Chief Impact Officer

THE OPPORTUNITY

The American political system is not reflective of the American people.  

It’s no secret that barriers have been created to exclude and marginalize certain communities from being the decision makers in government. 

We especially see this at the state and local levels. 

More than half of all Americans are millennials or younger, but only 6% of state legislators are 35 or younger. Among state legislators, only 33% are women, 10% are Black, 6% are Latino, and 4% are Asian/Pacific Islander. And only 0.2% of elected officials openly identify as LGBTQIA+.

When elected officials don’t reflect the people they represent, it undermines the power of people and our democracy.  

Run for Something (RFS) is changing what leadership looks like in America by building one of the largest candidate pipelines in progressive politics and bringing those young people into public service. 

Founded in 2017, RFS has recruited nearly 150,000 young people who want to run for office.

Through their innovative people-first program that treats candidates like people first and political actors second, RFS has helped elect more than 1,000 of them — mostly women and people of color, a quarter of whom identify as LGBTQIA+, and all millennials and Gen Z — to the kinds of state and local offices that make real meaningful change.

About Run for Something 

Run for Something recruits and supports young, diverse progressives to run for down-ballot races to build long-term sustainable power in all 50 states.  

Since launching in 2017, RFS has recruited nearly 150,000 people who want to run for office, endorsed over 3,000 candidates, and won over 1,000 elections.

Once elected, RFS alumni have transformed state and local governments, making housing more affordable, abortion more accessible, and education more equitable. They are the present and future leaders of the Democratic Party and the country. No matter who wins the White House in November, RFS’s work is imperative to the future of democracy and the long-term power-building efforts.

At the same time, RFS has led the sector with an internal culture that prioritizes work-life integration, long-term sustainability of both mission and staff, and diversity, equity, and inclusion, all baked into the core DNA of the team and program.

Run for Something’s work is long-term, year-round, and strategic. The organization has ambitious plans for 2024 and beyond; you can read the strategic plan here. Learn more about our work in this clip. We highly encourage all job applicants to visit our Careers page to learn about our work environment, values, compensation and benefits policies, interview process, and more.  The priority deadline for applications is June 6, 2024.

Position Summary

Position Name: Chief Impact Officer 

Comparable titles in other organizations include: Chief External Officer, Chief External Relations Officer, Chief External Affairs Officer

Reporting Structure: This role reports to Co-Executive Director/Do-Founder Amanda Litman

Location: Remote (U.S.)

Job Classification: Full Time, Exempt

Essential Duties: The primary responsibilities include significantly growing Run for Something’s branding, positioning, and revenue by overseeing fundraising and communications programs, coordinating across departments, and representing the broader executive team as appropriate when needed.

Position summary: 

Run for Something is seeking a Chief Impact Officer to elevate our national communications strategy and raise the critical funds necessary to achieve our important mission. 

The Chief Impact Officer will lead the Development and Communication teams to inspire donors, motivate young people to run for office, amplify profiles of RFS-endorsed candidates and alumni and broaden public understanding of the pivotal roles state and local offices play in shaping democracy.

The ideal candidate will have a command of electoral politics and possess exceptional people-centered management, strong relationship building, collaboration, strategic thinking capabilities and a deep belief in RFS’s mission. 

This role represents a rare opportunity to be a leader at one of the most pivotal organizations to emerge in the post-2016 political landscape, shaping the long-term external relations strategy beyond the 2024 elections. This person will report to the Co-Executive Director/Co-Founder Amanda Litman and will shift to reporting to the to-be-hired Executive Director in the next six months. 

Run for Something (RFS) is approximately $12 million and comprises of Run for Something’s527 non-federal PAC, Run for Something Action Fund (a 501c4), and Run for Something Civics (a non-partisan 501c3). As a member of RFS leadership, this position must also contribute, integrate, and hold themselves and their department accountable to the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) goals set by RFS while also playing an active role in fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive organizational culture.

Responsibilities

The Chief Impact Officer is an executive  level role and leader on the RFS team, and will ensure that programs and stakeholders are moving efficiently and effectively in the same direction. 

