Chief of Staff to the CEO

Mozilla

2d•$264,000 - $296,999•Remote

About The Position

Mozilla Foundation is hiring a newly created Chief of Staff role to extend the CEO’s reach inside the organization and enable the CEO to focus outward on the Board, funders, partners, and public conversations shaping the Foundation’s next chapter. Reporting directly to the CEO, the Chief of Staff serves as the CEO’s strategic partner, internal proxy, and trusted extension of leadership. The role holds the CEO’s strategic agenda, translates priorities into organizational alignment, represents the CEO internally where needed, and makes decisions on the CEO’s behalf within clearly delegated authority. It determines what reaches the CEO, prepares the CEO for consequential moments, and escalates matters requiring the CEO’s judgment. As a member of the Executive Leadership Team, the Chief of Staff partners strategically with other ELT members and works closely with the CEO’s Executive Program Manager to keep the CEO’s time, priorities, and commitments aligned and moving. The role also partners with the Foundation’s Investment Committee and its technical and strategic advisors, helping focus their work on the right questions, align recommendations with the Foundation’s strategic priorities, and move decisions efficiently from evaluation to funding. The role is one of influence, enabling the CEO to lead effectively through the Executive Leadership Team. It does not manage the ELT, run Foundation operations, make decisions beyond the authority delegated by the CEO, have direct reports, or manage the CEO’s calendar, scheduling, or administrative support. The position requires significant executive-level strategic partnership experience, exceptional judgment and discretion, and the ability to influence across functions without formal authority. It also requires working across time zones and occasionally outside standard hours, as well as travel for Board meetings, leadership gatherings, and major events. Mozilla Foundation is a nonprofit building a better technology future and delivering people-first alternatives to extractive systems. The Foundation is committed to building an open, accessible, and trustworthy internet. The position’s starting salary ranges vary by location: Germany €206,448.00–€232,253.22; UK £181,764.00–£204,483.81; Canada $356,400.00–$400,948.65; and US $264,000.00–$296,999.00.

Requirements

Significant, verifiable experience as a strategic partner at CEO or executive-team level, with a track record of leading high-stakes work and turning ambiguity into structure and action.
A proven record of driving complex, cross-functional priorities from idea to execution by defining outcomes, ownership, milestones, and decision points.
Exceptional judgment and discretion, including the ability to handle confidential information and navigate complex executive dynamics with integrity.
Demonstrated ability to influence without formal authority, build trust across functions and at senior levels, and give direct feedback with care.
Outstanding written and verbal communication, including experience distilling complex information into decision-ready briefs, recommendations, presentations, and executive communications.
Strong analytical and strategic problem-solving skills, including framing questions, gathering information, testing assumptions, and recommending practical paths forward.
Disciplined prioritization and agility to move between long-term priorities and time-sensitive issues without losing the thread.
Direct experience supporting Board governance, fundraising, or other high-stakes external relationships at an executive level.
A track record of doing high-impact work out of the spotlight, measuring success by the CEO’s and team’s success, and acting in the best interests of the CEO and organization.
Demonstrated commitment to Mozilla Foundation’s mission and to building an open, accessible, and trustworthy internet.
Ability to work across time zones and occasionally outside standard working hours for Board meetings, major events, or urgent organizational needs.
Comfort with travel for Board meetings, leadership gatherings, and major events.

Nice To Haves

Experience working across multiple legal entities, navigating differences, building influence, and coordinating work across entities where relevant.
Senior roles in nonprofit, philanthropic, technology, or public-interest organizations.
Experience supporting or advising investment, grantmaking, or funding committees.

Responsibilities

Build a strong working partnership with the CEO, align on priorities and ways of working, and define the scope of delegated authority.
Establish trusted partnerships with Executive Leadership Team members and develop an understanding of their priorities, pressures, and ways of working.
Develop a deep, cross-functional understanding of the Foundation’s work and how its functions connect to the CEO’s priorities.
Translate CEO priorities into clear strategic outcomes and maintain a current view of changes and approaching decisions.
Determine which issues require the CEO’s attention and ensure they are presented with context, options, and recommendations.
Get up to speed with the Investment Committee and its advisors and help keep their focus on the right questions so decisions move efficiently from evaluation to funding.
Serve as the CEO’s thought partner in developing, pressure-testing, and refining strategic priorities, anticipating what will need to be known or decided in the next 30, 60, and 90 days.
Direct the CEO’s time toward strategy, external relationships, development, Board leadership, and the Foundation’s highest-consequence decisions.
Filter and escalate significant strategic shifts, material risks, major budget decisions, and Board-level matters early and with decision-ready context.
Track the CEO’s top priorities, identify work drifting from strategic intent, and surface conflicts in priorities, resources, or attention before they become emergencies.
Enable the Executive Leadership Team to operate as one team around the CEO’s priorities, ensuring issues reach the right level and decisions and commitments are followed through.
Partner with ELT members on cross-functional issues needing CEO-level alignment but not the CEO’s direct involvement.
Represent the CEO’s position in internal discussions and make decisions on the CEO’s behalf within delegated authority; return matters outside that authority to the CEO promptly.
Prepare the CEO for Board meetings, funder and partner conversations, speeches, and public engagements with concise briefings, organizational context, and likely questions and answers.
Identify external opportunities warranting the CEO’s attention and ensure externally made commitments receive clear internal follow-through.
Steward alignment between the Investment Committee’s work and the Foundation’s strategy, focus its advisors on the right questions, surface gaps, risks, and competing views, and bring matters requiring the CEO’s judgment forward.
Document decisions and the reasoning behind them, favor shared channels over side conversations where appropriate, and ensure decisions and commitments are seen through.