WELCOME
Dear Applicant
Thank you for your interest in becoming the next Chief Executive of The Sigrid Rausing Trust.
The Trust plays a pivotal role in supporting the values and principles of human rights and the rule of law, and to preserve nature from further degradation across Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia.
Guided by these liberal values, we also support a number of strategic initiatives that bring together grantees from diverse fields to address specific problems or opportunities for change.
Our new Chief Executive will join at an exciting time where they will have the opportunity to work with a committed Board and staff team to shape and deliver the future direction of our grant-making.
We are looking for an experienced and visionary leader who brings expert knowledge and insight of the key challenges in our thematic areas. You will work with a dedicated Board and highly motivated team and will bring strategic leadership, negotiating and influencing skills, with the ability to be externally facing whilst actively leading, supporting and guiding a capable team internally.
Your expert stakeholder skills will be invaluable in helping us to realise our ambitions. You do not need to come from a grant making background, although an understanding of what effective grant making looks like would be particularly valuable in this role.
If you feel you bring the skills and experience we are looking for, we very much look forward to hearing from you.
Sigrid Rausing
Chair of the Board of Trustees The Sigrid Rausing Trust
ABOUT US
The Sigrid Rausing Trust is a grant-making foundation based in London. Founded in 1995, its purpose is to promote the values and principles of human rights and the rule of law, and to preserve nature from further degradation.
In pursuit of these goals, the Trust has committed over £600 million to groups all over the world. The Trust is led by eight Trustees and currently employs 21 staff and three consultants.
Our grant-making is organised into three main programmes: Human Rights and the Rule of Law, Open Societies, and the Environment.
We also run strategic initiatives that bring together grantees from diverse fields to address specific problems or opportunities for change.
The Trust is active in a number of regions. It has a particular interest in Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia.
We identify new grantees through recommendations and fieldwork. Our programme officers evaluate new organisations and submit recommendations to the Trustees, who make the final decisions on grant allocations.
Most of our grants are unrestricted. We believe that donors can best encourage innovation and imagination if they allow grantees to develop their own ideas. In addition, we run a number of strategic initiatives, supporting groups working collaboratively to address shared goals.
For further information on our work, please visit: What we do - The Sigrid Rausing Trust
JOB DESCRIPTION
Job title: Chief Executive Officer
Reports to: Chair of the Board of Trustees
ROLE PURPOSE:
The Director will be expected to work closely with the Chair, Sigrid Rausing, to manage the work of the Trust, including staff management, grant oversight, and contributing to strategy and communications.
MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES:
Strategic Leadership
- Work in close partnership with the Chair and Trustees to shape, implement, monitor and periodically refresh the Trust's overall strategy, ensuring alignment with its values and regional and thematic priorities.
- Translate strategic objectives into clear operational plans, priorities and resourcing decisions, ensuring effective delivery across programmes and strategic initiatives.
- Lead strategic horizon-scanning and analysis, identifying emerging risks, opportunities, geopolitical developments and sector trends relevant to the Trust's work.
- Ensure the Trust's strategy is effectively communicated internally and externally, promoting clarity, coherence and shared ownership among staff, Trustees and partners.
Governance and Board engagement
- Act as the primary point of contact between the Board of Trustees and the organisation, supporting strong, transparent and effective governance.
- Work with the Chair to develop agendas, papers and decision-making frameworks for Board and Committee meetings, ensuring Trustees are well-informed and supported.
- Provide high-quality advice, analysis and recommendations to Trustees on strategy, grant-making, risk, organisational performance and external developments.
- Support Trustee engagement with the Trust's work, including briefings, learning opportunities and exposure to grantees and strategic initiatives.
- Ensure that the Trust meets all relevant legal, regulatory and governance obligations.
Organisational and people leadership
- Provide overall leadership of the Trust, fostering a values-led, inclusive and high-performing organisational culture.
