POLITICAL DIRECTOR, ACLU OF ARIZONA, PHOENIX
OVERVIEW
For the past nearly 100 years, the ACLU has been at the forefront of every major civil liberties fight in our country's history. Whether it's ending mass incarceration, achieving full equality for the LGBT community, establishing new privacy protections for our digital age, or preserving the right to vote, we take up the toughest civil liberties issues to defend all individuals from government abuse and overreach. With ACLU affiliate offices in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, we fight tirelessly in the courts, legislatures, and through community engagement to ensure that all individuals' rights are protected. We are a passionate, highly motivated group of lawyers, public policy experts, lobbyists, community organizers, and fundraisers, and we're looking for exceptional talent to join our team.
This is an incredibly exciting time to join the ACLU. Our ACLU membership here in Arizona has increased 35% from 5,000 before the November 2016 election to over 20,000 members today. Hundreds of people are joining the growing People Power movement. More than 2,300 people across the country signed up to host events during our March 2011 launch – 200 people here in Arizona alone – and since then dozens of people have been meeting with law enforcement officials across the state to advocate for immigrant-friendly policy changes that promote public safety and foster better trust between community members and police. In celebration of our 100th anniversary in 2020, the ACLU is building a more expansive advocacy infrastructure to increase the ACLU's effectiveness in achieving its public policy objectives. The organization is growing rapidly and has identified critical policy objectives that need proactive campaigns in order to succeed. We seek a talented leader with strong political acumen to play a central role in shaping a new and bold vision to protect the liberties that define our democracy.
The ACLU of Arizona is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, public interest organization dedicated to the defense and expansion of civil liberties and civil rights in Arizona. Our four strategic priority areas are: criminal justice reform, educational equity, LGBT equality and immigrants' rights. The ACLU of Arizona has 13 staff members, 23 board members, approximately 19,000 members, and an annual budget of $2,074,070, which includes a significant influx of resources to hire seven new positions in FYE 2018. Additional information about our work can be found at: www.acluaz.org
THE ROLE
The ACLU of Arizona is seeking a smart, dynamic, and seasoned Political Director to oversee multi-faceted non-partisan campaigns that include lobbying, communications, litigation and grassroots organizing to achieve our policy objectives. This is a new role being created to shape and lead the ACLU-AZ's public policy advocacy and political strategy at a time when the organization is growing rapidly and has identified critical policy priorities ripe for campaigning, including educational equity and criminal justice reform.
The Political Director will be a member of the Arizona affiliate's senior management team, and will play a key role along with other members of ACLU-AZ's Legal, Philanthropy, Policy, Finance and Communications staff, and the Executive Director, in shaping the overall vision of the organization's work.
Reporting to the Executive Director, the Political Director will ultimately manage a department that consists of a Policy Director, who is the organization's chief representative before the Arizona Legislature and other governmental bodies, two organizers, and a Manager of a Campaign for Criminal Justice Reform. The Political Director will also work with vendors, consultants, and contractors to implement campaigns. This is a full-time position based in our Phoenix office.
RESPONSIBILITIES
· Managing the ACLU of Arizona's advocacy infrastructure and an increasing cohort of ACLU political/campaign staff, lobbyists, contract lobbyists and communications experts;
· Designing and overseeing campaigns that bring together legislative, organizing, communications, and legal strategy to meet strategic goals;
· Developing and implementing a grasstops deployment strategy to engage policymakers, stakeholders, and opinion leaders from all ends of the political and ideological spectrum;
· Building the current network of card-carrying ACLU members, supporters, volunteers, and activists into an effective grassroots advocacy force;
· Overseeing the ACLU's legislative program, including developing and implementing strategies to engage policymakers from both sides of the political aisle;
· Coordinating a political communications strategy in collaboration with the Communications Director to leverage traditional and new media to advance policy changes; and
· Overseeing the organization's participation in efforts to defeat and pass statewide ballot initiatives.
CANDIDATE PROFILE
This is an extraordinary opportunity for a talented leader to play a central role in shaping a new and bold vision to protect the liberties that define our democracy. We seek candidates with a mix of political and issue advocacy experience to shape and lead the ACLU of Arizona's statewide advocacy strategy and drive a period of remarkable and exciting growth for the ACLU – all at a critical juncture for civil rights and liberties in our nation.
