Senior Director, Organizing & Campaigns
About WEPOWER
WEPOWER is building a team full of dreamers and doers to advance our mission. We activate community power to (1) reimagine social systems, (2) develop grassroots leaders' and organizations' capacity as agents of systems change, and (3) provide support with campaigns, coalitions, and innovative initiatives that transform community visions into reality. We build powerful relationships with community members and amplify their voices to inform critical decisions that impact their lives. We train community members to design new policies, organize, and seek public office, lead policy and systems change. We provide early-stage companies with access to coaching, capital, connections, and community as they create jobs in the communities with whom we partner.
In our first five years, WEPOWER has activated nearly 400 community leaders, won a historic ballot measure that guarantees millions in public funding annually for early childhood, supported approximately 100 businesses with access to capital, coaching, and connections, and launched a one-of-a-kind investment fund. We envision a future where systems are accountable to powerful communities that have been historically oppressed, and nurture our freedom, well-being, dreams, and joy. We are building a powerful movement led by everyday people, and we have bold plans to get us there. Join us!
Our team is…
About the Opportunity
Reporting to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), the Senior Director of Organizing & Campaigns (SDOC) is an exempt full-time employee who will be located in St. Louis, MO. The SDOC will be responsible for coaching and developing the organizing team, community leaders, and coalitions towards policy and political campaign wins for the 2024 election cycle and beyond.
You Will…
DRIVE STRATEGY
COACH AND DEVELOP THE POWER BUILDING TEAM AND ISSUE-ORIENTED COALITIONS
You Are...
A Results-Oriented Strategic Leader. You are a principled leader who defines challenging yet feasible objectives for yourself, inspiring others to do the same. You look actively for the most efficient way to achieve goals, but are careful to prioritize a results oriented mindset that reinforces the autonomy for members of the team to get work done in the way that feels most intuitive and supportive to their needs and goals. You independently seek alternatives when certain actions have not led to the desired result and seek to implement them equitably with buy-in from directly impacted stakeholders. You promote a culture of inquiry and search for the lessons in both successful and unsuccessful outcomes and mobilize means and people, even when others need to be persuaded of its necessity. You actively seek to improve how you do things and support others in practicing this critical self-reflection, extending grace as you and your team work through new solutions, programs, and initiatives.
A Practitioner of Anti-racist, Anti-ableist Values. Not only are you self-aware of the intersections of your social identities, cultures, biases, and perspectives, but you prioritize support and encouragement of those who are also committed to practicing actively anti-racist and anti-ableist values in their daily lives and in their movement work. The sum total of your lived experiences, both work and volunteer, demonstrate a knowledge and appreciation of diversity and equity. You make continuous efforts to develop your understanding of the intersections of privilege and oppression that impact the ability and opportunities for people to show up and be their authentic selves in a given space, whether a direct report, organization leader, or volunteer leader. You have the ability to adapt to and work collaboratively with diverse people in a range of situations, respecting the different communication styles they may have. You actively work to identify and uproot tenets of white supremacy within electoral and issue advocacy spaces, adopting appropriate interventions to create environments, policies, and practices to ensure diversity, equity, justice, and fairness.
A Manager who Grows with Their Team You provide clear, concise, actionable, bidirectional feedback to support direct reports in their professional development and foster your growth as a leader and manager. You are fluent in the art of delegating significant responsibility and authority that will help develop their abilities, with a keen understanding of their strengths and areas for growth. You express confidence in others’ ability to be successful and take time to highlight improvements that team members make toward hitting their personalized professional goals.
Your Qualifications and Experience
We evaluate candidates on the whole of their experience and skills, and we encourage people to apply even if you do not meet all of the “requirements.” We strongly encourage and seek applications from women, people of color and multi-racial/multi-ethnic people, people with disabilities, as well as members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trans/nonbinary/gender non-conforming communities.
Work Environment
Fun. Fast. Focused. Values-driven. Community-centered. Collaborative. Innovative. Lots of brainstorming and imagining what’s possible and then chasing each possibility until it is reality!
As a startup, being part of the team at WEPOWER requires extreme commitment and agility, AND we value each team member’s personal life circumstances and priorities. We will work together to ensure the organization prioritizes the health, social-emotional wellbeing, and morale of each team member! Living our values regarding the importance of rest, team members have the authority to structure flex time as work ebbs and flows.
Given the nature of campaigns, some evening and weekend work will be expected, but break weeks after intense work periods (e.g. election day) is available for team members and highly encouraged. Additionally, this is a remote office environment, but it’s strongly preferred that the final candidate be based in or willing to relocate to the St Louis area.
There will be 24-hour access to an office space with printing, open workspace, private meeting rooms, and a conference room.
Travel
You will engage in limited travel (roughly once a quarter) with the exception of professional development experiences that align with your short-term and long-term development goals and areas of interest.
Compensation
The salary and benefits package is highly competitive with other organizations of similar stature and size. The salary range is $85,000-$100,000 and commensurate on experience. Benefits include:
Equal Opportunity Employer
WEPOWER is an equal opportunity employer and a fierce advocate for equity in the workplace. We value diversity in all its forms and aim to create an inclusive culture. WEPOWER encourages applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, ancestry, national origin, marital status, disability, veteran status, hair texture, or other status protected by law.
Apply
Interested candidates can apply by submitting their resume as well as their responses to the pre-screening questions below.
Pre-screening Questions
Process