Data & Digital Assets Specialist

COPAL MN•Minneapolis, MN

About The Position

The Data & Digital Assets Specialist supports the Executive Director in implementing COPAL's enterprise data strategy by strengthening organizational data systems, digital storytelling, and community documentation practices. Working collaboratively with staff, volunteers, and community members, the Specialist supports organization-wide data governance, documentation standards, and digital asset management while transforming quantitative data, qualitative research, and community stories into meaningful insights that strengthen advocacy, organizing, communications, fundraising, evaluation, and strategic decision-making. This position helps build a culture of equitable data stewardship where community knowledge is responsibly collected, preserved, analyzed, and leveraged to advance COPAL's mission and long-term organizational learning.

Requirements

Bachelor of Science (BAS) degrees, with concentrations in, Data Analysis, and Data Engineering or similar fields.
Knowledge of enterprise data governance principles and organizational information management.
Understanding of data lifecycle management, metadata standards, and digital preservation.
Experience supporting enterprise reporting, organizational dashboards, and performance measurement.
Ability to translate complex data into actionable insights for technical and non-technical audiences.
Experience implementing standardized documentation and knowledge management systems.
Understanding of ethical AI applications, automation tools, and emerging technologies that improve organizational data management while protecting community privacy.
Commitment to equitable, community-centered data governance and responsible stewardship of sensitive information.
Ability to identify patterns and recurring issues from individual intakes or helpline calls.
Comfort working with sensitive information and maintaining confidentiality.
Willingness to learn a variety of tasks; possesses excellent communication skills, a thorough understanding of nonprofit practices, a serious work ethic, and a desire to work in a team-oriented environment.
Possesses the ability to work independently, establish priorities, and meet deadlines.
Knowledge and experience with diverse groups of people of lower socioeconomic conditions.
Competency in MS Office: Word, Access, Publisher, Outlook, Excel, and PowerPoint.
Strong organizational and communication skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities.
Ability to travel to sites within a 15-mile radius of the office.
Valid driver’s license, access to reliable transportation, and the ability to meet COPAL’s driving record requirements. Please note that if the license was not issued in the state of Minnesota, you have 60 days after becoming a Minnesota resident in which to apply for your Minnesota driver's license or permit.

Responsibilities

Support the Executive Director in implementing COPAL's enterprise data strategy and organizational data governance framework.
Monitor data quality through validation, auditing, cleaning, and quality assurance processes to ensure data integrity and consistency across departments.
Develop and maintain data standards, documentation, metadata, naming conventions, and organizational data dictionaries.
Produce dashboards, reports, and data visualizations that support executive leadership, program evaluation, advocacy campaigns, communications, fundraising, grant reporting, and organizational learning.
Analyze quantitative and qualitative data to identify trends, community needs, operational efficiencies, and opportunities for strategic improvement.
Collaborate with departments to improve data collection methodologies and strengthen evidence-informed decision making.
Implement enterprise digital asset management practices under the guidance of the Executive Director.
Manage COPAL's growing collection of digital assets, including photographs, videos, documents, GIS resources, and thousands of community voice recordings collected through Operation Metro Surge and other initiatives.
Develop sustainable systems that improve searchability, accessibility, security, retention, and preservation of organizational knowledge.
Support the development of community archives, the Mobile Museum, and other initiatives that preserve community history and lived experiences.
Collaborate with organizers, communications staff, researchers, and community members to document lived experiences using ethical, community-centered practices.
Conduct interviews and follow-up conversations that deepen community stories while respecting informed consent and confidentiality.
Develop documentation systems, templates, workflows, and protocols that standardize organizational knowledge management.
Support qualitative data collection, coding, and thematic analysis that informs advocacy, policy development, evaluation, and communications.
Ensure storytelling practices align with COPAL's values of equity, cultural responsiveness, trauma-informed engagement, and ethical data stewardship.
Train staff and volunteers on documentation standards, digital asset management, and organizational data collection practices.
Contribute to organizational learning by making community knowledge accessible across programs and departments.

Benefits

Generous Paid Time Off (PTO)
9 paid holidays per year, plus 2 floating holidays
Competitive health, dental, and vision insurance
Health Savings Account (HSA) and options for Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)
Long-term disability insurance – the employer pays the premiums
Employer-paid basic life insurance with the option for additional coverage paid by the employee
Voluntary benefits: Accident, hospital indemnity, critical illness, short-term disability insurance
COPAL sponsors a retirement plan with 6% employer contribution after 90 days of service and immediate vesting
Discounted tuition for Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctorate programs at St. Mary’s University
Professional development opportunities at St. Mary’s University
Access to advancement (internships, job placement, field practice) at St. Mary’s University