Rural Initiatives Senior Manager

Description

Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation 

Position Description

 

Position Title: Rural Initiatives Senior Manager

Department: Office of Rural Prosperity

Reports to: Senior Director of the Office of Rural Prosperity

Position(s) Supervised: None

FLSA Status: Exempt 

 

*WEDC is a Wisconsin-based organization with a remote-work-first environment. Remote work is intended to be performed within the State of Wisconsin.

 

Position Overview

The Rural Initiatives Senior Manager works closely with the Director of the Office of Rural Prosperity to advance a shared vision of vibrant, prosperous, and resilient rural communities across Wisconsin. The Office serves as a connector and catalyst for rural communities—helping local leaders, organizations, and partners navigate programs, resources, and opportunities that support rural economic and community development.

 

This role is ideal for someone who thrives at the intersection of community development, collaboration, and learning. The Senior Manager will convene partners across sectors and disciplines, support rural stakeholders in accessing resources, and help translate complex programs into practical tools communities can use. The position also oversees federal grant compliance, leads the Office’s training and technical assistance efforts, and helps design webinars, toolkits, and learning opportunities that strengthen rural capacity and leadership.

 

Working with communities, regional partners, and state initiatives, the Senior Manager will help identify opportunities for greater alignment, shared learning, and regional collaboration. Success in this role requires curiosity, relationship-building skills, and a growth mindset—someone who enjoys listening to community voices, bringing diverse partners together, and turning ideas into practical strategies that support rural vitality.

 

Strategic priorities of the Office include advancing solutions related to rural housing, broadband expansion and adoption, small business and rural industry development, rural leadership and organizational development, and celebrating rural people, places, and cultures. The Office also recognizes the important economic and community contributions of inclusive and welcoming rural communities and Tribal-led organizations across Wisconsin.

 

Key Responsibilities 

The Rural Initiatives Senior Manager will spend most of their time in these activities:

• Convene regional partners around strategic priorities and identify strategies to work to create alignment between regional and statewide partners toward collective impact in rural Wisconsin.
• Develop a suite of technical assistance programs and tools for rural stakeholders on a range of issues impacting rural communities and businesses.
• Oversee programmatic compliance and reporting for federal and philanthropic grants that the Office of Rural Prosperity manages.
• Develop tools and resources for rural communities to navigate federal funding opportunities. Support initiatives that enhance grant writing and compliance capacity building across the State.
• Collaborate with WEDC departments to create programmatic partnerships that advance rural priorities within WEDC and connect rural communities to WEDC grant programs and initiatives. Provide input on program design that advance rural realities.
• Build and maintain relationships with rural stakeholders.
• Engage with team members with a high level of trust, commitment, and accountability toward our common goals.
• Other duties as assigned.

Requirements

Education and Experience: 

• Bachelor’s degree and 7 years of increasingly responsible and relevant experience in rural development, community-based economic development, workforce development or a related field.
• Experience in state and federal grant writing and compliance.
• Program and curriculum design experience for Statewide initiatives.
• Minimum of 4 years of project management experience.
• Technical expertise in one or more of the following areas: regional planning, rural housing, broadband, capacity building, small business development, placemaking, and/or rural tourism.
• Strategy development and implementation.  
• Management experience, while not required, is a value-added experience.

 

Skills and Talents: 

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and prioritization skills.
• Highly motivated and able to work independently with direction.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects; strong project management skills, planning, prioritizing, and organizing.
• Ability to work cooperatively with internal and external partners.
• A passion for supporting rural Wisconsin.
• Demonstrates a growth mindset

 

Other Requirements:

• State-wide travel will occur on an occasional basis, less than 20% of the time.  Travel is anticipated to include day and overnight travel.
• Based on the responsibilities of this position, this position may need to lift and/or move up to 10 pounds. 

Summary

WEDC DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION & BELONGING STATEMENT

WEDC must be a diverse and inclusive organization reflective of the businesses, communities, and people in Wisconsin and beyond. We believe that diversity drives innovation and commit to create an inclusive, equitable and diverse workplace where our differences are celebrated as drivers of our organization’s performance.

TO SUPPORT A DIVERSE AND INCLUSIVE WORKFORCE AT WEDC, WE WILL WORK TO ACHIEVE THE FOLLOWING GOALS:

• Increase WEDC’s racial diversity, specifically with Black/African American, Native American and Latinx populations;
• Increase LGBTQ representation across WEDC; and
• Increase the diversity of WEDC’s leadership.

TO MEET OUR DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION GOALS, WEDC WILL TAKE THE FOLLOWING ACTIONS:

• Create an intentional approach to recruit minority candidates by using targeted media channels to promote open positions;
• Ensure formal offers are made only after a diverse pool of candidates have been considered at each hiring stage;
• Identify and develop a variety of employee resource groups, including groups for African Americans, Hispanics and Latinos, LGBTQ+ and more;
• Post signage to highlight WEDC’s commitment to diversity and inclusion; and
• Revisit EEO disclosures in our application process to highlight statements regarding WEDC’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation is an Equal Opportunity Educational Institution and EEO/Affirmative Action Employer committed to excellence through diversity. Employment offers are made on the basis of qualifications, and without regard to race, sex, religion, national or ethnic origin, disability, age, veteran status, or sexual orientation.

Veteran Declaration

Applicants for employment are invited to participate in affirmative action program by reporting their status as a protected veteran or other minority. In extending this invitation, we advise you that: (a) workers (applicants) are under no obligation to respond but may do so in the future if they choose; (b) responses will remain confidential within the human resource department; and (c) responses will be used only for the necessary information. Refusal to provide this information will have no bearing on your application and will not subject you to any adverse treatment.
** PROTECTED VETERAN DEFINITION

Protected veteran means a veteran who may be classified as an active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran, disabled veteran, Armed Forces service medal veteran or recently separated veteran.

Active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

Armed Forces service medal veteran means any veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S.  military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985 (61 FR 1209, 3 CFR, 1996 Comp., p. 159).

Disabled veteran means (1) a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, or (2) a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

Recently separated veteran means a veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service.

* EEOC RACE/ETHNIC IDENTIFICATION CATEGORIES

Hispanic or Latino - A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin regardless of race.

White (not Hispanic or Latino) - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East or North Africa.

Black or African American (not Hispanic or Latino) - A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.

Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander (not Hispanic or Latino) - A person having origins in any of the peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa or other Pacific Islands.

Asian (not Hispanic or Latino) - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia or the Indian Subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand and Vietnam.

American Indian or Alaska Native (not Hispanic or Latino) - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) and who maintain tribal affiliation or community attachment.

Two or more races (not Hispanic or Latino) - All persons who identify with more than one of the above races.