Chicago Jobs Council

Communications

• Develop high-level, ecosystem-wide communications to educate, inform, and engage key stakeholders, with specific strategies related to policymakers, legislators, funders, workforce development providers, employers, post-secondary education partners and community based organizations.
• Co-create communication plans related to two annual events and regular communications related to policy advocacy and building capacity for the workforce development sector.
• Execute an integrated communications approach and report to the CEO.
• Craft overarching narratives and key messages about CJC activities, expertise and impact to increase visibility and elevate the organization's role in the ecosystem.
• Regularly edit staff’s written materials and promotional ideas to maintain brand consistency and proper alignment with goals of communication efforts.
• Identify opportunities to position the organization’s expertise, leadership and major initiatives to broader audiences in both digital and print.
• Design templates and frameworks for common communications products, such as training flyers, one-pagers and organization-wide reports; fundraising campaign and special event materials, briefs and email series; awareness campaign toolkits; policy brief templates; slide decks and talking points.
• Review social media, email marketing, search engine optimization, and website analytics to spot trends and make recommendations on how to adjust/improve marketing and content.
• Conduct an audit of existing digital and social media channels, including performance of platforms and key content types, and provide recommendations on which channels and formats are most effective for core audiences.
• Update and maintain the website and social media platforms, remaining current on trends and providing leadership in terms of best practices for content and post.
• Lead efforts to build relations with media outlets to increase opportunities of placements of written press releases, opinion editorials, and public statements; coordinate interviews with news media, develop talking points, and support related activities.
• Maintain and implement internal guidelines for the use of CJC logo and brand; monitor the use of logo and brand across all materials and media to ensure consistency.
• Develop and maintain an annual strategic communications plan that identifies audiences, goals, channels, metrics and timeline for prioritized projects and campaigns.
• Develop and manage an internal calendar that identifies partnerships with appropriate team members.
• Support the Development Manager by leading the communications and marketing of two annual fundraising events.

Strategic Communications Specialist

Program Manager

• Design, develop, and implement training programs based on workforce development best practices.
• Facilitate training sessions for frontline staff and workforce development professionals.
• Recruit and collaborate with guest speakers, content experts, and external consultants to enhance training delivery.
• Revise and update existing training curricula to incorporate emerging best practices and stakeholder feedback.
• Create experiential hands-on learning activities tailored to adult learners.
• Develop written resources, tools, and materials to support training initiatives.
• Act as primary liaison to the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS).
• Lead an Advisory Group and Community of Practice.
• Collaborate with subject matter experts, external facilitators and content providers to align curriculum and programming goals.
• Recruit and onboard external facilitators who uphold the mission and values of CJC.
• Supervise program coordinators and fellows/interns, as needed.
• Provide mentorship and support for other CJC staff who are part of the team responsible for implementing programming.
• Manage the IDHS training program, which includes curriculum development, training facilitation, communication coordination, material preparation, and follow-up, plus creating agendas and preparing for various stakeholder meetings.
• Provide ongoing technical assistance and support to workforce development providers, administrators, funders, and other stakeholders.
• Respond to information requests and offer guidance on training-related inquiries.
• Collaborate with the Director of Community and Capacity Building and IDHS to develop and deploy a marketing plan to recruit participants within the IDHS SNAP & TANF provider network.
• Design and implement tools for evaluating training effectiveness.
• Collect and analyze data to monitor and assess training goals and outcomes aligned with the IDHS contract.
• Responsible for administrative tasks related to programming and delegating appropriate tasks to the program coordinator.
• Prepare grant reports and other data reporting documentation, as required.
• Participate in stakeholder meetings to engage stakeholders and partners to learn about what workforce professionals need to build capacity in their role and at their organization.
• Other duties as assigned.

Strategic Communications Specialist

Training and Development Program Manager