Deputy Director, Center for Climate Adaptation & Resilience

University Overview

The University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer in Philadelphia, is a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation. This historic, Ivy League school consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in the annual U.S. News & World Report survey. Penn has 12 highly-regarded schools that provide opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education, all influenced by Penn’s distinctive interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and learning. As an employer Penn has been ranked nationally on many occasions with the most recent award from Forbes who named Penn one of America’s Best Large Employers in 2023.

Penn offers a unique working environment within the city of Philadelphia. The University is situated on a beautiful urban campus, with easy access to a range of educational, cultural, and recreational activities. With its historical significance and landmarks, lively cultural offerings, and wide variety of atmospheres, Philadelphia is the perfect place to call home for work and play.

The University offers a competitive benefits package that includes excellent healthcare and tuition benefits for employees and their families, generous retirement benefits, a wide variety of professional development opportunities, supportive work and family benefits, a wealth of health and wellness programs and resources, and much more.

Posted Job Title

Deputy Director, Center for Climate Adaptation & Resilience

Job Profile Title

Director C, Academic Affairs, Academic Center

Job Description Summary

The Center for Climate Resilience (CCR) is an interdisciplinary research center headquartered at the School of Social Policy and Practice at the University of Pennsylvania, with ties to the Wharton School. CCR conducts applied research on how climate hazards such as extreme heat and wildfire smoke affect workers, households, firms, and cities, and translates that research into human capital and financial metrics that inform the decisions of government, corporate, and philanthropic partners. Currently, the Center operates through three units, the Urban Resilience Lab (government and city partnerships), the Corporate Resilience Initiative (corporate partnerships), and the Research in Climate Adaptation and Resilience (RCAR) Core, each led by a unit lead with a team of three to five researchers and staff. In steady state the Center's team will comprise multiple postdoctoral fellows, PhD students, and staff, as well as research assistants, policy fellows, and corporate resilience fellows. Partners include the New York City Mayor's Office, the Bank of Korea, and a network of Fortune 50 companies.

The Deputy Director serves as the Center's chief operating officer. Reporting to the Faculty Director, the Deputy Director manages the daily operations of the Center across its three operating units and supervises and develops the unit leads and their teams. The Deputy Director works closely with the Faculty Director to design and execute the Center's fundraising strategy across foundation grants, government contracts, corporate partnerships, and individual philanthropy; leads grant writing and program development; and serves as a steward of the Center's relationships with government, corporate, foundation, and academic partners. The Deputy Director builds and maintains the Center's operating systems, including project tracking, meeting cadence, budgeting, reporting, and onboarding, and serves as the Center's primary liaison to SP2 finance, human resources, research administration, and development offices.

Position is contingent on grant and gift funding. Travel to partner sites, convenings, and events, primarily within the United States, approximately 6-10 times per calendar year, including some evenings and weekends. This is an in-person position based at the School of Social Policy and Practice in Philadelphia, with regular travel to New York City for partner work and hybrid flexibility by arrangement.

* All SP2 staff are required to participate in convocation and graduation ceremonies as needed.

Job Description

Job Responsibilities

• Serve as the Center's chief operating officer. Manage daily operations across the Center's three operating units (the Urban Resilience Lab, the Corporate Resilience Initiative, and the RCAR Core), each with three to five team members. All three units are headquartered at the School of Social Policy and Practice. Teams combine postdoctoral fellows, PhD students, research assistants, policy and corporate resilience fellows, and part-time technical staff, and work in a hybrid mode with regular in-person time on campus. Work with the Faculty Director and unit leads to set priorities, plan and staff projects, and monitor progress and performance. Supervise the unit leads and their teams, set performance expectations, coach and develop team members, and coordinate the recruitment and onboarding of staff, postdoctoral fellows, and students. Build and maintain the Center's operating systems, including the project tracker, the weekly leadership and unit meeting cadence, the quarterly goals cycle, and operating documentation. Serve as the Center's primary liaison to SP2 human resources.
• Work closely with the Faculty Director to design and execute the Center's funding strategy and pipeline across foundation grants, government contracts, corporate partnerships, and individual philanthropy. Identify and qualify opportunities; lead the preparation of letters of inquiry, proposals, budgets, and reports; and coordinate with the SP2 research support office, the SP2 development office, and Penn Development and Alumni Relations. Develop new programs and initiatives in concert with the Faculty Director and unit leads, and prepare scopes of work and budgets for government and corporate engagements. Forecast funding for staff positions and advise the Faculty Director on resource allocation.
• Serve as a steward of the Center's relationships with government, corporate, foundation, and academic partners, including the New York City and Penn Inter-Agency Working Group, the corporate resilience working group convened with the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES), and individual corporate engagements. Manage communications, contracting logistics, deliverable schedules, and reporting for each partner so that the Center's commitments are delivered on time and in a form partners can use.
• Oversee the Center's budget, grant and gift accounts, contracts, and expenditures in accordance with University and sponsor policies. Ensure that grant, contract, and reporting deadlines are met. Serve as the Center's primary liaison to the SP2 finance office and research administration on budgets, subawards, and expenditures.
• Work with the Faculty Director and SP2 leadership to develop and maintain the Center's strategic plan and milestones, convene and support an advisory board, and track progress against goals. Support external communications, including translating research findings into briefs and materials for partners and the public, and plan and run the Center's seminars, convenings, and public events. Coordinate with the SP2 Strategic Communications and Design department on external communications and events.
• Perform additional duties as assigned. All SP2 staff are required to participate in convocation and graduation ceremonies as needed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required; Master's degree (MBA, MPA, MPP, or a related field) strongly preferred. A minimum of 7 years of progressively responsible experience in operations, program management, or fundraising in a research center, nonprofit organization, policy institute, foundation, consulting firm, or comparable setting, including at least 3 years supervising staff, required. Demonstrated success raising funds, including foundation grants, government contracts, sponsored research, or individual philanthropy that the candidate led and that were funded, required. Demonstrated ability to manage budgets with multiple funding streams, supervise and develop staff across several teams, and allocate resources according to program needs required. Experience building operating infrastructure in a young or fast-growing organization, including project tracking, planning cycles, written processes, and reporting, required. Excellent written and verbal communication skills across audiences, including senior government officials, corporate executives, foundation program officers, and academic researchers, required. Exceptional organizational skills and capacity to manage multiple concurrent deadlines requiring advance forecasting required. Experience navigating university research administration, contracting, and development offices preferred. Working familiarity with applied social science research methods, including basic causal inference, preferred. Familiarity with climate risk, adaptation, or sustainability preferred. Strong commitment to the Center's mission and to building a healthy, high-performing work environment.

