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About the Role

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research is seeking a Senior Grant Operations Specialist to support its grantmaking activities. This role serves as the operational project lead for pre-award funding opportunities and manages grantmaking project management aligned with the Foundation's mission. The position coordinates the planning, execution, and improvement of pre-award grantmaking activities, ensuring a high-quality applicant and reviewer experience.

Responsibilities

Coordinate operational planning and execution for assigned funding opportunities, including RFAs, RFPs, and targeted funding opportunities.
Develop and maintain comprehensive project plans, track timelines and dependencies, escalate risks, and ensure milestone completion.
Coordinate all operational aspects of the pre-award lifecycle, including application launch and intake, scientific review, and funding recommendation activities.
Develop and/or maintain comprehensive documentation, standard operating procedures (SOPs), templates, checklists, and operational resources.
Partner with scientific staff to operationalize funding strategies into executable operational plans and grantmaking workflows.
Serve as a primary operational point of contact for applicants, reviewers, advisors, and other external stakeholders.
Apply established processes and service models consistently while identifying opportunities to improve efficiency, quality, and user experience.
Coordinate cross-functional teams throughout the pre-award grantmaking process, ensuring alignment across scientific, finance, technology, communications, and grants operations functions.
Coordinate reviewer recruitment, conflict of interest management, meeting logistics & materials, scoring workflows, communications, and post-review documentation.
Ensure a consistent, responsive, and high-quality applicant and reviewer experience.
Track operational metrics related to funding opportunities.
Participate in annual operational planning activities by contributing lessons learned and recommendations for improving future funding cycles.
Support implementation and optimization of grants management systems and other operational technologies.
Develop and maintain a strong working knowledge of the Foundation's Strategic Research Agenda, grantmaking priorities, funding mechanisms, operational policies, and grants management system.
Provide backup operational support during high-volume funding cycles and/or short-term absences.
Facilitate onboarding and training related to grants operations processes, systems, and best practices.
Participate in Foundation-wide initiatives, committees, and/or cross-functional operational projects as appropriate.

Requirements

Relevant experience serving as a project manager or operational lead for complex funding programs, scientific review processes, or comparable cross-functional initiatives.
Experience coordinating RFAs, RFPs, grant competitions, peer review, scientific review meetings, or similar funding processes.
Demonstrated experience applying project management methodologies to organize work, manage timelines, mitigate risks, and deliver high-quality outcomes.
Excellent organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple concurrent funding opportunities and competing priorities while maintaining exceptional attention to detail.
Strong communication, meeting facilitation, and relationship management skills.
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
Ability to work independently, exercise sound judgment, and adapt effectively in a dynamic, fast-paced grantmaking environment.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, grants management systems (SmartSimple preferred), project management tools, and related technologies.

Skills

Project Management
Cross-functional Coordination
Grantmaking Operations
RFA/RFP Coordination
Scientific Review Process Management
Documentation
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
Workflow Optimization
Stakeholder Engagement
Communication
Meeting Facilitation
Relationship Management
Analytical Skills
Problem-Solving
Microsoft Office Suite
Grants Management Systems (SmartSimple preferred)
Project Management Tools

Location

New York City, NY

Work Type

Hybrid-Flex
Full-Time

Experience Level

Senior

Salary/Compensations

$95,000—$110,000 USD

Benefits

15+ options for medical insurance (Foundation pays 90% of premiums)
Competitive dental and vision plans
401(k) plan with 6% employer contribution
Flexible spending accounts
Employer-paid life and disability insurance
18 Vacation Days
12 Well-Being (Sick) Days
2 Personal Days
Summer Fridays (office closure at 2pm)
Summer holiday week over July 4th
Discretionary bonus on an annual basis
Staff and leadership cultivation through regular training courses and events

About the Company

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research was founded in 2000 with the objective of accelerating therapeutic advances and finding a cure for Parkinson’s disease.
The Foundation applies scientific, business, and media assets to this focus, creating a unique and dynamic organization.
MJFF is the largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson’s disease research, having funded over $2 billion in research projects worldwide.

Equal Opportunity

Research has shown that people from marginalized communities apply to roles only when they meet 100% of the job requirements. If you think that your skills are transferable and can add value to this role, and you are someone who will contribute to our efforts to build and support a diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce, we strongly encourage you to apply.