Stephanie Schriock

Stephanie Schriock is a strategic, adaptive, and influential leader with an impressive 20+ year record in launching and guiding start-ups, turnarounds, and mature organizations. Her success in building and leading a major national organization and her strengths in organizational leadership, political strategy, finance, fundraising, media relations, staff management and retention, and diversity, equity, and inclusion are underpinned by her down-to-earth ability to engage with people from diverse backgrounds and views.

Stephanie is the former President of EMILY’s List for 11 years, a national political action committee dedicated to electing more Democratic pro-choice women to local, state, and federal office. Upon her arrival in 2010, she immediately identified the need for a comprehensive turnaround strategy to revive the group’s public presence and political prowess.

With an intense focus on organizational restructuring. including the Board, modernization, technology, staff empowerment, donor outreach and fundraising, Stephanie tripled the organizational income to $120M+, quadrupled its staff to 120, grew its online community 28-fold to 5,000,000+, and trained 14,000+ women to run for office.

During her tenure at EMILY’s List, Stephanie elected hundreds of candidates to federal, state, and local office. Notably, under Stephanie’s leadership, EMILY’s List was electing record numbers of women and women of color to office, including the history-making 2017-2018 cycle when EMILY’s List drove the House Democratic takeover and Stephanie kept her promise to return the gavel to Nancy Pelosi.

A dynamic public speaker, Stephanie is a frequent commentator on television, podcasts, and other media. She is also a frequent guest speaker on leadership, status of women, and mission driven work at universities and national organizational conferences. She is also a coach and mentor to emerging and established leaders. Stephanie authored the acclaimed book Run to Win, A Leadership Guide to Women Who Want to Change the World.

Before joining EMILY’s List, Stephanie managed the successful U.S. Senate campaign of Jon Tester in Montana. She built a statewide political, communications, and field operations with a $5M budget, defeating an 18-year incumbent. Following this victory, Senator-elect Tester selected Stephanie as his Chief of Staff. As Chief of Staff, she started with a blank canvas to build the newly elected Senator’s office from ground up and steer the Senator’s vision for the state and his transition to the U.S. Senate, laying the foundation to further his legislative, communication, and political goals.

Stephanie was subsequently asked by Senate leadership to take on senate campaign of first-time candidate Al Franken in Minnesota. She turned around, rebuilt, and managed a campaign that led to Franken’s come-from-behind victory after a months-long recount and court cases. As the National Finance Director for the Howard Dean presidential campaign, she led the effort that revolutionized political fundraising in American politics by using both digital and traditional tactics to be first to market in successful long-term Internet-based fundraising and campaigning. Stephanie and her team raised $52M in a Democratic primary campaign, breaking all prior records and laying the groundwork for future campaigns.

During her early career, Stephanie honed her skills in campaign management, fundraising, and finance at organizations, including the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, South Carolina Democratic Party, consultancies, and many political organizations.

Born in Minnesota, raised in Montana, and having worked across the country, Stephanie has a deep appreciation for the diversity and strengths of this nation. She received a MA from the Graduate School of Political Management at George Washington University and a BS from Minnesota State University-Mankato. She serves on the boards of the Goldman School’s Center on Security in Politics at UC-Berkeley, Priorities USA and Democracy Docket. She is currently consulting for Precision Strategies, FrontRow and the Strategic Victory Fund.