- Line-manage senior staff and ensure effective structures, delegation, accountability and decision-making across the organisation.
- Lead and oversee recruitment, performance management, learning and development.
- Ensure appropriate policies, systems and processes are in place to support staff effectiveness, equity and organisational resilience.
- Champion diversity, equity and inclusion across the organisation and in the Trust's ways of working.
Grant-making and programme oversight
- Provide strategic oversight of the Trust's grant-making portfolio, ensuring coherence, quality and alignment with agreed priorities.
- Maintain a strong working understanding of the Trust's programme areas, regions of focus and key grantee partners.
- Support and challenge the team to ensure rigorous assessment, learning and reflection to deliver grant-making best practice.
- Oversee the development and delivery of strategic initiatives, encouraging collaboration, innovation and shared learning among grantees.
- Ensure grant-making approaches remain responsive, ethical and effective in complex and high-risk contexts.
External representation and relationships
- Act as an ambassador and public representative of the Trust, building its reputation, credibility and influence in relevant fields.
- Develop and maintain high-level relationships with grantees, peer funders, networks, policymakers and other stakeholders, particularly in the Trust's focus regions.
- Represent the Trust at external meetings, conferences and forums, and manage relationships with the media as appropriate.
- Support thoughtful collaboration with other funders and partners where this advances the Trust's mission and values.
Financial stewardship and risk management
- Oversee the Trust's financial management, working with Trustees and advisers to ensure robust budgeting, forecasting and financial controls.
- Ensure responsible stewardship of the Trust's resources, balancing long-term sustainability with impact and responsiveness.
- Lead organisational risk management, including reputational, operational, financial and security risks, particularly in sensitive or high-risk operating environments.
- Ensure appropriate systems are in place for monitoring, reporting and compliance.
General
- Ensure the Trust operates with integrity, transparency and accountability at all times.
- Undertake additional duties as required by the Chair and Trustees, consistent with the responsibilities of the role.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE
- Proven leadership experience, with a successful track record operating in a senior executive role from a relevant field (not limited to but aligned with human rights, international development, environment, diplomacy)
- An understanding and support for the liberal values of the trust.
- Awareness of the key challenges across our three main programmes of work; human rights, rule of law and the environment.
- Track record of leading, developing, and inspiring high-performing teams, with a values-led and empowering leadership style.
- Experience of working effectively with high-performing Boards.
- An understanding of the process of effective grant-making.
STYLES AND BEHAVIOURS
- Values-led and purpose-driven, demonstrating compassion, integrity, and a deep commitment to the Trust's liberal values.
- Collaborative and inclusive, building strong working relationships with Trustees, staff, and external partners.
- Flexible, adaptable and confident in leading change, responding effectively to emerging challenges and opportunities.
- Approachable, credible and trustworthy, creating a culture of openness, respect and mutual accountability.
TERMS OF APPOINTMENT
SALARY
The salary for this role is £120,000 - £150,000 per annum on a full-time permanent basis.
Location
Hybrid – 2/3 days per week in office (Notting Hill, London) and homeworking
HOW TO APPLY
To make an application, please go to https://starfishsearch.com/jobs/srt-ceo/ and click on the apply now button, with the following prepared:
- Your CV (no more than three sides).
- A supporting statement (no more than two sides) that sets out why you think this role is the right move for you and how you meet the knowledge and experience criteria.
We would also be grateful if you would complete the Equality and Diversity monitoring form on the online application process. This form is for monitoring purposes only and is not treated as part of your application.
Closing date: 8th February 2026
Preliminary interviews: w/c 16th February 2026
Final Panel interviews: w/c 2nd March 2026
This position was originally posted by the Sigrid Rausing Trust / Starfish Search and has been curated by PurposePhil Career. To apply, please visit the original listing on the "apply" link on the side. We are not affiliated with the employer organization of this job ad or consultancy, and provide this curated listing as a service to our users.
