Princeton, NJ

The Organization
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is the nation’s largest philanthropy dedicated to addressing the nation’s most complex health and health care issues. For more than 40 years RWJF has worked to address the problems that affect the health and health care of everyone in America. RWJF has taken bold steps to launch a vision to build a national Culture of Health with the goal to raise the health of everyone in our diverse society to the level that our great nation deserves, by placing well-being at the center of every aspect of life. This effort will take unprecedented collaboration and it is only through meaningful partnerships that a movement for better health will be realized to bring about the important change we all seek today and for generations to come.Creating a society that gives every person an equal opportunity to live the healthiest life they can—whatever their ethnic, geographic, racial, socioeconomic, or physical circumstance happens to be—is at the core of RWJF’s initiative to build a Culture of Health. RWJF is partnering with communities, policymakers, businesses, and others willing to find ways to identify, test and refine innovative solutions to one of the most pressing issues of our time. This requires calls for action within and across sectors—because progress in one area will advance progress in another. RWJF believes that America is at a transformational moment in health. If all the distinct issues across society that impact health can be connected through collaboration, the collective power can be harnessed to truly build a Culture of Health.

Position Overview
Reporting to the managing director of Healthy Communities, the senior program officer (SPO) will be focused on the Foundation’s efforts to create the conditions that allow communities and their residents to reach their greatest health potential. These initiatives focus on how local data, financing and policy and practice changes, coupled with multi-sector community leadership, can change community environments in ways that make it easier for people to be healthier.The SPO will play a critical role in Healthy Communities’ work to bring together and align the efforts of multi-sector stakeholders engaged in community transformation to improve health ranging from change agents in planning, transportation and community development to healthcare, the arts, the environment and education. Drawing upon experience in community change initiatives, with an on-the-ground as well as systems-level perspective of the successes and challenges associated these endeavors, the new SPO will provide intellectual and organizational leadership in designing and implementing new and on-going initiatives, evaluating proposals, monitoring programs and grants, learning from program investments and activities, and creating impact through dissemination of knowledge.With a passion for engaging program staff through coaching, mentoring, and targeted learning opportunities, the successful candidate will be results-driven and is expected to hold an advanced degree (e.g. MBA, MA, MPH, MJ, MPP, JD) and 6+ years of relevant experience; terminal degree or equivalent experience preferred. A combination of education and experience may be substituted for the education requirements. The ideal candidate possesses extensive experience (7-10 years) plus proven leadership potential and will be recognized in a field for a specific area of knowledge related to community change, including experience in one or more of the current focus areas of the Healthy Communities’ work: shifting mindsets and expectations toward a broad definition of health; data for community action; policies and practices that promote health equity; and financing for healthier communities.A strategic thinker, s/he will have excellent organizational and interpersonal skills and will take a thoughtful approach to collaboration and community and partner engagement. Impeccable verbal and written communication skills are required with the interest and competence to interact with a constituency of individuals from broad and diverse backgrounds, including internal leadership, and external partners and high-level stakeholders, on a range of complex issues.