Senior Field Strategist, Clean Heat

About Us

Heavy industry is the foundation of modern society. We need materials like cement, steel, and aluminum more than ever to rebuild our bridges and roads, construct wind and solar projects, and manufacture electric vehicles and heat pumps that will undergird our future. But industry needs a second revolution. For as much as industry made the middle class and ushered in a remarkable era of prosperity for many, it also threatens our climate, reinforces environmental racism, wastes valuable materials and energy, and leaves communities and workers behind. 

At Industrious Labs, our mission is to set into motion unstoppable policies, people power, and analysis to make a triple impact on climate, justice, and jobs that drastically reduce dangerous emissions, make industry accountable to communities and workers, and develop a circular economy.

About the Position

Guided by an inspiring vision, strategic plan, and significant early financial investment, we seek an entrepreneurial Senior Field Strategist to join our team. Industrious Labs is fully remote, but for this position, candidates living/working in California may be best suited for this work. This role reports to Partner and Field-Building Director Dominique Thomas. 

In this newly created position, the Senior Field Strategist is a highly skilled relationship builder with a proven ability to establish, grow, and sustain diverse coalitions of stakeholders. The Senior Field Strategist is energized by the challenge of the climate crisis, inspired to step into a new era of the movement and has a strong track record of working with diverse groups such as organized labor, environmental justice advocates, and policymakers. This is a public-facing role for an equity-centered leader with a solid track record of working in coalition with others and building capacity and collective vision across diverse perspectives and experiences. In doing so, the Senior Field Strategist further establishes Industrious Labs as a national leader in industrial decarbonization and a go-to resource for policymakers, policy influencers, climate advocates, and community leaders.

Industrious Labs is poised to kick off a new Clean Heat initiative, initially focusing on California and a parallel national effort. Working collaboratively with partners over the past year, we have identified an exciting strategy to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions and dangerous air pollution from industrial heaters and boilers. Today, these heaters and boilers burn fossil fuels to produce needed heat for industrial processes, but in many cases, this equipment can be replaced with all-electric or other zero-emission alternatives. Thanks to a visionary funder, we have received sufficient early-stage backing to begin pursuing this opportunity.

Along with this role, Industrious Labs is currently hiring a Senior Campaign Strategist and Senior Campaign Analyst for the Clean Heat initiative. The Senior Field Strategist will work within this new, dynamic team. Our high-level objectives for the Clean Heat initiative include (but are not limited to):

• Accelerate zero-emission state policies and regulations that clean up and transform industrial facilities;
• Launch a coalition focused on industrial electrification to build power and pressure on policy-makers; and 
• Increase the urgency for policy-makers to act by building awareness of the harms created by fossil combustion at industrial facilities and the benefits of transformation.

The Senior Field Strategist holds key responsibilities that will evolve over time as the team grows and functions are distributed. During the first year of the role, we anticipate a push to build our own understanding of current and potential coalition partners, including community-based organizations, and to deepen relationships with stakeholders who will be impacted by cleaning up industrial process heat. Other core responsibilities include:

Strategy Development & Implementation

• Execute a comprehensive field-building vision and strategy in key states, including California, aligning with our field-building department and organizational mission and vision. 
• Engage key leaders, organizations, and partners in strategy development to build institutional and community support for the Clean Heat initiative's goals.
• Develop and execute work plans and track progress to ensure transparency and strong collaboration.

Field & Capacity Building 

• Assess the landscape across California related to industrial heat via a community mapping project and power analysis.
• Identify the industry landscape, including strengths, current players, and gaps, and engage key leaders, organizations, and industry partners.
• Build new organizational relationships and alliances that reflect our values and priorities around equity and justice
• Lead the development of needed coordination infrastructure to build power and capacity-building strategies with local partners through a shared vision, theory of change, and capacity-building strategy.
• If funding is available, develop a clear strategy to move regranting and subcontracting dollars to organizational partners in a justice-oriented manner. 

Coalition Building 

The following responsibilities will be a part of the Senior Field Strategist's primary role and will be executed in close collaboration and thought partnership with the Senior Campaign Strategist, Clean Heat. 

• Recruit and build an aligned and powerful coalition of labor, community, and green groups with a shared vision of industrial transformation.
• Collaborate in the development of comprehensive advocacy plans to build power across the landscape of different constituencies 
• Design and implement trainings and other opportunities for stakeholders to collaborate, train each other, and build the foundational knowledge to develop and refine campaign approaches.
• Identify partners with aligned efforts to accelerate action and leverage resources, relationships, and research.

The Successful Candidate

The incoming Senior Field Strategist is driven by their belief and commitment to Industrious Labs’ vision, mission, and values. Through their track record and expertise as an organizer and convener – optimally within the climate or another social justice movement – the successful candidate will play a vital role in the development and execution of a burgeoning Clean Heat initiative. The Senior Field Strategist builds authentic and lasting relationships with communities and organizations impacted by pollution from industrial facilities, engaging them as partners in our mission. The successful candidate brings a mindset that considers capacity building the foundation of the vision we see for the future and sees transformational power building as necessary to win and dismantle systems of oppression.

