Director, Corporate Advisory

The Nature Conservancy•Arlington, TX

2d•Remote

About The Position

The Impact Finance & Markets Division at The Nature Conservancy provides technical and strategic leadership to create transformational impact with the private sector by translating the value of nature and conservation approaches into actionable, science-based strategies that can help solve societal challenges. The Corporate Engagement (CE) Team, one of three business units in the Impact Finance & Markets Division, works to increase the resilience of leading global companies by integrating nature and climate considerations into core business strategies, operations, and supply chains. The Director, Corporate Advisory leads the team of CE Advisors within Corporate Engagement. The team develops, implements, and coordinates corporate engagements that, by facilitating the integration of nature into business models, help drive private sector outcomes in support of the Conservancy’s conservation goals. The Director, Corporate Advisory role combines people and practice leadership, portfolio management, senior corporate advising, strategic account oversight, and execution of TNC’s Corporate Engagement strategy. As a key member of the CE Leadership Team, the Director reports to and serves as a trusted thought partner to the Managing Director, Corporate Engagement and works across TNC to translate corporate opportunities and conservation priorities into high-quality, mission-aligned engagements that advance TNC's 2030 Goals and beyond. This remote position may be based in North America, Central/ South America, or Europe in any country where TNC has an established office. Must be willing to overlap 5 working hours/day in the Eastern time zone. The Director, Corporate Advisory builds and leads a high-performing team and ensures the team consistently delivers outstanding corporate and TNC partner experiences in support of conservation outcomes. This team is responsible for developing and implementing strategies for engaging companies; for advising and relationship management of companies largely in the agri-food, beverage, consumer, retail, fisheries, water utility, and technology sectors; leading external and sector-specific engagement; and providing internal support to TNC conservation strategy teams. The Director leads oversight of delivery quality and the experience of corporate and internal TNC collaborators, partnering with other CE and TNC teams. This leadership role will create, implement, and manage the operational practices needed to deliver consistently across a complex portfolio of corporate engagements. The Director contributes to CE strategy and makes it executable through portfolio choices, talent management, strong cross-functional coordination, and continuous improvement of the operating model. The Director also serves as senior sponsor for selected corporate relationships and will work closely with members of the global Sustainable Food & Water team and other Business Units to advance the implementation of the Conservancy’s priorities. They will approach all work with a spirit of collaboration and respect for colleagues and partners across geographies, cultures, and subject matter expertise.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree and 7 years of related senior-level work experience, such as experience in consulting, corporate social responsibility, sustainability or related field.
Experience managing and supervising a large multi-disciplinary team and managing a program budget.
Experience leading a complex portfolio of projects, programs, or client engagements with responsibility for scope, schedule, budget, resources, risks, and quality.
Experience working in a large, complex environment, leading cross-functional initiatives while influencing stakeholders without direct authority.
Experience designing portfolio management practices, quality standards, and performance reporting.
Experience managing senior client or partner relationships and navigating sensitive or high-stakes issues.
Experience in planning and delivering budgetary responsibilities.
Excellent written, verbal, facilitation, and executive communication skills in English.
Experience communicating complex processes and ideas effectively to a variety of audiences within and outside an organization.

Nice To Haves

Multi-lingual skills and multi-cultural experience appreciated.
Significant experience in management consulting, business development, general management, , or investment banking, especially leading a team in client services.
Experience with corporate social responsibility or corporate sustainability.
Demonstrated success building engaged, resilient teams and improving organizational health during periods of growth or change.
Strong judgment, diplomacy, and political savvy; ability to navigate ambiguity and build trust across sectors, functions, geographies, and levels of seniority.
Outstanding analytical and project management capabilities.
Demonstrated ability to successfully develop and implement complex projects in an unstructured environment.
Outstanding written and oral communication, negotiating and organizational skills.
Independent and self-motivated with the ability to participate effectively in a remote team environment.

Responsibilities

Develop a high-performing team of 10-15 staff by setting clear expectations, coaching, performance management, training, and career development
Oversee corporate relationship management, ensuring clarity of roles, strong collaboration and information sharing, and consistent management process and partner experience
Design, implement, and continuously improve CE's portfolio management process for evaluating, prioritizing, sequencing, staffing, and reviewing prospective and active engagements
Lead portfolio and capacity reviews; oversee the project pipeline, portfolio budget, resource planning, and workload prioritization; identify, communicate, and resolve portfolio-level risks; manage escalations for complex engagements
Conceive, design, and direct collaborative, complex, and diversified projects, coordinating the work of other professionals, managing budget, and ensuring program accountability
Develop and administer budget, evaluate results and develop corrective strategies, as needed
Drive cross-team collaboration and coordination with other CE teams, Impact Finance and Markets Division, conservation programs, Regions, Development, Cause Marketing, and other TNC teams
Serve as senior advisor or sponsor for selected corporate relationships and represent CE in senior internal and external forums
Help shape CE strategy, annual priorities, and organizational evolution, and translate strategy into executable portfolio, talent, and management decisions
Ensure engagements comply with TNC policies, corporate engagement principles, legal requirements, financial standards, and risk-management processes