Senior Associate, Communications

About the State Innovation Exchange

The State Innovation Exchange (SiX) is a 501(c)(3) policy, strategy, and resource center for progressive state legislators. We empower, embolden, and equip state legislators to build and wield progressive governing power by/with/for the people they represent. We do this by providing legislators with the tools needed to shape impactful public policy and building their capacity to lead with their constituents. We foster long-term collaboration between legislators- across chambers, across regions, and across state lines - and with grassroots movements. Our vision is an equitable, resilient, healthy, and prosperous future for every person in the United States, which is secured and safeguarded by progressive state legislators. SiX’s sister organization, SiX Action is a 501(c)(4) that works alongside SiX to build the capacity of state legislators by providing policy development, communications tools, and technical assistance.

Position Summary 

The Senior Associate, Communications supports the Communications Department to amplify the work of SiX’s programs (Agriculture and Food Systems, Economic Power Project, Legislative, Reproductive Rights, Research, and the State Gender Policy Collective), create and disseminate communications materials, and amplify SiX’s brand. This position works with national staff at SiX as well as in-state and national partners to expand SiX’s reach and impact. This position reports to the Senior Director, Communications.

The ideal candidate will be an organized communicator who has experience centering equity in their work and can both take direction and operate independently. As the Communications department expands to support an evolving and dynamic organization that is completing a new strategic plan, comfort with change management and a high degree of flexibility will be required in this position.  

At SiX, we commit to equal pay for equal work. To counter pay inequality and uphold internal parity,  we use a non-negotiable starting salary system, while benchmarking our pay to highly competitive markets in the nonprofit sector. The salary for this position is $75,000. In addition, SiX offers competitive benefits including generous healthcare coverage options for you and your family, life insurance, a retirement match, a flexible schedule, and generous leave including August and December breaks and holiday schedules. This is a full-time, exempt position. The position is remote and open to anyone living in the continental United States, within one hour of a major airport. The position will require travel, at least 3-4 times per year. 

Role Responsibilities 

All staff at SiX have personalized role responsibilities – the outcomes and impacts you are expected to deliver as part of your unique role within the organization. As the Senior Associate, Communications you report to the Senior Director, Communications and will be responsible for delivering on the following expectations in your day-to-day work:

1. Program Implementation – General Communications Support: Collaborate with program leads to draft SiX’s cross-programmatic newsletters on a regular basis.  Track, evaluate, and adjust external communications based on data. Work with program leads on communications elements for cross-state campaigns, projects, and publications. Provide communications support for events and convenings. Draft press releases, media advisories, pitch notes, and press statements. Update press lists. Engage with communications contractors and vendors. Anticipate an estimated six domestic trips a year to support on SiX events and staff development.
2. Program Implementation – Digital: Maintain the SiX website drafting blog posts and keeping press releases and other press materials up-to-date. Ensure balanced representation of programs on digital platforms. Collaborate with the Senior Director, Communications on a social media strategy and lead on the implementation of the strategy. Create digital toolkits and social media graphics. Maintain Mail Chimp: updating lists, creating templates, and drafting emails. Manage SiX’s social media channels. Manage the technical administration of webinars.
3. Program Implementation – Marketing: Manage program and cross-program marketing projects as needed, including supporting issue programs and SiX as a whole to market and brand themselves. In collaboration with the Senior Director, Communications, keep SiX marketing materials up-to-date,  identify and pursue opportunities to market SiX and programs. Work with the Senior Director, Communications to build out storytelling capacity across programs. Build out a bank of consistent images and graphics. 
4. Program Implementation -- Organizational Communications Support: In collaboration with the Senior Director, Communications keep organization brand, voice, and tone consistent. Review and edit materials from SiX staff for external audiences (e.g. legislator packets, convening materials, program emails). Troubleshoot communications and platform issues alongside staff. Consult and strategize with staff on ways to communicate with, train, and/or elevate legislators. Support on development reporting requirements.
5. Knowledge Management - Actively contribute to the maintenance and organization of communications policies, systems, and tracking and evaluation.
6. Financial Management – Track expenses. Submit financial documentation in a timely manner. 
7. Organizational Alignment: In partnership with the Senior Director, Communications, ensure that the communications team meets its organization-wide expectations with regard to living our organizational values, practicing equity and inclusion, ensuring compliance with applicable rules and regulations, and achieving coordination and cohesiveness with SiX’s strategic plan and overall programmatic goals.

