Membership Director

The U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives (USFWC) is the national grassroots membership organization for worker cooperatives and other democratic workplaces. Our mission is to build a thriving cooperative movement of stable, empowering jobs through worker-ownership. Representing 375 member workplaces (and growing) and 10,000 workers across the country, we advance worker-owned, -managed, and -governed workplaces through cooperative education, organizing, advocacy, and development.

The Membership Director is responsible for overseeing member retention, recruitment, and engagement as well as member services and benefits, including the Worker Benefits Program. This is achieved through the development and ongoing maintenance of high-value benefits; providing access to quality training, education and cooperative resources; supporting a nationally coordinated network of worker-owners and allies, and executing a highly-targeted recruitment and engagement strategy.

The next Membership Director joins at an exciting time for the USFWC. Membership growth has continued (even during the pandemic) fueled by a decade’s worth of momentum. USFWC programs have created a platform for Black, immigrant, and LGBTQIA, and Spanish-speaking co-op leaders to flourish. The new Membership Director will be developing the USFWC’s organizing, outreach, and engagement strategy to deepen connection with a distributed network of co-op leaders. The successful candidate will bring organizing experience to connect the USFWC’s value and relationships within our members’ workplaces, especially cooperative businesses, introducing more workers than just their USFWC liaison, to our ecosystem and the benefits of our programming. The successful candidate will offer guiding leadership to the USFWC’s goals of strengthening and expanding Black worker-ownership in this next decade.

SCOPE OF WORK

• Engagement (25%) Develop and execute a member engagement plan, with strategic leadership pipelines to foster the development of a diverse national network of effective worker-owner leaders
  • Coordinate and track the Peer Network and Member Council programs at a high level; support establishment of new peer networks; develop additional structure, guidance and staff support to empower members to lead these spaces; support staff who liaise with councils and networks.
  • Support member-led local organizing initiatives and facilitate alignment with USFWC strategy
  • Develop and support partnerships with local and regional networks together with the Executive Director and Membership Manager, including the development, implementation and yearly review of agreements and joint programs
  • Inform the work of the Communications Team to create public-facing member materials, including our print newsletter, email newsletter, and social media
  • Cultivate a member leadership development strategy and support the pipeline for members to participate in training and leadership opportunities with the organization including the Speakers Bureau, Co-op Clinic, Member Councils, Peer Networks, events, organizing and fellowship opportunities, and the Board of Directors. Will have a strong focus on development on Black leadership in the Worker Cooperative Movement.
  • Develop a strategy, plan, and system for staff direct engagement with members, including staff training for member engagement, annual member visit planning, rapid response member engagement as needed, and systems for reporting on and following up from staff visits to members
  • Work with the data team to shape strategy for USFWC’s use of data to ensure efficient, responsible, and successful tracking of important current and potential member data.
  • Facilitate other USFWC staff in the development and implementation of strategies to  address resource gaps in the field, especially for under-resourced communities and Black-led cooperatives
  • Promote, evaluate and expand the suite of Membership Benefits outside the Worker Benefits Program
• Worker Benefits Program (25%) Maximize member value through oversight of high-quality benefits in the Worker Benefits Program; analyze benefit usage and satisfaction for ongoing improvement and development
  • Promote, evaluate, and prioritize new and existing benefits with special focus on high-impact and potentially revenue-generating benefits through the Worker Benefits Program
  • Oversee the Worker Benefits Program operations, including supervision of the Worker Benefits team
  • Work with the Worker Benefits Program manager to guide program oversight and compliance and ensure the Executive Director and Board are aware of program developments, risks, priorities
• Membership Retention and Recruitment (25%) Oversee a strategic member recruitment, retention and renewal plan that reflects the growing diversity of worker-owners in the US and achieves USFWC recruitment targets
  • Develop and evolve a member retention and recruitment strategy. Work with the Comms department to develop messaging around member retention and recruitment
  • Provide monthly reports to staff and Board and annual reports to members on our membership statistics
  • Monitor and evaluate the member on-boarding and annual renewal process conducted by Membership Team
  • Support and advise the Executive Director in deciding dues-related matters such as write-offs, discounts and labor trade negotiations, as well as dues splitting with local networks
• Governance  (10%)
  • Coordinate staff support for member-oriented governance activities, including the: Annual Member Meeting, Board of Directors annual elections, and board committee meetings
  • Work with the Executive Director and Board of Directors to implement a strategy, plan and pipeline for active member engagement with USFWC governance structures
  • Support Board member engagement with our governance structures and membership activities
• Admin & Support (15%)
  • Participate in staff meetings, staff director meetings, Board meetings, annual retreats
  • Provide staff support for Board of Directors, Membership Committee, Elections Committee, and International Committee
  • Support and collaborate with other staff to complete team projects as needed
  • Supervision of the Membership Team (currently the Membership Manager, Membership and Worker Benefits Coordinator and Worker Benefits Manager)

