Managing Director, Global Catastrophic Risks

About Open Philanthropy

Open Philanthropy is a philanthropic funder and advisor. Our mission is to help others as much as we can with the resources available to us. We stress openness to many possibilities and have chosen our focus areas based on importance, neglectedness, and tractability. 

Our current giving areas are split across Global Catastrophic Risks (potential risks from advanced artificial intelligence, biosecurity and pandemic preparedness) and Global Health and Wellbeing (e.g., scientific research, global public health policy, and farm animal welfare). In 2023, we recommended just under $800 million to high-impact causes, and we’ve recommended over $3 billion in grants since our formation.

About the Role

Open Philanthropy is looking for an experienced leader to manage our Global Catastrophic Risks (GCR) portfolio. As our Managing Director, Global Catastrophic Risks, you will have the unique opportunity to lead a rapidly-growing portfolio that directs several hundred million dollars annually towards high-impact strategies that address some of the most pressing threats facing humanity. You will manage our exceptional and growing GCR program staff, and work to build the world-class organization required to deliver on our ambitious goals. 

You will work closely with CEO Alexander Berger, to whom this role reports, and collaborate with other senior leaders who oversee Global Health and Wellbeing, operations, communications, and partnerships. 

Our GCR work focuses on addressing potentially catastrophic risks that humanity may face in the coming years, particularly from advanced artificial intelligence and biological threats. We believe we’re at a critical juncture where technological development is accelerating rapidly, creating both tremendous opportunities and serious risks that require careful navigation.

Our decade of grantmaking in these areas, as well as our relationships with key institutions and experts, puts us in a unique position to help shape how society approaches these challenges. 

We are looking for an exceptional leader who can build on this foundation to significantly increase our impact at a critical time in humanity’s history. The role will focus primarily on our work addressing potential risks from advanced AI and natural and bioengineered pandemics. Depending on the leading candidate’s background and preferences, we are open to structuring the role (and title) to focus exclusively on our AI work. 

Key Responsibilities

You will:

• Serve as a senior member of the leadership team: Work with Alexander and the other Managing Directors to help set Open Phil’s strategic direction and serve as a cultural and intellectual leader of the organization.

• Lead our GCR strategy: Develop and implement a strategy for our GCR giving, in close collaboration with Alexander. Guide the GCR team’s work across our AI and biosecurity portfolios and identify opportunities for strategically scaling our grantmaking, including potentially by starting new programs. You will have final responsibility for approving the majority of GCR grant recommendations. 

• Manage the GCR team: Oversee and support the growing GCR program staff (currently about 45 team members), directly managing the program directors and fostering a culture of excellence and impact. 

• Develop and scale GCR communications efforts and partnerships with other donors: Collaborate with the senior leadership team and the GCR team leads to build and utilize our communications and partnerships functions, deepening strategic relationships with key stakeholders and expanding our network of partners. 

• Exemplify and champion Open Phil’s culture and operating values: You will work with the senior leadership team to help maintain — and personally model — the core cultural principles of Open Phil as we grow. 

• Oversee our GCR cause prioritization and evaluation functions: Manage the rigorous analysis and assessment of our GCR portfolio to ensure that we maximize the impact of our grantmaking. 

• Ensure accountability to the board: Support Alexander in engaging with our board.

Who might be a good fit:

You might be a good fit for this work if you: 

• Are deeply aligned with our commitment to reducing global catastrophic risks, and you bring relevant expertise and relationships.

  • You are highly motivated by our mission, especially our work on reducing potential risks from advanced AI and biosecurity and pandemic preparedness. 

  • You have relevant knowledge and relationships in one or more of these fields.

• Bring exceptional management and leadership experience.

  • You have a proven track record of leading teams to deliver outstanding results, and excel in fostering a supportive, high-performing environment. You know how to identify the qualities that make people top performers and reliably cultivate those qualities across a team. Ideally, you bring experience managing other managers. 

• Demonstrate intellectual rigor and outstanding analytic abilities.

  • You understand complex arguments, can rigorously assess cost-effectiveness, have experience resolving difficult strategic questions, and can get quickly up to speed in applying that skillset for evaluating grants. 

• Drive results to maximize our output while displaying nuanced judgment and managing risks appropriately.

  • You are driven to meet or exceed our ambitious goals and move quickly when needed, while making measured decisions that build trust across the organization. 

• Bring excellent interpersonal skills.

  • You are capable of building trusting and collaborative relationships with your team, as well as with peers on the leadership team, with Alexander and our board, and with external partners.

Role details & benefits

• Compensation: The baseline compensation for this role is $453,068.02, which would be distributed as a base salary of $430,068.02 and an unconditional 401(k) grant of $23,000 for U.S. hires. 

  • This assumes a location in the San Francisco Bay Area; compensation would be lower for candidates based in other locations. 

• Time zones and location: While we have a preference for candidates in the Bay Area, we are a remote-friendly organization and are open to candidates from anywhere in the US. We are also open to hires outside the US, provided they would consistently work at least 5 hours overlapping with California hours per work day. 

  • We are happy to consider sponsoring U.S. work authorization. However, we don’t control who is and isn’t eligible for a visa and can’t guarantee visa approval.

  • We’ll support relocation costs for candidates not already based in the Bay Area. 

• Benefits: Our benefits package includes: 

  • Excellent health insurance (we cover 100% of premiums within the U.S. for you and any eligible dependents) and an employer-funded Health Reimbursement Arrangement for certain other personal health expenses.

  • Dental, vision, and life insurance for you and your family.

  • Four weeks of PTO recommended per year. 

  • Four months of fully paid family leave.

  • A generous and flexible expense policy — we encourage staff to expense the ergonomic equipment, software, and other services that they need to stay healthy and productive. 

  • A continual learning policy that encourages staff to spend time on professional development with related expenses covered. 

  • Support for remote work — we’ll cover a remote workspace outside your home if you need one, or connect you with an Open Phil coworking hub in your city.

  • Note: U.S.-based program staff are typically employed by Open Philanthropy Project LLC, which is not a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. As such, this role is unlikely to be eligible for public service loan forgiveness programs.

• Start date: We’d like a candidate to start as soon as possible after receiving an offer, and are aiming to approach this search expeditiously. 

We aim to employ people with many different experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds who share our passion for accomplishing as much good as we can. We are committed to creating an environment where all employees have the opportunity to succeed, and we do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected status.

If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, or have any other questions about applying, please contact jobs@openphilanthropy.org.

Please apply by 11:59 pm (Pacific Time) on Sunday, December 1st to be considered.