Lead Communications Program (30%)

-Lead, manage and coach the Communications team (currently 5 team members, including 2 direct reports (Digital Communications Director, Senior Manager of National Communications))

-As the Communications lead for the organization, set vision and develop innovative strategies to elevate RFS’s press coverage, social media, external communications, email program, branding and positioning on a national scale

-Collaborate with team to amplify compelling stories and content through social media and earned media that reflects the diversity of candidates we support and our broader RFS community

-Directly manage press consultants and lead media relations strategy 

-Collaborate with press consultants by proactively pitching stories, anticipating opportunities for visibility and making decisions on media efforts

-Identify communications-related risks and design strategies and solutions for crisis situations

-Collaborate with Co-Founder, Amanda Litman, to shape a strategy that utilizes her voice in the most high-impact and strategic ways

-Collaborate with the Chief Campaigns Officer and other key stakeholders across RFS to elevate RFS’s programmatic and campaigns work into inspiring communications and drive cross-team projects

Lead Development Program (30%)

-Lead, manage and coach the Development team (currently 4 people, including 1 direct report (VP, Development)), to meet annual fundraising goals 

-Serve as a strategic thought partner to the VP, Development when setting vision and innovating on fundraising strategy to inspire donors and identify future opportunities 

-Collaborate with leadership on annual budgeting and long-term financial strategy

-Collaborate with Co-Executive Directors to shape a strategy that utilizes their voice in the most high-impact and strategic ways

-When needed, manage a portfolio of donors to build broader support of RFS’ work

Management and leadership (40%)

-Ensure Communications and Development team’s capacity, resources and processes are aligned to RFS’s organizational priorities 

-Support teams to navigate competing priorities and change management 

-As a member of RFS leadership team, contribute to organization-wide strategy and initiatives; be an active leader and advocate for RFS’ philosophy, mission, values, culture, and DEI goals throughout the organization

-Manage, mentor, and coach staff in line with RFS values and performance management standards to ensure relevant key performance indicators are met; identify and support areas for professional development; as a manager of managers, ensure RFS performance standards and values are apparent through all departments

-Develop quarterly board reports for Co-Founder/Co-Executive Director as well as presenting to the board as-needed

Key Goals 

-All members of the communications and fundraising teams are aligned on expectations, roles, and responsibilities, under a cohesive external relations vision and strategy 

-Departments under the Chief Impact Officer are hitting their own goals 

-Successful coaching and management of team leads and support in their respective management

-Smooth cross-team facilitation in support of hitting key performance indicators

Minimum Qualifications

-Relevant work experiences in campaigns or electoral political organizations 

-Experience with both managing the strategy and direct execution of a communications program (including digital communications, media relations and paid ads)

-Experience in 501c3, 501c4, and/or PAC fundraising

-Demonstrated success in thinking strategically about revenue diversification and revenue growth  

-Significant experience leading, managing, coaching and inspiring teams to meet ambitious goals and navigating through change and transformation

-Experience managing other managers

-Experience with coaching others on open dialogue, receiving and giving feedback, and having difficult conversations that strengthen relationships

-Outstanding people-management skills, combined with a demonstrated ability to navigate diverse cultural contexts and identities with compassion and collaboration while actively fostering inclusivity and a sense of belonging and psychological safety

-Strong project management skills and experience, which includes being organized, detail-oriented, coordinating across multiple departments, managing different stakeholders with competing goals, and holding folks accountable to deadlines

-Experience managing budgets 

-Effective problem-solver with judgment and discretion; able to quickly triage crises and identify which can be solved independently and which require input, and from whom, and ability to anticipate challenges 

-Engaging verbal and written communication skills with ability to inspire and motivate

-Exceptional ability to build strong, inclusive, trusting and collaborative relationships with stakeholders at all levels to work towards collective goals with deep emotional intelligence

-Ability to adapt to changing environments and navigate complexities inherent in politics with resilience and agility

-Comfortable and experienced in managing a unionized staff

-Demonstrated ability to work in and contribute to a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment 