Core Competencies

All staff roles at SiX are grounded in a set of core competencies that are standardized across the organization based on the type of role you hold. As the Senior Associate, Communications you will be expected to demonstrate the following core competency expectations in your day-to-day work:

1. Equity and Inclusion. You have a demonstrated understanding of the role that racial, gender, economic, and other inequities play in our society and in movement-building and demonstrate an ability to effectively collaborate across lines of difference.
2. Program Implementation. You are able to successfully execute the activities of your program/issue area(s) and contribute to the success of your team and the organization overall. 
3. Partner Engagement. You are able to cultivate and maintain successful and professional partnerships with external stakeholders in the implementation of your work. 
4. External Communication and Brand Management. You are able to advance the organization’s reputation, profile and brand with key stakeholders. You possess excellent written and verbal communication skills. 
5. Knowledge Management. You are detail oriented and able to support in the collection, synthesis and dissemination of information about your team’s work, internally and externally. 
6. Financial Administration. You are able to provide timely, accurate financial information as needed to comply with all internal financial protocols. 
7. Fund Development. You are able to assist with securing resources for the organization. Upon request, you may be asked to participate in the design and implementation of funding requests. You may be asked to participate in fund development, both in writing and in-person, to targeted audiences.
8. Compliance. You are able to comply with relevant nonprofit laws and adhere to internal policies, practices, and protocols. 
9. Organizational Culture and Values. You are able to practice and uphold organizational values in your day-to-day and long-term work. You participate in creating a team culture that is productive, collaborative, and equitable.

Organizational Values

All staff at SiX are responsible for upholding our organizational values, which were developed collaboratively by all staff. These describe the way we strive to do our work together and the kind of organizational culture we want to build. As the Senior Associate, Communications you will be responsible for demonstrating the following behaviors in carrying out your day-to-day work:

1. Equity and Inclusion. Actively practice our commitment to racial, gender, economic, and social justice. Demonstrate an openness to cultivating progressive, inclusive leadership and welcoming different learning and leadership styles. Seek and accept feedback about ways to strengthen your awareness and understanding of how to create more inclusiveness in your speech and behavior. Practice humility and continuous learning. Commit to repairing relationships with your speech or behavior has promoted inequity or exclusion.
2. Collaboration. Proactively build relationships with your colleagues and partners. Demonstrate respectful speech and behavior. Be honest, kind, and direct in instances of conflict. Adopt a stance of “having each other’s back.” Resist habits of individualism and competition in favor of turning toward and building with one another.
3. Accountability. Demonstrate the ability to own and achieve your responsibilities at work. Attend to both the results and the process by which you achieve your results. Pay attention to details, anticipate roadblocks, offer solutions, drive work forward, include relevant stakeholders when making decisions, follow through with delivering high-quality work on time.
4. Integrity and Trust. Do not withhold information but democratize knowledge. Acknowledge both your successes and your mistakes. Practice forthrightness, “saying the thing,” graciously giving and receiving feedback, and building your own skills and capacity as well as that of your colleagues.
5. Initiative and Tenacity. Take responsibility for your success and the success of your teammates. Demonstrate the ability to manage and successfully execute on the work in the context of a remote organization. Offer and seek answers and options proactively, in consultation with your supervisor, colleagues, and partners. Challenge implicit assumptions and create explicit agreements.
6. Flexibility. Embody a “getting to yes” attitude and a propensity for working through roadblocks, building consensus, and course correcting when necessary. Engage in continuous learning and reflection. Seek feedback. Apply your learnings to subsequent projects and responsibilities. Welcome change and seek ways to adapt to new information, people, and circumstances.
7. Innovation. Commit to learning and growing the organization’s work. Stay open to possibility. Greet new opportunities with curiosity and a sense of possibility and openness. Contribute to a culture that lets us grow, try new things, succeed (or fail), and learn from our efforts.

How to Apply 

Interested applicants should submit a compelling cover letter and resume to jobs@stateinnovation.org. Please indicate the position you are applying for in the subject line of the email. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled. Priority will be given to candidates who apply by June 7, 2024.

State Innovation Exchange is an equal opportunity employer. We encourage people of color, women, LGBTQ folks, and immigrants to apply for open positions. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, national origin, age, marital, and/or veteran status or any other characteristic or activity protected by federal, state, or local law.