Associate, Data & Innovation

Chicago Education Fund•Chicago, IL

3d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Associate, Data & Innovation supports The Fund's Data & Innovation team in maintaining the organization's data infrastructure, Salesforce environment, and reporting systems that inform decision-making across policy, sector, operations, and leadership priorities. Reporting to the Manager, Data & Innovation, this role manages recurring reporting, develops dashboards, fulfills data requests, and keeps Salesforce running as the organization's central data platform — ensuring data stays high-quality, accessible, and aligned with The Fund's strategic plan. Success requires combining strong technical execution with project management, relationship management, and continuous improvement. You will primarily be responsible for four key areas: Support Strategic Data Systems & Salesforce, Support research and reporting to stakeholders around issues that impact principals in Chicago, Support Cross-Functional Strategic Initiatives, and Supporting Overall Data & Strategy Team Work + Continuous improvement.

Requirements

2–3 years of experience in data analysis, ideally within education or nonprofit sectors
Experience managing data within Salesforce or a similar CRM/database system
Proficiency with Excel and at least one data visualization tool (e.g., Tableau, PowerBI)
Experience translating data into memos, reports, or presentations for varied audiences
Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with attention to detail
Experience managing multiple projects simultaneously and meeting deadlines
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain technical concepts to non-technical audiences
Excellent organizational skills and ability to work independently while collaborating across teams
Passionate about Chicago's public schools and The Fund’s work to support principals.
Share The Fund’s core values of collaboration, equity, excellence, innovation, integrity, and leadership.
Clear on what those values mean in action for you.
Prior experience with data management and analytics, especially in presenting the results of analyses to a wide array of audiences.
Prior experience in reach and education policy.
A strong project planner and have a strong track record of executing on and achieving results.

Nice To Haves

Experience in public education in Chicago
Bachelor's degree in Data Science, Statistics, Public Policy, Education, or related field
Experience with statistical software (e.g., R, Python, SPSS)
Experience specifically with Salesforce
Experience in data storytelling and designing presentations/decks that compel action
Experience facilitating data-driven conversations and turning insights into action
Experience using AI tools to support data analysis, visualization, or presentation/deck development

Responsibilities

Support the maintenance, improvement, and ongoing use of Salesforce and other organizational data systems to ensure accurate, timely, and accessible information across the organization.
Maintain Salesforce records and ensure data quality.
Support data imports, validation, and ongoing maintenance.
Assist in developing and maintaining Salesforce dashboards.
Monitor dashboard accuracy and recommend improvements.
Maintain documentation for Salesforce processes and data governance.
Support organization-wide adoption of Salesforce and reporting tools.
Produce recurring reports on policy, sector, and organizational metrics.
Track dashboard updates and coordinate recurring refresh schedules.
Support and create reports, memos, presentations, and materials to share The Fund’s perspective on issues that impact principals in Chicago as well as sustainable approaches for principal quality in Chicago, both internally and externally.
Conduct analyses to identify trends, issues, and themes that inform The Fund’s strategic priorities and support the interpretation and communication of research findings to a wide range of Fund stakeholders.
Support The Fund’s grant writing process by providing data and other relevant updates and information.
Support The Fund’s publications and other work by providing copy-editing, fact-checking, and data quality reviews, as needed.
Own from beginning to end, The Fund annual Principal and Assistant Principal Engagement Survey initiative.
Support policy data collection and tracking.
Maintain policy, sector, budget, and organizational datasets.
Support principal retention, pipeline, and overview reporting.
Own engagement survey, focus groups, and organizational learning.
Collaborate with Policy, Finance, and Development teams.
Coordinate recurring reporting cycles and project milestones.
Support with data products and tools: school profiles, district profiles, community profiles, dashboards and so on.
Manage project timelines and deliverables.
Maintain project trackers and documentation.
Identify risks and recommend process improvements.
Collaborate with team members to support The Fund’s data management strategy on principal quality through on-going data collection, analysis, and reporting activities.
Add value to organizational activities such as strategic planning, document production, recruiting and other duties as assigned.
Cultivate and manage external partner and/or grantee relationships as needed.
Represent The Fund at external events and exhibit The Fund’s core values of collaboration, equity, excellence, innovation, integrity, and leadership.