State Director, Illinois

Common Cause

3d

About The Position

We are looking for a collaborative and visionary leader to lead our team in Illinois, promoting the Common Cause agenda at the state and national level; fostering a strong, sustainable team; leading winning public policy campaigns through policy analysis, research, lobbying, litigation, grassroots organizing, sophisticated communications and building strong and diverse coalitions.
The State Director will have the opportunity to envision a strategic approach for Common Cause in Illinois and develop programs to achieve that vision. This is a unique opportunity to be a leading voice at the center of advancing democracy reforms in the state, while also expanding our membership base and managing a high-performing team.
This is a full-time role reporting to the Vice President of States; this role is based in Illinois, with a strong preference for a candidate who is in the Chicagoland area, with an expectation to travel around the state at least 4 days per week (including frequent travel to Springfield during legislative sessions). We hope our new State Director will start in May.

Requirements

• Experience leading successful local- or state-level or national public advocacy campaigns related to democracy, elections, voting rights and civil rights, including creating and managing campaign or annual plans, from conception through implementation
• Experience drafting, analyzing and advocating for legislation in Illinois
• Demonstrated knowledge of the unique aspects of Illinois’ political dynamic, as well as of funders and decision-makers in the state; ideally you have existing relationships with these people and organizations
• Experience building and leading coalitions or groups that represent stakeholders with diverse interests to achieve a goal
• A track record of leading organization-wide change initiatives
• Have managed and developed a team; set strategic direction for a team, and built a unified approach to achieve goals
• Willing to have a social media presence on behalf of Common Cause, including being tagged on posts and creating content on behalf of the organization (as needed, Common Cause may provide accounts for staff members to use)
• Ability to travel within state at least 4 days per month, and nationally 1-2 times per year for team and/or all staff retreats
• Flexibility to work evenings and weekends as needed, especially during legislative sessions
• Per our non-partisan policy, Common Cause staff members may not currently be in elected office (or running for office); on the Steering Committee or Finance Committee for any political candidate; or affiliated with the leadership of a political party

Nice To Haves

• A strong commitment to Common Cause’s nonpartisan mission and to advancing civil rights through our pro-democracy agenda
• A commitment to equity in the goals of your work and in how you work with others
• Ability to navigate organizational and power dynamics, respectfully navigate conflict while maintaining your values, and influence others to adopt changes to meet common goals
• A track record of working collaboratively with others, with the ability to build rapport, trust, and credibility with multiple stakeholders with diverse interests
• Innovative and strategic thinking skills, with the ability to navigate through ambiguity to achieve goals, and a resourceful approach to solve problems
• Ability to manage and meet deadlines for multiple short- and long-term priorities at once, with high attention to detail; strong organization skills, and the ability to manage your time independently
• Ability to compel action through both written and verbal communication, including distilling complex concepts for a broad audience, and to differentiate communications as needed for various audiences; ideally you have experience working with the media and/or as a spokesperson for an organization
• Openness to feedback and awareness of your own strengths and areas for growth
• Familiarity with office productivity tools (Microsoft Office, Slack, Zoom)

Responsibilities

• Set and lead our strategy for our policy advocacy and organizing that centers racial equity
• Develop effective proactive and defensive policy campaigns that center racial equity
• Advocate for our campaigns in alignment with the Common Cause agenda and non-partisanship mission
• Develop and execute lobbying strategies to advance reform (or stop anti-democratic initiatives) and to hold federal, state, and local elected and appointed officials and other decision-makers accountable
• Oversee Common Cause’s work in the state while supporting national campaigns, including issues like voting and fair representation, accountability and anti-corruption, media and technology, and civil rights and civil liberties
• Produce timely, high quality policy research
• Act as a leader within Common Cause, collaborating with staff across the organization to advance and support our priorities
• Drive work through public outreach and strategic partnerships
• Build, lead, and participate in effective and diverse coalitions
• Serve as Common Cause’s spokesperson in responding to inquiries from media, government officials, and others
• Engage members and the public across the state through social media, website updates, and email communication
• Develop and implement grassroots organizing strategies to build support for the Common Cause agenda
• Expand and diversify our membership base in the state to deepen our impact
• Manage the Illinois team: collaboratively set goals, coach and develop staff, including members apart of the collective bargaining unit, towards these goals and support their career progression and retention at Common Cause
• Supervise consultants, volunteers, and interns as needed, in accordance with Common Cause management standards, practices, and procedures
• Promote collaboration between your team, in-state coalitions, and other teams across the organization, ensuring coordination and alignment on shared work and priorities
• Manage the operations of the Illinois team, including managing the budget and any in-state administrative responsibilities (including lobbying reports, mail processing, etc...)
• Build and engage a strong and diverse state advisory board that assists on policy, organizing, and fundraising activities
• Collaborate with Common Cause staff across the country
• Develop fundraising strategies to fund Common Cause programs, including lobbying efforts
• Raise money from foundations, major donors, members, and special events
• Collaborate with national staff to achieve fundraising goals for Illinois
• Cultivate, nurture, and grow relationships with Illinois’ network of donors

Benefits

• A robust healthcare plan that covers 97% of employee’s medical care, 100% of employee’s vision and dental benefits, and 75% of family medical care and 100% of family vision and dental benefits
• Long-term disability and life insurance
• Generous Paid Time Off including 20 Days of Vacation and 10 observed Holidays per year, and additional days off for Thanksgiving and Winter break
• 16 weeks of paid parental leave
• Flexible spending accounts
• A 401k retirement savings plan, with immediate Employer Match
• Dependent Care and Pet Care Support when you travel for work
• Funds for professional development

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Education Level: No Education Listed