YIMBY Action is seeking an exceptionally organized and highly relational National Chapter Manager to help us grow the pro-housing movement. The right candidate will be extremely organized and a great project manager, while also bringing strong facilitation, coaching, and relationship-building skills.
YIMBY Action is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit network of pro-housing activists fighting for more inclusive housing policies and a future of abundant housing. We drive policy change to increase the supply of housing at all levels and bring down the cost of living in opportunity-rich cities and towns. We envision an integrated society where every person has access to a safe, affordable home near jobs, services, and opportunity.
YIMBY Action Chapters are the heart of the YIMBY Action model. Chapters are groups of volunteers who believe in abundant housing and take action to advance the pro-housing fight through grassroots lobbying, electoral volunteerism, coalition-building, narrative change, and grassroots legal enforcement. Chapters are typically organized geographically (e.g. Peninsula for Everyone, Grow the Richmond), although we also have issue-based chapters (e.g. Urban Environmentalists, Streets for People). Chapters are managed and coordinated by power volunteers who we call “Leads,” or in some cases, regional staff. YIMBY Action currently has 57 formal chapters. Chapters vary considerably in current group size, type and range of primary activities, and structure of their Leads cohort.
The Chapter Manager will grow the pro-housing movement by managing and supporting Leads in a portfolio of Chapters. The Chapter Manager will provide facilitation and coaching to help the Leads team identify chapter goals and strategies, and provide project management, administrative, and relationship-building capacity to execute on goals and strategies. The Chapter Manager will meet regularly (through Zoom and phone calls) with their chapters to provide ongoing coaching and support.
YIMBY Action's paid organizers are part of a system that moves people. We build people up as political organizers, in the service of getting more new housing built. It’s our job to shape our volunteers and help them grow, not simply to give them the tools they ask for, or perform the services they request.
The Chapter Manager will be part of the Organizing team, reporting to the Associate DIrector of Chapters.
What we're looking for
Responsibilities
Leads Goal-Setting, Coaching, and Training (60%)
- Meet regularly with Leads in portfolio chapters to set chapter growth and development goals. Ensure goals and strategies are informed by YIMBY Action national organizing best practices and YIMBY Action Chapter Development model. Ensure chapters have strong plans to execute on growth activities, including:
- Events, membership drives, and digital campaigns.
- Regular member meetings and social events to keep membership trained and engaged.
- 1-on-1s with new activists to welcome them to the movement and support their inclusion.
- 1-on-1s with potential new Leads.
- Remind Leads to set agendas for meetings
- Consistent data collection and record-keeping of chapter activities
- Ensure chapters have strong plans to execute key regional campaigns (determined by Leads), as well as statewide and national campaigns (determined by national Organizing and Policy staff in collaboration with Leads). Expected key campaigns include:
- Endorsements - regional endorsement process including endorsement votes, publicizing endorsements, and volunteering for endorsed candidates’ campaigns.
- Legislative and policy activation - mobilizing members for strong federal, state, and local pro-housing legislation, as well as local pro-housing policy.
- Housing Project Advocacy - drive members to support housing projects at hearings and through petitions
- Through regular meetings, ongoing Slack/email/text follow-up, and other check-ins as needed, provide ongoing coaching and support to Leads in implementing tactics and tools that will help them grow and effectively organize their chapters. Teach, model, and continually reinforce key concepts, including:
- Continually growing people power as a key goal of each chapter (list and membership). Help them connect the dots between base-building and their political power.
- Continually asking/inviting people to do more as a way to build engagement
- Handing out “half-baked” projects as a way to build engagement
- Cultivating an equity lens that invites new people in and to leadership
- Maintaining a “big tent” regarding political ideologies
- Strategic decision making; focusing Leads on high-impact political activities
- Help recruit new Leads in portfolio chapters by identifying high-potential members and conducting 1-on-1s with potential new Leads.
- Add value to chapter activities by proactively identifying solutions and providing resources to help Leads improve; connecting chapters to staff and other chapters.
- Document different approaches with different Leads, with the goal of providing a playbook for future remote organizers. In concert with the National Organizing Director, highlight where documentation & training can be developed or improved.
- Learn, schedule, and deliver YIMBY Action core training modules to Leads; facilitate engaging and interactive training sessions.
Administrative and Project-Management Support (40%)
- Provide project-management support to ensure Leads execute on growth initiatives and campaigns, including:
- Maintain consistent records of chapter progress to goals and provide regular reports to Leads and staff.
- Keep track of next steps and action items for ongoing Lead or chapter projects.
- Tee up Leads with tools or templates they need to execute.
- Remind Leads to complete tasks, including both group and individualized follow-up.
- Provide administrative support for growth initiatives and campaigns (using discretion based on capacity). This might include:
- Help scheduling meetings.
- Coordinating logistics for meetings and events, including Zoom setup and follow-up for virtual events, and venue logistics, food arrangements, invitations, name tags, signage, and follow-up activities for in-person events.
- Assembling meeting and event agendas and materials.
- Push chapter Leads to leverage chapter budget in support of broad goals and campaigns.
- Collaborate with National Chapter Operations AssociateManager to identify key tech needs for chapters and give feedback on tech usage and tool implementation. Troubleshoot tech issues and answer Leads’ questions about organizing tools and resources; identify and contact additional support when necessary.
- Update and maintain national staff databases of policy, coalition, and housing project efforts.
Metrics
Measurables of success for this position may include:
- # of active Leads
- diversity of Leads, subscribers, members
- % growth of subscriber list
- % growth in dues-paying and volunteer membership
- # of pro-housing policies and housing projects chapters are working on
Qualifications
We believe a variety of different work, school, volunteer, or community experiences could make you a good fit for this job. We welcome candidates from nontraditional backgrounds.
REQUIRED
- Deeply excited about the YIMBY mission and vision. You have a passion for more housing and shelter of every type including market-rate housing, subsidized affordable housing, and public housing.
- Demonstrated ability in project management; high-level skill set in keeping track of complex processes and deadlines, while teeing up different team members to execute complex projects. A knack for keeping a project going and not dropping balls.
- Experience managing volunteers; track record of success driving volunteers to high levels of performance and engagement. Experience keeping groups of people motivated and organized; track record of success driving groups to high levels of performance and engagement.
- Quick execution: you are comfortable in a fast-paced workplace and can get a large volume of things done with efficiency.
- Very comfortable with different communications styles and channels. You should be comfortable on the phone, text, email, slack, and in person.
- Comfortable working with disorganized people and creating order in chaos.
- Ability to collaborate across diverse communities and engage people with diverse identities, perspectives, and backgrounds.
- Comfortable with technology; able to problem-solve and set up a variety of technical tools and programs
- Ability to work in a self-directed, self-motivated capacity; can identify problems, find solutions, and move projects forward without relying on others to keep you focused.
PREFERRED
- 3+ years of directly relevant work or volunteer experience.
- Knowledge of/previous experience in housing activism.
- Community organizing and/or political activism experience.
- Experience managing or working within a chapter model organization.
Benefits
- Up to 100% employer funded comprehensive medical coverage
- 401k enrollment opportunities
- 3 weeks of paid vacation plus another 20 paid holidays
- Paid sick time
- Paid family & disability leave
- Significant professional development opportunities, including paid professional development stipend
- Flexible work hours within a 40 hour work week
- Membership in YIMBY Action nationwide activist network and vibrant 3,700+ member Slack community
- Access to YIMBY Action network of elected officials, journalists, and business leaders
