INN Member Network Director

The Institute for Nonprofit News is seeking an experienced journalist with an organizer’s outlook for a new position accelerating growth, depth and diversity across INN’s membership network.

This is a leadership role supporting the peer development of more than 3,500 people working in nonprofit news organizations, which play an increasingly critical role in preserving, founding and restoring news coverage access across North America.  Since the start of the nonprofit news movement, INN and its members have used network strategies to build this emerging media field. The member network director puts this strategy into action and strengthens the field through three branches of work:

• Facilitating and supporting development of regional and professional networks and collaborations within the whole network, and increasing support services to INN members.
• Managing INN’s member recruitment, standards, vetting and promotion of the values and quality journalism that differentiate INN member news organizations.
• Managing the growth of INN membership, assessing INN’s value and impact for member news organizations and deepening member engagement.

INN and its members make up a fast-growing network of more than 250 independent, nonprofit news media. Together, these newsrooms are expanding public service journalism across North America and finding new models for news. They hold the powerful accountable through some of the strongest investigative reporting in the nation as well as producing community and state reporting. And they are providing millions of people with unbiased, informed coverage of issues that shape laws and lives, including education, equity, climate change, social justice, health and science, from local to global issues.

Role and responsibilities

The member network director leads a staff of two: a new INN Member Collaborations Leader and our Membership Coordinator.

Together, they work to advance key goals and initiatives to:

• Grow, strengthen and diversify the INN member network to serve various geographical regions, communities of color and topical coverage areas
• Deepen INN membership network benefits through development of professional peer groups, mentoring programs and interest circles among news and business leaders, as well as expanding services offered
• Manages the evolution of INN standards and guidelines, which provide best practices for the field and encourage editorial excellence and independence, inclusivity, public trust and engagement.
• Expand recognition of INN members’ work and public awareness of the value of nonprofit news coverage through an annual awards programs and annual collections of the best of nonprofit news coverage.
• Facilitate collaborations that extend the public benefit of nonprofit news reporting and support and amplify their work.
• Evaluate the value of INN programs, services and network support to INN members and where applicable, to the general public
• Increase a sense of community among members and manage recruitment, onboarding and membership processes.

The member network director maintains a broad understanding of members and communicates with them regularly, frequently talks with sector leaders to anticipate their needs and organizes members to support each other and pursue shared opportunities.

The director works across all INN programs to suggest members for advisory groups and peer groups and to identify needs and resources that can help nonprofit news organizations grow. The director also proposes and supports funding initiatives to strengthen the membership and the resources INN provides to them.

Qualifications:

• Experience in organizing actions or communities. Examples might range from lobbying to leading professional groups or community engagement initiatives, recruiting and organizing volunteers, or working in industry associations. Training in organizing skills or communications is beneficial.
• Interest and experience in managing journalists who are developing new approaches to reporting and the business of news, through either newsroom or product, business or audience leadership roles. A candidate may have helped lead new initiatives in traditional news or been involved in developing new types of media projects.
• Strong interest in and experience in journalism ethics, standards and best practices
• Strong interpersonal and written communications skills, to rally and organize groups of colleagues
• Experience as a participant or organizer of mentorship and peer learning initiatives
• Experience diversifying journalism and building new approaches to media that help news organizations increase their equity and inclusion and reach underserved audiences
• Ability to organize your own work and help others do the same, and a service orientation to helping others achieve their goals. This membership work helps many stakeholders achieve their goals as well as the director’s own objectives
• A bachelor’s degree in a relevant field (journalism, communications, public affairs) and at least five years experience with news
• Experience managing direct reports

INN recognizes that a great candidate may not meet all of these requirements. Please use your cover letter to tell us how you would make the position your own.

What INN offers:

This position carries a competitive salary and benefits. It offers the potential to shape the future of journalism and inclusive career paths for leaders in this emerging media field.

We value diversity, work in the open and do everything we can to give back to the journalism community. INN is an equal opportunity employer and we seek to increase diversity in our own operation and in the news media. We encourage individuals from communities traditionally underrepresented in this field to apply.

The position can be remote, or if offices reopen, based in our Los Angeles office or co-located with other INN staff or key members. INN is a distributed team and previous experience working with a remote team would be helpful, but we’ll work with you to create a successful remote work experience.

Applying:

Candidates, please send a resume and materials to [email protected] with the subject line INN Member Network Director. In your cover letter or a separate document, please include examples of projects you’ve worked on or efforts relevant to this posting in terms of organizing groups and networks, increasing participation and diversity in news or other fields, and a short explanation of your role in producing each.