The Center for Good Food Purchasing (the Center) uses the power of procurement and partnerships to create a transparent and equitable food system that prioritizes the health and well-being of people, animals, and the environment. We do this through the nationally-networked adoption and implementation of the Good Food Purchasing Program (the Program) by major institutions. 
 

Since its founding in 2015, the Center, along with its national and local partners, has enrolled 40 institutions in 17 major US cities, with a collective annual food spend of almost $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, and to measuring food purchasing practices through a metric-driven framework that encourages improvement over time.
 

Among other things, the Center manages the Program, working with institutions and the communities they serve, to establish supply chain transparency and shift towards a values-based purchasing model. Our approach to food system change emphasizes the use of data to verify commitments that enrolled institutions make to the five value categories, to empower institutions, and the communities they serve, with better information about their food supply chains, and to quantify impacts in terms of improvements to individual and community health, producer and food chain worker livelihoods, farm animal treatment, and the environment. 

The role:

We are seeking a highly motivated and adept leader with deep experience in harnessing the individual and collective purchasing power of major institutions to drive food system equity and improved conditions along the food supply chain. 

The Impact Team is the primary liaison with our institutional participants, working with them to develop implementation strategies to improve their Program performance within 1-5 years, and to identify opportunities for collective action regionally and nationally. The Director of Institutional Impact works in close coordination with the Center’s Director of Engagement to build and support a productive change-making ecosystem where coalitions and participants are aligned and coordinated.
 

Responsibilities

• Training & Technical Assistance

• • Host quarterly onboarding and training for enrolled institutions and vendors. 
  • Manage creation, implementation, and maintenance of T&TA; tools that assist institutions and their supply chain partners with action planning, incorporating Good Food Purchasing specifications into bids and solicitations, and overall procurement shift strategies to achieve Good Food Provider status within the Program. 
  • Connect issue area and value chain experts with  institutions to provide targeted individual technical assistance.
  • Work with the Director of Engagement to support alignment between institutional and community partners and priorities.
  • Work with Assessment & Analytics team and enrolled institutions to project potential improvements in Program score  to help inform action planning.  

• Peer-Learning 
  • Manage Good Food Purchasing Operators Affinity Group focused on maximizing collaboration and learning among food service operations from enrolled institutions.
  • Host quarterly calls and roundtables with Affinity group and subject experts to build knowledge and capacity and advance individual and collective procurement strategies to improve their Program scores.
  • Synthesize and communicate best practices from enrolled institutions. 
  • Facilitate place-based and sector-based peer-learning cohorts. 

• Value Chain Innovation

• • Develop and implement strategies to build relationships between good food suppliers and enrolled institutions.
  • Facilitate bi-annual virtual meetings for vendors serving enrolled institutions to share best practices, implementation strategies, and the innovative roles vendors can play to help institutions achieve Good Food Provider status.
  • Collaborate with partner organizations engaged in complementary initiatives to leverage knowledge, resources, and strategic opportunities. 
  • Identify and create opportunities to support public institutions in accessing additional resources to purchase Good Food. 

• Management

• • Build out Institutional Impact team, including staffing, recruitment, hiring, training, and mentoring of staff.
  • Manage project timelines, resource loading, and grant reporting across the Institutional Impact team.
  • Contribute content to the Center's communications team, including institutional impact and the Center’s public work. 
  • Contribute to the organization's overall strategic direction.

Required Qualifications

• Experience working within the food system on menu planning and procurement in schools and/or institutional food service 
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills and ability to explain complex concepts in a straightforward manner
• Proven track record working with a variety of partners on complex projects, including public sector officials (elected and administrative), community-based (grassroots) organizations, large non-profit organizations, and the private sector/industry
• Experience supervising a high performing team
• Detail-oriented with strong appreciation for the ways in which high quality data and analysis can be a powerful tool for social change
• Demonstrated commitment to and/or experience working in areas that contribute to social, environmental, racial and economic equity

• Collaborative team player who has an appreciation for diverse perspectives
• Ability to work independently and effectively in a fast-paced environment
• Experience managing multiple tasks and meeting deadlines
• Ability to work with a remote team, including regular access to phone, internet, and video conferencing
• Willingness and ability to travel
• Bachelor’s degree required

The Center for Good Food Purchasing is based in the Bay Area of California.This position is located in the Bay Area of California. Arrangements to work from another location within the US may be considered for highly qualified candidates. This position requires occasional travel. 
 

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in public policy, food and agriculture systems or a related field

Salary & Benefits:

The Director of Institutional Impact is a full-time, exempt position. The Center, a fiscally-sponsored project of Community Partners, also offers competitive benefits (i.e. medical/dental/vision, disability/life insurance, vacation, and a 403(b) plan with employer match after two years). 

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.