Communications Coordinator

Local Progress and Local Progress Impact Lab are seeking a Communications Coordinator

About Local Progress and Local Progress Impact Lab

Local Progress (501(c)4) and the Local Progress Impact Lab (501(c)3) together known as Local Progress and the Impact Lab - work collectively to advance a racial and economic justice agenda through all levels of government. Local Progress (LP) is a movement of more than 1,500 local elected officials advancing a racial and economic justice agenda through all levels of local government. The Local Progress Impact Lab (the Impact Lab) brings together local leaders, partners, and experts to build the knowledge, skills, and leadership needed to advance racial and economic justice at the local level.

About the position:

Working as part of a small but mighty communications team, this role will serve as a critical implementer of LP’s communications strategy. The Communications Coordinator will be primarily responsible for supporting the organization’s day-to-day communications needs (network emails, social media, and website) and public brand (which includes both our visual identity and organizational voice).

The Communications Coordinator will report to the Managing Director, Communications & Narrative Strategy

Location: This is a remote, U.S.-based position.

Travel requirement: This position is required to travel to in-person events at minimum twice a quarter.

Primary Responsibilities

Network communications (email, social media, website)

• Owns and leads the LP website, with close guidance and oversight from the Managing Director.
• Support Comms Team with ideating, producing, and laying out both written and visual content across digital platforms (email and social media), including through video content.
• Develops and manages cross-team execution of communications and earned media strategies for national campaigns, state-based work, and issue-based projects.
• Support Comms Team in ensuring consistency in narrative and messaging across strategic communications tactics, including network email, social media, and earned media engagement.
• Provide direct support (including communications guidance and media training or prep) to local elected officials and LP staff in a variety of geographies, and in the first year, focused on MI. LP has state-based staff in NY, TX, MN, PA, CO, and CA, and members in 46 states, including D.C.

Communications infrastructure support

• Help track what’s happening across our membership and contribute to the work to build infrastructure that supports storytelling, including processes for reviewing, identifying, sharing and packaging stories.
• Identify and cultivate relationships with key outlets and reporters, and develop strategies to pitch and place stories and/or spokespeople to print and broadcast opportunities in local, state, and national media.

Public brand and organizational identity

• Supports Comms Team in graphic design and branding responsibilities
• Support Managing Director of Communications & Narrative Strategy in ensuring consistency in our visual identity and organizational voice.

Required Qualifications

• 3 years of strategic communications experience required.
• Strong understanding of branding, design, and visual communications; skills in one or more graphic design platforms a plus (preferably Canva).
  • Experience with creating video content for social media, a plus.
• Strong writer with ability to quickly review and edit materials to ensure consistency of an organizational voice.
• Strong organizational skills, with the attention to detail necessary for successful implementation of communications activities.
• Ability to keep multiple projects on track, anticipate obstacles and identify ways to navigate challenges, and communicate expectations and progress regularly with a remote team.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to build strong relationships with Local Progress members, organizational partners, and staff.
• A demonstrated commitment to social, racial, and economic justice and an interest in local policy, politics, and government.
• Experience with online campaigns using email or social media; knowledge of online advocacy tools or a willingness to learn.

Strong preference will be given to candidates who are bilingual in Spanish and English. We will also consider candidates who are not bilingual but have demonstrated experience working with Spanish-speaking spokespeople and cultivating relationships with Spanish-language media outlets and reporters.