This position may work remotely from any of the following countries: Bangladesh, Bolivia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Kenya/Alliance locations, Malawi, Mexico, Mozambique, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and Zambia.
The Director of the Collaborative Fund is a key member of the global Ipas leadership team, responsible for providing strategic direction, shaping and stewarding Ipas’s grantmaking strategy in alignment with feminist, decolonial, and human-rights–based values. The Director will have oversight and operational leadership for the organization’s grantmaking programs. This role ensures that grantmaking activities—including donor-directed and unrestricted funds—are designed and delivered effectively, in alignment with Ipas’s mission, values, donor intent, and applicable legal and regulatory requirements.
The Director will demonstrate a deep commitment to the communities we serve, embody Ipas’s values, and provide strategic counsel and leadership to both global and regional teams. This role leads the design and implementation of grantmaking systems that balance donor and legal requirements with local autonomy, learning, and trust-based practices.
The Director will actively fundraise for the Collaborative Fund in order to raising funds that Ipas can pass on to partners and build stronger infrastructure for the Fund itself. This position will oversee due diligence processes, risk management, compliance, reporting, and workflow systems to support Ipas country nodes, grantees, and advisory bodies in ways that are proportionate, contextual, and non-punitive, especially for grassroots and movement-based partners. The role works closely with global, regional, and functional teams to ensure consistent application of grantmaking policies while enabling local decision-making and learning.
Ipas is a networked organization, and the Director will play a vital role in dismantling unnecessary hierarchical structures, supporting local decision-making, and fostering cross-functional collaboration, with a particular focus on advancing operational efficiency, legal accountability, and shared leadership with grantees. The Director serves as a trusted advisor to leadership, contributing to organizational strategy and ensuring grantmaking practices reflect best practices in compliance, grants management, and donor stewardship.
Primary Responsibilities
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Provide strategic oversight and guidance for Ipas’s grantmaking program, ensuring compliance with legal, donor, and organizational requirements, and rooted in feminist and decolonial values.
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Design and oversee ICF’s grantmaking approaches that prioritize local leadership, trust, learning, and shared accountability over extractive or overly bureaucratic models.
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Support Ipas Collaborative Fund Advisory Committee and Ipas implementation nodes and other donor specific grantmaking steering bodies (e.g. MAREAS Regional Committees) to exercise meaningful decision-making authority within clear strategic and accountability frameworks for collaborative funds in Ipas network.
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Oversee Ipas grants programs, which include working closely with staff to distribute grants from applicable unrestricted or restricted Funds.
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Support Ipas country nodes and grantmaking advisory committees through effective staff coordination.
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Lead Development/fundraising strategy for the grants-making program, identifying and pursuing funding opportunities that align with organizational priorities and grantmaking goals.
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Cultivate and maintain relationships with donors, foundations, and institutional partners to support sustained grantmaking capacity, build partnerships, and position Ipas in the philanthropic sector.
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Develop, maintain, and implement due diligence policies, procedures, and standards for grantmaking.
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Ensure effective staff support for Ipas implementation nodes and grantmaking advisory committees.
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Assist in developing and overseeing the grantmaking budget, working with the Finance Managers/Director and Grants Managers to ensure due diligence and accounting of all grants.
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Establish a new node in the organization and contribute to organization-wide efforts. Assist as needed with identifying and resolving key strategic issues or changes within the organization, including organizational structures, management process and procedures.
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Keep apprised of research and issues in the philanthropic field and participate in professional training, conferences, and meetings as needed and appropriate.
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Attend staff meetings and Advisory Committee meetings to ensure cross-functionality and information sharing with colleagues.
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Review grant agreements, including evaluation of terms and conditions for business risks, soliciting and documenting feedback from internal partners and clients for input into the negotiation process, and documenting review and approval of agreements for execution.
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Create and maintain a capability to provide timely and relevant data to stakeholders across the organization that promotes learning, improves grant processing time, and systemizes internal communications.
