Chief Operating Officer
Salary: $200,000 - $250,000
This role is not part of the bargaining unit.
Middle Seat is a recognized digital media and fundraising leader, serving many of the nation’s most prominent progressive candidates and causes. We’re a full-service firm with email, advertising, creative, social, texting, and web development teams. We’re 50+ writers, designers, coders, and strategists, all passionate about creating real and lasting change. In just five years, we’ve raised hundreds of millions of dollars with grassroots donors; we’ve helped elect or re-elect some of the nation’s most powerful voices for change.
We’re hiring a Chief Operating Officer to help lead us into our next chapter. We’re looking for candidates with extensive experience in management and decision-making roles who can earn the team's confidence on day one. As Chief Operating Officer, you’ll steer our team of department leads and take responsibility for the success of the company as a whole.
Middle Seat is proud to be driven by our values, and we’re looking for a Chief Operating Officer as passionate about making progressive change as our clients and teammates. Check out a sample of our client list below, and if this opportunity sounds like a good fit, please apply today.
- 350.org
- ACLU
- AFL-CIO
- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
- Ayanna Pressley
- Beto O'Rourke
- Consumer Reports
- Cori Bush
- Green New Deal Network
- Jamaal Bowman
- John Fetterman
- Justice Democrats
- Katie Porter
- Latino Victory Fund
- Lead Locally
- Lina Hidalgo
- Maura Healey
- Mijente
- MoveOn
- National Nurses United
- Nikema Williams
- Pramila Jayapal
- Primary Sinema Project
- Sister District
- Squad Victory Fund
- Sunrise Movement
- Summer Lee
- Working Families Party
Responsibilities
Strategic Leadership
- Takes the lead on high-level decision making, setting the corporate direction and strategy in coordination with our management team
- Creates and maintains strategic growth plans for the company
- Works with partners and management team to mold and set the company’s values, vision, and direction
- Reviews the performance of all operations, comparing them with the company's objectives and recommending appropriate measures to improve performance and results.
- Takes the lead on internal initiatives in collaboration with team managers
People Management
- Leads and directs agenda development for management level meetings
- Manages team leads for ads, email, creative, web development, social+texting, accounting, and people+culture teams at Middle Seat
- Conducts weekly check-ins with team leads
- Sets professional growth goals for team leads
- Sets revenue, staffing, and process growth goals for team leads
- Conducts 6-month performance reviews for leadership level staff
- Hold or schedule regular trainings for managers to help them establish effective supervisory relationships and leadership skills
- Creates new job descriptions at the management level
- Work closely with People and Culture lead to foster and implement internal equity and inclusion strategies
- Work with management team to plan and execute staff trainings
- Develop cross-departmental processes for managing and forecasting capacity needs
- Think holistically about the culture and health of Middle Seat and new processes to improve efficiency and staff retention
- Work with People and Culture lead and department leads to develop new structures and role definition within departments
- Work with the People and Culture director and department leads to discipline and handle termination of employees as per the organization’s policies
Financial Oversight
- Works with our accounting team to shape and execute on firmwide and department-specific budgets, goals, and projections
- Works with the partners to establish short-term objectives and long-range goals, and related plans and policies
- Presents regular reports on the status of the company's operations to the partners and management team
- Identifies opportunities to maximize revenue or reduce costs inside of budget
- Identify and scope out new areas for business growth, sales and expansion
External Relations
- Manage external vendors, partners and projects including but limited to: legal teams, CPA firms, data firms, security firms, anti-racist firms, and anti-harassment firms
- From time to time, represent the business at sales meetings, in concert with Special Assistant, relevant team leads, and partners
- Work with partners and management team to identify prospective client leads
- As needed, take the lead on generating publicity for the firm — how can we tell our story on our website/social media, how can we tell our story in our proposals
- Leads on union-leadership relations
- Takes the lead in responding to labor management committee meeting questions
- Work to develop a proactive relationship with union representatives and staff to create a sustainable work environment
- Represents the management team in collective bargaining negotiations
Requirements
- Extensive experience in professional leadership roles
- Comfort taking the lead on strategic planning and delegation
- Experience managing and providing clear feedback and supervision
- Strong business acumen and a desire to participate in the growth of Middle Seat
- Demonstrated experience in and knowledge of the political space in digital, fundraising, campaigning, advocacy, or nonprofits
Salary and Benefits
- Salary starts between $200,000 - $250,000
- Pathway to partnership after demonstrated success
- Profit sharing plan: share in the growth and success of Middle Seat
- $50 mobile phone subsidy monthly
- Regular raises
- 100% coverage for health, dental and vision
- Mental health expense subsidy
- 6% employer match on your 401k retirement account
- 20 paid vacation days off, plus your birthday and work anniversary off
- Unlimited sick leave
- Commuter benefits for public transportation
- Flexible work from home schedule (or work in our D.C. office)
- 12 weeks of paid leave for new parents
We are committed to building a diverse and passionate team. We encourage creative-minded individuals with a strong technical aptitude to apply for this position. Women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ individuals are encouraged to apply.
Requirements
- Demonstrated experience in and knowledge of the political space in digital, fundraising, campaigning, advocacy, or nonprofits
- Extensive experience in professional leadership roles
- Comfort taking the lead on strategic planning and delegation
- Experience managing and providing clear feedback and supervision
- Strong business acumen and a desire to participate in the growth of Middle Seat
Benefits
- Salary starts between $200,000 - $250,000
- Pathway to partnership after demonstrated success
- Profit sharing plan: share in the growth and success of Middle Seat
- $50 mobile phone subsidy monthly
- Regular raises
- 100% coverage for health, dental and vision
- Mental health expense subsidy
- 6% employer match on your 401k retirement account
- 20 paid vacation days off, plus your birthday and work anniversary off
- Unlimited sick leave
- Commuter benefits for public transportation
- Flexible work from home schedule (or work in our D.C. office)
- 12 weeks of paid leave for new parents
We are committed to building a diverse and passionate team. We encourage creative-minded individuals with a strong technical aptitude to apply for this position. Women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ individuals are encouraged to apply.
