Director, Communications and Civic Information Structure

Job Description

Job Description

DIRECTOR, COMMUNICATIONS AND CIVIC INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURE

The California Endowment is seeking a Communications and Civic Information Infrastructure. Reporting to the Vice President, Strategic Communications and Narrative, this hybrid role will report 2 days on-site to our Los Angeles Office.  Other office locations (Fresno, Sacramento, San Diego, Oakland) may be considered for the right candidate.

We expect to accept applications until  November 20, 2026. However, because we review candidates as they apply, the role may be filled before this date. To ensure your application is considered in the first wave of interviews, please submit your materials as soon as possible.

The California Endowment (The Endowment) is a private, statewide health foundation established in 1996 whose mission is to expand access to affordable, quality health care for underserved individuals and communities and to promote fundamental improvements in the health status of all Californians. We envision a California that leads the nation as a powerful and conscientious voice for wellness, inclusion, and shared prosperity.

Headquartered in downtown Los Angeles, the Endowment has regional offices in Sacramento, Oakland, Fresno and San Diego, with staff working throughout the state. We challenge the conventional wisdom that medical settings and individual choices are solely responsible for people’s health. We believe that health happens in neighborhoods, schools, and with prevention .

Position Summary:  

The Director, Communications & Civic Information Infrastructure leads The Endowment’s strategy to strengthen the community infrastructure necessary to build and sustain community power, civic participation, and systems change across California. Through long-term investments, strategic partnerships, shared infrastructure, and field-building initiatives, the Director advances a statewide ecosystem that enables community-based organizations, coalitions, and movement partners to thrive and drive lasting change. 

This role translates the Learn → Build → Strengthen →Lead framework into an integrated portfolio of investments, partnerships, shared infrastructure, learning initiatives, and innovation strategies that increase the capacity, resilience, and effectiveness of community-based organizations and movement partners working to advance health and racial equity.

Working across the enterprise, the Director, Communications & Civic Information Infrastructure ensures investments in community infrastructure also strengthen narrative power, civic communications, trusted information ecosystems, and community voice, recognizing these as essential components of durable community power. The Director will develop and implement strategic initiatives to align investments, leverage learnings, and steward a statewide ecosystem of partners that advances The Endowment’s mission and strategic priorities. 

This position reports to the Vice President, Strategic Communications & Narrative and oversees a multi-disciplinary team, serving as a thought partner to leadership and representing The Endowment with external partners, philanthropic peers, and community leaders to help shape conversations and investments that strengthen community power throughout California.

Key Responsibilities:

Community Infrastructure Strategy & Portfolio Leadership

• Leads the development, implementation, and continuous refinement of The Endowment’s community infrastructure strategy, ensuring alignment with organizational priorities and goals.
• Operationalizes The Endowment’s Learn → Build → Strengthen →Lead framework through strategic investments and initiatives.
• Establishes strategic priorities, investment frameworks, portfolio goals, and performance measures that guide decision-making and resource allocation.
• Applies systems thinking to identify opportunities, emerging trends, risks, and leverage points that strengthen community infrastructure and maximize collective impact.
• Monitors portfolio performance, evaluates progress toward strategic outcomes, and recommends adjustments that improve effectiveness and long-term impact.
• Oversees portfolio planning, budgeting, and resource allocation to ensure effective stewardship of investments and strategic priorities.
• Serves as an internal thought leader by bringing community intelligence, field insights, and ecosystem perspectives into enterprise planning and decision-making.

Strategic Investments & Infrastructure Development

• Designs and leads grantmaking and investment strategies that strengthen the capacity, sustainability, and effectiveness of community-based organizations, coalitions, networks, and movement partners.
• Leads a strategic portfolio of grants, investments, and partnerships, ensuring effective stewardship, measurable outcomes, and alignment with organizational priorities.
• Advances investments in shared infrastructure, civic communications systems, narrative infrastructure, and collaborative platforms that expand community voice, trusted information, civic participation, and collective action.
• Identifies opportunities to align investments across portfolios and external partners to strengthen statewide infrastructure and increase long-term impact.
• Ensures investments are community-informed, equity-centered, and responsive to evolving field opportunities, challenges, and emerging field needs.

