Director, Campaigns & Strategic Partnerships

Los Angeles or Washington D.C. (preferred), Remote considered

Policy & Advocacy /

Full-Time /

Hybrid

Founded in 1979, the National Immigration Law Center (NILC) is a leading non-profit organization (501(c)3) in the U.S. exclusively dedicated to defending and advancing the rights and opportunities of low-income immigrants and their loved ones. NILC’s mission is grounded in the belief that everyone living in the U.S. regardless of race, gender/gender identity, immigration status, or economic status — should have equal access to justice, resources, and educational and economic opportunities that enable them to achieve their full human potential. Together, NILC and the affiliated NILC Immigrant Justice Fund (IJF), a 501(c)4 organization, work to advocate more directly for federal immigration reform policies. NILC is committed to advancing its mission — which intersects race, immigration status, and class — through racial, economic, and gender justice and equity orientation.

Headquartered in Los Angeles with an office in Washington, DC, NILC seeks to achieve just laws and policies that address systemic inequities, create narrative and culture change for an inclusive and equitable society, and build a healthier and more powerful movement. For more information, please visit www.nilc.org. and www.immigrantjusticefund.org/

NILC is at an exciting moment in its organizational trajectory, supporting our five-year strategic framework and scaling the organization and its work through influencing systems, policy advocacy at the federal and state levels, engaging in movement and power building, and narrative and culture strategies in addition to continuous improvements to our operational model. We are looking for entrepreneurial, results-driven, relationship builders who are committed to NILC’s mission and values of racial justice & equity, valuing diversity, fostering partnerships & collaboration, encouraging respect & personal well-being, and striving for transparency, integrity, and honesty.

About the Position

The Director, Campaigns & Strategic Partnerships (the Director) leads, oversees, and helps execute NILC’s strategic partnerships, campaigns, and state and local advocacy programmatic work at NILC. Within NILC’s current strategic framework, the second core strategy to strengthen and expand the movement for immigrant justice encompasses the vital work that the Director will oversee and execute by asserting NILC in an explicit movement leadership role and building capacity across the movement to leverage power for transformational change. The Director supports the Executive Vice President, Programs, the Vice President, Strategic Partnerships & Advocacy, and other Directors across the Programs team to set the overall partnerships and campaigns strategy. They work in close coordination with the Law & Policy, Strategic Partnerships & Advocacy, Strategic Communications, and Development teams, NILC’s Immigrant Justice Fund (501(c)4), and other local and national partners to advance NILC’s mission. The Director, Strategic Partnerships will lead the execution of a robust partnerships and campaigns strategy for immigrant justice that is people- and community-centered and grounded in intersectional rights and needs of immigrants in the US.

This role is not a member of the Bargaining Unit.

The Director, Campaigns & Strategic Partnerships will be responsible for providing leadership and driving success in the following key areas:

