We are searching for an experienced and nimble Learning & Impact (L&I) Director to support a rapidly growing and complex organization in a startup environment.
The Movement Innovation Collaborative (MIC) is a new entity that will deepen and expand the capacity, impact, and sustainability of California's grassroots movements for racial justice and social transformation. MIC will support changemakers and organizations to catalyze innovations in movement strategy and power building, intergenerational leadership development, and our collective long-term sustainability and resiliency. Through a network of physical and virtual "centers," MIC will also contribute a key piece of infrastructure needed to fuel transformative structural change across California. This network will consist of new and existing centers serving hundreds of organizations and tens of thousands of grassroots leaders in California. We aspire to raise the necessary resources to fuel the mission, vision, and programs of MIC.
The Movement Innovation Collaborative is focusing on three core strategies to deepen the power, coordination, and impact of the sector. In all three areas, we will create program and infrastructure supports that are additive and synergistic with existing movement efforts rather than duplicative.
- Movement Strategy and Innovation
- Intergenerational Leadership Development
- Healing Justice and Sustainable Work Culture
What You'll Be Doing :
This is a leadership function within our new Program Team that holds learning as a strategic focus in addition to being a key program element that contributes to innovation and impact. We seek a L&I Director with a successful track record of building and supporting an organizational culture of reflection and learning using data, stories, and other narratives to achieve program performance outcomes for scaled impact.
More specifically, the Learning and Impact Director will have the following responsibilities focused on strategic and operational management in this startup phase of MIC :
Develop the overall learning and innovation strategy for MIC in collaboration with the Program Directors and the Deputy Director of ProgramsIn alignment with MIC's Theory of Change and in partnership with the Leadership Council, identify key hypotheses that are being tested and the strategy for documenting and disseminating learnings
Create an annual learning agenda in service to building greater power through the iteration of MIC's core programs and activitiesIn alignment with MIC's Theory of Change, co-create and implement MIC's impact measurement strategy, identifying KPIs and short-term and long-term outcomes.Design and implement MIC's internal learning systemsAssess knowledge management and data collection needs for L&I functions in order to create and manage internal processes and systems for information to be stored, documented, analyzed, and shared across teams and individual staff.
Determine and implement standards and processes for completion and dissemination of learning assets (e.g. reports, analysis, case studies) among MIC staff, Movement Innovation Centers and externally to the field at largeProvide thought partnership to other MIC colleagues incorporating learning into their roles and responsibilities.Train and support staff on L&I standards, processes, and tools to apply them effectively for learning functions.Develop and implement learning and innovation partnerships with the fieldAssess systems and processes for capturing innovations and knowledge from the field. Make recommendations for how MIC can promote and support a culture of learning within the power building ecosystem.
Champion experiments and research projects to deepen MIC's ability to foster innovation and understanding of the changes and their impact in the wider power building ecosystemCoordinate and collaborate with external contributors (e.g. power building organizations, Movement Innovation Centers, educational, policy, and research institutions) and consultants to further the learning agenda and MIC's Theory of ChangeOversee the learning and innovation functionDevelop and manage project work plans
Ensure alignment across MIC functions (programs, operations, fundraising, stakeholder relations) with messaging of program impact.Hire, train, coach / mentor, supervise and evaluates L&I staff, interns and / or volunteersWe envision that after a period in which the Learning and Impact function is designed and implemented, the responsibilities for this position will shift to address the growing and strategic needs of MIC and as additional program staff are onboarded.
Who You Are :
While no one person will embody all of the qualities described below, the ideal candidate will possess many of the following professional and personal abilities, attributes, and experiences :
A strong alignment with the MIC's mission, values and culture.Demonstrated subject-matter expertise in organizational learning as well as community and social science research including knowledge of grassroots organizations and the political landscape in CaliforniaAt least three to five years of experience in a similar role within a social sector or adjacent setting, preferably an organization that does organizing or community engagement.Combination of related training and work experience for minimum of 10 yearsExperience in leading and conducting applied and other research and analysis and equitable evaluation frameworksExperience in designing and executing systems and processes within an organization.Leadership style that is action-oriented, entrepreneurial, adaptable, community-centered and brings an innovative approach to addressing challengesValues cross-functional collaboration and building strong and trusted relationships across diverse individuals and groups of stakeholdersHigh-level of cultural awareness and experience working with different demographic and cultural groupsA flexible and resilient approach, with the ability to handle strong opinions / feedback well, and adapt to the dynamic nature of a startup environment.Unafraid to tackle issues of race & equity both internally with MIC colleagues and networks externally with the fieldStrategic leadership abilities, and the ability to link the development of people with achievement of organizational outcomes.Excellent written and verbal communication skills.Ability to effectively present information to diverse audiences (MIC staff, Board of Directors and Advisors, funders, etc.)
Ability to communicate technical data and other information into accessible, actionable and meaningful information for decision-making and program improvementPossess facilitation, training and consultation skills in order to convene groups to interpret and examine data, make decisions, and move to action.Exceptional project management, prioritization, and planning skills, with demonstrated success producing high-quality deliverables on time and with attention to detail and accuracy.Excellent computer skills (Google Apps, Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, etc.); willingness to learn additional applications and accessible technology as necessary.
