About Us

Reports to:                  Director, Communications   

Location:                     Palo Alto, CA 

Established in September 2000, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation seeks to advance environmental conservation, scientific research and patient care. The Moore Foundation is among the 10 largest foundations in the US and one of the largest private funders of environmental conservation and science in the world.  

The Moore Foundation is devoted to the inspirational vision articulated by our founders: “creating positive outcomes for future generations.” This vision guides our mission: to achieve significant, lasting, and measurable results in environmental conservation, patient care and science—globally and in the San Francisco Bay Area. A set of core values—impact, integrity, disciplined approach, and collaboration—directs our work.  

The Moore Foundation carries out its work through the following frameworks: 

Programs:  This is the enduring management unit designed to achieve transformational change in a selected field of interest through a portfolio of integrated interventions (initiatives, commitments, grants and other strategic actions).     

Initiatives:  Initiatives are built around well-developed strategies for concentrated investments, focused on the long-term and achieving significant impact. Initiatives are characterized by a portfolio approach to grantmaking, and other engagements of the Moore Foundation, to pursue ambitious, large-scale outcomes.   

Program grants: The Moore Foundation funds experimentation, focused innovation and agile response to time-sensitive, high-impact opportunities in its areas of focus.    

Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation 

• Headquartered in Palo Alto, CA 
• Over $5 billion in assets 
• Annual Foundation budget of ~$250 million 
• ~80 employees 
• Three program areas  
  • Environmental Conservation 
   
• Patient Care 
• Science 
• A San Francisco Bay Area Portfolio that focuses on these same issues locally 

For more information, please visit www.moore.org. 

The Communications Department supports the mission of the Moore Foundation by giving voice to the work of program staff members and grantees and fostering additional opportunities to create meaningful change. The department will include four full-time staff members.                    

 This communications officer position will be a part of the Communications Department. The majority of time associated with this position will be devoted to supporting the foundation’s new Patient Care Program, and a portion of this position will support foundation-wide communications activities. The Patient Care Program is focused on eliminating all preventable harms and unnecessary healthcare costs through meaningfully engaging patients and families in their own healthcare within a supportive healthcare delivery system.   

 The communications officer will:  

• Provide communications expertise and support to the Patient Care Program team  
• Develop communications strategies, in collaboration with Patient Care Program staff and the Communications Department 
• Create and execute against the tactics of an external communications strategy  
  • Craft and update messages for the Patient Care Program and connect them to foundation messages  
  • Develop multi-channel strategies for communicating key messages to stakeholders 
  • Create a toolkit to communicate the messages with tools including, talking points, FAQs, presentations, blogs posts, social media posting/activity, videos and other needs 
  • Develop and manage specific communications strategies around events, including speaking points, media relations, social media and other audience-engagement approaches 
  • Identify when additional support is needed (in the form of other communications staff members, contractors or external agencies) 
  • Edit articles, speeches and articles to ensure clarity and consistency of language 
   
• Develop communications strategies for the Betty Irene Moore Nursing Initiative and tools to address the following areas: 
  • Betty’s legacy: honoring and communicating her commitment and expressing the value of the work going forward 
  • Dissemination: supporting implementation toolkits, events and other means for spreading the lessons of the initiative  
  • Capacity building: communications segments of overall capacity building work for grantees 
  • Collateral needs: initiative one-pager, info sheets on projects and potential for infographics, video and others 
  • Exit: ongoing supporting messaging about the exit and wrapping up and merchandising the work 
   
• Support work for the overall foundation brand and include the Patient Care Program in that brand architecture and through the communications plan that brings that to life  
• Provide specific support for either internal communications efforts or social media strategies for the foundation overall  
• Ability to work at the strategic and tactical level and function as an expert team member who is flexible and responsive 
• Manage internal knowledge and communications for the team and within the Foundation: 
  • News and research coverage related to eliminating preventable harms and unnecessary healthcare costs 
  • Identify and implement tools to share knowledge within the team and across the foundation. 
   

Assist with board level presentations 

 The ideal candidate will have:  

• A bachelor’s degree in journalism, public relations, political science or a related field of study   
• At least eight years of public-interest communications experience including brand and communications planning, message development, speech writing/presentation development, training/facilitation, media relations, social media, event planning and other communications abilities  
• Experience in building knowledge management for a campaign, program or organization 
• Understanding of internal and external communications work  
• Deep experience with health care issues  
• Proven research skills  
• Demonstrated oral and written communications skills 
• Ability to use Word, PowerPoint, Excel and other such software  
• Understanding of communications industry and evolving trends  
• Demonstrated experience using communications for the public interest   

 The ideal candidate also will have:  

• Writing skills to employ in:   
  • Communications plans and messages  
  • Presentations and speeches  
  • Collateral materials, including reports, brochures or backgrounder documents  
  • News media materials, including advisories, releases and supporting documents  
  • Social media platforms  
  • Internal communications, including messages and basic office correspondence 
   
• Excellent presentation and facilitation skills   
• Project management background including:   
  • Workplan development and tracking  
  • Task and team-member management  
  • IT project direction and management (for online, database and other knowledge-management tools) 
   
• Problem-solving skills and solutions orientation  
• Start-up experience with an organization or program, because the Patient Care program is in an early state and is operating in a new field 
• Customer service competencies, including:   
  • Highly developed listening skills  
  • Responsiveness  
  • Supportive work  
   
• Ability to deliver high-quality deliverables  in tight timeframes 
• Demonstrated ability to work well in diverse teams  
• Respect for confidentiality  
• Willingness and ability to be nimble while working with an evolving program 
• A collaborative, enthusiastic, proactive and adaptable nature  

Compensation includes a competitive base salary and an excellent package of health, retirement savings and other benefits. 

Interested applicants should send a cover letter, resume and three writing samples (at least one writing sample should showcase strategic planning ability)by email to: 

jobs@moore.org.   

Please include Communications Officerin the subject line. 

The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation is an equal opportunity employer.  All correspondence will remain confidential.