The Senior Field Strategist joins a deeply committed team with a track record of success in campaign strategy, data analysis, and communications, focusing on climate and clean energy. The successful candidate is entrepreneurial and excited about the prospect of working collaboratively internally and building new partnerships within the climate movement. They have the experience of setting vision, establishing, and scaling successful programs with an ethos of creativity, humility, and an expectation of continual learning. They are excited and inspired by the challenge.

Despite the obstacles that stand in the way of decarbonizing heavy industry, the Industrious Labs team operates with a spirit of possibilities and seeks a Senior Field Strategist who shares the belief that we can all do things we’ve never done before and can stretch ourselves to achieve incredible results.

This role requires a deep commitment to the principles of justice and equity, proven collaboration skills, and the ability to design and execute coordinated strategies that will generate change in a deeply entrenched and seemingly intractable aspect of the climate movement. The Senior Field Strategist demonstrates initiative by diving right in to take a concept from idea to implementation, navigating through internal and external barriers as they arise without getting stuck, and finding and deploying resources creatively to solve problems. The selected candidate will also possess most of the following Core and Preferred qualifications:

Senior Field Strategist Core Qualifications

• At least 5-8 years of increasing responsibility in robust coalition development, power building,  and capacity/field/movement building, with a track record of accomplishment. Specifically: 
• Proven ability to create a clear vision with attainable goals that build power centered around equity and justice. 
• Experience developing and implementing a power analysis, community mapping, and/or landscape assessment. This includes the ability to articulate key findings and patterns. 
• Experience assisting/leading strategy development in coalition spaces and/or with diverse people/perspectives.
• Experience designing/implementing organizing efforts in local, state, regional, and national settings that build long-term sustainable power to win.
• Strong analysis of movement theory, implementation, and the intersectionality of racial capitalism and other systems of oppression.
• Mastery of relationship-building skills and strong existing relationships with a wide range of diverse external constituencies, from big greens, labor,  environmental justice communities, etc.
• Experience in the climate movement or another social justice movement.

Senior Field Strategist Preferred Qualifications

• Deep experience working in California and familiarity with the California advocacy landscape.
• Entrepreneurial drive to build an organization from the ground up; prior start-up experience as an early team member in a growing organization
• Experience re-granting and subcontracting with local partners and moving resources equitably.
• Experience in community organizing or other forms of organizing 

Industrious Labs Core Qualifications

Below are the qualifications expected of all Industrious Labs staff. 

• Strong commitment to the mission, vision, policies, and goals of Industrious Labs.
• Highly collaborative work style with the ability to operate as a peer and thought partner to colleagues and external partners.
• Commitment to continuous learning, hunger for knowledge, and willingness to ask questions and self-correct; a curious, self-directed, and entrepreneurial approach.

• Exceptional oral and written communication skills with the ability to break down a complex issue into manageable and clear decision points that drive the desired campaign outcomes.
• Excited rather than intimidated by the challenge of what's unknown about this role.
• Proven leadership skills with clarity of vision and a commitment to the highest levels of integrity, quality, and collaboration, developing strong team cultures, promoting and enhancing equity, diversity, and inclusion, performance management, and professional development.
• Demonstrated experience working across lines of race, class, gender, and geography and an analysis of how climate change intersects with historically oppressed and marginalized communities.
• Proven ability to prioritize and be flexible in a fast-paced, constantly evolving, and collaborative environment, where working on a team and working individually are all required.
• Commitment to giving and receiving direct, compassionate feedback.

Salary and Benefits:

The salary for this position is $113,000. Industrious Labs has a policy not to negotiate salaries. Historically, negotiations reward those who have the skill, privilege, and confidence to ask for more money; and because not everyone has those skills, allowing for negotiations undermines the economic equity we strive for as an organization. Rather than use negotiations to drive competitive salaries, we endeavor to pay people well and establish a transparent salary scale based on the experience, competencies, and responsibilities required to thrive in this role.

Industrious Labs offers a competitive set of benefits, including 100% comprehensive health care coverage for employees (medical, dental, and vision); a 50% contribution to health care coverage for dependents; a work-from-home stipend; up to a 5% employer match to 401k; generous paid parental/family leave; and 11 paid holidays plus unlimited vacation, starting with a minimum of 15 business days.

 Our Commitment to Racial Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Climate Justice:

We believe that diversity in our team isn’t just a value but brings different experiences and perspectives essential to solving the climate crisis. If you’ve read this job description and are excited by it and can see yourself happily filling this role and making a difference on climate change, we hope you apply. Industrious Labs is an equal-opportunity employer and is committed to transparent and equitable recruitment, hiring, and promotion processes that foster inclusion and belonging. If you need reasonable accommodation during the application or interview process, please email Dominique Thomas at dominique@industriouslabs.org.  

 Application Procedure: 

To apply, please submit a resume and cover letter answering the following:

1. What motivates you to spend your time, skills, and expertise working on climate change?
2. How do you describe power? How have you built power with others in the past?
3. Briefly share an advocacy campaign you played a key role in organizing people around. How did you build up a diverse coalition of people to work on a shared vision and theory of change?

This position is open until filled. Candidate review and phone screens begin immediately and will continue throughout the search. We anticipate several steps of mutual exploration, including a phone screen, panel interview(s), and thought exercises for finalist candidates. Our search processes generally take 3 - 4 months.