Chief of Policy and Advocacy

Reports to: Executive Director

Location: Washington, D.C.; We are a hybrid workplace, with Mondays and Wednesdays in the office and three days remote, as well as the occasional need to work in person for events and special projects.

Department: Policy and Research

Status: Full-time, Salaried, Exempt

Position Summary

Launched in 2018, the Groundwork Collaborative is driven by the idea that We Are The Economy: when all of us are doing well, that is when our economy thrives. We fight for progressive economic policy and narrative change that builds accountable public power, breaks up concentrations of private power, and affirmatively centers people too long left out of prosperity. We understand that taken together, these actions will lead to a stronger and more resilient economy.

Groundwork’s unique structure – part strategic communications, part think tank, and part issue advocacy organization – allows us to drive narrative and policy change with credibility, expertise, and impact. We work with four core audiences – the media, policymakers, economic policy experts, and grasstops organizations. We use targeted policy campaigns, timely research and messaging to build a community across the progressive movement to advance a truly inclusive economic worldview.

Groundwork seeks a Chief of Policy and Advocacy to lead a fast-paced, dynamic policy and advocacy shop at the cutting edge of economic debate in Washington, especially around the upcoming expiration of key provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. In addition to leading the policy and advocacy team, the Chief of Policy and Advocacy will serve as a top advisor and thought partner to Groundwork’s Executive Director as well as a senior leader within the organization, alongside the organization’s Chief of Staff and Deputy Director and Chief of Communications.

The Chief of Policy and Advocacy will manage all policy, research, and government affairs personnel and programming for Groundwork Collaborative and Groundwork Action, enhancing the impact and reach of Groundwork’s policy engagement with partner organizations, policymakers, and the press. In addition to leading our policy and advocacy work, the Chief or Policy and Advocacy will serve as a top spokesperson for Groundwork in the media and to policy audiences, including by giving Congressional testimony. The Chief of Policy and Advocacy will also work hand-in-glove with the communications team to ensure Groundwork’s policy stances are conveyed with maximal impact and credibility, and that we are deploying the most persuasive and timely evidence in support of our advocacy.

The Chief of Policy and Advocacy will manage a high-performing, strategic team of full-time staff and consultants in a nimble, action-oriented organization and must have the rare combination of policy expertise, management talent, and a knack for building strategic relationships.

As the Chief of Policy and Advocacy, you will:

• Work closely with the Executive Director to shape Groundwork’s engagement with policymakers, partner organizations, and the press.
• Lead Groundwork’s advocacy to ensure the economy works for the workers and consumers who power it, including in next year’s tax debate, and enhance Groundwork’s ability to influence public policy with credibility and persuasive force.
• Ensure that Groundwork's research products are credible and convincing, leveraging policy expertise and deep familiarity with economic data and trends.
• Closely track developing media, political, and economic stories to ensure Groundwork’s policy stances are timely, responsive, and grounded in evidence.
• Hire and supervise positions including Groundwork’s Director of Government Affairs, Director of Research, Senior Fellows, and Senior Policy Analyst, and enhance the team’s capacity to produce key policy products such as reports, briefings, memos, and other collateral for a variety of audiences.
• Represent Groundwork with media, partners, policymakers, and funders and build strategic relationships across the economic policy ecosystem.
• Serve as a mentor and leader for staff across Groundwork, modeling and building an results-driven, effective, and positive organizational culture;
• Perform other duties as assigned.

About you

• You excel in leadership roles and have a proven ability to bring people along to achieve common goals.
• You have an advanced degree in economics, public policy, statistics, or a similar field.
• You bring policy expertise in issues like tax and fiscal policy, with a burning curiosity to understand emerging academic and policy debates related to the economy.
• You are a savvy strategist who seeks out opportunities to advance organizational goals, sees around corners, and knows the right partnerships to form to advance strategic goals.
• You are a seasoned manager with considerable experience in senior leadership roles and helping teammates realize their potential.
• You are equally comfortable liaising with policy wonks, congressional staff, and reporters and can seek out new and exciting opportunities and platforms to elevate Groundwork’s policy engagement.
• You are a strong writer and editor who is excited by the idea of distilling complex ideas into coherent policy positions that resonate with multiple audiences.
• You are familiar with the progressive economic policy, think tank, and advocacy community in Washington and the Hill and have a strong grasp of the economic policymaking process.
• You are detail oriented and organized and have a proven ability to work collaboratively as part of a team and in a fast-paced and dynamic environment.
• You’re committed to a just, inclusive, and robust economy that delivers opportunity and dignity to all.

In addition, it would be a bonus if…

• You have served in a senior economic policy role in Congress or a Federal agency.

The salary range is $180,000 to $210,000. We offer a generous benefits package, including five weeks of vacation and personal leave, two week-long office closures, additional time off for floating and federal holidays, zero-premium health insurance, a generous HRA, a retirement match of up to 6%, up to 16 weeks parental leave, and health club and cell-phone reimbursements, among other benefits. We are a hybrid workplace, with two days a week in the office and three days remote, as well as the occasional need to work in person for events and special projects. Groundwork is a unionized workplace and is represented by the Nonprofit Professional Employees Union (NPEU). This position is not in the bargaining unit.

How to apply

To begin the application process, please submit an application on our career page, including your resume, writing sample, and cover letter. The cover letter should describe your specific experience related to this position.

E-Verify

NVF participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with employees’ Form I-9 information to confirm authorization to work in the United States. Job candidates and employees authorized to work may not be discriminated against on the basis of national origin or citizenship status.

New Venture Fund Careers

Groundwork Collaborative is a project of the New Venture Fund, a 501(c)(3) public charity that incubates new and innovative public-interest projects and grant-making programs. The New Venture Fund is committed to attracting, developing and retaining exceptional people, and to creating a work environment that is dynamic, rewarding, and enables each of us to realize our potential. The New Venture Fund’s work environment is safe and open to all employees and partners, respecting the full spectrum of race, color, religious creed, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, political affiliation, ancestry, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, and all other classifications protected by law in the locality and/or state in which you are working.