Senior Consultant, Public Affairs

We have an immediate opportunity for a mid-level public affairs and strategic communications professional with strong issue advocacy, coalition building, stakeholder engagement, issues management, writing, and project management skills. This experienced professional will join our public affairs practice and be based in New York.
What we’re looking for: The consummate “do it all” public affairs professional with a strong background in issues management. You are self-directed, proactive and driven to win for your clients every day. You understand how to communicate with diverse stakeholder groups and have a strong background of handling New York City, State, Federal and/or global public affairs engagements.  You create opportunities to drive the message and position clients and issues using the full spectrum of communications and engagement channels and tactics. You have experience managing work streams and balancing competing priorities. You are highly curious and have a desire to learn and grow – both across industries and communication mediums, such as traditional media, social/digital media, issues advocacy, and stakeholder communications. You know how to work with clients and have a positive, go-getter attitude that wins the confidence of clients and inspires teams, and you have an established and trusted network. Political/campaign experience and connections are a plus. 
Responsibilities:

• Support and implement a wide range of strategic communication and issue advocacy campaigns for our high profile, globally-recognized clients
• Support the design and implementation of multi-faceted, integrated communications and issue campaigns to position client issues and priorities with key audiences that may include elected officials, media, consumers and external and internal stakeholders
• Create effective messages and produce and edit high-quality written deliverables, such as issue backgrounders, press materials, messaging toolkits, and social media content often under tight deadlines
• Develop compelling advocacy communications and content to convey complex policy issues to the general public
• Demonstrate practical experience with coalition building and management efforts including stakeholder mapping, recruitment, engagement, and activation; state level advocacy engagement with field team management skills strongly preferred 
• Support media relations efforts including cultivating relationships with media (national, state, and local), drafting op-eds and talking points, preparing clients for speaking opportunities, organizing press conferences, and more
• Monitor and decipher developments in key client issue areas and flag opportunities for further client engagement
• Participate in business development activities including writing proposals and developing pitch decks

Qualifications:

• 3-6 years of experience in public affairs, issue advocacy campaign, earned media and/or political campaigns. 
• Experience with state and federal legislative, regulatory or issues-based campaigns and lobbying is a plus.
• Solid project management experience and a proven ability to help manage multiple projects and client initiatives in a fast-paced environment while able to think quickly.
• Proven expertise in developing and supporting development of strategies and plans (issues management, crisis protocols, advocacy, positioning, media messaging, digital engagement etc.) across various industries and subject areas (financial services, health care, food and consumer goods, technology, transportation, energy, etc.)
• Demonstrate exceptional critical thinking skills, as well as the ability to develop presentations; write compellingly; create messaging, position papers, digital and media content; leverage AI responsibly; provide concise and insightful advice; and work efficiently under tight deadlines
• Experience participating in business development opportunities a plus – industry research, proposal development and drafting, staffing plan management and pitching
• Excellent client and interpersonal skills; ability to manage independent client relationships and communicate effectively by phone, email, and in-person
• Well-versed in current events and news at local and national levels and an appreciation of relative significance and implications
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited university. 

What we bring you: APCO is an award-winning advisory and advocacy firm that is recognized for its leadership in helping clients navigate high-stakes issues by applying integrated public affairs and communication solutions. Our team includes smart, fun and collaborative colleagues who come from diverse backgrounds and who share our values of curiosity, empathy, boldness and inclusivity. Our team members thrive on opportunities to work with people around the country and across the globe. They also frequently leverage our world-class in-house opinion research, creative resources, and digital capabilities. More than anything, we are united by embracing the chance to work on some of the most interesting and challenging issues of the day for clients from the corporate, nonprofit and government sectors.  

Compensation Range 

The US base salary for this position ranges from $70,000/year to $90,000/year. Our compensation range for this role is inclusive of several US geographic markets. APCO targets an employee's pay within this range to be based on several factors, which include but are not limited to relevant education, skills, job-related knowledge, qualifications, work experience, credentials, internal equity and/or geographic location. 

Careers at APCO

Through our recruitment, hiring and retention efforts, APCO is committed to building teams who bring the best possible expertise and robust perspectives to our clients. We embrace differences in experience, viewpoint and ideas, starting with our values and extending to our behaviors, policies and practices. We aim to create a positive work experience and welcoming environment where everyone feels they belong and can thrive. 

We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer and encourage applications from all qualified candidates regardless of race, national origin, citizenship, native language, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital or parental status, religion, age, veteran status, neurodivergence, mental or physical disability, medical history, pregnancy, political belief or affiliation or any other characteristic protected by law. 

EOE M/F/V/D 

About APCO