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Work with the implementation node staff in the creation and implementation of ongoing and uniform reporting packages regarding all aspects of grant-making.
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Lead efforts to optimize grants and funds management through streamlined workflows, seamless hand-offs, and enhanced reporting.
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Build and maintain feedback mechanisms to ensure early detection of end-user problems. Proactively adjust service, training, and communications to support program objectives.
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Evaluate, improve, and enhance workflow processes. Continually improve the process for grants management workflows and systems.
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Other duties as assigned.
Working Environment
- This position is fully remote, subject to change based on business need.
- Flexibility to meet virtually in different time zones required.
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Required travel, up to 20%
Minimum Requirements
- A master’s degree in business, international affairs, public health or a relevant field or a Bachelor’s degree with extensive experience in program, compliance, or grants management. Proven ability to interpret and apply complex grant documents to ensure compliance, mitigate risk, and provide legal counsel in the context of non-profit work.
- Eight years professional experience in the international nonprofit sector, with proven expertise in grant making, grants management, program management, compliance, and legal frameworks, social justice organizations and movements.
- Demonstrated grants or subgrants management or compliance expertise, with a focus on mitigating risks and maintaining adherence to complex regulatory requirements.
- Two years’ professional experience supporting global programs in Asia, Africa, and/or Latin America
- Fluency in English, and/or French and/or Spanish, with excellent written and oral communication skills
- Ability to travel internationally up to 10%
Preferred Skills
- Direct experience managing multi-region grants and navigating complex legal and compliance landscapes.
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3-5 Years management experience with demonstrated ability to build teams and promote collaboration to share learning, experience, and create a culture of continuous improvement to support compliance.
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Expertise in reproductive justice
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Expertise in feminist grantmaking
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Fluency in other languages (Spanish, French, Portuguese or others used frequently within Ipas)
Competencies
Decisive Risk Management and Problem Solving Anticipates challenges and proactively identifies solutions. Gathers necessary inputs, analyzes available data, assesses potential risks, and makes informed decisions, even in the absence of complete information. Documents the analysis, objectives, and desired outcomes of key decisions. Reviews the impact and consequences of decisions and learns openly from mistakes.
Feminist Leadership & Shared Power: Practices leadership grounded in humility, care, and accountability. Recognizes and actively addresses power imbalances within philanthropy, compliance systems, and organizational hierarchies. Applies feminist and power‑aware leadership to grantmaking practice. Intentionally advances equitable access to funding for marginalized and women‑led grassroots organizations and movements through inclusive criteria, flexible compliance approaches, and trust‑based partnerships.
Communication and Collaboration Actively listens, fosters trust, and communicates effectively with team members. Works collaboratively across organizational teams, ensuring clear and concise sharing of information and ideas. Is able to deliver presentations, meet with partners, and represent Ipas to diverse audiences with poise.
Critical Guidance and Conflict Navigation Skilled in navigating conflict and engaging in constructive dialogue with empathy and factual clarity. Delivers difficult feedback thoughtfully and encourages colleagues to express their concerns. Leads by example with turning difficult conversations into productive, valued exchanges. Understands the benefits of conflict and supports colleagues in embracing diverse perspectives, learning from one another, and co-creating innovative solutions.
Take the Work Seriously, but Not Yourself Strives for excellence while acknowledging that perfection is unattainable. Embraces mistakes with humility and humor, understanding that the pursuit of perfection should never hinder the mission to support and serve women and girls effectively.
Ipas is strongly committed to providing a work environment that is free from all forms of harassment, discrimination, and inequity. We recruit, employ, train, promote, and compensate our personnel without regard to race, age, sex, religion, national origin, color, creed, ancestry, citizenship, caste, ethnicity, regional identity, tribal identity, marital status, veteran status, disability, genetic information, gender identity, transgender status, sexual orientation, or any other personal characteristic protected by law or outlined by Ipas policy. Ipas acknowledges that these personal characteristics may differ in different contexts.