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Member Services, Customer Support, or Community Relations Experience: At least three years of experience providing support services to a community, customer base or membership base
• Deep knowledge of and demonstrated commitment to racial justice: in life and work.
• Organizing Experience: working for racial justice, workers rights, and a solidarity economy
• Cooperative Experience: Familiarity (and ideally lived experience) with the cooperative business form and workplace democracy;
• Program management: Proven experience leading successful programs. Able to perform necessary research and development, implement a program, manage a program budget, conduct evaluation, and ensure ongoing program improvement.
• Experience leading, coaching and supporting a team
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; capable of communicating effectively with a wide range of people and through many communication channels (small group, public speaking, mass emails, facilitating conference calls, print, etc)
• Stakeholder Engagement: Highly effective at engaging diverse stakeholders, listening to many perspectives and able to provide necessary leadership
• Creative Problem Solving: Demonstrated ability to foresee obstacles, generate and implement solutions, and manage long-term changes as needed
• Basic Technology: Proficient with Microsoft Office, Google apps, use of online channels for communication (we use Slack), project management online tools (we use Asana), videoconferencing(we use Zoom), and data management CRM systems (we use CiviCRM)

Desired, but not required:

Written and verbal Spanish proficiency is highly preferable, but not necessarily required. Familiarity and/or experience with employee benefits administration is preferable, but not required.

Details about the position:

Compensation & Benefits

This is a 40 hour/week salaried position, with a starting FTE (40 hour full time equivalent) base salary of $65,000-$75,000 based on experience. Staff receive annual raises, and we offer a modest increase on top of base pay for staff with dependents (for parents and employees caring for an elderly family member). Base salaries are also increased for employees residing in particularly costly cities. The USFWC provides healthcare, vision and dental coverage or a healthcare stipend alternative for full time equivalent employees. Among our generous fringe benefits, we offer flexible holiday pay, 3-5 weeks of annual vacation, and a stipend for professional development.

Location

Our workplace is remote, with many staff residing in Philadelphia, PA. Other staff reside in Massachusetts, Tennessee, New Mexico, North Carolina, Texas, California, New York, and the District of Columbia. We maintain a flexible work environment, with occasional out of town travel for work as health guidelines allow.

About Being on Staff:

U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives is a growing organization, currently consisting of 19 staff along with leadership from our nine-member Board of Directors. The USFWC has expanded both its programs and its staff significantly over the last five years. As our membership and the demand for our programs continues to grow along with the worker co-op field, we are focused on growing our impact, our value, and our member benefits.

Applying:

To apply please CLICK HERE and include a resume, cover letter, and 3 references from current or former workplaces (or significant organizing initiatives). The position will be open until filled.

The USFWC is an Equal Opportunity employer. We highly encourage applicants of color, applicants who grew up poor or working class, LGBTQIA applicants, and applicants from other historically marginalized communities to apply.