Director, Veterans for American Ideals

JOB DESCRIPTION

Job Title:

Director, Veterans for American Ideals

Reporting Office:

Washington, DC or remote

Department:

Programs & Policy

Job Classification:

Fulltime; Exempt

Supervisor:

Vice President, Advocacy

Union Classification:

Non-Union

Accountable To:

Senior Director, Refugee Protection; Senior Director, Accountability; Senior Director, Refugee Advocacy; Senior Director, Democracy Protection

Last Updated:

8/20/2024

Purpose of the Job

The Director of Veterans for American Ideals is responsible for advancing Human Rights First’s objectives by building and sustaining strategic relationships with partners and key constituencies, including the national security, military, veteran communities and other key constituencies. The Director will work with the senior leadership to cultivate and execute innovative policy campaigns.

Major Duties and Responsibilities

Key areas of responsibility include:                                                            

• Develop strategies to engage national security professionals and other communities of support around Human Rights First’s mission and key objectives.
• Collaborate closely with the senior leadership team to develop and execute policy campaigns that are in alignment with the organization’s mission and vision.
• Work with the leadership team to maximize partner impact through diverse activities such as lobbying, events, public speaking, media engagements, and other outreach efforts.
• Develop new strategies and partnerships that advance respect for human rights and further the organization’s objectives.
• Develop benchmarks/performance indicators to evaluate the success of engagement and outreach strategies.
• Organize public and private coalition meetings involving our partners and guide advocacy initiatives in line with Human Rights First’s objectives.
• May supervise staff, providing direction, mentoring, and support, and managing team members’ workload, holding them accountable for meeting standards and benchmarks.
• Collaborate with the development team on fundraising efforts.
• Develop and manage the annual Veterans for American Ideals budget.
• Undertake additional duties as needed in accordance with departmental and organizational needs.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Competencies (DEIA)

Human Rights First acknowledges the existence of systemic and structural biases and believes it is necessary to be strategic and intentional in pursuing diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in all aspects of governance, operations, and programming. As an employee, you are expected to:

• Support adoption of best practices to create a more diverse, equitable, inclusive, and accessible work experience for colleagues and external partners.
• Strive to consider the people, places, and cultures that might be missing from your work and look for opportunities to increase inclusivity in all the work you do.
• Support the mission of Human Rights First in all interactions with colleagues and stakeholders.
• Dedicate efforts to enriching DEIA consciousness throughout our office-wide interactions.
• Foster a culture of diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility by promoting adherence to the standards delineated in the Culture of Respect and Teamwork statement in the Employee Handbook.

Supervisor Responsibilities

As a supervisor you are responsible for the performance of your direct-report(s). You should guide, train, support, and motivate your team member(s) to help them accomplish their job-specific goals. As a supervisor it is your responsibility to be knowledgeable of your direct-report(s) responsibilities and know how to get the tasks accomplished in their absence. You should continually work to earn the respect and credibility of your direct-report(s) by building an inclusive and supportive learning environment. As such, building trust with your team members is vital to a healthy work relationship. Specifically, you will:

Performance Management

• Set clear performance goals at the start of each annual performance period.
• Meet with direct-report(s) on a weekly basis to discuss progress on projects, priorities, and goals.
• Assist direct-report(s) with workflow/bandwidth management and ensure that direct-report(s) understand their duties and delegated tasks.
• Provide timely and ongoing constructive feedback, including soliciting feedback from colleagues from other departments with whom direct-report(s) collaborate.
• Document progress of individual direct-report(s) goals that maps performance goals by administering an annual performance review and mid-year review of performance goals.
• Support and assist in planning direct-report(s) professional development activities; assist with finding professional growth opportunities.

Administration

• Maintain a safe and healthy work environment by establishing and enforcing organization standards and adhering to legal regulations.
• Develop and update employee job descriptions, as necessary.
• Approve timekeeping records in a timely manner.

Leadership

• Assist direct-reports with ongoing coaching and counseling.
• Provide quick and appropriate resolution of all challenges, discrepancies, and miscommunications.
• Share, support, and carry out decisions made by the organization’s management.
• Ensure adherence to Human Rights Firsts’ personnel policies and practices.
• Focus on creating a culture where accountability and fairness are present in every situation.
• Support an innovative workplace that fosters creativity, encourages new ideas, and supports examining different approaches to existing initiatives.
• Recognize the contributions of your direct reports in ways that are meaningful to them.

Required Knowledge, Skill, and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree required, master’s degree preferred, with a minimum of 5 years relevant experience
• Strong organizational and analytical skills, excellent political judgment, ability to think strategically, and to work with diverse groups at all levels internally and externally.
• A high degree of initiative; and the ability to thrive and multi-task in a demanding, fast-paced environment.
• Ability to work efficiently and effectively under pressure and deliver high quality results with projects that involve multiple internal and external stakeholders; to work successfully across organization lines and with a diverse team of colleagues; to work in a variety of settings, including governmental, legal, advocacy and the media.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and written and spoken communication skills; demonstrated ability to translate complicated information for a variety of audiences, including policymakers, the media, general public, and effectively edit the written work of others.
• Strong professional experience, profile and reputation, including developing strategic partnerships to advance advocacy goals in U.S. government, nongovernmental, and/or intergovernmental environments.
• Extensive public speaking experience; experience working with the press to achieve advocacy goals
• Leadership experience in the management of a team of skilled professionals preferred, including setting direction, organizing work, and ensuring accountability to standards and benchmarks.
• Deep knowledge of the military and national security communities.
• Demonstrated interest in human rights and a dedication to Human Rights First’s mission.

Human Rights First is committed to equal employment opportunity and recruiting talent from across all diverse groups. We do not discriminate against any person because of the individual’s race, color, creed, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, affection preference, gender identity, marital status, national origin, citizenship status, disability, status as a war veteran, status as a victim of domestic violence, or on any other basis prohibited by law. Minorities are strongly encouraged to apply.