Senior Director, Community Planning, Real Estate Strategy and Investment

About the Foundation

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), located in Princeton, N.J., is a leading national philanthropy dedicated to taking bold leaps to transform health in our lifetime. To get there, we must work to dismantle structural racism and other barriers to health. Since 1972, we have focused on developing and promoting innovations in health and healthcare to improve the lives of millions. Through funding, convening, advocacy, and evidence-building, we work side-by-side with communities, practitioners, and institutions to achieve health equity faster and pave the way, together, to a future where health is no longer a privilege, but a right.   

At RWJF, we work toward three Generational Goals to transform health in our lifetime: Economic Inclusion for Family Wellbeing, Equitable and Accountable Public Health and Healthcare Systems, and Healthy and Equitable Community Conditions.

We take seriously our responsibilities, and we pledge to work in ways that reflect our Guiding Principles. These are rooted in equity and influence everything we do at RWJF. Equity, diversity, inclusion, and collaboration enable our staff’s wide range of experiences, passions, and perspectives to strengthen our ability to address our nation’s most pressing health issues and support a culture of belonging. Part of this work includes actively shaping an inclusive organization where all staff members thrive as we build and use our capabilities, voice, and power to advance health equity. RWJF offers a collaborative, collegial, and creative work environment. With a career at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, you will make a difference.  

About this Opportunity

Reporting to the associate vice president (AVP) of Foundation Services with a dotted-line relationship to the chief operating officer (COO), the senior director, Community Planning, Real Estate Strategy and Investment, will serve as the Foundation’s internal lead for community planning and partnerships, real estate strategy, and future land and facility initiatives in Newark, New Jersey. As RWJF advances its role as a Health Equity Catalyst and community partner, this position will help ensure that its real estate and community investments align with the Foundation’s mission, values, and long-term commitments. This is a highly collaborative, externally focused leadership role requiring engagement with a broad range of community, civic, development, and organizational partners.

The senior director will serve as RWJF’s primary liaison between the initiative’s external partners and the Foundation’s leadership and governance structure, coordinating project resources and ensuring that complex real estate, development, financial, community, and organizational considerations are translated into clear, well-supported decisions to in choosing the site for the Foundation’s future headquarters. The New Jersey department, as it refines its programmatic strategies, will be a critical partner in developing RWJF’s approaches and aligning the initiative with community and program needs. Above all, the senior director will serve as a steward of RWJF’s mission-related, long-term interests, helping ensure that major project decisions are feasible, responsible, community-informed, and aligned with the Foundation’s values.

Working closely with the AVP of Foundation Services, COO, executive leadership, and Board of Trustees, the senior director will build alignment, reinforce priorities, and help guide critical decisions throughout the initiative. The senior director will also partner and collaborate across a diverse group of external partners, including owner's representative/project manager, communications and public affairs advisors, government relations and lobbying professionals, real estate brokers, legal and financial advisors, municipal and community partners, and potential development partners.

The senior director will lead coordination of the initiative with external project management partners. This role is largely externally focused and will work with the staff of the New Jersey department. The successful candidate will bring a strong background in real estate planning and development, community development and engagement, and demonstrated skill working with external and internal partners to develop real estate and other community agreements, while applying sufficient technical fluency to understand and challenge professional recommendations.

The senior director will understand RWJF’s strategic, operational, programmatic, and community requirements and translate them into clear priorities and effective execution. They will ensure that Foundation leadership receives the timely information, analysis, recommendations, and support needed to make well-informed decisions; that external partners and advisors have clear direction and organizational access; and that mission considerations remain central throughout the initiative. Success will include helping RWJF identify and secure a future site for the Foundation’s new headquarters—one that meets its long-term needs, earns community trust and support, and establishes the Foundation as a committed neighbor well before occupancy.

This is a full-time, benefits-eligible, three-year-term appointment with the option to extend to four years. Employment is anticipated to conclude at the end of the term unless extended based on organizational needs, funding, and approval.

As with staff at all levels of RWJF, the senior director is expected to demonstrate a passionate commitment to equity and to the Foundation’s mission and Guiding Principles.

