Summary
Description
Founding Executive Director
Organization: CivilWorks
Status: Full-Time
Reports to: Board of Directors
Salary: $137,000-150,000 depending on qualifications and experience
Benefits: To be determined in consultation with the Board of Directors
Location: Remote first, can be based anywhere in the United States, with periodic travel to Minnesota and elsewhere for board meetings and partner convenings.
How to Apply:
Please submit a cover letter and resume as one combined PDF document with your name and CivilWorks Executive Director in the document title, to admin@mightyconsulting.org
We will be reviewing applications on a rolling deadline, with a priority submission date of October 15th. Questions and general inquiries can be directed to Search Consultant, Alissa Light via email: alissa@mightyconsulting.org
CivilWorks Executive Director Leadership Profile
Mission
CivilWorks equips citizens with clear information, structured deliberation, and organized pathways to improve how their democracy works.
Why We Exist
We are a nonpartisan organization focused on the structural conditions that determine whether we have fair and full arguments about what policies best serve the public interest. We do not advocate a single-issue agenda. We work to restore and improve the conditions that make responsive democracy possible.
Right now, we think those conditions are in peril.
CivilWorks exists to clarify how power works, create the conditions for serious public judgment, and support durable democratic reform across four core areas: money in politics, executive power, Congress, and the judiciary.
How We Work
CivilWorks aspires to bridge the trust gaps that separate experts, citizens, and their government — not by simplifying things, but by clarifying them. Not by limiting conversation, but by opening it up for real deliberation about real solutions.
We are a force multiplier and a convener — a two-way conduit between the world of scholars, officials, and practitioners and the world of ordinary citizens. We seek to expand access to the best thinking about how to rebalance our democracy. We respect everyone's ability to handle the truth. We ask them to help define and/or choose solutions, not just identify problems or express opinions.
Through different kinds of programs, including deliberative democracy assemblies, we aspire to engage citizens in the process of suggesting actionable solutions to the federal government. And we will work to ensure that the right people in the federal government give those suggested solutions a fair and meaningful hearing.
How We Measure Success
We will measure success in three ways. First, by the number of citizens we engage in meaningful activities that produce practical solutions; second, by the number of practical solutions that receive a substantive hearing from public officials in the federal government; third, by the number of solutions that are enacted by legislation, regulation, or even Constitutional amendment. We want to build a movement. We want the movement to produce serious solutions. We want some percentage of those proposed solutions to be enacted. We will measure all three of these goals.
Position Summary
CivilWorks is preparing to launch full operations. This is a founding leadership opportunity for someone who wants to shape not just the strategy of this organization, but its soul.
The Executive Director will serve as the chief executive and public face of CivilWorks, responsible for translating our mission into a functioning, financially sustainable, and nationally impactful organization. This is not a role for someone who needs a playbook. It is a role for someone who writes the playbook.
This is a nonprofit startup. That carries risk. But we have some assets to work with. We are an active Board willing and able to support a founding Executive Director with financial, social, and intellectual capital. We have an initial financial investment providing a modest runway to launch.
You will work in close partnership with the Board of Directors to set strategy, build the team, cultivate funders, develop partnerships, and lead a growing movement of citizens committed to structural democratic reform. You will combine the vision of a founder with the discipline of an operator and the persuasive clarity of a communicator.
There is a lot we don’t know about you. You might be a social enterprise leader looking for an opportunity to build and scale civic infrastructure. You could be a seasoned nonprofit executive ready to apply your experience to this urgent cause. You might be a policy veteran, a civic entrepreneur, or a movement organizer who has been waiting for exactly this kind of organization to exist. Here’s what we do know about you:
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You don’t wait for permission to lead.
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You can hold complexity without losing clarity, and you communicate both to very different audiences.
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You understand that nonpartisan doesn’t mean neutral — you have a fierce commitment to democratic institutions and the principles that sustain them.
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You can shape a conversation with an individual donor, a foundation program manager, a state legislator, a grassroots organizer, and a constitutional scholar.
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You think about meaning as much as you think about influence, and about truth more than tribe.
