Chief Communications Officer

Position
:
Chief Communications Officer (CCO)

Location
:
Chicago, IL (Hybrid)

FLSA Status
:
Exempt

Chicago is at a crossroads. Longstanding policy challenges that hold entire communities of Chicago and its suburbs back, emergent threats that cut across the region, and the diminished capacity of local governments threaten our ability to compete just as national investment and federal leadership are receding. Chicago needs a policy agenda and policy ecosystem to match our ambitions. And the stakes—for us, for Illinois, and for the country—have never been higher.

With a new leadership team, the Metropolitan Planning Council (MPC) is built for this moment. For more than 90 years, we have been where bold policy meets practical action. We cut through the noise and turn complex problems into lasting solutions. We are deeply rooted in Chicago and its suburbs, but our reach and our networks extend across Illinois and the country.

We move quickly and are not constrained by silos or orthodoxy. We lean into our values and independence and harness the best ideas on which to partner with local communities, business leaders, advocates, subject matter experts and governments. We are home to leaders who have executed in the trenches and the highest echelons of power.

We know that meaningful change means facing inequities head‑on, mobilizing across sectors, and advancing policies that strengthen the fundamentals of building a good life for families, fostering economic growth, and enabling strong communities. Our track record, relationships, and deep in‑house expertise in housing and economic development, transportation and mobility, water and climate, and land use and regulations make us uniquely positioned to lead the region into a new era.

Chicago can once again become the Great American City. MPC is ready to lead.

MPC is an interdisciplinary organization with a small but nimble team and a vast network of influence. We combine rigorous research, policy development, advocacy and persuasion, and technical assistance with cross‑sector collaboration to tackle the region’s toughest challenges as they present in the real world.

• Diagnose urgent public problems through independent research and analysis.
• Support and cultivate diverse civic leaders who have big ideas and unique skills.
• Convene heterodox partners from research and academia, business, government, and community organizations.
• Surface and share innovative, scalable solutions with government leaders, the business community, and community‑based organizations.
• Shape narratives and policies to drive systemic change.
• Equip governments and civic institutions to implement policy commitments and deliver lasting results.

We seek a Chief Communications Officer (CCO) who can join MPC at this critical juncture to lead our strategic communications work, a crucial ingredient to extending MPC’s influence and reach regionally, state‑wide, and nationally. The CCO will report directly to MPC’s CEO and serve on MPC’s senior leadership team.

The CCO will lead a refresh of MPC’s communications, marketing, and brand strategy, positioning the organization as a leading policy voice for the future of Chicago, our region, and the American cities project. The CCO will work closely with the CEO and leadership team to help craft and execute a strategy to evolve MPC into a locally‑rooted, nationally‑oriented platform by re‑energizing MPC’s existing stakeholders and cultivating new audiences.

The CCO will shape and amplify the organization’s external narrative, ensuring that its core work, including research, policy advocacy, convening and technical assistance efforts are not only communicated effectively to diverse audiences – including government officials, business leaders, civil society, policymakers, community partners, press and media, funders, and the public – but help spark and drive important policy debates and action in Chicago, suburban Chicago, state‑wide, and nationally.

The CCO will supervise MPC’s incumbent Director of Communications, who will provide ongoing direction for narrative and issue framing, messaging, media relations, digital…