Senior Director, ACTech

Job Location: Atlantic Council Headquarters – Washington, DC
Employment Type: Full-Time
Seniority Level: Senior Director
Job Category: Staff

Overview

The Atlantic Council is driven by our mission of shaping the global future together.

Across our 16 centers and programs, we’re building a more ambitious, integrated strategy to harness technology for good and compete effectively in an era of geopolitical competition. This strategy is built on numerous first-in-class technology efforts and focused on getting the most out of a diverse array of programs and experts to ensure we meet the moment in a defining opportunity of our time.

The Atlantic Council Technology Programs (ACTech) includes five operations—the GeoTech Center, the Cyber Statecraft Initiative (CSI), the Democracy + Tech Initiative (DTI), the Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab), and a Capacity Building Initiative. These operations draw from diverse technical and policy expertise, working together to address geopolitical implications of technology and provide policymakers and global stakeholders necessary research, insights, and convenings to address challenges and the greatest potential for technology is realized.

The role of Senior Director for ACTech is central to leading and coordinating across ACTech, as well as the wider Atlantic Council.

The Senior Director will work with the Vice President of ACTech in overseeing strategy, operations and technical management, and integration of tech programs toward collective impact. This individual will ensure that the programs comprising ACTech runs smoothly by facilitating strong communication and cross-Center collaboration among the initiatives. The Director will collaborate with other Programs and Centers, and supporting services, to ensure the business needs of ACTech are met. This individual will be the primary leader of ACTech based full-time in Washington, DC and play an integral external representational role for the center as needed, including events, meeting with officials, and engaging donors. This role includes coordination and strategy across programs, especially as it relates to development and fundraising, as well as high growth programmatic focuses like artificial intelligence. The Senior Director will collaborate with the Vice President in thought leadership and will contribute technical inputs to the various technology programs as needed.

Each part of ACTech is a policy start-up. We’re different than most think tank teams, and we like it that way! The core of our approach is technical research that provides real evidence, examples, and granularity to inform policy matched with convening key stakeholders using our research as the basis for action.

The role is based in our Washington, DC, headquarters, requiring a minimum of four days per week in the office. The Atlantic Council offers a competitive compensation package commensurate with experience, education, and organizational equity, with offers from $190,000 to $200,000. Applications submitted by September 8, 2025, will be prioritized for consideration.

Job responsibilities

Generally, the Senior Director will be responsible for:

• Coordination and Integration. The Senior Director will serve as the most senior leader in ACTech based full-time in Washington as well as a key facilitator of coordination across the Atlantic Council’s Technology Programs and on tech-focused programming across the wider Atlantic Council. This leader will work closely with the Vice President to integrate programs operationally and strategically, building a unified team culture with DC-based and distributed staff.  
• Intellectual Leadership. The Senior Director will play a leading role in developing the intellectual and policy frameworks to advance the Atlantic Council’s mission and programming through written work and speaking engagements, along with expanding ACTech’s thought leadership. They will work closely with the Vice President for Technology Programs and Strategy, as well as the wider Council leadership, to build a more ambitious strategy on technology to further the organization’s mission to  shape the global future together with partners and allies. 
• Programmatic Design and Oversight. The Senior Director will develop programming and new initiatives to influence policy and impact public discourse at the intersection of technology and geopolitics. The Senior Director will be required to oversee simultaneous implementation of multiple projects. 
• Business Development. The Senior Director will generate programmatic content for ACTech, independently craft fundraising proposals, and generate financial support for new and existing lines of work. Working with Atlantic Council leadership, the Senior Director will expand the program’s funding by sustaining current relationships while pursuing additional support from corporations, government agencies, international organizations, foundations, and high net worth individuals. 
• Staff and Financial Management. The Senior Director will work with senior managers to foster opportunities for growth with ACTech full-time staff while coordinating ACTech’s robust network of non- resident senior fellows. The Senior Director will also serve as a reliable and faithful steward of program and Council funds by overseeing ACTech’s collective expenses and revenues and facilitating further program integration through the management of budgets, development activity, and long-term sustainability planning. 
• Outreach/Communications. The Senior Director will represent the Atlantic Council externally with the administration, Congress, diplomatic community and foreign governments, donors, media, as well as at public and private events, international conferences, and more. 

Specific job responsibilities:

• Serve as a bridge between ACTech staff and leadership, including communicating on the staff’s behalf to management. In close collaboration with colleagues, execute the vision and priorities of the leadership team. 
• With the Vice President and other members of the management team, oversee ACTech and ensure its operations run smoothly to achieve its mission, from budget stewardship to hiring standards to technical outputs. 
• Serve as the primary senior leader of ACTech programs at the Atlantic Council’s Washington, DC headquarters.
• Serve as a key facilitator of program strategy and growth on artificial intelligence and other critical or emerging technologies.
• Play a representational role with internal and external stakeholders as needed, including by providing remarks at or moderating events, meeting with donors, and briefing officials. 
• Serve as an organization-wide integrator for technology matters across all programs and centers and supporting services), maintaining a superb Council-wide reputation for efficiency, effectiveness, and collegiality. 
• Help organize and run staff meetings. 
• Manage ACTech’s relationship with key funders, including coordinating with relevant programs and centers to develop fundraising materials, organizing meetings with visiting officials, and ensuring deliverables are completed in a timely manner. 
• Assist in managing and incubating initiatives and centers. 
• Partner directly with the Finance team to ensure sound fiscal stewardship, timeliness, and effectiveness. 
• Partner with the Development team to help communicate and track opportunities and projects across ACTech. 
• Other related duties as assigned. 

Qualifications

• A minimum of ten years of significant work experience on an array of emerging technologies within public service, the private sector, non-governmental organizations, and/or academia; 
• Mastery of issues related to tech policy, human rights, geopolitics, and tech industry operations with a global context;
• Extensive experience in program management and development, preferably in a nonprofit or entrepreneurial environment;
• Excellent writing, editing, and briefing skills; must be able to write policy-like documents under tight time constraints;
• A strong and current bipartisan and international network among government, business, and civil society;
• Demonstrated track record in budget management and forecasting, responding to government grant solicitations, and fundraising to include solicitation from individuals, foundations, and corporate sources;
• A proven ability to build networks and initiate effective partnerships among expert analysts, government leaders, and non-governmental organizations, international institutions, and business executives. 

Strongly Desired Qualifications: 

• Master’s degree or equivalent in International Affairs, Journalism, Public Policy or a related field; 
• International experience and foreign language skills; 
• Experience working in international policymaking or advocacy;
• Subject matter expertise in artificial intelligence or other critical emerging technologies;  
• Active on social media and/or a high degree of digital literacy.  

To produce quality work and to successfully achieve our mission, we recognize the need for our staff to maintain a healthy lifestyle and a work/life balance. Our comprehensive benefits package helps to keep costs low for our staff and their families. Benefits include, but are not limited to comprehensive medical, dental and vision insurance, paid time off, 403(b) plan, FSA options, pet insurance, Public Service Loan Forgiveness eligibility, and wellness benefits.

About the Program

The Atlantic Council Technology Programs comprises five existing efforts—the Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab), the GeoTech Center, the Cyber Statecraft Initiative, the Democracy + Tech Initiative, and the Capacity Building Initiative. These operations work together to address the geopolitical implications of technology and provide policymakers and global stakeholders necessary research, insights, and convenings to address challenges around global technology and ensure its responsible advancement.

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