What We’re Looking For

ANCOR seeks a Director of Advocacy & Public Affairs to report to the Vice President of Government Relations. This is a new position created in response to the organization’s continued growth. A member of the Government Relations team, the Director of Advocacy & Public Affairs is responsible for government relations-related communications and the mobilization of ANCOR members and other advocates to engage in grassroots activities that support the association’s legislative and regulatory efforts.

What You’ll Do

Reporting to the Vice President for Government Relations, this newly created position will oversee the execution of grassroots campaigns, further develop ANCOR’s grassroots and grasstops networks to support the association’s advocacy efforts, and work in close collaboration with ANCOR’s Communications team to amplify and elevate critical government relations issues through public affairs and digital outreach activities.  

In this role, the Director of Advocacy & Public Affairs will:

• Collaborate closely with ANCOR’s Communications team to position government relations issues for greater visibility and mobilization through the drafting and placing of press statements, op-eds, talking points, social media content, and other external-facing communications.
• Guide the creation and oversee the execution of high-impact strategic advocacy campaigns through the setup, management, and marketing of events, fly-ins, calls to action, and external messaging.
• Track, monitor, and expand the engagement of ANCOR members and advocates in grassroots efforts to advance the association’s policy priorities. 
• Serve as the lead staff liaison for ANCOR’s Grassroots Committee, including cultivating a pipeline of leaders within ANCOR's membership to facilitate the development and promotion of strategic opportunities to advance ANCOR’s policy priorities.
• Administer VoterVoice, ANCOR’s platform for online advocacy engagement, including broadcasting action alerts and maintaining advocate data.
• Create, maintain and promote advocacy tools for ANCOR membership, including toolkits, one-pagers, videos, story bank, and website content.
• Identify and educate team members about new trends and emerging strategies in grassroots advocacy.
• Deliver hands-on education and training to empower and support providers in their advocacy efforts.
• Work across internal departments to support government relations messaging in education, events, and membership development.
• Monitor, track, and report on key issues, activities, and outcomes related to ANCOR's advocacy efforts.
• Carry out other duties as assigned

Growth & Development

This position offers the opportunity to grow into senior operational or cross-departmental roles over time, depending on your skills, interests, and the evolving needs of our organization.

Hiring Process & Timeline

The following timeline outlines estimated dates for each phase of ANCOR’s hiring process. Please note that although we will do our best to adhere to this timeline, these dates are tentative and subject to change. All applications will be acknowledged upon receipt and updates will follow after the application deadline closes.

• Active solicitation of applications: June 30 – July 18
• Initial candidate screenings & skills assessments (one or more brief skills-based activities to better understand your approach to core aspects of the role): July 28 – August 8
• First-round interviews (held virtually): August 18 – 29
• Second-round interviews with finalists: September 1- 5
• Anticipated offer date: September 10
• Target start date: October 1

Our Commitment to Equal Opportunity Employment

ANCOR is committed to equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, creed, religion, sex (gender), sexual orientation, disability, national origin, age or veteran status in connection with hiring, placement, promotion, demotion, discipline, recruiting, advertising, solicitation, compensation, selection for training or termination of employment.

Moreover, we believe diversity creates an environment that fosters appreciation of the values, skills and abilities of everyone. We know that we do our best work when we embrace the diversity of ideas and experiences that characterize the social, cultural and intellectual world. For these reasons, we welcome all applicants, especially those that enhance the diversity of perspectives that inform our work as an organization supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

ANCOR uses competency-based hiring in its evaluation of candidates for career opportunities. As part of our commitment to ensuring all candidates are evaluated fairly, some applicant information will be redacted prior to review by the hiring manager (e.g., applicant name, email address, phone number, names/locations/dates of attendance for educational institutions, names/locations of previous employment, etc.).

We are committed to disability-inclusive hiring. If you need any accommodations to fully participate in the hiring process, please let us know.

How to Apply

We can’t wait to meet our next teammate. If this sounds like a role where you’d thrive, please apply here:  Director of Advocacy & Public Affairs. For best consideration, apply by July 18. If you have questions, feel free to reach out to Brennan Liming, Finance & Human Resources Manager, at bliming@ancor.org.

You’ll be a great fit for this role if you have:                                                                       

• Exceptional written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills.
• Demonstrated aptitude for developing persuasive messaging in support of policy initiatives
• Demonstrated ability to create and implement advocacy and grassroots strategies and messaging.
• Political acumen, strategic thinking, and ability to handle multiple and competing issues in a fast-paced environment.
•  Sound judgment and ability to analyze situations and information.
•  Proven ability to build networks and cultivate relationships among diverse populations.
•  Ability to treat relationships with association members with sensitivity and thoughtfulness, recognizing the varying needs and perspectives of a diverse national member base.
•  Ability to translate complicated legislative and regulatory concepts into easily to understand calls to actions.
•  Exceptional understanding of effective advocacy tactics in federal issue campaigns.
•  Willingness to travel as needed to lead trainings, workshops, and deliver presentations, and to attend advocacy-related conference and events.
•  Experience with VoterVoice or similar advocacy software preferred.
•  We encourage you to apply if you have:
•  Bachelor’s degree in communications, public affairs, public policy, public administration or a similar field, or equivalent experience.
•  6-8 years of experience in issues management, strategic communications, public affairs, digital content development, advocacy, policy or related field.
•  Previous knowledge and experience related to disability services specifically, or Medicaid-funded services in general, are preferred.