Entering its second year as an AEI priority initiative, the FREE Initiative is a national collaborative outreach and educational resourcing effort under the leadership of AEI scholar Ian Rowe. Drawing on insights from Rowe’s cutting-edge research in upward mobility in a recent book, the FREE Initiative is disseminating new insights about the critical roles family, religion, education, and entrepreneurship play in helping the rising generation of young Americans to develop. FREE also catalyzes a growing network of exemplary leaders who are using their spheres of influence to revitalize community life and guide young men and women into a better future.
The FREE Initiative is committed to building partnerships between policymakers, cultural leaders, and local influencers in ways that help young Americans—particularly emerging leaders representing ethnic minority groups—to move up the economic ladder and invest in social institutions that help all people flourish. While our initial year focused on setting the Initiative’s resource framework and programming trajectory, the year ahead will implement these plans, by growing new audiences and increasing collaboration with newly developing AEI programs—including Academic Programs, the American Dream Initiative, and AEI’s Leadership Network—as well as strengthening external partnerships.
This is a full-time role based in AEI’s Washington, DC office. The Manager is a member of AEI’s larger national outreach team, frequently collaborating with the Domestic Policy Department
Responsibilities
The Manager will execute a high-priority initiative with significant national reach. The Manager is primarily responsible for ensuring all FREE activities align with cutting-edge AEI priorities and Ian Rowe’s distinct contributions to strengthening civil society. Specific responsibilities for this role fall within these areas:
Thought Leadership (35%):
- Serve as critical thought-leader to bring FREE to new minority audiences directly impacted by Rowe’s message
- Creatively imagine and generate a suite of communication-related products, toolkit resources, and videos (including character-selection, script-writing, and rollout alongside AEI’s video team)
- Work with Rowe, Development office, and other outreach team members creatively pursue new opportunities while calculating team capacity and constraints
- Shape event themes, and identify panel/keynote speakers; pursue strategic local partners
Personnel Management (25%):
- Ability to manage varying stakeholder (scholar, research assistant, intern, other supporting and contracted staff) job flows, expectations, and delivery to achieve a portfolio of products and services offered under the FREE brand
- Foster a supportive learning environment with team members, guiding them on research direction, prioritization, and work output strategies
- Contribute to onboarding, offboarding, and guiding FREE team members and contracted (1099) employees in AEI/department policies and addressing performance issues in a professional manner
Marketing and Outreach (20%):
- Serve as the go-to liaison between departments (External Affairs, Government Relations, Media, Communications, Design, Development, Marketing, and Academic Programs) for all FREE-related work
- Oversee communications for promotional and reporting efforts; write regular FREE Newsletter
- Draft reports for Board Book(s), Annual Report, internal update memos, other internal reporting
- Serve as primary point of contact for all external FREE constituents, in tandem with Rowe
- Manage special projects as assigned, including major conferences and events, special reports, larger OpEds (with RA), digital projects hosted on AEI’s website
- Proactively pursue strategic overlap with American Dream Initiative, Academic Programs, Development events, and Leadership Network to achieve economies of scale and meaningful co-programming and shared outcomes
Budget (5%):
- Inform annual non-personnel budget for FREE, and monitor with the support of supervisor and other involved outreach team members
- Work with supervisor to develop and manage contractor employee contracts, work product, and payment
- Work with development grants team to budget program needs in alignment with development proposals and donor interest
Administrative (15%):
- Lead team workflow, including task-planning, delivery, and outcomes
- Seek, establish, and utilize supporting software and shared work-practices to facilitate planning and workflow management
- Stay attuned to scholar-schedule (coordinated by RA) to capitalize on opportunities for synergistic programming
- Collect, clean, organize, and present constituent data for regular use
- Prepare and execute Market campaigns related to FREE’s work in concert with Marketing team
- Apprise Domestic Policy Program Manager for training, software, and scheduling updates
- Advance invoices following work events
Qualifications:
- 2-5 years of experience in research, management, or education/social policy
- A bachelor’s degree at the start date is required
- Self-starter with the ability to identify and get ahead of complex problems, develop and evaluate options, and implement solutions
- Interest and ability in leading others
- Ability to work in high-pressure and fast-paced environment
- Proactively anticipate challenges, needs, opportunities, and “who needs to know” mindset in coordinating and resourcing wide array of internal and external stakeholders
- Establish and maintain collaborative internal and external relationships
- Detail-oriented; excellent organizational skills
- Strong communicator with public poise and adeptness in writing; capacity for turning ideas into agendas, summary-documents, and variety of internal and external written products
- Time-management skills and proven ability to meet deadlines
- Familiarity with customer relationship management software such as Salesforce is highly preferred
- Passion for AEI’s mission
How to Apply
Qualified candidates should submit the following application materials in one PDF document:
- Resume
- Cover Letter detailing your interest in the position, AEI’s mission, and your salary requirements
- A writing sample of 500-1000 words. Samples should be self-authored, preferably reflecting popular writing styles (op-eds, blogs, magazine articles)
Applications should be submitted to Talent Market via this link: talentmarket.org/apply-for-your-dream-job/.
There is no application deadline for this position. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. This job will remain posted on our site until it is filled.
Questions can be directed to Stephanie Keaveney, Outreach Manager of Talent Market, who is assisting with the search: [email protected].
While we thank all applicants in advance for their interest in this position, we are only able to contact those to whom we can offer an interview. Only direct applications will be considered. No phone calls, please.
Talent Market is a nonprofit entity dedicated to promoting liberty by helping free-market nonprofits identify talent for critical roles. We provide consulting and recruiting services at no cost to 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations that clearly and directly focus on advancing the principles of economic freedom, free enterprise, free trade, free speech, property rights, rule of law, and limited regulation.
