We are seeking a Technical Lead to join ReFED’s Data & Insights team. You will play a critical role within the organization by supporting efforts to enhance the Insights Engine and new data and analytical products that help users to reduce food waste.

About The Organization

ReFED is a national nonprofit working to end food loss and waste across the food system by advancing data-driven solutions to the problem. ReFED leverages data and insights to highlight supply chain inefficiencies and economic opportunities, mobilizes and connects supporters to take targeted action, and catalyzes capital to spur innovation and scale high-impact initiatives. Starting with the 2016 Roadmap to Reduce U.S. Food Waste, ReFED has developed a trusted history of producing first-of-their-kind tools and resources, providing a full-supply-chain picture of U.S. food waste, cost-effective solutions to reduce it, and methods to track progress.

In February 2021, ReFED launched its new Roadmap to 2030 and Insights Engine, an online data center designed to serve as the next generation of data, insights, and guidance on U.S. food waste reduction. Solving this problem will have a significant impact on mitigating climate change, optimizing use of water, land, and other resources, and providing meals for the over 50 million people in the United States who currently face food insecurity.

Learn more at www.refed.org.

About The Work

The Technical Lead will be joining a team at an exciting new stage of development. ReFED’s Data & Insights team is embarking on a new initiative to centralize infrastructure, increase sources of data, and enhance methods to demonstrably increase the value of the Insights Engine and new ReFED analytical products.

The Technical Lead will be working in close collaboration with the VP, Data & Insights, Software Engineer, and several engineering contractors are key staff to bring ReFED’s technology and data work in-house.

This is an ideal opportunity for an individual with software engineering, web development, product management, and devops experience who is passionate about applying their technology skills to reduce food waste, mitigate climate change, and halt food insecurity.

In this role, you will help address the following:

1. Foster collaboration between technical and non-technical stakeholders to understand requirements
2. Develop and maintain product roadmap with realistic time estimates and clear milestones
3. Run sprints effectively by scoping work appropriately, enabling prioritization, and removing barriers toimplementation
4. Effectively prioritize features and evaluate the feasibility of solutions for ReFED’s applications
5. Provide assessments of tools, technologies, and vendors to inform technical decisions
6. Work closely with technical staff and vendors to ensure product requirements are implemented
7. Optimize processes for quality assurance, bug fixes, code review, and documentation that meetsindustry standards for open-source software
8. Provide technical guidance to help resolve production issues as part of the code review process
9. Evaluate plans for ReFED’s application infrastructure and code with an eye toward sustainability,scalability, and security

You could be a great candidate for this role if you have:

1. Experience supporting agile software development cycles with best practices in design, development, and maintenance of applications
2. A history of working with non-technical staff to understand needs, then scoping and implementing product roadmap
3. Some fullstack engineering experience, with the ability to vet the feasibility of technical solutions and scope them accordingly (ReFED’s current code base includes ruby on rails, SQL, javascript, R, and python)
4. Excellent project management skills, with experience managing a backlog, setting priorities, and removing barriers
5. Clear examples of leveraging data analytics to make and validate product prioritization decisions
6. Familiarity with best practices for open-source software development including GitHub set up,documentation, product testing, bug fixes, and code review
7. Experience and/or familiarity with a range of cloud tools, such as Github, Google Cloud Platform, AWS,and Heroku
8. Dedication to the mission of ReFED: advancing data-driven solutions to end food loss and waste acrossthe U.S. food system

We think you would thrive in this role and at ReFED if you:

1. Are comfortable working and communicating in an entrepreneurial, ambiguous environment
2. Are passionate about the role of data and technology in addressing social and environmental issues
3. Thrive in a fast-paced, high-growth organization
4. Hate wasting food

We don’t require:

1. Specific degrees or certifications
2. Non-profit experience

If you don't meet all of the criteria above but still are interested in the job, please apply! Nobody checks every box, and we are looking for someone excited to join the team who possesses important skills we likely have not thought of. If that is you, don’t hesitate to reach out and tell us about yourself.

Our Recruitment Process

Our recruitment process includes the following steps:

1. Initial screening interview over zoom
2. 2-3 interviews over zoom with various team members
3. Skills assessment over zoom which may or may not include an ask to complete work ahead of time andpresent during the skills assessment meeting. All necessary information and guidance will be providedahead of time.
4. Reference checks, typically three are requested

We aim to be as communicative as possible throughout the recruitment process but may not have the bandwidth to respond to every initial application. Our process always involves multiple team members representing diverse backgrounds and viewpoints from across the organization.

Our Operating Environment

ReFED is an entirely remote organization with 20 staff distributed across the U.S. As such, we work with a variety of digital collaboration and connectivity tools to enable our work. Our operating stack includes: Google suite (mail, calendar, docs, sheets, slides, drive), Zoom, Slack, Monday, Salesforce, Miro, Evernote, MS Office, Adobe, and Insperity.

We build our culture remotely, with two key in-person gatherings of the full team each year. These include our annual team retreat and the Food Waste Solutions Summit, an annual conference that we host. Our remote culture building includes team-hosted casual get-togethers, ask-me-anythings with our Board and Advisory Council members, peer recognition on our shoutouts channel in slack and through our Big Dill spot bonus program, as well as engagement on our watercooler channel in slack. Our in person moments are incredibly valuable with big focuses on team building, learning, and fun.

Learn more about our culture here.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice Commitment

ReFED is an equal opportunity employer. We believe that everyone has a seat at the table, and that this table always has room for growth. The success of the organization is rooted in the visible and invisible qualities of our people. Our people embody a variety of views, perspectives, and backgrounds to push the envelope of what is possible and better meet the needs of the community in the hopes of building a sustainable, resilient, and inclusive food system. Community is more than a word here. As stewards of this food system that benefits from the inclusion and enhancement of diverse voices, ReFED recognizes that systemic barriers limit opportunities for certain groups which contributes to ongoing disparities. Furthermore, we accept that our commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ) means a commitment to constant learning, listening, and interaction in all aspects of our work. ReFED is an organization that seeks to attract exceptional and dedicated talent to advance our mission, and we firmly believe that inclusion through recruiting, hiring, developing, training, and promoting employees of all genders, races, religions, ages, national origins, political affiliations, ancestries, sexual orientations, disabilities, and veteran status, creates an atmosphere that enables us to lead with an entrepreneurial spirit and innovate with enterprise.

Compensation & Benefits

ReFED offers a competitive salary and benefits package, opportunities for professional development, and policies and programs that encourage a healthy work-life balance. The salary range for this position is $130,000 to $155,000 and will be determined commensurate with relevant experience and qualifications.

ReFED’s U.S. benefits package includes:

• 100% employee and 50% dependent premium coverage for medical, dental, and vision benefits;
• Participation in employer-sponsored 401(k) plans with up to 4% employer matching;
• Professional development opportunities - including annual budget - and option to participate in ReFED’smentor program;
• 18 paid vacation days annually;
• 10 paid sick days annually;
• Early closure in July and August for Summer Fridays;
• Paid family leave;
• Approximately 13 paid company holidays annually - including closed offices the last week of the year;
• Short- and long-term disability coverage and term life insurance; and
• Flexible work environment with option to work from home or a co-working space.Learn more about our values, team, and commitment to employees at refed.com/careers.

To apply for this position, please contact katy.franklin@refed.com.