Data Associate

Location: Remote in the U.S. In-person/hybrid options in Chicago, IL and Washington, DC

Intended start date: November 12, 2024

Application deadline: September 19, 2024

Type: Full time

Travel: 15%, dependent on need and public health considerations

When you think about elections, you might think about popular candidates, “I voted” stickers, and all sorts of paperwork and deadlines. But behind the scenes are thousands of election officials in state and local governments who are working hard to make sure ballots are counted and voices are heard. At a time when election officials are facing unprecedented challenges and scrutiny, they need support in order to administer secure and inclusive elections and build trust among the public.

As Data Associate, you will manage the data behind a new set of standards that make explicit what high performance looks like in U.S. election administration. Think Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, but for local election departments. This is big, bold work at the forefront of election administration, so an entrepreneurial spirit will help you succeed. You’ll report to a Senior Program Manager in the Government Services department.

Responsibilities

• Collecting data - Develop, document, and implement systems for tracking qualitative and quantitative feedback from tools like surveys, facilitated discussions, and attending conferences. Incorporate organizational data practices into team systems.

• Analyzing data - Identify themes, trends, and actionable insights that support improvements to the Standards and team processes. Prioritize equity in analysis with a particular focus on CTCL’s priority audiences.

  • This includes voters who are newly eligible, have limited English proficiency, live with disabilities, or are from communities that are impacted by the digital divide or historical disenfranchisement due to race.

• Sharing learnings - Tailor learnings for a variety of audiences and formats including reports, presentations, blog posts, facilitated conversations, and other formats. Contribute to a culture of continuous learning, data-informed decision making and commitment to priority audiences.

To be successful in this role, you will excel in all of these must-have areas:

• Gathering data and identifying themes - You have experience working with qualitative and quantitative data. You can make sense of disparate information and make strategic decisions on data collection.

• Critical thinking & problem solving - You grasp the subtleties of complex issues and grapple with conflicting perspectives. You consider tradeoffs and prioritize equity in your approach.

• Strong verbal and written communication skills - You present complex ideas clearly and adapt content for different audiences. You are excited about attending conferences to connect people and their stories to data points.

• Curiosity - You are committed to learning new tools and developing new skills. You try new approaches, learn from what doesn't work, and create opportunities to get input from others.

• Equity consciousness - You have skills and experiences that help you understand people who face barriers accessing public services. For instance, you may be multilingual or have experience making products accessible to people with disabilities.

Previous experience with elections, tools like Airtable, Jotform, Python, and CRMs are pluses, but not required. If you aren’t sure if you’re qualified but are excited about the position, we encourage you to apply!

About the Center for Tech and Civic Life

The Center for Tech and Civic Life is a nonpartisan nonprofit that connects Americans with the information they need to become and remain civically engaged, and ensures that our elections are more professional, inclusive, and secure. We do this by collecting and disseminating civic information to the public, connecting election officials with tools and training, and advocating for increased government funding for election departments across the country.

To date, we’ve published civic datasets that answer the questions “What’s on my ballot?” and “Who represents me?” which have been accessed over 250 million times. We’ve trained thousands of election officials, serving over 80 million voters, on topics like election website design and cybersecurity best practices. Our advocacy efforts have led to $468 million in new state & federal appropriations for election administration.

Application Process

• Click apply to upload your resume and answer some initial questions. (Only applications submitted through this careers site will be considered.) This should take approximately 30 minutes.

• We will email a status update to every applicant by September 26. Please check your spam folder if you don’t see an email from us. If you are selected to move forward in our process, we will invite you to submit a previous work sample, along with thoughts about your approach to that work, to demonstrate your qualifications.

• If you are selected to move forward to the final phase of our process, a video interview and reference check will be conducted to determine if you are the best fit for the position. The interview will take up to 1 hour.

The Center for Tech and Civic Life is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We encourage people of all races, colors, religions, national origins, sexual orientations, genders, sexes, ages, abilities, branches of military service, and political party affiliations to apply.