Executive Director

      Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta
Executive Director

About Asian Americans Advancing Justice Atlanta (Advancing Justice-Atlanta):

Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta is dedicated to protecting the civil rights of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander (AANHPI) and Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian (AMEMSA) communities in Georgia and the Southeast. Since 2010, Advancing Justice-Atlanta has been one of the leading organizations building power for Asian American communities in Georgia and the greater South, centering immigrants, refugees, incarcerated people, and others impacted by systems. Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s approach to power building is intersectional, collaborative, and rooted in the belief that all humans are entitled to safety, dignity, and freedom.

Advancing Justice-Atlanta currently has an energetic and dedicated staff of 32 who serve in a variety of roles, including community organizer, immigration attorney, voting rights litigator, and policy advocate. Advancing Justice-Atlanta has grown significantly and rapidly over the last five years to address the increasing needs of Asian American communities in Georgia and to fill the critical need for a strong progressive Asian American voice in the South.

Asian Americans are the fastest growing population and the fastest growing electorate in Georgia. Since 2010, Georgia’s AAPI population has grown by approximately 52%, making Georgia home to nearly 500,000 AAPI residents. Gwinnett County, where Advancing Justice’s office is located, has the largest Asian American community in the state.

Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s work sits at the intersection of voting rights, immigrant justice, and racial equity. For over a decade, Advancing Justice-Atlanta has been harnessing the power of Asian American communities to transform Georgia and the South into a more inclusive and equitable place for immigrant and refugee communities and all communities of color. It is on the front line fighting against local, state, and federal anti-immigrant policies while also educating, engaging, and inspiring Asian American voters to build a multiethnic, multiracial democracy that can create long-term, transformative change in Georgia.

Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s civic and voter engagement work rose to national prominence in 2020 and 2021 when Asian American voters in Georgia were the margin of victory in deciding the country’s president and Senate majority. This unprecedented level of civic and voter engagement was built on years of organizing, power building, and coalition building by Advancing Justice-Atlanta and other POC organizers in Georgia and the South. Also worth noting is that Georgia currently has the largest Asian American state legislative caucus in the country.

Today, Advancing Justice-Atlanta is continuing to build upon these inroads by expanding its voter engagement efforts across Georgia, including in rural pockets of the state, to ensure that more isolated immigrant communities are not left behind in the 2024 election and beyond. Advancing

Justice-Atlanta is also at the forefront of fighting for systemic change that will help enable AAPIs and other immigrant communities to thrive, including language access in elections and across different areas of public services and freedom from detention and deportation. Advancing Justice-Atlanta is looking for an Executive Director who can lead the organization towards more progressive and transformative policies heading into the 2024 election cycle and beyond.

The Position

Advancing Justice-Atlanta is looking for a determined and dynamic leader to serve as its next Executive Director. The Executive Director must be a highly skilled communicator who will build meaningful relationships across lines of difference and brings a strong equity lens to systems change work. The Executive Director will be responsible for the success and impact of Advancing Justice-Atlanta, ensuring that it delivers on its mission. Reporting to the Board of Directors, the ED will work in partnership with and through Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s senior leadership team to lead the organization, oversee the work of a growing staff, and build power for AAPIs and other communities of color in Georgia and the Southeast.

How You’ll Contribute to Our Impact

The ED must have a clear and compelling vision and strategic plan for the organization's future; they should be ready to implement a theory of change that is understood and shared by staff, board and other stakeholders; creating and sustaining an external and internal support system to deliver on the vision; and being responsible for Advancing Justice-Atlanta successfully executing on its plan. One critically important part of this work will include leading the organization’s further development and evolution as an essential progressive voice in the South.

More specifically, Advancing Justice-Atlanta envisions that the ED’s work will include:

Develop a Strategic Vision

• Ensure that Advancing Justice-Atlanta has a unified analysis and theory of change to guide the organization towards its North Star of liberation for immigrants and people of color in the South;
• Work closely with the Board and team to create a high-level plan with clear priorities and goals that will advance immigrant justice, voting rights, and racial equity in Georgia;
• Lead Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s growth into new areas that the organization may decide to pursue over time in order to increase its impact or respond to urgent community needs

Provide Programmatic, Operational, and Fiscal Leadership

• Ensure that Advancing Justice-Atlanta successfully executes its programmatic goals, including through management of the Deputy Director, Chief Financial Officer, Development Director, Director of Organizational Development and Special Projects, and other key programmatic directors (the ultimate reporting structure to be determined by the ED);
• Serve as an active resource and support to the Directors and other members of the team in strategically important areas, engaging deeply as needed to advance the work where it would be helpful;
• In partnership with the Chief Financial Officer, lead financial budgeting and revenue goal setting processes and steward the organization’s financial resources; Hold and maintain the affiliate relationship with Asian Americans Advancing Justice

Leverage Communications, External Relations and Fundraising

• Cultivate, develop and steward relationships with external stakeholders and donors, increasing Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s financial resources to advance its mission;
• Serve as the chief spokesperson for the organization; Directly and along with other members of the team, heighten Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s visibility and presence and strengthen its voice within target sectors
• Regularly align the leadership team with key stakeholders: board, key funders, and other partners.

