Overview

The Wikimedia Foundation is seeking a Lead Program Manager, Anti Harassment to join the Community Engagement team to advance the Wikimedia movement’s vision of every human being able to freely share in the sum of all knowledge; as well as its strategic direction – that by 2030, Wikimedia will become the essential infrastructure of the ecosystem of free knowledge, and anyone who shares our vision will be able to join us.

The Lead Program Manager, Anti-Harassment will report to the Lead Manager, Trust and Safety. As part of its investment in the sustainability and well-being of its volunteer online communities, the Wikimedia Foundation is seeking an experienced Lead Program Manager who is able to envision the big picture and guide program collaborators in making smart strategic choices while maintaining a keen eye on the critical details and values of the Anti-Harassment Program. The program focuses on software tools, policy development, and promotion of best practices to make global Wikimedia contributor communities safer and more inclusive so that individuals can collaborate more effectively on quality content and realize knowledge equity. This position will be responsible for shaping and driving forward the anti-harassment program, in collaboration with executive sponsors and senior stakeholders, and leading progress towards the program’s goals within a cross-departmental team framework.

As the Lead Program Manager, you will need a good understanding of how to shape thriving online communities, blending software, social, and policy solutions. To address these complex problems, you will have to understand the technical possibilities as well as social norms and how to work with volunteers from disparate backgrounds to encourage building a culture of high behavioral expectations and excellent peer enforcement thereof. You will need to consult with staff to understand what resources are available to craft those solutions and to prepare scalable strategic programs utilizing those resources and defining additional resources needed.

In collaboration with staff from multiple departments, you will define strategies, establish program goals and ensure that progress is made towards meeting those goals. You will define impact measurement points and hold your program accountable for achieving meaningful results. You will be the primary point person for the program and will be responsible for presenting it to the organization and ensuring that communications about the program status is shared in a timely and consistent manner with the executive sponsor, key senior personnel providing staff resources, and the Wikimedia communities. You are a seasoned, experienced program manager and are able to creatively solve a wide range of challenges.  You will exercise good judgment in determining the most appropriate method, technique and/or priorities for achieving impact.

You are responsible for:

  • Developing and articulating a deep understanding of the challenges facing volunteer user base in the collaborative online environment of Wikimedia projects.
  • In consultation and collaboration with our community and internal stakeholders, building an impactful, measurable, and strategic program drawing together technical, policy, and social solutions for the short and medium-term evolution of healthy community environments.
  • Working alongside people managers in Product, Community Engagement, Legal, and other stakeholder departments to understand staffing needs to meet those goals and advocate for additional resources, staff and otherwise, as necessary.
  • Creating solid, meaningful metrics to track the impact of anti-harassment projects that make up the program. Monitoring program performance and reviewing strategic improvements needed to make significant, lasting impact.
  • Developing and supporting healthy team dynamics as well as a culture that welcomes diverse perspectives, promoting continuous improvement.
  • Identifying unintended variances to the program plan; defining and executing corrective action as required to keep the program on track, including coordinating between staff of different teams facing different challenges.
  • Providing updates on a regular cadence to executive staff (weekly), the Foundation and volunteer communities (quarterly), and the Board of Trustees (as necessary) on program progress and impact.
  • Orchestrating the delivery of multiple projects, including alignment on shared  timelines, across multiple customer audiences

Skills and Experience:

  • Experience leading technical programs in mature platform environments
  • 3+ years experience managing the release of customer-facing software from concept to production
  • Experience working in an international organization that has a distributed workforce and an open culture
  • Strong understanding of both social and technical approaches to support enhancing community interactions and dynamics
  • Experience with social movements and working with preferably large online communities
  • Strong knowledge of theoretical and practical aspects of project management including identifying stakeholders, defining requirements, setting schedules, testing, and implementation
  • Ability to collaborate with others on program development, from identifying goals to developing paths of execution and impact metrics
  • Ability to identify effective solutions to complex problems and function well in ambiguity. Ability to recognize when problems need technical solutions, social change or a combination of both
  • Ability to build credibility and forge relationships, negotiate mutually agreeable solutions with team members and stakeholders and motivate the team toward that shared goal, and to correctly identify when escalation is necessary for executive input into difficult situations
  • Ability to anticipate risks, resolve conflicts, and initiate escalation paths
  • BA/BS degree or equivalent in related work experience

Qualities that are important to us:

  • Passion for Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects
  • Experience with, or understanding of, free knowledge, open source, free culture, or other online communities and operates with high sensitivity around culture with the goal to respect, preserve and enhance
  • A solid command of Agile approaches with strength in prioritization, organization, planning, and time management skills
  • Experience with the Wikipedia and Wikidata communities or other Wikimedia communities
  • Command of major non-English languages in addition to fluency in English

The Wikimedia Foundation is… 

…the nonprofit organization that hosts and operates Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects. Our vision is a world in which every single human can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. We believe that everyone has the potential to contribute something to our shared knowledge, and that everyone should be able to access that knowledge, free of interference. We host the Wikimedia projects, build software experiences for reading, contributing, and sharing Wikimedia content, support the volunteer communities and partners who make Wikimedia possible, and advocate for policies that enable Wikimedia and free knowledge to thrive. The Wikimedia Foundation is a charitable, not-for-profit organization that relies on donations. We receive financial support from millions of individuals around the world, with an average donation of about $15. We also receive donations through institutional grants and gifts. The Wikimedia Foundation is a United States 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization with offices in San Francisco, California, USA.

The Wikimedia Foundation is an equal opportunity employer, and we encourage people with a diverse range of backgrounds to apply.

U.S. Benefits & Perks*

  • Fully paid medical, dental and vision coverage for employees and their eligible families (yes, fully paid premiums!)
  • The Wellness Program provides reimbursement for mind, body and soul activities such as fitness memberships, baby sitting, continuing education and much more
  • The 401(k) retirement plan offers matched contributions at 4% of annual salary
  • Flexible and generous time off – vacation, sick and volunteer days, plus 19 paid holidays – including the last week of the year.
  • Family friendly! 100% paid new parent leave for seven weeks plus an additional five weeks for pregnancy, flexible options to phase back in after leave, fully equipped lactation room.
  • For those emergency moments – long and short term disability, life insurance (2x salary) and an employee assistance program
  • Pre-tax savings plans for health care, child care, elder care, public transportation and parking expenses
  • Telecommuting and flexible work schedules available
  • Appropriate fuel for thinking and coding (aka, a pantry full of treats) and monthly massages to help staff relax
  • Great colleagues – diverse staff and contractors speaking dozens of languages from around the world, fantastic intellectual discourse, mission-driven and intensely passionate people

*Eligible international workers’ benefits are specific to their location and dependent on their employer of record