Chief of Staff

About CCST

The California Council on Science & Technology (CCST) is a non-partisan, nonprofit organization established via the California State Legislature in 1988 to provide science advice to the State of California. We connect state policymakers with leading experts in science and technology across our partner institutions, which include California’s top universities and laboratories. As a trusted advisor, CCST strengthens and informs California policy with scientific knowledge and innovation across technology, physical sciences, life sciences, and social sciences. Guided by the core values of service, independence, partnership, and integrity, CCST works to improve the lives of Californians and sustain California’s leadership in technology and innovation for a healthy economy, society, and environment.

CCST provides independent science advising to help policymakers craft policies that benefit all Californians, including those who are underserved and underrepresented. Our program portfolio includes the Science & Technology Policy Fellowship and issue-specific Science Residencies, which place scientists and engineers in the legislative and executive branch for a year of government service, and a diverse set of Science Services, including expert briefings, workshops, peer-reviewed reports, and Government Staff Academies. Collectively, our programs support informed decision-making in California state government in a rapidly changing world.

Each role at CCST contributes to advancing our 2025-29 Strategic Plan, guided by four goals:

1. Equip California policymakers with trusted and timely expertise.
2. Strengthen California’s science and technology policy talent pipeline.
3. Anticipate California’s future opportunities and challenges.
4. Integrate California’s science, technology, and policy communities.

Our team is collaborative and inclusive. We believe more minds, with different perspectives and lived experiences, lead to greater impact. We are entrepreneurial and pursue opportunities that meet the greatest needs. Agile, flexible, and responsive, we thrive in the rapidly changing landscape in which we operate. We have a growth mindset and are continuously improving our approach. We care about each other as people.

Job Overview

The Chief of Staff is a senior, high-trust role that serves as a direct extension of the CEO across the whole organization. Reporting to and working in close partnership with the CEO, the Chief of Staff manages the CEO’s time, priorities, and communications; serves as the primary staff liaison to CCST’s Board of Directors and its committees; and acts as the connective tissue between departments, ensuring that cross-functional work moves forward reliably even during periods of stretched capacity.

A successful Chief of Staff is a trusted generalist and force-multiplier: someone who can hold the CEO’s priorities and the organization’s rhythms in mind, anticipate what is coming, and quietly close the gaps between people, departments, and deadlines. This role brings executive-level judgment, discretion, and exceptional communication to bear across governance, internal coordination, and external relations. The Chief of Staff leads through coordination and service to colleagues across CCST and is energized by wide aperture and close proximity to board and staff leadership.

Reporting Relationship

This position reports directly to the CEO. The Chief of Staff works in close partnership with CCST’s Directors — each of whom serves as the lead staff liaison to at least one board committee — and coordinates with the Director of Finance & Operations and the Office Assistant on the boundaries between governance, operations, and day-to-day logistics.

Key Responsibilities

Executive Support to the CEO (30%)

• Manage the CEO’s time as one of the organization’s scarcest resources — prioritizing, gatekeeping, and aligning a highly dynamic calendar against strategic priorities.
• Prepare the CEO for meetings, briefings, and engagements by assembling background materials, framing decisions and options, drafting talking points, and ensuring follow-through on commitments.
• Triage and help manage the CEO’s priorities and task list, surfacing what needs attention, tracking open items and follow-up actions to completion, and protecting focus for intellectual work.
• Draft and send correspondence on the CEO’s behalf with the discretion, tact, and strategy that requires.

Cross-Functional Coordination & Internal Communications (25%)

• Serve as the connective tissue between departments, helping Directors and their teams coordinate, sequence, and hand off work that crosses organizational boundaries.
• Provide project-management support to Directors, and serve as lead staffer on emerging initiatives that do not fall neatly to a single department, or that arise during periods of low capacity elsewhere on the team.
• Sit in on the internal group meetings the CEO regularly participates in — including leadership team and standing cross-functional meetings — capturing decisions, tracking action items, and supporting follow-through.
• Support internal communications, helping the CEO keep staff informed, engaged, aligned, and connected, including for sensitive or organization-wide messaging.
• Support Directors on cross-departmental deliverables as capacity allows, where the work benefits from a central, cross-functional hand.
• Institute and maintain lightweight, consistent practices for tracking organizational priorities and strategic plan implementation.

