Deputy Director of Distributed Organizing

Common Defense is a veteran-led grassroots movement dedicated to protecting democracy, combating authoritarianism, and building a future where liberty and justice truly are for all. We are a multiracial, multigenerational grassroots movement doing real organizing to win change for our country and our communities. From expanding voting access to ending forever wars to building a clean energy workforce, we're fighting for bold solutions that protect working families and preserve our rights. Together, we're proving that the same commitment we brought to our military service can transform the future of our nation. Position can be remote from anywhere in the United States and includes travel at 25%.

About the Role

The Deputy Director of Distributed Organizing is responsible for direct management, coaching, and accountability of remote organizers operating across the country, including in states where we lack a physical staff presence. The deputy director translates national campaign priorities into clear workplans, drives member recruitment of veterans and military family members, and ensures organizers execute at a high level within the terms of our collective bargaining agreement. This position designs and executes a high-leverage distributed model across states outside our core staff concentrations, many of which have no dedicated staff presence or only a single organizer covering multiple states.

As a supervisor, the Deputy Director will codify, refine, and institutionalize our distributed organizing methodology, identifying what works, writing the operational playbook, and leading from the front while training others to execute it.

What We're Looking For

You’ve run or directly supervised member recruitment campaigns, converting initial contacts into members committed to action through structured outreach, 1-1s, and follow-up. You understand the difference between building a list and building a member base, and you’ve done the latter. You bring outside expertise and proven instincts, then translate those into systems that endure beyond your tenure.

You can build organizing power in places where you can't always be present, working with volunteers new to organizing through digital recruitment, leadership development, and remote coaching. You know how to identify the right platforms to recruit at scale, run virtual 1-1s that build relationships, and turn a group chat into an organizing committee. You understand the difference between mobilizing people and developing them, and you can develop others to do the same.

Responsibilities

• Distributed Organizing Strategy, Program Design, and Methodology
  • Design and lead Common Defense's distributed organizing program across the country, directing unionized remote organizers who are the primary staff presence in states with no or limited dedicated staff.
  • Develop a member recruitment model for veterans and military family members, using digital outreach, relational organizing, and structured follow-up.
  • Assess and refine existing distributed organizing practices, evaluate digital platforms and tools, and build an operational playbook for consistent, replicable, and trainable recruitment and activation.
  • Work with the leadership team to set program-level objectives and key results (OKRs) and translate them into clear staff and volunteer workplans.
  • Direct organizers to execute issue advocacy, electoral, and voter registration campaigns in priority states and districts, aligned with Political department OKRs.
• Staff Supervision and Volunteer Leadership Development
  • Directly supervise unionized remote organizers, providing regular 1-1 coaching, performance accountability, and professional development in compliance with the collective bargaining agreement (CBA).
  • Apply CBA provisions governing scheduling, workload, performance management, and progressive discipline; partner with HR and senior leadership on labor relations issues.
  • Recruit, identify, and develop volunteer leaders capable of running local organizing activity independently—hosting events, conducting 1-1s, and building local networks.
  • Build and support distributed organizing committees in priority states and districts using virtual coaching, group trainings, and structured leadership development pathways.
  • Design and lead regular virtual trainings, cohort calls, and skill-building sessions for staff and volunteer leaders.
  • Maintain a clear engagement ladder from initial contact to core leadership, ensuring defined roles and development paths for volunteers and staff.
• Member Recruitment and Retention
  • Direct organizers to execute structured member recruitment campaigns targeting veterans and military family members using digital outreach, peer-to-peer contact, event-based recruitment, and follow-up systems.
  • Set and track member recruitment targets as part of program OKRs; hold organizers accountable to conversion metrics, not just activity.
  • Develop recruitment scripts, onboarding sequences, and member orientation processes to convert initial contacts into engaged members.
  • Work with the Comms and Data teams to track recruitment pipelines, identify drop-off points, and improve conversion rates over time.
• Digital Infrastructure and Platform Management
  • Identify, implement, and manage digital tools and platforms for distributed organizing at scale, including Action Builder, Mobilize, peer-to-peer texting, and social organizing tools.
  • Work with the Data team to build targeting, tracking, and reporting systems for the distributed program.
  • Develop and maintain documentation, training materials, and onboarding processes for volunteer leaders and staff.
• Cross-Departmental Collaboration and Campaign Integration
  • Collaborate with other departments to align distributed program activity with national campaign priorities, legislative moments, and electoral opportunities.
  • Ensure distributed organizing activity is accountable to program-level OKRs covering member recruitment, issue campaigns, electoral activity, and voter registration.
  • Serve as the Political department's lead on distributed capacity, advising on where and how grassroots power can be built without deployed staff.
• Compliance
  • Ensure all organizing activity complies with Common Defense's multi-entity structure (c3, c4, and PAC) and that volunteers are properly oriented to these distinctions.
  • Ensure voter registration activities comply with applicable federal and state law, including nonpartisan standards for the c3 entity.
  • Work with legal and compliance teams to maintain protocols for member organizing, data use, and volunteer activity across entities.
  • Operate within the terms of Common Defense’s collective bargaining agreement in all supervisory actions; escalate labor relations questions as appropriate.

Qualifications

• At least five years of experience in grassroots organizing, with significant time in distributed or chapter-based models, including direct supervision of remote staff organizers, preferably in a unionized workplace.
• Demonstrated track record of managing remote organizers to deliver results: member recruitment, issue campaign activity, and/or electoral and voter registration programs executed at scale.
• Experience with member recruitment: converting outreach contacts into committed members through structured campaigns, with accountability to conversion metrics.
• Fluency in digital platforms and tools used in distributed organizing (e.g., Action Builder, Mobilize, Every Action, peer-to-peer texting tools, social-to-organizing conversion funnels).
• Strong grounding in relational organizing methodology—1-1s, leadership identification, engagement ladders, and leadership development through action.
• Proven ability to manage remote programs, set and track OKRs, and hold staff accountable through direct supervision, coaching, and performance management.
• Excellent communication and facilitation skills, especially in virtual settings.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Common Defense is committed to building a diverse and inclusive team that reflects the values we fight for every day. We are an equal-opportunity employer and strongly encourage women, people of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people with disabilities to apply.

As a majority-veteran organization, we strongly encourage veterans and military family members to apply. We recognize the unique perspectives and experiences that come from military service and believe they are critical to our work. However, we also welcome applicants from all backgrounds who are passionate about our mission, regardless of prior military experience.