Community Intelligence, Learning & Innovation

• Provides strategic leadership for the Community Intelligence Commons, advancing community-centered models for knowledge governance, civic infrastructure, data stewardship, and responsible use of artificial intelligence to strengthen community power.
• Develops systems, partnerships, and shared learning infrastructure that enables communities to generate, govern, access, and use information in ways that support equitable decision-making and collective action.
• Identifies opportunities to leverage community intelligence to strengthen narrative strategies, trusted information ecosystems, civic engagement efforts, and community-informed decision-making.
• Advances approaches that democratize access to information, elevate community knowledge, and shift ownership of data and civic intelligence from extractive systems toward community-led governance and collective benefit.
• Ensures community intelligence generated through the Commons informs The Endowment’s communications, narrative, investment, and organizational strategies while promoting innovation, knowledge sharing, and adaptive learning across the enterprise. 
• Partners with Evaluation & Learning to establish learning agendas, outcomes, and evaluation frameworks that measure portfolio effectiveness and inform continuous improvement.
• Promotes continuous learning, knowledge sharing, and innovation across the portfolio while centering community voice and lived experience as critical sources of expertise. 

Field Building, Innovation & Partnerships

• Stewards a statewide ecosystem of strategic partnerships across philanthropy, community organizations, movement leaders, researchers, civic innovators, and public-sector stakeholders.
• Identifies and advances emerging opportunities that strengthen community power, narrative change, civic participation, and movement-building across California.
• Develops and advances collaborative initiatives that leverage resources, knowledge, and partnerships to increase collective impact.
• Represents The Endowment in field-building and thought leadership efforts, helping shape conversations and emerging practices related to community infrastructure, civic engagement, narrative power, and systems change.
• Cultivates strategic relationships that strengthen The Endowment’s influence, learning, and long-term impact.

Cross-Functional Leadership, Staff Management & Collaboration

• Partners across Communications, Strategic Implementation, Evaluation & Learning, and Operations teams to advance integrated strategies and shared organizational outcomes.
• Serves as a strategic advisor to leadership, contributing community intelligence, field insights, and systems perspectives to enterprise-wide planning, communications, and organizational strategy.
• Leads, mentors, and develops a high-performing team, fostering accountability, continuous learning, and professional growth.
• Establishes clear strategic goals and performance expectations and conducts performance reviews for direct reports.
• Provides ongoing performance management by providing guidance, clear and consistent feedback, and supporting opportunities for learning and development for staff.
• Fosters and leads a diverse, collaborative, and inclusive work environment that welcomes points of view that are inclusive of each person’s professional, cultural, social, ethnic, and experiential backgrounds.
• Other duties and responsibilities as assigned.

Desired Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Ability to apply a systems perspective to identify root causes, interdependencies, leverage points and opportunities.
• Deep understanding and commitment to equity, justice, and community-centered approaches that strengthen civic participation, leadership development, and community voice. 
• Proven ability to build, steward, and leverage relationships across community organizations, philanthropic peers, and public-sector stakeholders.
• Uses data, evaluation, community intelligence, and emerging insights to inform strategy, support continuous improvement, and adapt to changing conditions.
• Adept at navigating ambiguity, shifting environments, and competing priorities.
• Understands the role of narrative power, trusted information ecosystems, civic communications, and community intelligence in advancing community power and systems change. 
• Excellent writing, editing, and storytelling skills, with an ability to distill complex ideas into compelling narratives.
• Strong strategic planning, project management, and team leadership skills.
• Proven ability to manage complex projects, budgets, and cross-departmental collaboration.
• Demonstrated ability to build trust, foster collaboration, and effectively engage diverse stakeholders across communities, sectors, and lived experiences.
• Commitment to fostering inclusive, equitable, and culturally responsive teams and workplace practices.
• Ability to lead and develop a high-performing, diverse team through coaching, mentorship, and accountability.
• Familiarity with health equity frameworks.

Minimum Experience:

• Ten (10) + years of progressively responsible experience in strategic communications, public policy, community development, civic engagement or related fields, preferably within philanthropy, nonprofit, or public sector organizations.
• Minimum five (5) years of staff management.
• A bachelor’s degree in communications, public policy, public administration or related field is equivalent to 4 years of relevant experience. 
• Demonstrated experience managing campaigns that bridge policy, culture, and community engagement.
• Experience working in California’s health and/or social impact ecosystem. 

Salary Range: 

Target Hiring Range: $173,000-$216,000

Full Salary Range: $173,000-$259,000

TCE Benefits and Perks

• Shared medical and dental premiums for employees and eligible dependents
• 100% employer-paid benefits: vision, life and AD&D, STD, LTD and employee assistance program
• Health Care and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts
• Reimbursement towards gym fees and/or wellness program and mental health care
• 9-80 schedule with synchronized off days
• Hybrid work schedule available for most positions
• 11 paid holidays + paid winter holiday closure
• Generous paid time off (PTO)