Associate Director, Religion and Foreign Policy Program

Overview

The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) Outreach department works to raise the profile of CFR and develop relationships with communities across the United States. Current initiatives focus on college and university students, educators, and administrators; state and local officials; local journalists; and congregational leaders and representatives of faith-based organizations.  

Position Summary

The CFR Outreach team is seeking an Associate Director. Under the direction of the Vice President and Director of the National Program and Outreach department, the associate director is the lead staffer for the Religion and Foreign Policy (RFP) program, which provides programming and resources for religion leaders across the country, offers an interfaith forum for discussion on global issues, and cultivates relations with the religion community. This position supervises one support staffer.

RFP strives to connect congregational leaders, religion scholars, and representatives of faith-based organizations to policymakers and foreign policy experts; disseminate CFR analysis to inform the work of religious thinkers and educators; and foster dialogue in their communities. Outreach is conducted through events and programming (including webinars, roundtables, briefings, and workshops), public-facing digital content (such as monthly newsletters), conference participation nationally, and more.

The major responsibilities of this position will include (but are not limited to):

• Manage the CFR Religion and Foreign Policy program and its virtual and in-person programmatic offerings, which include a webinar series, briefings, CFR’s annual Religion and Foreign Policy Workshop, and CFR representation at external conferences and professional gatherings across the country.  
• Generate speaker and topic ideas for virtual, in-person, and external events.  
• Take a lead role on the scheduling and implementation of events—including managing contracts and catering when applicable; drafting, editing, and managing correspondence; preparing meeting materials; and writing summary reports. 
• Supervise one support staffer and oversee day-to-day workflow. 
• Monitor and report on the religion program budget. 
• Collaborate with the vice president and director on Religion and Foreign Policy programming and outreach strategy, efforts, and innovation. 
• Research and identify partnership opportunities and external conferences to attend, schedule meetings and write meeting recap notes. 
• Grow CFR’s Outreach community and expand its impact through audience development by identifying and building relationships with new and diverse contacts in the religion and foreign policy space. 
• Contribute to communications and resource dissemination efforts by maintaining webpages, conducting email campaigns—including newsletters and surveys—and placing advertisements. 
• Track metrics and conduct qualitative and quantitative analysis across program offerings for reporting purposes and as a basis for strategic decision-making. 
• Manage CRM database event records and perform advanced queries. 
• Collaborate with staff across CFR and with external partner organizations to coordinate schedules, organize events, and share information relevant to various crosscutting projects. 
• Provide general project support to the department, including attending and working at National Program and Outreach events held outside of business hours. 
• Performing any other duties or tasks as assigned or required.   

Qualifications

Education

• BA in religious studies, international relations, or related field and interest in current U.S. foreign policy and international affairs issues. MA preferred.

Experience

• At least five years of experience working in outreach, strategic partnerships, community engagement, international relations, academia, and/or government.
• At least one year of experience in a supervisory role.
• Nuanced and deep understanding of faith traditions and religious landscape required.
• Experience in the religion space and event/program management preferred.

Related Skills & Other Requirements

• Ability to multitask and manage multiple ongoing projects simultaneously; superior organizational and time management skills, as well as attention to detail. 
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills to communicate effectively with multiple audiences; strong writing, proofreading, and editing skills.  
• Ability to meet demanding deadlines with a positive attitude and interact with members and the public in a professional manner.  
• Team player with capacity to take initiative, demonstrate flexibility, and work both independe