Not too serious, but we do want a team of people who are passionate about what Code for Philly as an organization is capable of accomplishing. We’re building an Executive Team to get serious and get stuff done. And have some fun while we’re at it:]

As a group, we’re growing fast and doing great work. We want to preserve an open, inclusive community where people are comfortable sharing ideas and collaborating together. The Executive Team will provide added structure to support the impressive efforts already happening.

While these are volunteer positions, we do ask a certain level of commitment to provide continuity for everyone. This team helps answer the critical questions “What”, “Where”, “When”, “Who”, and “How” of Code for Philly.

These roles are meant to take Code for Philly to the next level. That includes improving member experience (new and regular), forming relationships with organizations and government agencies/departments/offices, telling the story of our community and the amazing work we do, diversifying our member base, organizing city-wide civic hacking events, and pushing forward the larger conversation on civic tech and civic innovation.

Want to get more involved? We’re excited to hear from you. If you have questions or thoughts, please don’t hesitate to contact us

Ben Novack, Projects Lead:

The What

Many of our members have great ideas for projects, but often those ideas can stagnate without the right combination of skills, partnership, and organization. The Projects Lead advises maintainers on how to thoughtfully advance their project through development stages to create a truly impactful product. The person in this role needs to have a general knowledge of all active projects and communicate regularly with project maintainers. For this position, a person should be well-organized, proactive in communicating, and maintain a general knowledge of tech processes.

Points of ownership include (but are not limited to):

  • Communicating with project maintainers to outline steps for advancement and identify project needs

  • Updating and maintain project repo on Code for Philly website

  • Collecting problem statements from partner organizations

  • Facilitating partnership between projects and relevant nonprofits and/or government

  • Working closely with the Volunteer Lead to pair members with appropriate projects

Volunteer Lead:

The Who

As a volunteer-based group, it’s important to provide our members with a positive, fulfilling experience. Civic innovation is driven by engaged individuals, and our role is to bring those people together to make real change happen. The Volunteer Lead focuses on creating value for brigade members and growing the community. Ideally, the person in this role works very well with all personality types, can effectively articulate the mission and Code for Philly, and holds a general knowledge of the civic tech community in the larger Philly context.

Points of ownership include (but are not limited to):

  • Recruiting new members and retaining current members

  • Onboarding process for newcomers

  • Running weekly newcomer orientation (Civic Hacking 101)

  • Communicating with newcomers and working closely with Projects Lead to match skills with project needs

  • Identify member goals at all levels and helping members achieve those goals

Events Lead:

The When

Between weekly hack nights, larger thematic hackathons, collaborative programming, and conferences, we have a lot of events (often at the same time). For a seamless experience, we need an incredibly well-organized individual to work on the logistics and planning aspects. The Events Lead will primarily focus on coordinating the details of Code for Philly events including catering, location, materials and setup, participant experience, etc. This role in particular requires an outgoing, personable individual who can meet deadlines and handle time pressure well.

Points of ownership include (but are not limited to):

  • Arranging details of weekly hack night

    • confirm catering order based on number of RSVPs

    • secure space and coordinate with sponsor (if outside of Devnuts)

    • set up space with refreshments and suitable for hack night

  • Assisting with logistics of hackathon events and oversee schedule

    • secure space for community needs assessment and full hackathon event

    • communicate with sponsors regarding food/bev

    • set up space with refreshments, working materials, promo materials

  • Helping schedule timing of events with least amount of conflict

    • maintain awareness of other events happening throughout city

Corey Abramson, Communications Lead:

The Why

At Code for Philly, we do a lot of cool stuff. The doing part is easy and fun. The telling part though isn’t so obvious. The Communications Lead has to understand what we do and artfully tell the story our community. This means strategizing marketing/public relations, documenting member projects and efforts, soliciting and interacting with press, and establishing a metrics structure. For this position, the right match is someone strongly interested in crafting narratives, have a sense for interactive marketing practices, and confidently represents Code for Philly.

Points of ownership include (but are not limited to):

  • Writing and posting weekly blog with hack night updates and feature pieces

  • Writing and distributing monthly newsletter

  • Maintaining social media presence and quantify traffic

    • announce weekly meetups and post reminders

    • tweeting during events

    • highlight member projects on appropriate channels

  • Work on event promotions (hackathons, conferences, etc.)

    • cross-promote partner organizations and events

  • Creating metrics schema for data analysis