Advocacy Director

Advocacy Director

Open Society Foundations

Washington, DC

The Open Society Foundations work to build vibrant and tolerant societies whose governments are accountable and open to criticism, whose laws and policies are open to debate and correction, and whose political institutions are open to the participation of all people. We seek to strengthen justice and the rule of law; broaden respect for human rights, including the rights of minorities; encourage pluralism and a robust diversity of opinion; deepen democratic practice and participation; expand economic equity; support effective governance; and invest in individuals, public and private organizations, and social movements that advance these goals.

We are a global network of foundations committed to local knowledge and national expertise. Our network includes national foundations, regional foundations, and other geographic programs operating in more than one hundred countries. In addition to making grants to organizations and individuals, the Open Society Foundations engage in policy advocacy, legal advocacy and litigation, program-related investing, and public communications, as well as providing direct assistance to governments.

The Open Society Foundations are the global philanthropies of George Soros, who, as chairman, plays an active role in the work of the foundations.

OSF’s DC Advocacy Program and its lobbying affiliate, the Open Society Policy Center, are located in Washington D.C. They conduct and support advocacy on a wide range of domestic and foreign policy issues. This position reports to the Deputy Director, who directs domestic policy advocacy.

Job Description:

Develops and evaluates complex policy advocacy strategies and leads sophisticated advocacy campaigns

Creates original policy recommendations and advances them using established contacts with key decision-makers within the U.S. government and influential organizations

Authors, co-authors, and edits policy reports, memos, issue briefs and other documents on complex issues related to subject of expertise

Regularly represents OSF as lead expert at meetings in Washington, D.C., and globally

Maintains a broad network of relationships with high-level officials in the U.S. government and other key players within the policy community

Leads and manages major advocacy coalitions and works closely with leaders of other organizations and OSF grantees

Crafts persuasive advocacy messages and authors high-quality written materials for a range of audiences

Develops advocacy and grantmaking budgets and manages consultants in area of expertise

Solicits, vets and recommends consultancies and grants and drafts write-ups and eligibility assessments

Reads and analyzes complex statutes and drafts legislative language for bills and amendments

Contributes original content for op-eds, blogs, and websites, represents OSF in the media, provides direction to communications staff on media strategies, and may develop relationships with key reporters

Interprets the U.S. political environment and serves as a policy expert and resource for other OSF programs and makes significant contributions to multi-program efforts in area of expertise

Co-supervises a Policy Associate and may supervise a Research Assistant or Law Clerk

Requirements:

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience/education.

At least 10 years of experience working for non-profits or government in a senior role

Demonstrated experience and effectiveness with most of the job duties

Policy expertise in at least two of these areas: civil rights; criminal justice; voting and elections; health care; economic justice (budget/tax/consumer finance/wages); civil liberties; media; government ethics; and Puerto Rico debt and recovery.

Application instructions: Please include a cover letter and resume (both required), and upload as one document when submitting an application.

We are strengthened by the diversity of our colleagues across the Open Society Foundations. We welcome applications from people of all cultures, backgrounds, and experiences, and are committed to providing reasonable accommodations so that colleagues with disabilities are able to fulfill the essential functions of the job.