-Ability to demonstrate Run for Something’s organizational values: Bold & Fearless; Open & Honest; Supportive & Respectful; Progressive & Diverse; Long-term & Strategic

-Ability to work independently for extended periods of time in a remote environment 

-Strong commitment to the Run for Something mission

Plus Qualifications

-10+ years work experience

-Experience as an executive director, managing director, CXO, or comparable title

-Comfort and experience with on-the-record work in the press

-Comfort and experience working directly with major donors

Run for Something is committed to building teams that reflect the diversity of our candidates, and to building equitable and inclusive environments that fully leverage the skills, potential, and unique perspectives of our employees. We strongly encourage applications from members of marginalized communities who have been disproportionately affected by lack of representation in elected office, including Black, Indigenous, and people of color, women, and the LGBTQIA+ and disabled communities. Learn more about our commitment here. 

In order to prioritize the health and safety of our employees, all Run for Something employees are required to provide proof of COVID vaccination. Run for Something will discuss reasonable accommodations with employees who may be unable to receive a vaccine due to disability, the advice of a medical provider, or sincerely held religious beliefs.

Work Environment 

Run for Something is (and always has been and will be) a remote office environment; you will collaborate with colleagues who are based across the United States. You should be prepared to either work from home or a location of your choosing.

When it is safe to do so, this position will require attendance at approximately 2 all-staff events per year, which may include overnight travel. Other travel (1-2x quarterly) may be required as needed.

This position requires the ability to work core hours, Monday through Thursday. This position will require some nights and weekends work. 

Learn more about what it’s like to work at Run for Something at our Careers page.

Essential Physical Requirements 

-As this is a remote position, the person in this position must be able to communicate with colleagues and partners via phone, including conference and video calls, as well as written communication such as Slack and email. 

-The position requires the ability to work on a computer for all or part of the work day. 

Compensation & Benefits 

Salary for this position is set at $198,100. In order to counter pay inequality and uphold internal parity, salaries are non-negotiable for new and current employees. Run for Something salary bands for a given staff level are benchmarked to the 75th percentile for our sector, and all new employees are paid at the entry point of those bands. Employees then have the opportunity to progress through current salary bands through annual cost of living increases and performance-based pay increases, and into new salary bands through promotions. 

Learn more about our compensation policy here.

Benefits at Run for Something include: 

-Four Day Work Week (learn more here)

-Unlimited Paid Time Off policy 

-Platinum Medical Insurance (100% of premium covered for employees; 50% of premium covered for dependents) 

-Dental and Vision Insurance (100% of premium covered for both employees and dependents) 

-Professional Development Stipend

-Treat Yourself Stipend ($500 a year to do something that brings you joy)

-Equipment Stipend

-401k

-Work from Home Stipend

-Cell Phone/Internet Stipend  

-12 weeks paid family leave

-Paid Sabbatical (after 3 years of service to RFS)

-Employee Assistance Program

~Four weeks in organization-wide holiday closures, including a two-week winter break

-Flexible, remote work environment

-Transition payment for departing employees

Work Authorization

Given campaign finance restrictions, candidates for this position must possess valid work authorizations, and cannot be foreign nationals. This means that we are legally prohibited from hiring anyone for this position who is not a US citizen or lawful permanent resident (green card holder).

To Apply

We will be reviewing applications on a rolling basis, with priority review given to earlier applications. 

Learn more about our interview process here.

No phone calls, emails, or social media inquiries, please. Due to the volume of applications, we are unable to respond to individual inquiries. As a general policy, we don’t conduct informational interviews for candidates who have applied for specific opportunities at Run for Something to ensure equity in our hiring process and to give everyone who has applied a fair chance to succeed. We know that applying to jobs is difficult, and we do our best to alert every applicant as to their status in the process. However, be aware that you may not receive a response from us until after the application deadline has passed. 

If you need accessibility or disability accommodations in any step of the application or interview process, please contact hiring@runforsomething.net, with the job title + “accommodation request” in the subject line.

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