While no person will possess all of the qualities described below, the ideal candidate will have much of the following professional experience and demonstrated skills:
· Finely honed and highly strategic political and campaign skills and high-level experience in leading, designing, and implementing significant political or issue campaigns and effective organizing strategies;
· Demonstrated and proven leadership experience working in an organization with both professional staff and volunteers;
· Knowledge of the legislative and administrative processes at the state level;
· A sophisticated understanding of how to be effective in the public policy arena, and experience in political organizing, and formulating strategies that tie together research, legal analysis and litigation, lobbying, new forms of communications, and grassroots and grasstops strategies;
· Knowledge of current political alignments and opportunities for collaboration with a broad range of groups;
· Experience working closely and effectively with all media platforms and familiarity with social media as a communications and organizing tactic;
· A history of working collaboratively and successfully with people and organizations from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds and a broad range of ideological positions and religious views;
· A commitment to the mission and goals of the ACLU, and a demonstrated commitment to racial justice and civil rights issues and an understanding that these issues are central to overall protections of civil liberties;
· An understanding and keen interest in criminal justice issues;
· A seasoned, effective leader with a record of recruiting, developing, and managing a highly talented, diverse staff, as well as overseeing budget and administration. A person who provides clear direction, delegates well, and assumes ultimate responsibility;
· An interest in working with the Executive Director and other senior managers in raising funds with which to pursue the organization's ambitious agenda; and
· Bachelor's degree in a relevant field. A law degree or graduate training is preferred, but not required.
POLITICAL AND CAMPAIGN KNOWLEDGE
The successful candidate will have deep substantive knowledge of the operation of the political, public policy and advocacy arenas in Arizona. The ideal candidate will be highly respected and possess the credibility to be able to deal across the political aisle and will all branches of government. Regardless of political background, the ACLU-AZ Political Director needs to be politically savvy and highly strategic, and have the ability to cultivate strong relationships with all external constituencies and policymakers across party lines.
SETTING STRATEGY
The Political Director will be a leader with strong political acumen, interpersonal skills and outstanding judgment to be a critical thinker who is able to help drive a new strategic direction for the ACLU-AZ. That person must be able to assimilate and balance the many different interests of various constituent groups, helping the affiliate prioritize and focus on accomplishing long-terms objectives.
LEADING TEAMS/MANAGEMENT
The ideal candidate will possess management experience along with a demonstrated track record of effectively running a team or organization. The new Director will know how to run a campaign, including how to recruit top talent and leverage staff members, as well as the resources in other departments. Additionally, the ideal candidate will have experience motivating and directing volunteers. The successful candidate will value talent and will inspire and motivate teams to work together with a clear direction and purpose. This person should also have the temperament and ability to work with colleagues in an organization with a growing staff of up to 20 statewide, understanding the importance of shared responsibility, consensus-decision-making, and the importance of valuing others' contributions even when not directly in his/her direct sphere of influence.
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS AND USING INFLUENCE
While the successful candidate must be a decisive, strategic leader, this individual also must have outstanding interpersonal skills. He/she will be a collaborator, motivator, and campaign builder. He/she must have the ability to build relationships and use influence effectively to accomplish goals of the ACLU.
This individual must also be able to represent the organization well externally in all venues. In order to do this, he/she must be an outstanding communicator who is articulate and persuasive, able to convince others to act on information or recommendations based on compelling logic or common best interests.
INTERPERSONAL ACUMEN
The successful candidate will possess a keen sense of humor and a gracious manner as well as a style that is collegial, approachable, direct and decisive.
COMPENSATION:
The ACLU-AZ offers a generous and comprehensive compensation and benefits package, commensurate with experience, within the parameters of an Arizona-based non-profit. Benefits include three weeks paid vacation; 100%-employer paid medical and dental insurance, life and long-term disability insurance; 401(k); and twelve paid holidays.
TO APPLY:
Send a cover letter, CV, list of three professional references and a writing sample (no more than 5 pages, double-spaced) to: Beth Thomson-Gorman, Office Manager, ACLU of Arizona, Re: Political Director, P.O. Box 17148, Phoenix, AZ 85011, or email to: lizabethtg@acluaz.org. Please list "Political Director" in the subject line. Applications accepted until position is filled. Please indicate in your cover letter where you found this listing.
The ACLU is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and encourages women, people of color, persons with disabilities, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals to apply.
The ACLU of Arizona comprises two separate corporate entities, the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona and the ACLU Foundation of Arizona. Both the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona and the ACLU Foundation of Arizona have the same overall mission, and share office space and employees. The ACLU has two separate corporate entities in order to do a broad range of work to protect civil liberties.
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