Job Description

The Commercial Club of Chicago and Civic Committee Overview

The Commercial Club of Chicago is a membership organization of senior leaders in the region. Our members span the business, education, civic, cultural, and philanthropic sectors - unified by excitement for the future of Chicago. Throughout our history, the Commercial Club of Chicago and our affiliated organizations have played a leading role in shaping the Chicago region. Today, the Commercial Club continues to address social and economic issues of importance to the Chicago region.

The Civic Committee ’s mission is to make the Chicago region a great place for everyone to live, work, and do business. Originally formed in 1983, the Civic Committee is tasked with identifying key issues facing the State of Illinois and the greater Chicago region and providing leadership, high-quality research, long-term policy recommendations and programmatic actions for the benefit of the city, region, and state and all who live here. The Civic Committee generally serves as the Club’s lead on policy and programmatic initiatives and our focus areas currently include efforts in public safety, business opportunity, transportation and infrastructure, and state and local finance.

We also work alongside, and partially fund, the organizations established by us to tackle key issues head-on:

Terms of Employment

This is a full-time, exempt position with benefits, reporting to the Senior Vice President for Public Safety and Senior Vice President for Economic Opportunity. Initial employment will be on an introductory basis, with detailed evaluations and feedback at the 30-, 60-, and 90-day marks.

Position Summary

The Administrative Assistant supports the Senior Vice President for Public Safety and the Senior Vice President for Economic Opportunity in the day-to-day management and administration of two of the Organization’s primary policy initiatives and their associated task forces: public safety and economic opportunity. This is a dual reporting role. The Assistant’s primary responsibility is to manage all administrative tasks for both of the Vice Presidents including:

• Scheduling and coordinating all internal and external meetings, including paying particular attention to needs and protocols for both virtual and in-person meetings.
• Attending meetings and taking meeting minutes as requested by the SVPs.
• Drafting correspondence and supporting the execution of communications and engagement including emails, briefing memos, and various other communications from the SVPs to internal and external stakeholders, as needed.
• Coordinating, finalizing and distributing background materials for all task force meetings and related activities with Civic Committee/Commercial Club entities, as requested by the SVPs.
• Preparing and filing expense reports for both SVPs.
• Planning and scheduling travel.
• Arranging detailed itineraries and agendas as needed.
• Strong coordination with the President’s Executive Assistant and other assistants across the organization.

The individual must be incredibly detail-oriented, self-motivated, and have the ability to exercise good judgment in a variety of situations, with strong written and verbal communication, administrative, and organizational skills. The individual must have the ability to operate in a demanding environment, maintain balance against competing priorities, and abide by communicated deadlines and guidelines. Flexibility and adaptability are key attributes of a successful candidate in this role. This individual must also possess cultural sensitivity and awareness, with the ability to navigate and address sensitive issues with tact and diplomacy, across various cultures and communities. This individual must be able to work independently on projects, from conception to completion, take initiative when necessary, and work under pressure at times to handle a wide variety of activities and confidential matters with discretion. A positive attitude, flexibility, and team working abilities are critical.

Senior Vice President for Public Safety-Specific Support Functions

• Serves as primary administrative support staff to SVP on Public Safety Task Force stewardship, communication, and convening, including developing meeting invitations, calendar invitations, logistics, catering, and other meeting related needs.
• Successfully completes critical aspects of deliverables with a hands-on approach, including drafting letters, personal correspondence, and other tasks as needed.
• Coordinates scheduling requests and other administrative needs with outside stakeholders on behalf of the SVP for Public Safety.

Senior Vice President for Economic Opportunity-Specific Support Functions

• Serves as primary administrative support staff to SVP on Chicago Business Opportunity Task Force stewardship, communication, and convening, including developing meeting invitations, calendar invitations, logistics, catering, and other meeting related needs.
• Support initiative programming through event planning and logistics, participant communication and stewardship, and overall support of program execution
• Provide assistance as needed to SVP on grant document submission

Education and Experience Requirements

• Bachelor's degree
• Strong work tenure: five to seven years of progressively responsible administrative support, ideally working with c-level executives and/or board members in a fast-paced office setting.
• Express a commitment to Chicago/the region as well as a desire to grow in their career as well as take an interest and curiosity in research and the nonprofit sector.
• Take initiative and possess excellent communications skills to ensure solutions and interactions are consistent with organization objectives.
• Exercise a high level of confidentiality as well as strict level of confidentiality and use professional judgment and discretion.
• Proven experience in scheduling and coordination, with a track record of successfully organizing large meetings 3 to 6 months in advance.
• Display excellent and versatile writing skills including the ability to compose superior formal business correspondence and other professional documents.
• Maintain strong customer service skills; exhibit exceptional interpersonal skills and judgment under stress and deadlines.
• Expert proficiency in Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, Power Point, SharePoint, Teams), Adobe Acrobat, required.
• Experience and Interest in Project Management and Project Management tools (e.g., Asana, Trello, Monday.com, Airtable) preferred.
• Adaptable to remote platforms beyond Microsoft Office Suite, including Zoom, WebEx, etc., required.
• Experience in utilizing AI tools for writing and editing communications, ensuring high-quality and efficient content creation.

Working Environment

The position is in Chicago. Due to the current COVID-19 outbreak, work for this position may, upon occasion, need to be accommodated fully remotely, depending on guidance from public health officials.

We believe that the path to achieving our missions requires our organizations and teams to regularly collaborate, work in teams, maintain collegiality, and provide a space for thought-partnership, all of which generally are best accomplished in person. However, we also recognize that appropriate flexibility is beneficial to the effectiveness of our employees and our organizations. With that in mind, we offer opportunities for employees to work in a combination of in-person and remote work (“hybrid” option).

Competencies

• Exceptional organizational skills with the ability to prioritize multiple tasks and maintain attention to detail.
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build relationships with members, staff, and external partners.
• Expert-level written and verbal communication skills.
• Proactive problem-solving and sound decision-making capabilities.
• Highly resourceful team player with the ability to work independently and collaboratively.
• Proven discretion and diplomacy in handling confidential information and sensitive matters.
• Ability to manage competing demands and deliver high performance under deadlines.
• Forward-thinking mindset with a focus on identifying opportunities and proposing solutions.
• Availability for evening events and meetings as needed.
• Commitment to in-office presence to support collaboration and operational needs.
• Experience in event planning, including advanced scheduling, speaker outreach, logistics coordination, and cohort timing for up to eight sessions annually.
• Demonstrated competence in supporting senior leadership and managing complex administrative tasks.
• Skilled in negotiating schedules with other Assistants to ensure efficient coordination.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

The Club and its affiliated organizations are equal opportunity employers and do not unlawfully discriminate against employees or applicants for employment on the basis of any legally protected characteristic, whether actual or perceived, including, including, but not limited to, an individual’s race, religion, color, creed, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, marital status, pregnancy, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or other legally protected status. This policy applies to all terms, conditions, and privileges of employment, including recruitment, hiring, placement, compensation, promotion, discipline, and termination.

Compensation

Commensurate with experience, starting salary at $60,000; the Club offers a competitive benefits package, subject to specific policy eligibility guidelines.

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