Director, Congressional Affairs

Microsoft’s Congressional Affairs team is expanding. This Washington, DC-based position helps lead Microsoft’s public policy engagement with Republican Members of Congress in the U.S. House of Representatives. This position will report to the General Manager of Congressional Affairs and closely collaborates with Microsoft’s Congressional Affairs and U.S. Government Affairs teams.

This position will play a role in shaping the company’s advocacy agenda on Capitol Hill and is responsible for the development and execution of strategies necessary to achieve these goals. The position works closely with company executives and collaborates with colleagues primarily in the U.S. Government Affairs (USGA), Corporate External Legal Affairs (CELA), and U.S. Public Sector (USPS) organizations. The Director also represents Microsoft in discussions with policymakers, including Members of Congress, congressional staff, and external stakeholders.

This role is based in our Washington D.C. office.

Microsoft is on a mission to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Our culture is centered on embracing a growth mindset, a theme of inspiring excellence, and encouraging teams and leaders to bring their best each day. A growth mindset encourages each of us to lean in and learn what matters most to our customers, to create the foundational knowledge that enables us to make customer-first decisions in everything we do. In doing so, we create life-changing innovations that impact billions of lives around the world. You can help us achieve our mission.

The Director of Congressional Affairs will be responsible for building Microsoft’s global brand as a trusted provider of technology by developing a range of strategies and executing them on Capitol Hill as follows:

Strategy

• Advocates for, and manages, policy issues (e.g., social, political, technical), and helps lead the company’s external engagement in the U.S. House with senior internal stakeholders on priority issues, strategies, and/or initiatives.
• Contributes to, and develops, Microsoft’s policy agenda and/or advocacy strategies to advance priorities in the U.S. House.
• Responds to key strategic issues and recommends well thought-out actions by prioritizing, ensuring alignment with stakeholder positions, leveraging specialists, or escalating matters.
• Manages affairs in rapidly changing and ambiguous political, policy, and industry environments.
• Develops highly creative strategies to advance multiple legislative objectives and projects simultaneously, while managing risks and consequences; delivers materials (e.g., strategy, policy briefings, other documentation) to internal stakeholders.

Legislative Expertise

• Helps respond to Congressional inquiries and supervises the preparation of Microsoft executives who engage Congress.
• Establishes an intelligence network, gathers information, and analyzes external/internal data and relationship interactions, and shares internal and external intelligence findings in support of Microsoft’s objectives.
• Provides counseling on public policy and/or geo-political or cultural topics to related to specific product development or business plans.
• Serves as a strategic partner to the Public Sector and other key business leads by supporting sales and market opportunities, and assisting in navigating, minimizing, or removing roadblocks to drive business results.

External Relationships

• Builds and maintains an ongoing network in the U.S. House with Members of Congress, congressional staff, committees, and caucuses to advance Microsoft's public policy agenda.
• Engage non-governmental stakeholders to align interests to significantly advance Microsoft's objectives in key priority areas; builds strategic relationships that position Microsoft as a key trusted advisor.

Representing Microsoft

• Responsibly participates in internal/external events and is active with driving social media engagement on key issues; supports executive engagement and participation in events with Members of Congress or their staff.
• Directs political strategies, provides strategic vision, and develops communication framework and/or messaging in partnership with Communications team for Microsoft by implementing strategies across diverse stakeholders.

Internal Collaboration

• Acts as a legislative and political subject matter expert for large, critical projects, and may provide direction to teammates or a cross-functional project team.
• Manages internal resources and external consultants.
• Collaborates with, and influences, senior-level internal stakeholders and subject matter experts within and outside of Government Affairs to ensure a mutual understanding and alignment of the political environment as well as corporate objectives, priorities, and resources.

Other

• Embody ourCulture and Values