.
  • Identify and develop topical peer learning cohorts, mentoring, and information-sharing opportunities. 
  • Synthesize and amplify best practices across the Program.

Value Chain Innovation 

  • Identify and implement strategies to build relationships between good food suppliers and enrolled institutions.
  • Test municipal procurement strategies in areas where guidance in the field is still limited, with a focus on supplier diversification and improving outcomes for food chain workers. Share learnings with networks and inform policy changes that support best practices. 
  • Collaborate with partner organizations engaged in value chain innovation to leverage external expertise and strategic opportunities. 
  • Identify, facilitate and/or create opportunities to support public institutions in accessing additional resources to purchase Good Food (e.g. public policy strategies, Good Food purchasing incentives). 

Leadership & Management 

  • Build out the Institutional Impact team, including recruitment, hiring, training, supervision, and mentoring of staff to ensure professional development and effectiveness. Hiring an Impact Manager  (to report to the Director of Institutional Impact)  in the calendar year 2024 is an organizational priority. 
  • Develop and monitor annual departmental goals in alignment with the Center’s 2030 goals and manage project timelines, departmental and project budgets, team work plans, and grant reporting across the Institutional Impact team.
  • Contribute to resource development for the Impact Department in partnership with the development team i.e. develop project concepts, research prospects, and assist with grant writing.  
  • Contribute content to our communications team for sharing information about institutional impact and the Center’s work with the public. 
  • Participate as a member of the leadership team, contribute to the overall strategic direction of the organization, and help create a people-first culture.

Required Qualifications

  • At least eight years of relevant work experience as a food procurement professional and/or in institutional food service 
  • Project management or project leadership experience 
  • Experience supervising a high performing team
  • Collaborative spirit and enthusiasm for bringing stakeholders together who may have diverse priorities and perspectives to seek mutual benefit and practical pathways forward
  • Ability to work independently and effectively in a virtual environment
  • Skilled in managing multiple tasks, prioritizing effectively, seeking guidance when needed, and meeting deadlines
  • Ability to work with a remote team, including regular access to phone, internet, and video conferencing
  • Ability to convey messages and concepts to diverse audiences via written and verbal communication 

Preferred Qualifications

  • Operational knowledge of federal meal programs and requirements, i.e. as either a buyer on behalf of a public institutions or agency or supplier of institutional food
  • Knowledge of public solicitations/contracting processes
  • An understanding of the concepts of institutional and structural racism and bias and their impact on underserved and underrepresented communities
  • Experience in, or passion for, building sustainable, equitable, fair, and humane food systems
  • Facility with Excel, particularly pivot tables
  • Quantitative or qualitative data analysis 

Compensation & Benefits

The Director of Institutional Impact is a regular full-time, exempt position with an annual salary of $95,000. The Center for Good Food Purchasing, a fiscally-sponsored project of Community Partners, is a people-first workplace that values flexibility, work-life balance, and restoration. In addition to offering competitive benefits (i.e. medical/dental/vision, disability/life insurance, vacation, and a 403(b) plan with employer match after two years), we also offer 12 paid holidays, two flexible working Fridays monthly, and annual summer and winter break paid office closures (in addition to vacation time). 

Community Partners® is an equal opportunity employer committed to a diverse and inclusive workforce. We strongly encourage and seek applications from people of color, including bilingual and bicultural individuals, as well as women, and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities. In addition, the organization will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring.

How to Apply 

Applications should be submitted by November 10, 2023 to info@goodfoodpurchasing.org with “Director of Institutional Impact” and your name in the subject line. Please include a single PDF attachment of the following: (1) a cover letter that discusses relevant experience and describes applicant’s leadership abilities or a link to applicant’s fully updated LinkedIn profile, (2) 2-3 professional references; (3) a resume; and (4) a writing sample that is relevant to the position and limited to 5 pages in length. (Links to writing samples posted online are allowed).

You will receive a response within 2 weeks of submission of your application. We respectfully request no calls or emails.