Essential Job Responsibilities

Executive and Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as the lead for the real estate/facilities initiative.
• Work with the AVP of Foundation Services and the COO to develop and implement external engagement plans.
• Translate complex technical, financial, development, design, schedule, community, and project information into materials appropriate for executive and governance-level decisionmaking.
• Lead and coordinate project resources and external partners to develop decision-ready information, recommendations, and communications for executive and governance audiences.
• Facilitate partner engagement and alignment, ensuring leadership is prepared for key decisions, risks, opportunities, and sensitivities.
• Maintain clear communication regarding project progress, decisions, outstanding issues, and required actions.
• Support the AVP of Foundation Services and COO in building alignment around project objectives, priorities, governance processes, and major decisions.
• Coordinate advisors, project resources, and partner input to ensure information, analyses, recommendations, and materials are aligned, integrated, and decision-ready for executive and Board review.
• Synthesize real estate, financial, community, operational, and organizational considerations into clear options, risks, opportunities, and tradeoffs that enable effective leadership decisionmaking.

Owner’s Representative and Project Team Interface

• Under the direction of the AVP of Foundation Services, serve as the lead to work with the Foundation’s external owner’s representative/project manager.
• Clearly communicate RWJF’s priorities, decisions, concerns, and organizational requirements to the owner’s representative.
• Receive and review project reporting, recommendations, and decision materials developed by the owner’s representative and consultant team.
• Work with the owner’s representative to determine what information should be elevated to RWJF leadership and how it should be framed.
• Facilitate access to appropriate RWJF partners when project decisions require organizational input. 
• Challenge recommendations thoughtfully when appropriate, while empowering experienced external professionals to lead execution within their areas of responsibility.

Strategic Partnerships and Cross-Functional Leadership

• Serve as RWJF’s lead coordinator and primary point of integration across the initiative’s external advisors, project partners, community partners, and internal leadership, ensuring alignment around priorities, decisions, and strategic objectives. This work will include close collaboration with the New Jersey department.
• Coordinate and guide the work of the owner’s representative, community engagement partners, communications and public affairs advisors, government relations professionals, real estate advisors, legal and financial advisors, and other specialists, ensuring that recommendations, risks, opportunities, and decisions are brought forward in a clear and integrated manner.
• In partnership with the New Jersey department and other internal stakeholders, lead community and civic engagement related to the Foundation’s real estate strategy, site selection, and development, partnering closely with the external engagement team to steward Community Benefit Agreement (CBA) commitments from planning through implementation.
• Build and sustain strategic relationships with Newark anchor institutions, neighborhood and community organizations, philanthropic peers, municipal leaders, and other key areas to strengthen the partnerships, trust, and civic infrastructure necessary to advance the Foundation’s long-term community commitments.

Real Estate and Community Planning and Development Strategy

• Serve as an internal resource to RWJF leadership on real estate and development matters.
• Participate in evaluation of potential sites, development opportunities, ownership structures, partnerships, and transaction strategies.
• Help leadership understand the opportunities, risks, trade-offs, and long-term implications associated with real estate decisions.
• Bring sufficient real estate and development knowledge to critically assess information and recommendations provided by external advisors.
• Evaluate development risks and opportunities identified through due diligence and determine when issues require escalation or further investigation. 
• Support strategic relationships with developers, municipalities, public agencies, economic development organizations, institutional partners, and community partners.
• Develop a strong understanding of development activity, market dynamics, and partner relationships in Newark and other relevant New Jersey markets.

