Executive Director, Philadelphians Organized to Witness, Empower and Rebuild

Posted by on July 25, 2011

Executive Director – POWER (Philadelphia)

Posted on: July 2, 2011

Posted by: PICO National Network

ORGANIZATION BACKGROUND
P.O.W.E.R: An Interfaith Movement (Philadelphians Organized to Witness, Empower and Rebuild) is a local faith-based community organizing group that includes more than 35 congregations from across socio-economic, cultural, religious and neighborhood lines. The goal is to create a network of local organizing committees – one in each congregation – that identifies community issues and concerns, conducts research on those issues and concerns and designs an action plan to bring about change in neighborhoods and then as a collective coalition across the City of Philadelphia. In June 2009, a diverse group of Philadelphia faith leaders began gathering regularly to discuss the pressures impacting the members of their congregations and surrounding communities – including poorly performing public schools, lack of youth services, homelessness, neighborhood blight and crime, lack of support for exoffenders, and loss of jobs.

P.O.W.E.R. is an affiliate of PICO (People Improving Communities through Organizing). PICO was founded in 1972 under the leadership of Father John Baumann, a Jesuit priest who learned community organizing in Chicago. PICO began as a regional training institute to help support neighborhood organizations in California. With guidance from Dr. Jose Carrasco and Scott Reed, PICO developed a new congregation-community model. In this model, congregations of all denominations and faiths serve as the institutional base for community organizations. Rather than bring people together simply based on common issues like housing or education, the faith-based or broad-based organizing model makes values and relationships the glue that holds organizations together. These innovations have resulted in the development of a network of powerful, long lasting community organizations. Today PICO has 44 affiliated federations and 8 statewide networks working in 150 cities and towns and 17 states. More than one million families and one thousand congregations from 40 different denominations and faiths participate in PICO.

FUNCTION and RESPONSIBILITES
The Executive Director, in following the mission statement of POWER, will be responsible for helping build a POWERful congregation-based organization. The POWER Executive Director has overall responsibility for the day to day management and operation of POWER. Duties and responsibilities are not limited to, but include the following:

• Hiring staff with support from the personnel committee, training and supervising all professional and administrative staff.
• Managing the staff through effective personnel management policies and procedures.
• Assuring that leadership and staff participate in on-going PICO training, development, and technical assistance programs.
• Assisting POWER leadership in defining organizational vision and goals and implementing strategies that relate to issues in member congregations and the larger community.
• Developing and supporting LOCs in diverse faith and ethnic communities
• Working with a diverse group of volunteers.
• Supporting and executing the city-wide change agenda of POWER.
• Ensuring the financial stability and health of the organization by working with the finance team to implement efficient and effective financial management policies and procedures.
• Implementing efficient financial management policies and procedures.
• Managing the fundraising and grant writing activities.
• Ensuring that member institutions are current with their dues.
• The Executive Director will make appropriate monthly written reports to the Board.

QUALIFICATIONS
• Minimum of 5 years non-profit work experience in community organizing environment with 3 years of successful staff leadership, fundraising, coalition building, and financial management
• Familiarity with principles and practices of faith based community organizing
• Active involvement in a faith community and a track record of leadership in multi-faith, multilingual, and multi-cultural contexts
• Demonstrated success for effectively leading change and organizational growth through strategic planning, tactical implementation, and operational excellence
• Basic knowledge of Education, Healthcare, Economic, Public Safety, Immigration, and Housing issues faced by underserved people in an urban context
• Familiarity with legislative process at city, state, and national levels
• Preferred knowledge of Philadelphia’s history, neighborhoods, politics, cultural, and spiritual diversity
• Philadelphia residency strongly encouraged though not required
• Proven track record for acquiring financial support through successful grant applications and general fund raising
• Aptitude for utilizing public relations to engage stakeholders including funders, community partners, policy makers, and the media
• Strong and effective interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills
• Personal qualities that include integrity, missional commitment, respect for diversity, ability to motivate and inspire, and a unwavering commitment for social justice
• Proficiency in MS-Office (i.e. Word, PowerPoint, Excel, etc.) preferred though not required
• Bachelor’s degree preferred though not required
• English/Spanish preferred though not required

COMPENSATION and BENEFITS
• Salary range based upon experience: $45,000-60,000
• Competitive benefits package

REPORTS TO
• Sponsoring Committee/Board of Directors

APPLICATION PROCEDURE
Application Deadline: July 29, 2011
All applicants must complete the online application at http://bit.ly/power110702.

Please have the following documents ready to be included with your application:
1. A resume (preferably in PDF format), including two (2) personal references.
2. A cover letter, outlining your qualifications for this position.
3. A writing sample (e.g. grant application, sermon, article, etc.)

Incomplete applications will not be considered. If you need technical assistance with your application, contact careers@piconetwork.org.

If you have questions about this position, contact Joe Fleming at jfleming@piconetwork.org.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis so the Committee encourages qualified candidates to apply early.