Lead Organization-Building

• Build the capacity and skills of the leadership team to help ensure that Advancing Justice-Atlanta has the talent to lead each area of its work;
• Ensure the team functions as an aligned and cohesive body that informs organizational decision-making Ensure through equitable leadership, active support, and development opportunities that Advancing Justice-Atlanta retains the depth of talent needed throughout its ranks;
• Oversee efforts to strengthen the organization’s people policies, practices, and systems in alignment with core values and to advance equity, inclusion, and belonging;
• Provide a strong executive leadership presence and serve as a steward and exemplar of Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s culture, facilitating meaningful staff engagement and building transparency and alignment across the organization

Advance Racial Equity and Build Transformative Power

• Guide and shape the organization’s mission to build a multiethnic and multiracial movement to advance racial equity and immigrant justice Lead the organization’s commitment to advancing equity, inclusion, and belonging internally; oversee development of goals and plans;
• Actively support a collective learning agenda to build skills and capacities around racial equity;
• Strengthen Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s collaboration with other progressive organizations, enhancing solidarity across communities and movements and building lasting partnerships.

What You’ll Bring to the Team

While Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s next ED may come from any number of personal and professional backgrounds, there are some key attributes and experiences that the ED should have to help ensure a successful leadership transition.

They include:

Visionary leadership with mission and values alignment

• Demonstrated ability to inspire and align diverse groups of stakeholders around a shared vision, and translate that vision into reality;
• Guided by a commitment to achieving justice and equity in the world;
• Rooted in inclusive and progressive values; Knowledgeable about and sensitive to the dynamics of social justice movement organizations;
• Committed to cross-racial solidarity and to a systems change approach, with some experience and understanding of community organizing and policy advocacy;
• Resilient and adaptable, able to sustain losses while keeping the long-term organizational vision and goals alive and motivating the team.
• Relevant lived experience in the South and a legal background are highly desirable

Effective management

• Demonstrated commitment to equitable, sustainable, and results-driven management, with the proven ability to coach a senior-level staff, build and manage a high-performing team, and develop and execute program strategies;
• A strong track record of effectively leading a project or an organization with a complex array of programs; the ability to leverage strengths across program areas;
• Excellent strategic and analytical capabilities and decision-making skills, with the ability to weigh multiple competing factors, prioritize resources, and problem-solve with an organizational lens; Experience successfully stewarding and growing a project or organization’s finances;
• An understanding of the obligations and compliance responsibilities of 501c3s;
• Experience reporting to and working with a Board of Directors

Demonstrated track record of advancing racial equity

• Understands the impact of systemic and implicit biases and inequities related to race, gender, and other identities that can play out in workplaces;
• Proven ability to make decisions, policies, or practices that mitigate disparate impacts based on identity;
• Dedicated to centering directly impacted and most marginalized communities in the work;
• Able to listen deeply, engage in difficult conversations, constructively offer and receive criticism, and apply a racial equity lens to make decisions;
• Committed to nurturing and sustaining a workplace culture that embraces inclusion and belonging

Strong communication, collaboration, and relationship-building skills

• Proven track record of inspiring people to action, building alliances, and operating in deep partnership;
• Builds and sustains trusting, transparent, and accountable relationships, internally and externally;
• Approaches leadership with a mindset of “power with” rather than “power over” and regularly includes others in planning and decision-making;
• Able to build the followership and investment internally and externally that will support productively engaging in generative conflict, making hard decisions, and leading the team to reach ambitious aims;
• Communicates directly with clarity and kindness, particularly on tough or sensitive topics.

Salary and Benefits

The salary range for the ED position is $123,600 - $167,200. In addition, Advancing Justice-Atlanta offers excellent benefits for this position, including 20 days of PTO; 6 days of paid sick leave a year; approximately 15 paid holidays and 2 personal floating holidays; medical, dental, vision, life and long-term disability insurance, with several medical plans that are fully paid by the employer; and 4% 401(K) employer match after 6 months.

While Advancing Justice-Atlanta currently operates a hybrid workplace, with most staff working remotely most of the time, it will be up to the new ED, in consultation with staff, to determine the appropriate balance of remote and in-person working hours. The new ED must be located in Georgia, preferably within the Atlanta Metro area. To help ensure the new ED’s success, Advancing Justice-Atlanta has budgeted funds for coaching and other professional development.

Application Process

To apply for the position, please submit a current resume and substantive cover letter describing your interest and fit with the requirements of the position to:

Lauren I. Gumbs, Senior Partner, Gumbs + Partners, via e-mail to applications@gumbspartners.com

Advancing Justice-Atlanta is an equal opportunity employer with a commitment to economic, social, and racial justice. Advancing Justice-Atlanta is firmly committed to complying with all federal, state, and local equal employment opportunity (“EEO”) laws and strictly prohibits discrimination against any employee or applicant for employment because of the individual’s race, creed, color, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation, height and/or weight, disability, gender identity or expression, marital or partnership status, genetic predisposition or carrier status, military status, and any other characteristic protected by law. People of color, women, gender expansive people, LGBTQIA+ people, and members of other historically disenfranchised groups are strongly encouraged to apply.