Specific Position Responsibilities

Campaigns & Strategic Partnerships Strategy & Execution

Support the Executive Vice President, Programs and the Vice President, Strategic Partnerships & Advocacy to develop a strategic plan for the Strategic Partnerships & Advocacy team, and cross-departmental campaign and project teams, that implements and leverages the Strategic Framework.
Acts as a subject matter expert on movement building, strategic partnerships, campaigns, and related areas of expertise, including how these areas intersect with legal, policy, advocacy, and communications work.
Oversee all aspects of NILC’s campaigns in partnership with the Deputy Director, Campaigns including collaborative goal and strategy setting, and helping lead and manage NILC’s cross-departmental, cross-functional campaign teams.
Oversee all aspects of NILC’s state and local strategy in partnership with the Deputy Director, State Advocacy, including collaborative goal and strategy setting, and helping lead and manage NILC’s cross-departmental, cross-functional campaign teams.
Oversee the creation, launch, and implementation of new NILC-led campaigns, and lead one or more specific campaign as-needed.
Support the cultivation and development of relationships with grassroots and membership-based organizations, and impacted individuals and communities.
· Develop strategies and structures for engaging and mobilizing partners and stakeholders across NILC’s priorities and campaigns, such as new networks, coalitions, collaboratives, working groups, partnerships, and initiatives.
In consultation with the Director of Technology, explore and pilot innovative technological solutions to increase NILC’s effectiveness in engaging and mobilizing partners and stakeholders.
Oversee the development of coalition-building strategies to build collaborative power for policy change among organizations and leaders working at the grasstops and grassroots levels.
Define criteria and other parameters for NILC’s investment in partnerships, and its leadership or members in coalitions, including whether we should be seeking out new alliances and partnerships to further our commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and racial justice.
Develop and maintain strong and collaborative relationships with allies, stakeholders, and coalition partners including labor unions, national NGO partners, community-based organizations, impacted individuals, grassroots organizations, and other partners, representing NILC in coalitions and convenings as appropriate.
Develop and implement strategies for mobilizing key allies, partners, and stakeholders via campaigns, coalitions, working groups, partnerships, and networks.
Understand NILC’s role in the racial and economic justice ecosystem and identify potential opportunities to lead or expand that role.
Develop systems and processes for mapping and cataloguing NILC relationships via Quorum Stakeholder to promote organization-wide leveraging of key relationships, enabling NILC (a) to assess the nature and variations of relationships, and (b) more intentionally leverage NILC’s relationships to advance NILC’s mission in accordance with the NILC Strategic Framework.
In partnership with the Communications and campaigns teams, develop and disseminate materials supporting campaign actions or providing key updates to campaign partners.
Serve as a spokesperson with the media, present at national conferences, and other public speaking engagements that further NILC’s mission and advocacy strategies.
Help oversee the development of effective internal communication and project management systems and practices across teams.
Develop NILC’s staff understanding and capacity to conduct power and relationship mapping.
Develop NILC’s staff understanding and capacity to build and run campaigns.
Train, coach, and oversee NILC staff that are leading campaigns.

Management, Supervision, and Operations
In partnership with functional area and department leadership, develop and oversee implementation of Campaigns & Strategic Partnerships strategic goals and objectives at the functional area, department, team, and individual levels.
Oversee the management of the Campaigns & Strategic Partnerships team, including by advising on and making decisions in relation to employee work schedules, professional development, performance evaluations, work assignments, job rotation, training, vacations, expense approvals, work-related travel, paid time off, telecommuting, cover for absenteeism, and overtime scheduling.
Ensure that all Programs team members understand the long-term vision for immigrants’ rights, NILC’s theory of change under its Strategic Framework, and the relationship between that broader vision, NILC’s core strategies/levers of change, and their work.
Ensure that internal cross-departmental campaign and project teams have the larger vision and strategic framework at the core and are aligned across various issue areas and functions.
Coordinate with, and assign staff to support, the Vice President, Political Strategy (IJF) to ensure that NILC’s campaigns & strategic partnerships work complements and reinforces NILC IJF’s 501(c)(4) electoral strategy in compliance with applicable law.
In coordination with and at the direction of their respective supervisors, and pursuant to the Human Resources’ department’s performance evaluation and professional development processes, share feedback on campaign and project team members’ performance, goals, strengths & weaknesses, and more to their respective supervisor to support the development of team members at all levels.
Manage the preparation and maintenance of reports necessary to carry out the functions of the department including periodic reports for the leadership teams, as necessary or requested, to track strategic goal accomplishment.
Support fundraising efforts by providing the necessary information and analysis to support the Development team’s operations, and participating in funder meetings and engagements as requested
In collaboration with other teams that interact with the Campaigns & Strategic Partnerships team, oversee the development of effective internal communication and project management systems and practices across teams and workgroups
May be a part of or lead cross functional/departmental projects using the MOCHA framework/methodology

Supervisory Responsibilities

Supports the recruitment, interviewing, and hiring of staff and oversees staff onboarding & training.
Oversees the daily workflow of direct reports, including the Deputy Director, Campaigns and Deputy Director, State Advocacy and a broader team that also includes the Senior Strategist, Campaigns and Strategist, State & Local Advocacy.
Acts as a coach and mentor, including providing constructive and timely feedback to foster a collaborative environment that develops strengths, improves weaknesses, and encourages creative and constructive problem-solving.
Actively manages direct and indirect reports using applicable performance management software including documenting regular check-ins, goal progress, and any other relevant information in the system for performance and coaching purposes.
Handles discipline and performance issues in accordance with organizational policy.
Directly manages employees with possibility for additional staff.
Manages outside consultants, third party administrators, and vendors.

