UIC CUPPA Careers Blog: Director of Operations for Economic Development, Chicago Central Area Committee and Alliance for Regional Development

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Who: The Alliance for Regional Development and Chicago Central Area Committee (CCAC) are Chicago-based economic development organizations that collaborate on coordinated programs and led by a management team of employees and skilled consultants.

What: This position is a dual role with the Chicago Central Area Committee (CCAC) and the Alliance for Regional Development. At CACC, the Director of Operations will support the President & CEO with guiding cross-jurisdictional collaborative activities of more than 100 high-level governmental, commercial, and institutional leaders committed to improving the Milwaukee, Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana corridor’s mega-region economy in the areas of Workforce, Transportation and Water. This effort is part of a regional planning pilot project funded by the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration and regional sponsors, in response to the recommendations of an OECD Territorial Review of the Chicago metropolitan area.

CACC responsibilities include:

Share responsibility for planning of Annual Summits on Regional Competitiveness with partner Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago
Perform membership and donor development and management activities
Identify, completes and manages grant applications for public and private funders
Plan and manages quarterly and ad hoc stakeholder meetings including for the Board of Directors and Working Teams
Support the Alliance Working Teams (Transportation and Workforce) with outreach, research and special projects
Produce press materials, presentations, proposals, distributes electronic quarterly newsletter to stakeholders, and updates the organization’s website
Track and report on billing, building and maintaining a database of stakeholders, researching economic data as a resource, develop and administer organizational database & cloud-server system and provides administrative support.

At the Alliance for Regional Development the Director of Operations will support the Executive Director by providing strategy and program support for Chicago’s historic growth coalition comprised of more than 100 corporate leaders and developers from the domains of architecture, planning, development, government, cultural affairs, and academia. Responsibilities include:

Responsible for planning and managing monthly member luncheons with high-level guest speakers.
Assist with special initiatives such as the Chicago Loop Connector Project and the Central City Strategy Initiative
Perform membership and donor development and management activities
Plan and manage monthly meetings, produce press materials, distributes electronic monthly newsletter, and updates the organization’s website
Track and create report on billing, develop and administer organizational database and cloud-server system, and provide administrative support.

Qualifications: Degree in urban planning, public policy or minimum 3-5 years working experience in association management.

Expected start date and hours per week: ASAP, 40 hours per week
Contact person: Kelly O’Brien kobrien@alliancerd.org 312-602-5148