Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer

Post Date
3/23/2023
Job Location
1333 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Washington, District of Columbia
Human Capital Consultants, LLC (HCC) has been exclusively retained by Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (“PCORI”) to conduct a search for a Chief Diversion, Equity & Inclusion Officer. PCORI is an equal opportunity employer. Interested candidates send resumes to: Milton Hall at [email protected] or Tiffany Stewart at [email protected].
Please do not contact PCORI directly; all resumes sent to PCORI will be routed to HCC for handling and will create delays.
About Us
The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) is an independent nonprofit organization authorized by Congress in 2010. Its mission is to fund research that will provide patients, their caregivers, and the broader healthcare community with the evidence-based information needed to make better-informed healthcare decisions. PCORI is committed to continually seeking input from a broad range of stakeholders to guide its work.
Position Summary
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are an essential part of PCORI's core organizational commitment and mission. PCORI recognizes that DEI is about the experience and culture an organization builds for itself. Our DEI efforts stretch across the entire organization, from developing our programs, to recruiting our workforce and cultivating organizational relationships.
This position reports to the Deputy Executive Director for Strategy and Planning, which is a component of the Executive Office. The person in this role will work with PCORI staff at all levels, to lead, train, support and implement strategies and procedures that foster a positive and inclusive work environment for everyone, ensure that diversity, equity and inclusion considerations remain widely reflected within each of PCORI’s core roles, and support any organizational change as needed. These roles include PCORI as a research funder, a convener of and partner with the health and healthcare community, and an employer. Summarized below are the core duties and responsibilities for this position. Note that this is not an exhaustive list and other duties may be assigned by the Deputy Executive Director for Strategy and Planning.
Duties And Responsibilities
Leadership and Strategy:

• Partner with senior leadership to develop realistic and aspirational goals, execution plans, and performance measures for implementing PCORI’s DEI strategy and advancing PCORI’s DEI values.
• Refine the design of PCORI’s overall DEI strategy building on current strengths and ensuring its alignment with and integration into PCORI’s Strategic Plans and priorities.
• Provide leadership and support to internal groups such as the DEI Steering Committee and affinity groups/employee resource groups.
• Lead and coordinate PCORI’s DEI efforts, focusing on organization culture, practices, and organizational systems, spanning from talent management to programmatic support and partner with leaders across PCORI to foster and integrate DEI across all levels of the organization, consistent with best practices and applicable laws.
• Partner with Chiefs in Patient-Centered Research Programs to lead the DEI support of PCORI’s strategic goals in health equity and research, as well as PCORI’s diversity work to assist efforts to positively impact the communities we serve.

Program Execution/Implementation:

• Partner with the Chief People Officer to integrate DEI into all of PCORI’s people strategy and plans, particularly in workforce recruitment, hiring, onboarding, retention, managing, and professional development.
• Operationalize PCORI’s DEI strategy with rigorous and measurable plans to center and integrate DEI across all levels and functions of PCORI. Serve as a subject matter expert in using policy and procedures to promote and implement DEI practices.
• Partner with and support ongoing communications to drive design and delivery of inclusive messaging to key stakeholders.
• Develop organizational DEI performance metrics to monitor progress and manage cross-functional deliverables, timelines, and budgets in concert with division-level goals and attention to efforts supporting enterprise risk management principles.
• Partner closely with senior leadership of every department at PCORI to develop and implement a specific DEI plan for their department. Plans would include realistic metrics along with leadership support and guidance that align with the objectives and priorities of each functional area to drive the greatest impact in our work and with the stakeholders we serve.
• Work with the Office of General Counsel on the review, development, and implementation of DEI strategy and initiatives to support compliance with applicable laws.
• Facilitate cross-departmental collaboration and forums through which staff members can have authentic conversations, strategize around DEI issues and share their thoughts, hopes and concerns with the organization.
• Develop, grow, and lead the PCORI Employee Resource Group (ERG) Program, including ongoing support of the current ERGs and development and launch of new ERGs.
• Work diagonally across the organization in a matrix fashion to integrate all DEI efforts and to serve as subject matter expert to provide advice that embeds DEI perspectives into all initiatives, policies, processes, and projects.

Learning and Development:

• Collaborate with the People Strategy and Services team to assess and report on data collected regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion aspirational goals as well as recruitment, hiring, and attrition trends.
• Serve as a coach and counselor to the PCORI board, senior leaders, and managers with current DEI best practices, to build the will, skill, and alignment for organizational change.
• Partner with the Employee Experience and Culture team within the People Strategy and Services division to develop and deliver training for staff to promote, build capacity, and enhance ownership and commitment to DEI initiatives.
• Regularly conduct organization-wide assessments of current DEI strategies, programs, and policies to inform understanding about the existing operating environment and level of support and engagement for diversity, equity, and inclusion, and the degree of change management that may be required to further embed DEI into the organization and its programming.
• Establish and track key success factors and competencies. Work with senior leadership to ensure accountability for building strong DEI competencies. Serve as point of contact on related industry benchmark data, surveys, and various DEI data reporting or related inquiries.

