Strategy Officer, Foundation Strategy Office at Gates Foundation

The Foundation

We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. We believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve. We provide an exceptional benefits package to employees and their families which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with no premiums, generous paid time off, paid family leave, foundation-paid retirement contribution, regional holidays, and opportunities to engage in several employee communities. As a workplace, we’re committed to creating an environment for you to thrive both personally and professionally.

The Team

Application Deadline: June 7, 2026, at 11:59pm Pacific Time

Your Role

We are seeking to hire a Strategy Officer to lead high-impact projects in collaboration with senior program leadership while managing a project team including 1-2 associates from the Foundation Strategy Office (FSO). Potential projects span strategy development and implementation planning for current foundation programs as well as cross-foundation efforts and exploration of new areas. You will provide thought partnership, project management, and analytical support to clients across the foundation.

What You’ll Do

• Scope and design the overall strategy development process.
• Lead strategy development as the primary accountable party for one or more workstreams.
• Employ strategic resources to develop and assess options, apply sound reasoning, and challenge assumptions.
• Consult closely with internal clients to co-develop and evaluate strategy concepts and facilitate change management.
• Engage partners using a client-focused skillset of effective communication and relationship management.
• Support the implementation of creative solutions to guide group processes (e.g., managing conflict and encouraging alignment).
• Contribute to the identification and implementation of research and analytical work to support resolution-making, including statistical analyses and collaborating with third parties to develop analytical methodologies.
• Provide project management, problem-solving support, and initiative leadership on cross-foundational strategy projects.
• Regularly contribute to team developing “extra 10s” such as team vision and goal refinement, professional development, training, recruiting, onboarding, team social events and retreats, etc.
  

Representative Project Examples

• End-to-end support in scoping, developing, and launching new foundation strategies. Past examples include Global Education and Gender Equality.
• End-to-end support to programmatic Directors and their leadership teams as they revise foundation strategies (“strategy refreshes”). Past examples include Malaria, Family Planning, MNCH, Nutrition, Philanthropic Partnerships, K-12 Education, Women’s Economic Empowerment, and others.
• Spearheading cross-cutting strategy initiatives sponsored by the foundation’s Executive Leadership Team. Examples include a) Defining a strategy taxonomy to enable consistent development and articulation of strategy across program teams, and b) Facilitating cross-team exploration of new technological tools (Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning) on development topics.

Reports to: Deputy Director, Strategy. On a project-by-project basis, you will support other Strategy Team members (Directors, Deputy Directors, and Senior Strategy Officers)

Your Experience

We are looking for team members who enjoy working on complex problems and collaboratively crafting strategies that have the potential to transform the lives of people around the world. Candidates must be good teammates who are excited to work across a diverse set of fields and issue areas.

Additional knowledge and skills desired include:

• Ability to learn new content quickly, identify connections and second-order implications, and demonstrate proficiency with internal/external teams.
• A broad understanding of global health / development issues and some global health / development experience is desired.
• Demonstrated strength in structured problem solving and strategic business planning, with the ability to easily identify and communicate frameworks to facilitate strategy creation and analysis of core issues.
• Deep knowledge of strategy development and end-to-end complex project management (including process design, team structure, critical thinking requirements, development of novel communication resources and external/senior stakeholder engagement).
• Experience with strategy implementation, measurement, review, and refinement.
• Ability to work in a self-guided manner, care for multiple priorities and meet demanding timelines.
• Ability to question and challenge colleagues including managers and partners in constructive manner.
• Comfort with highly unstructured and ambiguous situations; ability to proactively resolve.
• Excellent organizational, facilitation, oral, and written communication skills. Ability to work effectively and with sensitivity across barriers such as language, culture, and distance.
• Excellent software skills with Microsoft Office applications, including a demonstrated ability to convey complex information using supporting tables, graphs, and other visual representations.
• Minimum of five years’ experience, with at least three years within strategic planning functions leading projects at a top-tier strategy consulting firm.
• MBA or other advanced degree in a relevant field such as Business, Engineering, or Sciences desired.
• Ability to travel up to 20% domestically and internationally.
• This role is based in Seattle, WA. Relocation will be provided.

*Must have unrestricted work authorization in the country where this position is located. The foundation does not provide immigration-related sponsorship for this role, including direct company sponsorship and any work authorization requiring a written submission or other immigration support from the company (e.g., H-1B, O-1, L-1, E, OPT, STEM-OPT, CPT, TN, J-1, etc.).

The salary range for this role is $173,000 to $259,600 USD. We recognize high-wage market differences where our offices are located, in Seattle and Washington D.C. The range for this role in these locations is $190,300 to $285,500 USD. As a mission-driven organization, we strive to balance competitive pay with our mission, and new hires are typically brought into the organization at a salary between the range minimum and the midpoint. Actual placement in the range will depend on a candidate’s job-related skills, experience, and expertise, as evaluated during the interview process.

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Hiring Requirements

As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment will be contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

Candidate Accommodations

We’re committed to providing an inclusive and accessible hiring experience for all candidates. If you have a disability or medical condition and need an accommodation at any stage of the application or interview process—such as an ASL interpreter, alternative interview format, or physical accessibility support—we’re happy to help. Please contact HR@gatesfoundation.org with the position number and a brief description of your accommodation needs. Requests will be handled confidentially.

Inclusion Statement

We are dedicated to the belief that all lives have equal value. We strive for a global and cultural workplace that supports ever greater diversity, equity, and inclusion — of voices, ideas, and approaches — and we support this diversity through all our employment practices.

All applicants and employees who are drawn to serve our mission will enjoy equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to race, color, age, religion, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and prior protected activity.