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You are a happy warrior: undaunted by the scale of the challenge, energized rather than exhausted by the work.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Leadership
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Partner with the Board to develop and refine CivilWorks’ long-term strategy, annual priorities, and theory of change.
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Translate mission and values into programs, partnerships, and communications that move people to action.
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Serve as the organization’s primary strategic thinker and decision-maker for day-to-day operations.
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Monitor the civic and political landscape and adapt organizational strategy.
Fundraising & Earned Revenue Generation
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Lead all fundraising efforts, including major donor cultivation, foundation grants, and emerging revenue streams.
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Over time, identify and pursue opportunities to diversify the funding sources with earned revenue from fee-for-service activities and other means.
Financial Operations and Stewardship
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Develop and manage the organization’s annual budget in partnership with the Board.
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Ensure financial health, transparency, and accountability across all operations.
External Relations & Communications
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Cultivate and maintain strategic partnerships and relationships with organizations, academic institutions, civic leaders, and government stakeholders.
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Serve as the primary public voice and spokesperson for CivilWorks across media, events, and partner convenings.
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Oversee and drive CivilWorks’ communications strategy, including messaging, brand, digital presence, and earned media.
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Build a national network of partners, experts, and citizen advocates who amplify and extend our reach.
Organization Building & Team Leadership
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Recruit, hire, develop, and retain a high-performing staff aligned with CivilWorks’ mission and culture.
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Establish the systems, structures, and culture necessary to support a rapidly growing organization.
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Ensure strong program design, delivery, and evaluation across all CivilWorks initiatives.
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Foster an organizational culture that is collaborative, rigorous, adaptive, and joyful about the work.
Board Partnership
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Work in close collaboration with the Board of Directors to fulfill governance responsibilities and advance strategic priorities.
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Prepare and present regular updates on organizational performance, finances, and emerging opportunities or risks.
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Support board recruitment, engagement, and development in partnership with the Board Chair.
One Year In
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CivilWorks successfully launches initial programs.
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CivilWorks has made significant and concrete steps towards establishing an expanded and credible fundraising base including lead individual donors and key foundations.
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CivilWorks has a clear public articulation of its role in the civic ecosystem.
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The ED has a strong working relationship with the board.
Qualifications
We are looking for a combination of demonstrated leadership, deep mission alignment, and the rare ability to build something from the ground up
Required
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5+ years of director or executive director level leadership experience in the nonprofit, civic, political, or policy sector.
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Proven track record in fundraising, including major gifts, foundation relations, and budget management.
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Experience managing and developing staff and building organizational culture.
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Demonstrated ability to build and sustain partnerships across ideological, institutional, and sectoral lines.
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Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to make complex ideas accessible and compelling to broad audiences.
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A genuine and abiding commitment to democratic governance, civic engagement, and CivilWorks’ nonpartisan mission.
Preferred
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Experience founding or significantly scaling an organization.
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Familiarity with structural reform movements, government accountability work, or civic technology.
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A network of relationships with foundations and donors.
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Existing relationships in policy, academic, or civic communities relevant to CivilWorks’ mission.
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Experience with digital organizing, communications, and modern tools for civic engagement.
Compensation & Terms
This is a remote-first position with periodic travel for board meetings, partner convenings, and events. While our founding board members are primarily located in Minnesota, the Executive Director can be located anywhere in the United States.
This is a full-time position offered at a salary range of $137,000 to $150,000, depending on experience.
A benefits package will be determined by the board in consultation with the founding Executive Director.
How to Apply
Please submit a cover letter and resume as one combined PDF document with your name and CivilWorks Executive Director in the document title, to admin@mightyconsulting.org
We will be reviewing applications on a rolling deadline, with a priority submission date of October 15th. Questions and general inquiries can be directed to Search Consultant, Alissa Light via email: alissa@mightyconsulting.org
CivilWorks is an equal opportunity organization. We actively seek candidates from diverse backgrounds and perspectives.
CivilWorks is committed to building a team as varied as the democracy we serve. We evaluate every applicant on their qualifications, ideas, and fit for the mission regardless of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or genetic information.
