Crain’s Chicago seeks a reporter

Crain’s Chicago Business is looking for an experienced reporter to cover higher education, the legal industry, the labor movement and workplace issues.

The ideal candidate will be an experienced journalist who is familiar with Chicago, its economy and key players. The editors are looking for a self-starter who can cultivate sources, develop their own story ideas and write authoritatively on a wide range of subjects.

Crain’s reporters generate daily digital stories and weekly print stories based on the news of the day and broader trends, finding fresh angles to stories that the competition doesn’t. We value premium content – breaking news, enterprise and analysis that readers can’t find anywhere else. Experience covering the economy, education, the law, both public and private companies, small business, finance and politics is valued.

Crain’s staff is currently working remote but this reporter will be working in our downtown Chicago office once we are back in the newsroom.

Responsibilities

· Develop and manage core beat coverage by producing smart and serious news intelligence

· Generate feature-length news and analysis stories for weekly print publication on trends and innovations affecting higher education institutions, major law firms, local labor unions and major employers.

· Cover breaking news in the field and through independent reporting; maintain strong, foundational understanding of important topics and players in the local business community

· Contribute daily news items for morning and afternoon newsletters

Basic Qualifications

· 5-plus years’ experience writing news stories in a newsroom or as a freelancer

· Strong interviewing, reporting and editing skills

· Familiarity with the area’s major universities, law firms and labor unions

· Ability to generate engaging headlines for newsletters and print

· A keen eye for detail and ability to weave a narrative for feature-length stories

· Ability to juggle multiple responsibilities

· Ability to work with others, under pressure, in a spirit of camaraderie

· Self-starting and critical-thinking skills

· Ability to deliver clean, grammatical copy on tight deadline

· Demonstrated ability to write clearly about complex issues and ideas

· Clips of published material or links to same

Preferences

· Experience covering Chicago business, politics and/or public affairs

· Familiarity with Crain’s coverage and style

· Experience with live interviews and/or moderation of events and forums

· Ability to turn in feature-length news and analysis stories for weekly print publication on trends and innovations affecting Chicago businesses and institutions.

· Ability to plan and find speakers for conferences, as well as moderate panels for these events

· Comfort with appearing on camera and on mic

To apply, go here.