Grants Specialist

Company: Planned Parenthood of Illinois
Location: Chicago
Posted on: April 1, 2026

Job Description:

Just a few of the Benefits enjoyed by PPIL employees… -Company subsidized premiums on Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance -Up to 12 weeks Paid Parental Leave for eligible employees -Generous Paid Time Off (PTO) and paid holidays -Mission focused work -401k with employer matching -100% company-paid Life Insurance -100% company-paid Short- and Long-Term Disability Coverage -Robust Employee Assistance Program -Professional Development awards and opportunities -Flexible Spending Accounts -Free Medical Services at PPIL -Pet Insurance The Grants Specialist is a critical role in a rapidly-growing and fast-paced organization, working collaboratively across departments to ensure organizational effectiveness. This role will provide support to and work in collaboration with PPIL’s Institutional Giving team, under the supervision of the Director of Institutional Giving. This position requires strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and an ability to prioritize as well as multi-task. Institutional giving is essential to the overall success of the organization; it is imperative that the person in this role be dedicated to providing the support needed to assist in securing the resources necessary to fulfill the mission of the organization. Essential Functions: 1. Provide support to institutional giving team in grant writing and grant reporting duties including: • Gathering information from program staff to articulate project goals, activities, outcomes, etc. • Writing/editing compelling and informative letters of intent, grant proposals, and reports for submission, including assembling documentation and budgets • Perform basic data analysis and visualization as necessary for grant reporting 2. Support the fundraising activities of the institutional giving team by ensuring that grant proposal and reporting timelines are on track and deadlines are met. 3. Assist in the coordination of site-visits and donor meetings, including the creation of briefing memos and meeting agendas. 4. Perform prospect research on current, lapsed, and prospective Institutional and Corporate Giving partners. 5. Create research briefings to be reviewed with Institutional Giving Team for potential funding opportunities. 6. Maintain timely and accurate records on current donors and potential donors to support ongoing activity and future fundraising—including plans, tracking, and reporting. 7. Ensure program staff are up-to-date and aware of grant requirements in order to be accountable to funders. 8. Demonstrate an understanding of and commitment to remain informed about PPIL protocols, policies, and procedures. 9. Demonstrate an understanding of and commitment to PPIL core values of access, activism, care, confidentiality, diversity, excellence, integrity, respect, self-determination, and stewardship; practice these values in relations with internal and external customers. Other Functions: 1. Provide on-going support to program and finance staff as it relates to grant administration and organizational policies. 2. Develop and maintain a basic grants management manual and communicate appropriately with staff concerning policies, procedures, and updates. 3. Maintain foundations records, grants calendar, and related management platforms utilizing Salesforce, NetSuite, and other online databases. 4. Coordinate the review, execution, and filing of grant agreements in collaboration with legal department and executive leadership. 5. Assist Development Data and Operations Manager in institutional gift processing, entry, and acknowledgement. 6. Other duties as assigned. Physical Demands: The physical demand characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. General office environment, noise level is usually low. Will usually be working with general office equipment, including computers, phones, and printers. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand, walk, talk, read, see and hear. The employee is frequently required to use hands and fingers to type, handle, or feel and reach. The employee is regularly required to sit. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Supervisor: Director of Institutional Giving Status: Full-time, Salaried, Exempt Education/Experience 2 years of experience with grants administration and/or compliance (government grant experience) preferred. Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience preferred, High School Diploma/GED required. Grant writing experience required in a nonprofit or philanthropic setting. Ability to think and problem-solve creatively. Strong project management and time management skills; highly organized and detail oriented. Effective written and oral communication skills. Ability to work among people with a wide range of cultural backgrounds, training and experience. Enjoy working independently and as part of a team. Proficiency with Microsoft Office required (Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint). Experience with Salesforce.com or other CRM systems (Raisers’ Edge, Donor Perfect) desired. Technology skills must include expert-level Excel, and other Microsoft Office programs, and a strong ability to evaluate and learn new systems. Professional Qualities: Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals. Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from internal and external parties at all levels. Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions. Ability to perform with a high degree of accuracy and attention to detail. Ability to forge collaborative working relationships, addressing problems with and through colleagues with multiple professional backgrounds. Commitment to the goals of Planned Parenthood. The Grants Specialist works closely with development, program, and finance staff to manage a robust and diverse portfolio of corporate, foundation and governmental grants. This position will ensure organizational effectiveness and compliance by helping to set relevant policies and provide technical assistance as required. The Grants Specialist is a vital connector for the finance, development, and program staff, so they must possess strong collaboration skills along with the ability to see and understand all points of view. $58,000 - $65,000 a year Planned Parenthood works affirmatively to include diversity among its workforce and does not discriminate in the selection of its staff based on factors including but not limited to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, income, marital status or any other characteristic protected under federal, state or local law. We know that BIPOC and women identifying candidates are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every requirement. Please do not be deterred if your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job posting. We encourage you to apply anyway! You may be exactly who we are looking for. We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.

Keywords: Planned Parenthood of Illinois, South Bend , Grants Specialist, Administration, Clerical , Chicago, Indiana