Nonprofit funding explorer research and conservation through grants and media partnerships
National Geographic Society operates an explorer-grant program and media joint venture funded through donations and partnerships. The tech stack is operational—Salesforce, Workday, Monday.com, Wrike—with heavy hiring in ops and research roles reflecting a mission-driven nonprofit scaling program management and grant administration. Budget management, partnership tracking, and stakeholder alignment appear as repeated pain points, typical of organizations balancing science objectives with funding constraints.
Notable leadership hires: Director Marketing, Director, Director Philanthropic Foundations, Director, EDULab
The National Geographic Society is a nonprofit founded in 1888 that identifies and funds international explorers and researchers advancing conservation and science education. The organization operates through grant programs (including the Explorer initiative), educational outreach, and media properties via a joint venture with The Walt Disney Company. Based in Washington, DC with 501–1,000 employees, the Society manages a portfolio of field projects—base camp operations, museum exhibits, live events—alongside research evaluation and partnership development. Current scaling efforts center on operations, research, and program management roles.
Identify and invest in an international community of explorers and changemakers who use science, exploration, education and storytelling to illuminate and protect the world. The organization also operates educational and media programs.
Salesforce for CRM and Service Cloud, Workday for HR/finance, Monday.com and Wrike for project management, Google Workspace for collaboration, and Microsoft Office suite for operations.
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