Mission Director, MCH & Advocacy

• Develop Plans, Objectives and Strategies: Develop and implement activities of state Strategic Mission Impact Plan (SMI) with specific deliverables as identified.
• Data Analysis and Grant Management: Utilizing available data, identify areas of high need/high burden and focus programming and advocacy efforts on high need populations, including management of community grants awarded.
• Direct Lobbying: In collaboration with Regional Director for Advocacy and Government Affairs, perform ongoing management of issues and execution of strategy, tracking of legislative priorities, and lobbying of policymakers either in person or remotely. Manage coalition relationships. Plan and execute advocacy events. Register as a lobbyist consistent with state laws and regulations. In some cases, oversee and manage a legislative consultant. 
• Develop Relationships: Cultivate partnerships and ensure effective collaboration with maternal and infant/child health leaders, policymakers, and organizations. Engage in leadership and networking with partners, including government officials.
• Volunteer Development: Recruit and actively manage volunteer leaders to work on MCH and advocacy priorities. Develop and manage volunteer leadership to inform SMI plans, implementation and evaluation in assigned area. 
• Progress Reporting: Ensure that current and approved SMI plans, progress, legislative wins, and community grant information are entered in the appropriate organizational systems. Document and evaluate advocacy and program activities and provide regular reports to internal and external stakeholders.
• Integration and Internal Communication: In concert with regional leadership, provide mission information and ensure integration of mission activities with revenue development and communications colleagues. Ensure strong collaboration, communication and integration with colleagues.

Behavioral Competencies

• Strategic Perspective: Able to develop long-term, big picture strategies to enhance competitiveness; recognize broad implications of issues; balance and integrate strategic vision with day-to-day activities.
• Organizational Awareness: Able to identify and use information about people, political dynamics, and the organization’s climate in order to promote change; use knowledge of timing, agendas, and group processes to accomplish legitimate objectives.
• Influence: Able to positively change the opinions and actions of others toward a desired outcome; present information in a persuasive manner; clarify information in order to gain understanding and buy-in.
• Team Building: Able to develop a team effort; confront negative attitudes to build commitment and morale; get factions with competing perspectives to learn from one another; integrate efforts and talents of team members.
• Develop Relationships: Able to relate to others and build credibility and rapport; relate to others in an honest and straightforward manner; listen; build one-on-one relationships that incorporate cooperation, trust and respect.
• Verbal Communication: Able to clearly express ideas, information or concerns with the spoken word; present verbal information in a straightforward manner; ask questions to open channels of communication; listen to understand the perspectives of others.
• Analyzing: Able to break down problems and information in order to systematically identify the cause of problems or make recommendations; gather information from multiple sources; analyze complex information; organize information for analysis.
• Decision Making: Able to make objective decisions when dealing with emotional or controversial topics; identify and choose among multiple options; understand consequences of potential decisions.
• Motivation: Able to present information or new ideas in such a way that others get excited; use a positive approach to motivate others at any level of the organization. 

Complexity of Duties and Authority

• Duties: The duties of this position involve a wide variety of complex and changing situations requiring a high degree of conceptual ingenuity, creativity and initiative. An individual in this position is required to have extensive and authoritative knowledge of the techniques, practices and theories applying to the responsibilities of the job.
• Personnel Supervised: This position does not supervise employees. 

Position Scope, Contacts and Decision-Making

• Scope: This position assists in the development and execution of the organization’s program and advocacy agenda within the assigned state/market. This position holds a high degree of accountability for all activities within his/her functional areas of responsibility that support the mission goals established by the organization. 
• Contacts: This position represents the March of Dimes as an official spokesperson and provides a high degree of expertise within his/her area and in broad and organizational areas to internal and external contacts, including, but not limited to appointed and elected health officials. Contacts are critical to motivating, negotiation with, developing and collaborating with others to advance the organization’s program and advocacy agenda and mission of the March of Dimes.
• Decision-Making: Decisions, or decisions this position leads in making, have significant impact on the success of mission efforts within the assigned state/market.