Executive Director

Wisconsin Progress is seeking an experienced Executive Director to lead a growing 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) that has become the backbone of Wisconsin’s progressive candidate infrastructure.

The ideal candidate will have experience and understanding of the state of Wisconsin and its geographic and demographic differences outside of Madison and Milwaukee. They will have non-profit management skills and be familiar with board and staff development strategies. They will be a proven fundraiser. They will enjoy and have the ability to think strategically about long- and short-term goals and have some non-profit management experience. They will be energized by leading a seasoned team and have the resilience to navigate setbacks while always keeping an eye on future opportunities for success.

Who we are: Wisconsin Progress is a state-based candidate recruitment organization that recruits, trains, elects, and develops candidates for local and state legislative office. We provide candidate support including campaign planning, fundraising, message development, and other technical assistance. The 501(c)(3) arm, Wisconsin Progress Institute, offers programming for elected officials on how to be effective leaders for their communities. Together, the two organizations form the most sophisticated state-based candidate and elected official training program in the country.

What you’ll do...The Executive Director will oversee the day to day operations of the organizations and manage staff based in Green Bay, Milwaukee, and La Crosse.

To be successful in this job you will excel in 4 areas:

Staff management and development: You look forward to working with seasoned campaign professionals and have an ear for listening. Your work style is collaborative, and you understand how to help staff prioritize and take extraneous requests off their plates. You understand the mechanics of progressive political campaigns and/or candidate and elected official training programs.

Partner outreach and collaboration: You must be committed to and have a proven ability to build and maintain relationships with progressive elected officials and allied partner organizations. The heart of Wisconsin Progress is its relationships and as the Executive Director you would be the steward of this most precious resource.

Board development: You have experience building a pool of diverse and effective board members that support the programmatic goals of the organizations. You understand the role that 501(c)(3)s and 501(c)(4)s play in the progressive ecosystem and think creatively about leveraging the strengths of the two organizations.

Non-profit fundraising: You think strategically about fundraising and have written and implemented plans that build towards sustainability. You understand progressive political campaigns and/or candidate and elected official training programs.

If you were here today, you would be:

• Preparing donor briefings on Wisconsin Progress’s Spring 2022 successes.

• Managing and supporting daily check-ins with Wisconsin Progress’s 4 regional

  leads.

• Leading Advisory Council meetings with partners and listening to needs and

  concerns trusted partners in the field.

• Assisting candidates and co-leading training(s) where needed.

• Overseeing conduit donations and disbursements.

• Doing call time to raise budget and other programming expenses.

• Working with the Board President to develop and implement a plan for board

  succession and expansion.