Minimum Requirements

• Commitment to racial and health equity and to the Foundation’s vision, values, and Guiding Principles.
• An exceptional communicator and organizational navigator first, supported by meaningful real estate and development experience.
• Comfortable in Board discussions, working sessions with technical advisors, conversations with public affairs or government relations professionals, and strategic discussions with brokers or developers. 
• Approximately 10+ years of progressively responsible experience in community engagement, economic and real estate, development, institutional facilities, major capital initiatives, or a related environment.
• Familiarity with New Jersey real estate and development, particularly Newark with RWJF’s expected presence there.
• Demonstrated portfolio of complex mixed-use facilities and infrastructure projects led or supported to meet program needs.
• Exceptional written, verbal, and presentation skills, with demonstrated ability to communicate complex subjects to executive and Board-level audiences.
• Significant experience working with senior executives, governing boards, steering committees, or other senior decisionmaking bodies.
• Strong facilitation, partner management, and consensus-building skills.
• Excellent judgment regarding what information matters, when decisions are required, and how issues should be framed for different audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to synthesize large amounts of technical and strategic information into clear conclusions, options, and recommendations.
• Sufficient knowledge of real estate development, design, construction, finance, and transactions to effectively represent an institutional owner and critically engage with professional advisors.
• Strong organizational awareness and an ability to navigate complex institutional dynamics with discretion and credibility.
• Ability to operate effectively amid ambiguity, evolving information, and long-term strategic decisions.
• Experience within a foundation, university, healthcare institution, nonprofit, corporation, or other organization with complex internal governance.
• Experience supporting Boards and executive leadership teams on significant capital or real estate initiatives.
• Experience navigating community opposition.
• Experience with public-private partnerships, municipal or state development processes, and community-oriented or mission-driven development. 
• Experience working with external owner representatives, project managers, architects, developers, brokers, and other professional advisors.
• Familiarity with brownfield redevelopment, environmental remediation, New Jersey incentive programs and/or complex and redevelopment development processes. Due diligence is beneficial.
• Ability to build trust quickly and work effectively in close partnership with experienced external advisors.
• Collaborative rather than hierarchical; comfortable sharing responsibility while maintaining clear accountability for RWJF’s internal decisions. 
• Communicate candidly, clearly and efficiently, including when issues are complex, evolving, or sensitive.
• Intellectually curious and comfortable testing assumptions, asking questions, and considering differing professional perspectives.
• Know when to engage deeply in an issue and when to empower the project team to execute.
• Confident without ego and able to build productive relationships across different disciplines, personalities, and working styles.
• Mission-driven and able to balance commercial, technical, and institutional realities without losing sight of RWJF’s broader purpose.
• Ability to travel to RWJF’s offices for relevant internal meetings and other in-person events, as requested, and to travel as needed for grantee meetings, conferences, site visits, and community events, up to 60%.

Candidates whose experience exceeds the minimum requirements will be given particular consideration for a higher placement within the salary range:

• Twelve (12) years of experience related to the required qualifications and proven experience with real estate site selection and contract negotiation.
• Fifteen (15) years of experience related to the required qualifications and proven experience with real estate site selection and contract negotiation.

Physical Requirements/Working Conditions

The managing director will perform job duties in a typical business office environment. Specific physical abilities required by this job include operating basic office equipment. The incumbent will be required to attend meetings, both in person and off-site via phone or videoconference. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions. RWJF is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Position’s Assigned Office Location

This position is assigned to our Princeton, N.J. office.

Hybrid: Flexible Purpose (HFP) Explained

As of January 1, 2023, the Foundation has implemented a model we call Hybrid: Flexible Purpose (HFP). RWJF’s new operating model is the infrastructure (e.g., policies, practices, protocols, procedures, systems) that forms the basis for how the day-to-day operations are managed, culture is built and nurtured, and mission is delivered. This model is designed to meet the needs of the organization while giving employees as much flexibility as possible. On-site participation is determined by job responsibilities, organizational and team-level requirements, and mandatory gatherings throughout the year. While there are no fixed days per week, all employees are expected to plan their time on-site and cover commuting expenses as needed to meet those expectations. Learn more about our operating model and in-office requirements.

Salary

The non-negotiable starting salary for this position is $185,600. Candidates who the Foundation determines have directly related experience exceeding the minimum requirements outlined above may be provided a higher starting salary of up to $204,160. All salary offers are non-negotiable.

Benefits

RWJF offers comprehensive health and retirement benefits to employees, generous paid time off, and more. Why work at RWJF? Learn more about the benefits of working at RWJF.

Transition Stipend

A transition stipend is provided to all new hires to aid in costs related to transitioning to a new job. 

How to Apply

• Applicants should submit a resume and required letter of interest by the stated deadline.
• Internal RWJF applicants should submit a resume and letter of interest through the Internal Jobs Hub app in Workday.

E-Verify and Employment Eligibility

RWJF participates in E‑Verify. Click here for more information.

Application Deadline

Monday, December 7, 2026, by 10 a.m. ET.