Senior Manager, People and Culture

This job description is intended to convey information essential to understand the scope of the position. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of skills, efforts, duties, or responsibilities associated with the position.

The Ballot Initiative Strategy Center (BISC) is seeking an experienced and values-driven professional to join our team as the Senior Manager for People and Culture. BISC is a small but growing nonprofit organization and this role will help steward a healthy and results-oriented organizational culture. We believe that a strong, vibrant, and values-driven organizational culture creates conditions for BISC staff to deliver necessary and vital support to our partners, fulfill our mission, and reflect the equitable and just world we seek to build.

The Senior Manager will work with the Chief of Staff and the entire BISC team to maintain and deepen BISC’s healthy organizational culture through proactive and equity-focused systems, policies, and practices. We seek a candidate that has formal human resources training or credentials, as well as a track record of effectively building equity and change management practices in a similar organization. The Senior Manager will liaise with BISC’s HR services firm and collaborate across the organization to own the employee culture and lifecycle including hiring, employee engagement, retention, and professional development. In addition to leading the organization’s Racial Equity Working and Learning Group, the Senior Manager will work to ensure all-staff and in-person gatherings are opportunities for connection and results. This is a new role at BISC and we seek someone who is innovative, curious, and collaborative as we strengthen our organizational culture. While this position will not directly manage staff, the successful candidate will have prior experience supervising multiple full-time employees.

BISC is a mission and values-driven organization that recruits and seeks to retain a staff committed to excellence by fostering a work environment that is flexible, fairly-compensated, respectful, and fun.

Location: BISC HQ is located in Washington, DC, but the location for this position is flexible. This position requires travel for organizational activities such as retreats and BISC’s annual conference. This position reports to the Chief of Staff.

Responsibilities

• Proactively work with the Chief of Staff on change management and organizational development initiatives
• Liaise with BISC’s external HR services firm and the Director of Operations and Finance to ensure BISC’s policies and practices are in legal compliance and also reflect the organization’s values
• Analyze organizational policies and practices to identify and recommend improvements for equity and inclusion
• Collaborate with the BISC team to continually strengthen and develop the implementation of BISC values into team culture and work.
• Lead development of goals, outcomes, and agendas for all-staff, in-person working meetings and retreats
• Develop RFPs and manage consultants to support organizational development and values
• Develop and recommend strategies to foster a diverse and inclusive workplace culture
• Support efforts and processes to select, retain, and develop talent and expertise in staff, including effective feedback and coaching practices
• Spearhead staff professional development and learning opportunities and processes
• Stay up-to-date on current trends and research on employee culture in nonprofits and propose recommendations to BISC’s Executive Team
• Lead the internal Racial Equity Working and Learning Group

Additional Responsibilities:

• Aid the organization in implementation of BISC’s 5-year strategic plan focused on changing culture, centering directly impacted communities, capacity building, convening, and internal continuity and growth;
• Support other BISC and BISC Foundation projects and activities as needed; and
• Assist with the planning and execution of BISC’s annual conference

Key qualifications and experience:

• At least 5 years of relevant experience in a non-profit setting
• Formal training in human resources and racial equity
• Prior direct management of at least two full-time employees
• Experience building trust across differences and making organization-wide change
• Embodies BISC’s values in an authentic way and is familiar with systems, policies, and tools that can put them into practice
• Commitment to performance and results
• Demonstrates a proactive learning orientation
• Experience managing up and working across multiple departments and with senior level stakeholders
• Exceptional verbal and communication skills
• Demonstrated ability to achieve high performance goals and meet deadlines
• Sound judgment and discretion especially with sensitive and confidential information
• Strong organizational and project management skills
• Intermediate to advanced mastery of Google Suite
• Comfort with technology and virtual communication systems, including Zoom, Slack, EveryAction, Hive or other similar systems
• Long-term commitment to the progressive movement and demonstrated commitment to social, economic, and racial justice

Notice of Exempt Position:

This is a full-time position and in accordance with the provisions of Federal and DC wage and hour laws, this position is classified as Exempt, which means that you will not be eligible for overtime for hours worked in excess of forty (40) during a work week.

Salary & Benefits

• $82,000-$87,000 per year
• 100% Medical insurance for family paid for by employer
• Dental insurance
• Life and Accidental Death and Dismemberment coverage
• Paid vacation
• Sick leave
• Generous 401(k) plan with employer contribution

To apply: Submit a cover letter that includes your formal HR and equity training or credentials, resume, and 3 references. Applicants will be considered on a rolling basis until the position is filled.

About BISC

BISC’s mission is to strengthen democracy by implementing a national progressive strategy for ballot measures rooted in building state-based power.

The Ballot Initiative Strategy Center (BISC), a 501(c)(4) organization, is the only progressive organization that works across many policy, organizing, and political organizations, with local, state, and national leaders to analyze and support the ballot measure landscape.

We believe direct democracy can be a tool for liberation. BISC leverages ballot measures across the United States as part of a larger movement to strengthen democracy, center people of color, queer, low-income, immigrant, indigenous and other marginalized communities, move towards racial equity, build and transform power, and galvanize a new progressive base. In February 2020, we launched our strategic framework to help move towards our vision of building a world where all people are fully liberated, live with dignity and thrive so that equity and justice prevail.

BISC leads by supporting the use of ballot measures as a tool for transformational impact, not just in a measure’s outcomes, but at every stage of the ballot measure process—from policy development, signature gathering, civic engagement, the campaign itself, implementation and beyond. We believe in movement building and empowerment, bringing communities into the work and leaving lasting infrastructure for continued social change.

We know that success isn’t just defined by getting 50% + 1 of the vote. If we’re serious about building a more equitable world, we also must consider who’s driving the change and whether it will have a transformational impact on the people and communities who have been pushed to the margins for too long.

We achieve impact through training the field and developing leaders, convening state and national leaders and funders in a co-created strategy that results in transformative wins, leading innovative research and providing assistance to support ballot measures as a tool to build long term power.

BISC’s Racial Equity Stance

At the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center, we work to transform our country into one that is equitable and just. In our work, we strive to challenge structural racism, and center the people most impacted. BISC works with commitment to racial equity inside our organization in our operations and management processes, and externally through our research, training and organizing work with ballot-measure campaigns, partners and funders.

EEO Policy

BISC follows an Equal Employment Opportunity Policy and employs personnel without regard to race, ethnic or religious background, descent or nationality, sexual orientation, gender (including pregnancy), gender identification, disability, marital status, age, height, weight, or military service. This policy applies to employment, internships, internal promotions, training, opportunities for advancement, terminations, relationships with vendors, use of contractors and consultants and in dealing with the general public.