Chief Policy and Communications Officer

About the Community Economic Defense Project (CEDP) & CED Law

Please make an application promptly if you are a good match for this role due to high levels of interest.

Our mission

We partner with low-income and working people to build economic and racial equity. We do this by confronting economic abuse and investing in community wealth.

We use an ever-evolving set of legal, economic and advocacy tools to challenge and dismantle unjust systems, quickly building towards a world where all people have what they need to live and thrive.

Our Organization

The Community Economic Defense Project (CEDP) is a Colorado-based nonprofit. Launched in 2020 as the COVID-19 Eviction Defense Project, we formed our organization to keep our neighbors housed during the pandemic.

Working with clients, we built a one-stop-shop approach to eviction, foreclosure, and homelessness prevention that centers on the legal and financial needs of housing-insecure families and uses a variety of tools to keep them stably housed.

CEDP now serves more than 1,000 people per month, bringing together housing lawyers, economists, data analysts, policy experts, organizers, and technologists to serve our clients.

In the previous two years, we have distributed more than $200 million in aid and served more than 40,000 Coloradans. We have also contributed to the passage of major legislation to prevent eviction, stop economic abuse, and make credit and life-saving medication cheaper.

CEDP’s model has been cited as a best practice by the White House, HUD, the Urban Institute, and in the media.

Building on our work to stop evictions, CEDP has further expanded its integrated services model to include disaster response, predatory towing, debt collection, benefit access & navigation, long-term rental assistance, and homelessness response.

Similar to CEDP’s work on rental housing, these efforts offer a continuum of care model that includes navigation and advisory services, targeted payments, legal support, and the ability to participate in advocacy.

More about the Role :

CEDP seeks a Chief Policy and Communications Officer to lead our public policy, advocacy, communications, and research work.

This person will grow and oversee a diverse team, focused on advancing policy and legislative priorities in housing, consumer financial protection, and anti-monopoly work.

Reporting to the CEO, and working in close collaboration with the rest of CEDP’s leadership team, the CPCO will develop and implement a multi-year policy agenda informed by our clients and staff.

Leading a team of advocates, researchers, and communications specialists, the CPCO will build on our successful track record advocating for renters, homeowners, borrowers, and consumers at the Colorado State Capitol.

In this role the CPCO will :

• Develop a multi-year policy platform, in concert with our clients, staff, and community partners, that slows eviction and foreclosure, confronts predatory economic behavior, and creates meaningful, ongoing support for low-income households.
• Lead ongoing legislative advocacy efforts at all levels of government to secure priorities outlined in the platform.
• Direct all of CEDP’s policy development, public advocacy, communications, and stakeholder outreach.
• Oversee all external communications regarding CEDP’s policy, programs, research, and community work.
• Serve as the organization’s primary point of contact for elected officials and their staffs, advocacy partners, and external research collaborators.
• Draw on CEDP’s programs and services to develop and publish research that captures trends in housing, displacement, homelessness, and economic opportunity.
• Collaborate with CEDP’s leadership team to define long-term organizational priorities across policy, programs, and legal services.
• Organize high-level policy events with state and national stakeholders focused on housing, anti-monopoly, and consumer protection issues.

Position Requirements :

We are seeking candidates with experience leading large teams that are handling an array of policy, communications, and strategy challenges on a daily basis.

The Chief Policy and Communications Officer will be responsible for setting daily, weekly, and quarterly goals for the policy and communications teams and then executing against them.

Position requirements include :

• Extensive experience in strategic policy development, preferably in housing, community development, or government, with a demonstration of the ability to strategize, lead, and implement a bipartisan policy agenda with a large team.
• Strong visionary and strategic thinking skills centered on organizational mission.
• Previous policy and legislative experience with experience running advocacy campaigns.
• Strong management capability with the ability to lead, manage, and mentor a team of diverse professionals.
• Strong experience directing communications efforts to ensure advocacy efforts are linked to broader organizational priorities.
• A history of strong external relationship building and relationship management with a wide range of industry colleagues working in government, advocacy organizations, and service providers.
• Strong written and oral executive communication skills.

Additional Details :

• Candidates must reside in Colorado, ideally within the greater Denver Metro area. The position includes competitive pay, flexible time off, a benefits package (including medical, dental, and vision), and a meaningful 401k contribution.
• A competitive annual salary of $130,000-140,000 per year.
• Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis but must be received by October 28, 2024.
• The estimated time to complete the recruitment process will be by November 15, 2024.
• As in-person work is sometimes required, all employees at CEDP & CED Law are expected to maintain current vaccination status in keeping with CDC recommendations.
• CEDP is an equal-opportunity employer committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected status.

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