Cori Kramer
The Benefits of Bipartisanship
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Cori Kramer is the CEO of Center Forward, which just celebrated its 15th anniversary. While this is a milestone worth celebrating for any organization, it specifically is for Cori because she was employee #1.
☝️ But first, a little bit about Center Forward… While many classify them as a think tank, they function a bit differently. Rather than taking positions on, writing, or endorsing legislation, Center Forward instead focuses on “relationships and convening.”
Center Forward is in the business of bringing people together across the aisle and forging relationships on Capitol Hill that are durable and pragmatic.
The relationship-building happens in a variety of different ways because, well, people connect in different ways. Just last year, Center Forward hosted 115 different bipartisan convenings and interacted with over 350 different offices on the House and Senate side.
Before Center Forward, Cori worked on the Hill for about 11 years. She went back and forth between the Hill and campaigns, working her way up as she did. Cori fell in love with working in freshman offices, building something from the ground up.
↪️ This made for the perfect transition to being employee #1 of Center Forward, where she was able to join the founding board members in starting the organization.
Get to know more about Cori...
🏠 Home state: Kentucky
🎓 College: Rhodes College
🎨 CNCT with Cori about... Her current creative outlet
As CEO of an organization built to connect people, Cori knows a thing or two about networking.
After COVID, Cori noticed people getting comfortable staying behind their desks and sticking with the same group at happy hours.
“In a town that is built on relationships … it is really a disadvantage to not be able to craft [them],” Cori says.
🍻 Cori’s challenge: “If you don’t make three new contacts at a happy hour, don’t leave!”
We know that networking is one thing, but bipartisan networking is a completely different thing. In this new episode, Cori shares her thoughts…
🟣 “Bipartisanship is not dead, it’s just different,” she says.
Bipartisanship isn’t always visible, but Cori believes Americans should know it still exists. Research from Center Forward shows voters see compromise as a strength. She encourages staffers to build bipartisan relationships because doing the job well often means leaning on expertise that may sit across the aisle. Picking up the phone, meeting someone new, and asking questions without party lines in the way makes everyone more effective.
🎂 Outside of work, Cori is often caught up in different creative outlets. She paints, does photography, and even throws pottery. One of her favorite creative outlets is making elaborate birthday cakes for her kids.