Foster an engaging and inclusive culture where employees feel a sense of belonging

The Good Food Institute is a nonprofit think tank working to make the global food system better for the planet, people, and animals. Alongside scientists, businesses, and policymakers, GFI’s teams focus on making plant-based, fermentation-enabled, and cultivated meat delicious, affordable, and accessible. Powered by philanthropy, GFI is an international network of organizations advancing alternative proteins as an essential solution needed to meet the world’s climate, global health, food security, and biodiversity goals.

How You Will Make a Difference

In this role, you will have the opportunity to emphasize a positive workplace culture aligned with GFI’s core values and mission, ensure employee engagement, and promote diversity, equity, and inclusion. The People and Culture Manager will be responsible for:

• Serving as a cultural steward and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) champion for GFI. Developing and executing strategies to foster a work environment where employees feel valued, engaged, motivated, and a sense of belonging.
• Leading the rollout of periodic employee surveys and the annual performance review process in Culture Amp in coordination with the People Operations Coordinator. Supporting the Director of People Operations to implement employee engagement survey action items.
• Providing internal training to employees and supervisors on various people and culture topics, emphasizing continuous learning, and preparing informational guides.
• Participating in GFI team events and affinity group meetings such as Happy Hour, Meditation Morning, Overall Well-Being League, Proud at GFI, and Culture Club.
• Leading GFI’s DEI Committee and overseeing implementation of prioritized action items from GFI’s recent external DEI audit. Facilitating bimonthly GFI-wide DEI discussions.
• Leading 1:1 professional development meetings with employees.
• Assisting the Director of People Operations by addressing initial, general employee relations and performance management inquiries and providing overall guidance to employees and supervisors.
• Developing and managing cross-departmental and cross-GFI entity staff mentorship opportunities in coordination with the Operations Coordinator, International Operations Coordinator, and GFI’s independent international affiliates.
• Researching and contributing external opportunities for employee training, development, and cultural awareness to the weekly CAT (Collaborative Assistance Team) newsletter.
• Partnering with other members of the People Operations team, including the Associate Director, People Operations, People Operations Coordinator, and Senior Talent Acquisition Manager, and providing back-up support when necessary.
• Performing other duties as assigned.

Who We’re Looking For

The People and Culture Manager must have:

• At least 5 years of related people and culture generalist or management experience.
• HR (SHRM-CP; SHRM-SCP; SPHR; PHR), DEI, and/or training certification are a plus.
• Prior people and culture experience supporting a primarily remote workforce within a multi-state employer is preferred.
• Demonstrated cultural competence and a proven ability to work effectively with individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds, showing sensitivity and respect for different perspectives, values, and customs.
• Excellent interpersonal, organizational, and project management skills.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to multitask.
• Prior experience developing and executing engaging employee and supervisor training programs.
• Previous experience leading DEI projects and key initiatives, as well as collaborating with other departments to ensure engagement in DEI practices. Experience creating and leading a DEI Committee or Council is a strong plus.
• Proven experience successfully handling employee relations and performance management issues.
• Extensive knowledge of federal, state, and local laws and regulations related to People Operations is preferred.
• Ability to handle confidential and sensitive information with discretion.
• Google Workspace experience is a plus (Docs, Meet, Sheets, Slides)
• A commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and to building an inclusive workplace where everyone feels like they belong.
• Comfort working remotely and in a rapidly growing and evolving organization.
• Strong support for GFI’s philosophy and mission; demonstrated interest in plant-based & other alt proteins, public health, environmentalism, climate change, animal protection, or hunger relief.
• A commitment to GFI’s values: believe change is possible, do the most good we can, share knowledge freely, act on evidence, and invite everyone to the table.

We want the best people and we don’t want biases holding us back. We use a third-party anonymizing tool to redact personal information from submitted applications — including name, location, contact details, and several other factors — to reduce bias and increase fairness in our process. We strongly encourage people of every race, color, orientation, age, gender, origin, and ability to apply. Since we value a diverse workplace, we prioritize an inclusive climate absent of discrimination and harassment during the application process and after you join the team.

Research indicates that men tend to apply for jobs when they meet just 60% of the criteria, while women and people from other marginalized groups only apply if they are a 100% match. If you are passionate about GFI’s mission and think you have what it takes to be successful in this role even if you don’t check all the boxes, please apply. We’d appreciate the opportunity to consider your application.

The Fine Print

• Terms of employment: Full-time, exempt
• Reports to: Lauren Wollin-Ramirez, Director of People Operations
• Location: Remote; United States
• Travel: Up to two weeks per year for organization retreats (reasonable accommodations and exemptions considered on a case-by-case basis).
• Benefits: Working from home, full medical coverage, optional dental and vision packages, a 401(k) plan with employer match, flexible holiday and paid time off plans, paid family and medical leave, generous lifestyle spending account, opportunity for advancement, and supportive managers and colleagues. For more information, please view: https://tinyurl.com/GFIBenefits.
• This is a U.S.-based position: In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire.
• COVID vaccination policy: GFI requires all US employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Proof of vaccination will be requested before the start of employment. GFI will consider requests for accommodations or exemptions from this policy on a case-by-case basis, in accordance with applicable laws. More information here: https://tinyurl.com/GFICovidPolicy.
• Salary: $83,012.54 - $86,688.16 (depending on experience and qualifications)

Application Deadline: February 23, 2024

Anticipated Start Date: April 1, 2024

Decided not to apply? If after reviewing this job description, you have decided not to apply, please let us know why by completing this short survey: https://tinyurl.com/GFIJobSurvey.

Interested in working at the Good Food Institute? Join us for the Career Opportunities Webinar to learn more about our work and ask questions about specific job opportunities! See upcoming webinar dates and more information at https://tinyurl.com/GFICareers.

Application Instructions

GFI uses an anonymized hiring system that redacts key identifying personal information from all applications. We are testing this tool as part of an effort to reduce bias in our hiring process. Following these instructions will help to ensure your application is not delayed by a failed redaction.

• Where possible, limit the creative formatting of your documents. If the name on your resume is an inserted image file or is styled with large spaces between each letter, for example, the redaction is likely to fail. Colors and designs are OK, but wherever possible, the text itself should just be regular text.
• Please use consistent names. It helps to ensure that the name you use in your resume and cover letter is the same as the name you type into the application below. For example, if your name is Jennifer, please sign your cover letter as “Jennifer” rather than “Jenny.”
• Submit PDF or .docx files only. Other file formats, like .txt, are likely to fail redaction.
• Please do not include personal identifying information in your responses to the application questions. Referencing past education, work experience, and mission-alignment is OK.
• Please do not contact the role’s supervisor or any potential member of the hiring team. If you have questions, please email [email protected].

Thank you for helping us to ensure that the redaction process works smoothly and to review your application as quickly as possible!