Housing Policy & Advocacy Manager

The Manager, Housing Policy and Advocacy is a member of AFC’s Policy and Advocacy department and reports to the Vice President of Policy and Advocacy. The Manager, Housing Policy and Advocacy serves as the lead for housing policy and advocacy and related efforts at the local, state and federal levels that improve public and private responses to housing instability and homelessness, centering people living with or vulnerable to HIV and other chronic conditions.

We strongly encourage people with personal experience with HIV, people of color, and queer, trans, and gender non-conforming folks to apply for this position.

The salary range for this role is $52,000 to $62,000.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Project Management/ Project Coordination

• Serve as project manager for policy and advocacy and related efforts that improve public and private responses to housing instability & homelessness, particularly for people living with or impacted by HIV and other chronic conditions in Chicago, Cook County and the state of Illinois

• With support from the AFC Housing, Center for Housing and Health (CHH) and Policy & Advocacy team’s leadership, lead the development and implementation of AFC’s and CHH’s housing policy advocacy strategy at the local (City of Chicago & Cook County), state and federal levels

• Provide housing and homelessness subject matter expertise and guidance internally and to external audiences (e.g. stakeholders, organizational partners, decision makers, etc.)

• Build and strengthen relationships with housing and homelessness issue area individual and organizational community leaders, with a focus on the City of Chicago and Cook County

• Develop and execute mid-size and large project plans

• Manage project deliverables, timelines, and resources

• Serve as point of contact on assigned projects and tasks

• Assemble, coordinate, and manage multidisciplinary teams/stakeholders

• Troubleshoot and report on problems and obstacles associated with the coordination, development, and execution of projects; facilitate problem resolution

• Provide subject matter expertise and guidance to Operations lead, department head, and department staff

• Lead various project planning and review meetings

• Establish and maintain liaison, as needed, with boards and committees, and across the organization

• Assist in developing departmental plans, goals, objectives, policies, and procedures

• Optimize project management effectiveness and oversee quality

• Stay abreast of project-related legislation, regulations, and best practices to inform current and/or upcoming projects

• Where applicable, assist department and other organizational leadership with the development of long-range project strategies and development plans

• Serve as project representative in the media and with the general public around project-related initiatives and outcomes, as needed

Tracking and Reporting

• Ensure the development and maintenance of project tracking, reporting and quality assurance mechanisms and processes

• Provide and ensure project reporting based on stakeholder (i.e., direct supervisor, departmental Operations lead, department head, department staff, internal/external partners) needs and requests

• Write and review and edit reports to ensure accuracy, relevance, and timeliness

• Utilize data to gather insights for project management improvement and help inform departmental decision-making

• Work with departmental project leads and department leadership to track and monitor project budgets

• Report out on project statuses and outcomes to departmental and organizational leadership and internal/external partners

Community Engagement and Mobilization

• Develop and implement community input processes that are transparent and actionable

• Develop and implement community engagement plans

• Convene and facilitate community engagement meetings

• Strategically utilize organizing tools for community engagement

• Identify and secure resources (i.e., venues, speakers, volunteers, stakeholders) for community engagement events and meetings

• Identify, establish, and maintain stakeholder relationships; leverage relationships to optimize project outcomes

• Convene and facilitate project-related community engagement meetings

• Collaborate with relevant members of the Policy & Advocacy team to ensure the strategic utilization of organizing tools for community engagement

• Under the direction of the Vice President of Policy & Advocacy and in coordination with the Director of Government Relations and Senior Manager, Policy & Advocacy, lead project interactions with various local, state and federal government agencies and elected and appointed officials and develop and implement community input processes that are transparent and actionable

Communication and Education

• Develop and implement project-related communication and education plans

• Develop, deliver, and implement project-related educational/training content and tools

• Share best practices and project learnings both internally and externally

Team Leadership/Supervision

• Identify current and emerging issue areas that align with the organization’s strategic plan

• Determine project feasibility and develop project scopes and proposals based on identified issues or areas of opportunity for internal consideration

• Assist in the development and achievement of team goals and related strategic plan items

• Participate in and/or lead working groups, councils, and committees

Other

• Assist department leadership on other project-related matters

• Assist with agency-wide activities as directed, including Annual Meeting, AIDS Run & Walk, and others

• Maintain and update job knowledge by participating in training and educational opportunities, reading professional publications, and participating in professional organizations

• Protect organization's value and manage risk by keeping information confidential

• Perform other duties as assigned

The list of essential functions, as outlined herein, is intended to be representative of the tasks performed within this classification. It is not necessarily descriptive of any one position in this class. The omission of an essential function does not preclude management from assignment of duties not listed herein if such functions are a logical assignment to the position.

EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and minimum three (3) years’ experience in project coordination or project management

OR

• Five years of applicable working experience

Preferred Qualifications

• Event planning, volunteer coordination and program management experience preferred

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

• Strong written and verbal communication skills required

• Ability to apply concepts such as fractions, percentages, ratios, and proportions to practical situations

• Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagrammatic, or schedule form

• Strong attention to detail, excellent organizational skills, ability to manage multiple projects concurrently, establish workload priorities, and meet deadlines.

• Demonstrated fluency in word processing, spreadsheets, and database entry

• Experience working with diverse populations, especially communities of color, and sensitivity to issues concerning housing instability, homelessness, mental health and substance use conditions, HIV/AIDS and all disabilities required.

REQUIRED CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS

Valid Driver’s License, and the physical ability to operate a car.

WORK ENVIRONMENT AND PHYSICAL DEMANDS

Ability to travel statewide and nationally up to 50% of the year, and locally regularly. The physical demands are representative of those found in a general office environment. Tasks involve the ability to exert light physical effort in sedentary to light work, but which may involve some lifting, carrying, pushing and/or pulling of objects and materials of {moderate weight (20-25 pounds.) Tasks may involve extended periods of time at a keyboard or workstation.

https://aids-foundation-chicago.breezy.hr/p/815d96536119-housing-policy-advocacy-manager?state=published