Representation and Stakeholder Engagement:

• Successfully communicate with internal and external stakeholders to serve as an internal and external ambassador for PCORI’s DEI principles and practices and to convey clear messages, promote transparency, and actively disseminate relevant activities and learnings.
• Build and maintain a network of partnerships with DEI leaders and organizations to inform PCORI’s work and priorities. Proactively build and maintain community partnerships and manage the seamless integration of equity initiatives among our partners and staff as appropriate.
• Provide regular reports on or overviews of DEI activities and progress across the organization, including all staff, leadership, and board meetings.
• Provide leadership in the nonprofit sector and represent PCORI with external partners, including for the purpose of highlighting PCORI’s accomplishments in its DEI goals and broader areas relevant to the health research and health system domains. Identify partnerships and strategic alliances that add value and leverage resources available to support PCORI’s DEI goals.

Incumbent(s) in this position may be required to perform other duties and special assignments not specifically stated above.
Statements outlined in this section are designated as essential job functions in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Required Skills

• DEI expertise required.
• An established leader able to design and implement PCORI’s DEI objectives consistent with best practices and aligned with or surpassing relevant industry benchmarks.
• Experience using diverse evaluative and analytic strategies to monitor progress of DEI goals, extract lessons learned from program experiences, and evolve programs through data-driven approaches and decision-making.
• Must have knowledge and experience in cultural competency skills development, allyship, and implementing DEI programs, trainings, and resources, including successfully initiating and leading uncomfortable and challenging conversations or managing crises with integrity and sensitivity, so as tomodel approaches and build bridges.
• Record of working with a broad array of stakeholders and of building relationships and networks across groups to promote rich and diverse input on priorities and potential pathways through which to address them.
• Network and gravitas within the field to support dissemination of PCORI’s accomplishments and learnings.

Leadership & Management:

• Prior experience operating successfully in a highly integrated and fast-paced organization with ability to advance goals through cross-functional matrix teams.
• A track record of leading, collaborating, and advising senior leaders and staff across multi-functional domains to implement DEI strategy through influence and indirect management, as well as successfully managing a high-functioning team of direct reports.

Culture & Capacity-Building:

• Successfully foster and model a positive and inclusive environment. Demonstrated ability to develop collaborative and consultative decision-making processes that support and sustain trust with internal and external stakeholders .
• Proven ability to maintain and evolve a culture that supports DEI with experience in a research environment preferred.
• Ability to build relationships and demonstrate trustworthiness across a diverse workforce and at all levels of an organization, to enable and empower sharing and contributions from all perspectives and execute complex, cross-functional initiatives with accountability.

Required Experience

• At least 15 years’ experience in in leadership and management-level roles and at least 7 years’ experience in the practice of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion or related work, including developing strategies and providing expert counsel to leadership on organizational DEI opportunities or needs.
• Must have working knowledge and understanding of state and federal employment laws to include anti-discrimination laws, along with general DEI best practices, the Americans with Disabilities Act, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Affirmative Action, Equal Employment Opportunity, Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, and other applicable laws.
• Extensive experience designing, successfully implementing, and evaluating DEI programs.
• Bachelor’s degree (master’s strongly preferred) in DEI, HR, Business, Psychology, another related field, or a health-research related field relevant to PCORI’s mission.
• Candidates with DEI, Change Management, or Project Management Certifications are preferred and will be viewed favorably.

The health and safety of our employees is a top priority. As part of that commitment, PCORI requires all employees, regardless of remote work status, to be vaccinated against COVID-19. As a prospective and/or new employee at PCORI, you will be required to comply with PCORI's vaccination policy, report your vaccination status, and provide proof of vaccination. Compliance with the policy does allow for exceptions, but those exceptions will only be granted in circumstances related to medical conditions, disabilities, and sincerely held religious beliefs. Continuing with this application indicates your intent to comply with PCORI's Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccination Policy.
Interested candidates send resumes to: Milton Hall at [email protected] or Tiffany Stewart at [email protected]. Please do not contact PCORI directly; all resumes sent to PCORI will be routed to HCC for handling and will create delays.
PCORI conducts background checks on all applicants.
PCORI’s Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion:
PCORI is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity both internal and external to the workplace. You can learn more about our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion here. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, veteran status, or any other basis protected by law.
Tracking Code
1298-858