The Metropolitan Mayors Caucus is a nonprofit organization that works on local government public policy issues to improve the quality of life for residents in the region. The Caucus currently has an exciting career opportunity for someone to serve as a full-time Energy Efficiency Outreach Specialist in the Environmental Initiatives division. The ideal candidate is dedicated to collaborating with local governments, community partners, and individuals to create awareness and connect residents to energy efficiency programs, particularly home energy assessments, in order to maximize participation in these programs.

This Energy Efficiency Outreach Specialist position will focus primarily on the residential Home Energy Savings program, which is offered by ComEd, Peoples Gas/North Shore Gas, and Nicor Gas. 

Duties and Responsibilities

· Lead outreach efforts, educate and assist local governments, community organizations, and individuals, so they may effectively participate in and promote energy-efficient programs.

· Develop, maintain, and strengthen relationships with local government contacts in targeted communities (Aurora, Cicero, Joliet, Rockford, University Park, Waukegan, Harvey, Steger, North Chicago, and other communities that may be added at a later time), partner organizations, community groups, and other individuals in those communities, to drive income-eligible customer participation in the Home Energy Savings program. 

· Attend and support staffing at municipal and community events to engage income-eligible customers and enroll them in the Home Energy Savings program. 

· Track, evaluate, and provide detailed reporting on outreach efforts to ensure effectiveness in meeting outreach targets. 

· Meet or exceed program enrollment goals for income-eligible customer participation and metrics to maintain funding.

· Support communications about energy efficiency to income-eligible customers in target communities through previously identified municipal communications pathways, using approved program messaging. 

· Identify and provide new community partnership opportunities and pathways for reaching income-eligible residents.

· Other duties as assigned. 

Requirements

· Bachelor’s degree or four years of relevant experience 

· Two or more years of experience, combining any of the following: utility energy efficiency programs, sustainability, environmental science, local government, communications, sales, marketing, community engagement, customer service or project management.

· Proficient in communicating via various means: face-to-face, phone, email, online meetings, small group and large group settings.

· Ability to communicate with a variety of stakeholders, including local government staff, elected officials, community groups, community action agencies (CAAs), and residents. 

· Demonstrate the ability to communicate and effectively interact with people across cultures, ranges of ability, genders, ethnicities, races, and ages, with the goal of increasing income-eligible resident participation in the Home Energy Savings program. 

· Ability to self-manage in a professional environment and take the initiative to complete tasks, including suggesting new solutions for meeting goals and metrics.

· Proficiency in developing and delivering formal presentations in some settings and making informal pitches in other venues. 

· Technical computer skills in Microsoft Office (including Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Teams), Zoom, customer relationship management systems, social networking websites, and ability to adapt to emerging technology.

· Possess a valid U.S. driver’s license and a personal vehicle to attend meetings and events throughout the Chicago region, including Aurora, Cicero, Joliet, Rockford, University Park, Waukegan, Harvey, Steger, North Chicago.

· Must be able to travel locally up to approximately 50% of the time. Travel will be fully compensated at federal rates. 

· Familiarity with Chicago suburbs is also highly desired. 

· Ability to write and speak in English and Spanish preferred.

· Willingness to work a flexible schedule, including daytime (9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) and some evening and weekend hours for meetings and events.

Pay and Benefits:

· Full time, salary range $50,000 to $58,000, commensurate with experience

· Two weeks of paid time off 

· Medical insurance

· Dental insurance

· Vision insurance

· Life insurance, long- and short-term disability insurance

· 401k with company contribution

· Twelve paid holidays

Employment and Working Conditions

This is a hybrid position that involves traveling throughout the Chicago region. Work will be performed at home, at the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus office in Chicago, in communities listed above and will involve local travel throughout the region for in-person meetings and events. 

The position is full-time for two years through December of 2025. Position renewal is not expected at this time, but is contingent upon grant funding. Salary is commensurate with experience.

How to Apply

Please fill out a brief application and submit your resume, cover letter, and optional writing samples.

The Caucus will be loaning out two different energy efficiency games for municipalities’ upcoming events. There are four energy efficiency challenge wheels available for municipalities to borrow for Earth Day and other events. There are two energy efficiency toss games. For details and pictures of these games, go to: https://mayorscaucus.org/energy-efficiency-games/

**Because the grant funding for this project ended on June 30, 2023, we do not have the funds to ship the games. If you would like to borrow a game after June 30th, then you will need to pick it up from one of our game locations or from the municipality that last borrowed the game for an event, and then drop it off to us or the next municipality that is having an event. Another option is to provide us with your UPS or FedEx account number, if you would like to pay for the games and the few remaining prizes to be shipped to you.**

These games will be loaned out on a first-come, first-served basis. Please complete this form if you have an upcoming event and would like to ensure that your community can borrow it on that day.

These games and prizes for municipalities were made possible through the generous support of the Illinois Science & Energy Innovation Foundation (ISEIF). 

If you are interested in joining the waitlist for our EV Readiness Program and receiving updates about the program, when available, then please fill out this form.
We had initially called for applications for the first and second cohort in October of 2022, with a deadline of Nov. 16, 2022. We received interest from 40+ communities, which was more than we anticipated. Some of those communities have been added to a waitlist, which is contingent upon future funding. If additional funding is received, we will add more cohorts.
For background information on the EV Readiness Program, go to https://mayorscaucus.org/initiatives/environment/becoming-ev-ready/.