Senior Evaluation and Data Strategy Officer - Foundationnew

Your Role 

The Foundation is an independent licensee of the Blue Shield Association. Blue Shield of California has contributed more than $500 million to Blue Shield of California Foundation since 2002 to have a positive impact on California communities. The Foundation is a statewide, equity-centered philanthropy focused on catalyzing large-scale systems change to improve health outcomes and end domestic violence across California. Recognizing that inequities driven by race, gender, and income shape disparate outcomes and experiences, the Foundation’s strategies center community and lived experience in contributing to lasting, population-level change.

The Senior Evaluation and Data Strategy Officer reports to the Director of Evaluation and Data Strategy and provides senior-level evaluation leadership to advance the Foundation’s ability to track strategic progress, assess impact, and inform decision-making. This role leads complex evaluation, research, data strategy, and learning efforts across Foundation initiatives; manages cross-functional projects and external evaluation partners; and translates evidence, grantee insights, and community expertise into actionable learning for staff, leadership, the Board of Trustees, grantees, and external partners. Using diverse data sources and equity-centered approaches, this role develops innovative evaluation and learning practices that strengthen the Foundation’s understanding of complex systems change dynamics and support population-level impact.

Your Work 

In this role, you will: 

• Lead evaluation and learning strategies that advance the Foundation’s ability to track strategic progress, assess impact, and inform decision-making using diverse data sources, including grantee, community, and field insights
• Serve as a content lead for evaluation, research, data strategy, and organizational learning, proactively shaping approaches that align with strategic goals and learning objectives
• Develop, implement, and manage complex evaluation, research, and learning initiatives, including setting project priorities, managing budgets and timelines, and maintaining accountability for high-quality deliverables
• Manage cross-functional teams and external evaluation partners to execute evaluation and learning efforts, including defining key learning questions, evaluation approaches, data strategies, and decision points
• Model, lead, and coach others on effective, equitable evaluation and learning practice, including participatory approaches, data collection and interpretation, synthesis of evidence, and use of findings for strategy refinement
• Design and oversee evaluation frameworks, theories of change, dashboards, learning agendas, and other tools that document progress, support strategic learning, and contribute to evidence-building
• Lead and support grantmaking efforts that align with the Foundation’s strategies and meet the learning and information needs of communities, grantees, staff, leadership, and other key stakeholders
• Develop, manage, and maintain strong internal and external relationships with evaluators, researchers, grantees, community partners, funders, policymakers, and other stakeholders to advance the Foundation’s mission and learning priorities
• Prepare and present data, findings, and lessons learned to internal and external audiences, including senior leadership and the Board of Trustees, through briefings, reports, dashboards, presentations, and facilitated learning opportunities
• Build internal and external capacity to use data, research, and evaluation findings to inform strategy, influence systems, and translate learning into action
• Provide guidance, coaching, and training to staff and partners within areas of evaluation, learning, and data strategy expertise; may direct the work of individual contributors or consultants

Your Knowledge and Experience 

• Requires a Bachelor’s degree or High School Diploma/GED and 4 years of additional relevant experience in lieu of a degree 
• Master’s degree preferred
• Requires at least 10 years of prior relevant experience in evaluation, research, data strategy, or organizational learning
• Requires a minimum of 3 years’ experience in philanthropy, nonprofit work, public sector, or related fields
• Experience leading evaluation methodologies, organizational learning, research, and data strategy within philanthropic, nonprofit, community-based, or public institutions
• Expertise in equitable and inclusive evaluation practices that center diverse evidence, community voice, lived expertise, and practical use of findings for decision-making
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, including the ability to conceptualize complex issues, interpret diverse data sources, and develop innovative approaches to learning and measurement
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate complex findings into actionable insights for diverse audiences, including staff, executives, Board members, grantees, policymakers, and community partners
• Demonstrated ability to manage large, complex, cross-functional projects of strategic importance, including managing external consultants or evaluators, budgets, timelines, and deliverables
• Ability to influence others across functions and levels to adopt new concepts, practices, tools, and approaches related to evaluation, data use, learning, and strategy refinement
• Strong collaborative skills and cultural competency that enable the individual to work effectively across diverse professional disciplines, communities, interests, and experiences
• Demonstrated professional and personal commitment to equity

Hybrid

This role requires employees to be in-office based on our hybrid workplace model, balancing purposeful in-person collaboration with flexibility. For most teams, this means coming into the office two days each week. Employees living more than 50 miles from an office location will work with their manager to determine in-office time based on business need.