The Law Foundation of Silicon Valley (Law Foundation) seeks a strategic, adaptable, inclusive, and co-creative Chief Program Officer (CPO) to advance the Law Foundation’s innovative legal services work and systems change advocacy during a transformative phase of the Law Foundation’s evolution. The next CPO will build upon decades of exceptional progress toward the Law Foundation’s urgently relevant mission to achieve social justice in Santa Clara County through vigorous legal advocacy. With still more work to do to reach this ambition, the CPO will join a growing executive team and help shape the future of the organization, engaging in strategic planning and decision-making around resources, advocating for programmatic needs, and elevating alignment and impact through and across teams. The CPO will lead, integrate, and strengthen the Law Foundation’s legal, programming, and systems change work across its program areas of Children & Youth, Health, Housing, Pro Bono, Impact Litigation, and Policy Advocacy.
The Law Foundation uses innovative legal advocacy as a tool for social change. Its team of attorneys, social workers, and advocates works tirelessly to ensure that every person in Santa Clara County is granted the same rights and legal access. The Law Foundation’s mission is to advance the rights of historically marginalized individuals, families, and communities in Santa Clara County’s diverse community through legal services, strategic advocacy, and educational outreach. The Law Foundation has a long history of working to increase access to justice for low-income families and communities of color, having represented tens of thousands of individuals in its nearly 50 years of existence. At the same time, the Law Foundation has long advocated for solutions to broken systems that result in the application of racist policies in housing, health, education, criminal justice, and more.
In partnership with CEO Alison Brunner, the CPO will be chiefly responsible for directing the legal work at the Law Foundation, including managing the program areas, direct services, and systemic change work like policy advocacy, local systems reform, and impact litigation. This includes management, devising operational, legal, and program strategies, planning, budgeting, training and professional development, and supervision for a team of four, eventually growing to seven, direct reports. The CPO will oversee the identification and implementation of processes that support collaboration and knowledge-sharing across programs. They will support and enhance network-building activities that include the Law Foundation staff, alumni, client communities, funders, and institutional partners. In partnership with the Director of Impact & Evaluation, the CPO is also responsible for establishing and monitoring impact and performance measures, leading strategy, and serving as a key spokesperson and representative of the Law Foundation in the community, which includes conveying the overall strategic framework and the work of all the Law Foundation teams.
In addition, the CPO will bring a nuanced understanding of how to: integrate client-focused and community lawyering approaches across program areas and services with attention and dedication to mission through an anti-racism and social justice lens; vet strategic and operational ideas in a way that engages and empowers staff, clients, and community, and allows for clear and decisive action; establish and consistently communicate organizational priorities; serve as an innovative problem solver who enjoys leading change; act as a strategic thought partner with the CEO, board, and Directing Attorneys; and design ways to collect, analyze, and translate data that strengthens the Law Foundation’s learning and capacity to call partners to action to affect change.
The successful candidate will have a minimum of 10 years of relevant work experience to include a minimum of three in a complex senior management and leadership role with direct supervision and extensive people and project management experience. A bachelor’s degree and a JD are required.
A strategic thinker, the CPO must possess the ability to work beyond the level of an individual contributor, demonstrating excellent leadership and executive skills to facilitate the efforts of others within an organization, as well as to productively oversee, manage, coordinate, and lead them in producing meaningful results. The CPO will possess a collaborative and collegial style, strong work ethic, and enthusiasm for the mission and goals of the Law Foundation. Holding an anti-racist and social justice lens, the CPO will bring demonstrated sensitivity to and respect for a range of lived experiences and an aptitude for bringing clarity and driving action while navigating complexity and nuance. In accordance with its core values and mission, the Law Foundation is especially interested in recruiting members of diverse communities and individuals with a commitment to anti-racism.
Application Instructions
The Law Foundation of Silicon Valley has partnered with Talent Citizen to assist in this recruitment. Please contact President Tracy D. Welsh and Senior Associate Rachel K. Partin to share your resume and cover letter via email at: lfsv-cpo@talentcitizen.com.
The Law Foundation is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Affirmative Action Employer. We strongly encourage people of color, women, people living with disabilities, older people, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people to apply. It is the policy of the Law Foundation to prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type and to afford equal employment opportunities to employees and applicants, without regard to race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, religion, age, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, pregnancy, medical condition or genetic information, veteran status, national origin, disability, marital, or other protected status. The Law Foundation will conform to the spirit, as well as the letter of all applicable laws and regulations.
Candidates from historically excluded communities including from different racial, ethnic, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds, persons living with disabilities, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community are encouraged to apply.