Shared Organization Responsibilities

Champions NILC & IJF’s mission of advancing the rights of immigrants with low income by demonstrating a commitment to human rights, and racial, economic, and social justice
Attends and actively participates in NILC meetings at the organization, department, project, and individual level
Develops relationships and supports NILC and IJF colleagues across all teams, recognizing that each individual brings a unique background and perspective to the work and assuming good intent from each other.
Follows through on commitments acting with a clear sense of ownership individually and collectively by taking personal responsibility for decisions, actions, and failures, establishing clear responsibilities and processes for monitoring work and measuring results, and designing feedback loops into work.
Learns quickly when facing new situations by experimenting to find fresh solutions, taking on the challenge of unfamiliar tasks, and extracting lessons learned from failures and mistakes.
Acts with integrity by following through on commitments, being direct and truthful, keeping confidence, and showing consistency between words and actions.
Commits to centering NILC’s values of racial justice & equity, valuing diversity, fostering partnerships & collaboration, encouraging respect & personal well-being, and striving for transparency, integrity, and honesty in all decisions and actions

In recognition of the fluidity of the work and ecosystem that NILC operates in, other duties may be assigned depending on organizational need.

What We’re Looking for in This Role

Commitment to NILC & IJF’s mission of advancing the rights of immigrants with low income and a demonstrated commitment to human rights, racial, economic and social justice, and equity, diversity, inclusion, and justice for all.
Collaborative, proactive, and action-oriented working style with a strong service mentality promoting mutual accountability and inspiriting trust and confidence from colleagues and external partners
Demonstrates sound judgement in decision-making, high integrity, and utmost respect for confidentiality.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills: ability to read, analyze, and interpret as well as draft documents such as reports, correspondence, and presentations for various audiences.
Self-starter with a strong strategic ability to move daily tasks forward in alignment with NILC’s broader organizational needs and goals.
Experience with an issue-based campaign(s), including campaign strategy and tactics.
Highly effective interpersonal, leadership, consensus-building, and coalition-building skills, and the ability to forge new relationships and foster existing ones.
Strong commitment to collaboration across disciplines as well as evidence of leading successful partnerships with a variety of stakeholders.
Recognizes each team member's unique background and perspective to achieve team goals in a positive and motivating working environment.
Develops team through coaching, feedback, exposure and stretch assignments.
An inclusive management style that places deep value on diverse perspectives and emphasizes the development and growth of team members and encourages learning and continued improvement.

Qualifications Required

10+ years of progressive experience in campaigns, organizing, strategic partnerships, or outreach and engagement, including 4+ years of people management experience.
Demonstrated ability to adapt to changing priorities, strategies, and circumstances.
Experience working with diverse audiences, including elected officials, community leaders, impacted individuals, coalition partners.
Experience developing strong team dynamics with internal staff and external partners across the country through remote access/technology.
Proficiency with in-office and virtual environments and software such as MS Office, internet research, and virtual collaboration tools.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience working with immigrant communities and organizations strongly preferred..
Proficiency in non-English languages spoken by Latinx, Asian, Pacific Islander, African, Caribbean, and Arab communities preferred. Fluency in more than one language is desirable.

At NILC, we know that talented people may have different backgrounds or experiences, and if your education and experience doesn’t exactly align with the above that’s okay! NILC believes that diversity in all dimensions of the organization supports and bolsters the innovative thinking essential to its success and is committed to providing equal employment opportunity to all qualified applicants. NILC’s goal is for our people to reflect the communities in which we live and serve and to ensure representation of people of color, women, veterans, and individuals with disabilities in our organization. We encourage you to apply and let us know in your cover letter why you are qualified and the right fit for this role and NILC.

Work Environment

Location & Travel:

NILC's offices are located in Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles, California. For this role, up to 30% of overnight interstate travel may be required; generally, travel is quarterly to the NILC Washington, D.C. office or another location within the US for 3-5 nights.

Compensation & Benefits:

NILC’s compensation and benefits philosophy is to provide a competitive offering in the nonprofit sector and ensure equity across the organization. The salary range for this role is $128,000 - $161,000.

Physical Demands:

Remaining in a stationary position, often standing, or sitting for prolonged periods
Communicating with others to exchange information.
Repeating motions, like typing or answering a phone, that may include the wrists, hands and/or fingers.

$128,000 - $161,000 a year

NILC is an equal opportunity employer; people of color and individuals from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply. NILC does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, citizenship status, ethnic background, religion, political orientation, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, or any other protected class. We consider all qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative.

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