Board & Governance Stewardship (20%)

• Serve as the primary staff liaison to the Board of Directors, including coordinating meeting scheduling across board committees.
• Serve as the primary staff liaison to the Board Committee on Governance and Nominations.
• Lead agenda development and meeting-packet compilation, gathering and synthesizing materials from Directors, and coordinating delivery of board and committee materials in advance of each meeting.
• Steward core governance processes, including board-member onboarding, annual paperwork, appointments, and file management.
• Support the Board’s processes so that meetings, committee actions, and records align with the bylaws and committee charters; oversee and maintain accurate, professional minutes for full board and committee meetings, along with decision records and action tracking.
• Serve as a consistent, professional point of contact for board members between meetings, supporting a strong, collaborative, rewarding, and well-informed board culture.

Communications & External Relations Support (15%)

• Manage the CEO’s email inbox — triaging, routing, drafting responses, and ensuring timely, relationship-forward follow-up.
• In coordination with the Communications team, help manage the CEO’s external presence.
• Serve as a thoughtful gatekeeper and early point of contact for external stakeholders, exercising judgment about what to elevate, route, or handle directly.

Marginal Duties (10%)

• Other Duties as Assigned: Perform other job-related duties as assigned to support the organization, cover staff absences, or balance operational workloads as directed by management.
• Special Projects: Conduct special tasks, assignments, or administrative projects upon management request.
• Meetings and Training: Attend general staff meetings, participate in ongoing internal training, and serve on ad-hoc committees.

Preferred Qualifications

• 5+ years in a chief-of-staff, senior executive-support, program or operations management, or comparable role serving a senior leader.
• Experience in a mission-driven, government-adjacent, or board-governed environment.
• Demonstrated executive-level judgment, discretion, and the ability to handle confidential and sensitive matters with care and tact.
• Proven ability to manage up, down, and laterally — building trust and moving work forward without relying on formal authority.
• Exceptional writing, editing, and presentation skills, including the ability to draft in another person’s voice; CCST operates substantially through careful, relationship-forward written correspondence.
• Strong project-management capability and a track record of coordinating complex, cross-functional work to on-time completion.
• Highly organized, anticipatory, and comfortable managing many concurrent priorities in a fast-moving environment.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office / Google Workspace and common scheduling, project-management, CRM, and communications tools.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent professional experience.

Desired Skills and Experience

• Prior experience supporting a board of directors or governance processes, including bylaws, committee charters, and meeting management.
• Familiarity with California’s policy, science, technology, philanthropic, and/or higher-education landscape(s).
• Experience managing executive communications.
• A calm, steadying presence during periods of organizational change, transition, or intensity.

Salary Range

$85,000 – $110,000 annually

Location

Sacramento, California. CCST has a hybrid work policy for our team, working from home as the default on Mondays and Fridays and working in person on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays in our office across the street from the State Capitol.

Benefits

Our comprehensive benefits package includes a 403b match; medical, dental, and vision insurance options; relocation assistance; and opportunities to telework. We are driven by a huge nonprofit vision, inviting you to contribute meaningfully to building the future, making a positive impact every day, and fostering personal and career growth in a supportive work environment.

• Competitive salary and 403b match after 1 year of employment
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance options
• Two weeks of paid vacation for new employees
• Three volunteer service days annually
• Flex Spending accounts for dependent care, parking, and transit
• Professional development support: individual support and quarterly team-based professional development engagements
• $20/month stipend for phone/internet
• Snack-filled kitchen
• Huge nonprofit vision (we need you to help build the future and do meaningful work every day that inspires and motivates you)

To Apply

Apply for this position by submitting a cover letter, CV, and names of 3 professional references through our online portal. The cover letter should explain your interest in the position and your relevant skills and experience. Please consider answering the voluntary questions on demographic data and where you learned about this position.

Applicants must be legally authorized to work full-time in the United States as a U.S. citizen or national, asylee, refugee, lawful permanent resident, or other holders of Employment Authorization Documents. CCST cannot sponsor a work visa at this time.

CCST is an equal opportunity employer. We make hiring decisions based on qualifications, merit, and our organization’s business needs. We do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, veteran status, pregnancy, or any such status protected under federal, state, or local law.

For additional information about the opportunity, please contact Christy Shay at [email protected]. All applications and inquiries will receive a response and be kept strictly confidential.

Application Deadline

Applications received by August 24th, 2026 will be prioritized for review. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.

Apply

About CCST
The California Council on Science and Technology is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization established via the California State Legislature in 1988. Modeled on the National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM), CCST is a unique, impartial resource for science and policy partnerships with California policymakers, such as those within the Governor’s Office, Agencies, and the Legislature. As a trusted advisor, CCST strengthens and informs California policy with scientific knowledge and innovation across technology, physical sciences, life sciences, and social sciences. This helps improve the lives of Californians, ensures the state remains a leader in technology and innovation, and guides global progress towards a healthy economy, society, and environment.