Job Location - City, State

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Department / School

School of Social Policy and Practice

Pay Range

$95,136.00 - $140,000.00 Annual Rate

Salary offers are made based on the candidate’s qualifications, experience, skills, and education as they directly relate to the requirements of the position, and in alignment with salary ranges based on external market data for the job’s level. Internal organization and peer data at Penn are also considered.

Equal Opportunity Statement 

The University of Pennsylvania is an equal opportunity employer. Candidates are considered for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion, creed, national origin (including shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics), citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status or any class protected under applicable federal, state or local law.

Special Requirements 
Background checks may be required after a conditional job offer is made. Consideration of the background check will be tailored to the requirements of the job.

University Benefits

• Health, Life, and Flexible Spending Accounts: Penn offers comprehensive medical, prescription, behavioral health, dental, vision, and life insurance benefits to protect you and your family’s health and welfare. You can also use flexible spending accounts to pay for eligible health care and dependent care expenses with pre-tax dollars.

• Tuition: Take advantage of Penn's exceptional tuition benefits. You, your spouse, and your dependent children can get tuition assistance here at Penn. Your dependent children are also eligible for tuition assistance at other institutions.

• Retirement: Penn offers generous retirement plans to help you save for your future. Penn’s Basic, Matching, and Supplemental retirement plans allow you to save for retirement on a pre-tax or Roth basis. Choose from a wide variety of investment options through TIAA and Vanguard.

• Time Away from Work: Penn provides you with a substantial amount of time away from work during the course of the year. This allows you to relax, take vacations, attend to personal affairs, recover from illness or injury, spend time with family—whatever your personal needs may be.

• Long-Term Care Insurance: In partnership with Genworth Financial, Penn offers faculty and staff (and your eligible family members) long-term care insurance to help you cover some of the costs of long-term care services received at home, in the community or in a nursing facility. If you apply when you’re newly hired, you won’t have to provide proof of good health or be subject to underwriting requirements. Eligible family members must always provide proof of good health and are subject to underwriting.

• Wellness and Work-life Resources: Penn is committed to supporting our faculty and staff as they balance the competing demands of work and personal life. That’s why we offer a wide variety of programs and resources to help you care for your health, your family, and your work-life balance.

• Professional and Personal Development: Penn provides an array of resources to help you advance yourself personally and professionally.

• University Resources: As a member of the Penn community, you have access to a wide range of University resources as well as cultural and recreational activities. Take advantage of the University’s libraries and athletic facilities, or visit our arboretum and art galleries. There’s always something going on at Penn, whether it’s a new exhibit at the Penn Museum, the latest music or theater presentation at the Annenberg Center, or the Penn Relays at Franklin Field to name just a few examples. As a member of the Penn community, you’re right in the middle of the excitement—and you and your family can enjoy many of these activities for free.

• Discounts and Special Services: From arts and entertainment to transportation and mortgages, you'll find great deals for University faculty and staff. Not only do Penn arts and cultural centers and museums offer free and discounted admission and memberships to faculty and staff. You can also enjoy substantial savings on other goods and services such as new cars from Ford and General Motors, cellular phone service plans, movie tickets, and admission to theme parks.

• Flexible Work Hours: Flexible work options offer creative approaches for completing work while promoting balance between work and personal commitments. These approaches involve use of non-traditional work hours, locations, and/or job structures.

• Penn Home Ownership Services: Penn offers a forgivable loan for eligible employees interested in buying a home or currently residing in West Philadelphia, which can be used for closing costs or home improvements.

• Adoption Assistance: Penn will reimburse eligible employees on qualified expenses in connection with the legal adoption of an eligible child, such as travel or court fees, for up to two adoptions in your household.

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To learn more, please visit: https://www.hr.upenn.edu/PennHR/benefits-pay