Associate Organizer

Common Ground (CG) is a multi-racial, multi-faith, non-partisan alliance of 44 member organizations with 50,000+ everyday people dedicated to building power to advance racial equity and economic justice, hold elected and corporate officials accountable, and create positive change in the Greater Milwaukee area. CG’s success is rooted in the commitment of our member organizations: congregations, neighborhood groups, nonprofits, small businesses, unions, and schools. We’ve won tens of millions from big banks to repair damage caused by predatory lending, created our own nonprofit healthcare cooperative, secured permanent statewide funding for driver’s ed, and gotten new leadership at the Housing Authority. We listen deeply, set daring goals, create savvy strategies, and are willing to stand up to powerful interests. We get results.

Tenants United (TU) is a member-driven organization of public and private housing tenants and allies who are building power to address housing-related issues across Greater Milwaukee. TU is unique because it grew out of, and is deeply connected to, Common Ground. In 2023, after a high-profile, 3-year campaign to reform the Milwaukee Housing Authority, we won hundreds of building and unit issues fixed from removing black mold to exterminating bed bugs; city jurisdiction to inspect and fine HACM for unresolved maintenance issues; and a new HACM executive staff and board focused on reform. Now, we’re taking on private corporate landlords, currently “evicting” David Tomblin of Highgrove Holdings LLC—a large private equity investor landlord—and continuing to build power to advance tenant interests.

The TU Associate Organizer is responsible for helping grow and develop a unique tenant organization in Greater Milwaukee that focuses on building and wielding power to address issues facing tenants. The CG Northside Associate Organizer will work to identify and develop community leaders in the Northside of Milwaukee to build power, and take action for racial justice and the common good. Both Associate Organizers will be supported and coached by Common Ground staff.

Common Ground and Tenants United offer a unique opportunity to build broad-based lasting power, get significant wins, develop as an organizer, and find a lasting career with ambitious, caring colleagues.

Why you’ll love working with us: 

• We strive for a culture of learning, growth, and development in both staff and members.
• Developing leaders and professional organizers is central to our mission. We provide coaching, shadowing, mentoring, and training. We “run” with you and have you run with us each week. 
• 91% of our funding comes from dues and individual gifts from our member organizations and leaders—local, “hard” money. Because we are not dependent on grant funding, we are free to take on the campaigns and targets that we choose, and to continue a campaign as long as necessary.
• We are offering the chance to try and learn our style of organizing, grow as an organizer, and pursue a rewarding, challenging, and secure career with us and our network, The Just Power Alliance.

• Collaborate with community members, tenants, allies, and other staff to build the organization and campaigns. 
• Set up and conduct 15 one-to-one meetings per week or the equivalent in canvassing.  Meetings are to build relationships, listen for issues, and look for leaders.. 
• Canvass in target neighborhoods or properties to build an organizing team.
• Find and develop leaders. 
• Build and work with teams of leaders through the organizing cycle: Identify and research issues and solutions, develop an analysis of where the power lies and who the decision makers are, and then take action to get results. 
• Help raise money by recruiting new dues-paying members, assisting with grant writing, relating to philanthropic organizations, and soliciting individual Friends of Common Ground gifts.
• Participate in local and national trainings on organizing skills (e.g., relational meetings, power analysis, self-interest), organizing principles, how to run an issue campaign, and more; learn to eventually lead trainings. 
• Write a weekly reflection and participate in a weekly check-in with supervisor and coach. Participate in CG staff and Strategy Team meetings. 

• Stay abreast of news and politics, locally, statewide, and to a lesser extent, nationally.

The work schedule includes evening and weekend meetings and events, as necessary. It is not a strictly 9am-5pm position.

A combination of education and training equivalent to the below will be considered.

• Some personal or professional history of standing up to a bully or standing up for some positive change;
• 0-1 year of organizing experience for the CG Northside Organizer and 1-2 years of organizing experience for the TU Organizer;
• Valid driver's license and access to a vehicle able to be used for work;
• A Bachelor’s degree preferred;
• Bilingual Spanish fluency desired, but not essential.

• Initiative taker / highly driven — excited by the opportunity to help build something; self-starter who will go knock on doors, try something, or bring a new idea to the table without being asked;
• Relational and curious about others — driven by the slow, deep, and impactful process of building power through relationships across lines of difference; appreciates the importance of developing leaders in order to build our collective power; 
• Righteous anger — a deep and personal conviction to build power and make change; good “social anger” about injustice; understands that pain often stems from power; asks “who is benefiting?”;
• “Us”/“we” mentality, not “I”/”me” — sees the bigger project of building shared collective power; excited to see member leaders on TV rather than self;
• Unafraid of tension and courage to take on those with more power  — doesn’t back down from a righteous fight; scrappy and gritty; comfortable holding onto/living with tension; ready to make good trouble when appropriate and necessary;
• Imagination/vision — constantly imagines and strategizes for the world as it should/could be, not just living in the world as it is presently;
• Invested in growth — eager to learn, receive feedback, and grow individually and collectively with a team;
• Reflective — slows down and carves out space to think strategically rather than react; treasures the process of pausing and thinking; invites and shares reflections with a team.
• Strategic thinker — sees the forest not the trees; plays chess not checkers; balances many different people, needs, opportunities, and interests; asks “how will this build our power?”
• Able to lead publicly — can separate “public” from “personal” relationships; can represent the broader organization’s interests; not intimidated by being a public actor in front of power brokers, funders, or news cameras.

• $50,000 - $70,000 based on experience; annual cost of living raise
• $6,112 yearly health insurance stipend
• Paid time off
  
  • 15 days (after 90 days of employment), increases after 1 year and 5 years
  • Nearly 3 weeks of holidays and days when Common Ground is closed
  • Sick days as needed
  • Bereavement leave
  • Up to 12 weeks paid Family and Medical Leave
• Expense and travel reimbursement; $750 annual tech allowance; 90% of cell service 

Both Associate Organizer positions start with a probationary period of 3-6 months, to be determined by progress and mutual evaluation with your supervisor.

Please submit an application using the form below. In your cover letter, please tell us why you are applying to this position. Please note that CG and TU do not allow generative AI, including chatbots, use to craft your answers. Please limit your response to one page, 11 point font, single spaced.