Director, Government & Strategic Initiatives

Reports to – Senior Leadership

Organization Overview

Baby2Baby is a national non-profit organization that provides children in need with diapers, formula, clothing, and the basic necessities that every child deserves, serving more than one million children across all 50 states every year. Over the past 14 years, Baby2Baby has distributed half a billion items – more than any organization of its kind – to children in homeless shelters, domestic violence programs, foster care, hospitals, and underserved schools as well as children who have lost everything in the wake of disaster. Baby2Baby was recognized as the #1 non-profit on Fast Company’s World’s Most Innovative Companies List and named by TIME Magazine as one of 2023’s most influential companies.

Position Overview

The Director, Government & Strategic Initiatives serves as the primary relationship manager for public sector partnerships, with a focus on California and New York-funded programs. This role is responsible for managing government funding streams while ensuring alignment with organizational priorities and compliance requirements.

This role leads high-level engagements, funding strategies, and external positioning with government agencies. This individual drives contract negotiations, oversees the full lifecycle of government agreements, and ensures the organization meets all funding obligations across finance, programming, and communications.

In addition to spearheading government programs and external relations, this role supports and helps drive other key strategic initiatives across the organization, working in close collaboration with senior leadership to advance high-priority goals and organizational impact.

As a key advisor to senior leadership, the Director provides insights on risks, opportunities, and long-term funding strategy, while fostering strong cross-functional coordination to support compliance, reporting, and organizational impact.

The Director, Government & External Affairs will work Monday-Friday at 5830 W. Jefferson Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90016. The work is performed in an office setting and is currently on site 3 – 5 days per week.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Serves as the primary relationship manager for government agencies and key public sector stakeholders, with a focus on CA and NY-funded programs.
• In collaboration with leadership and the Development team, builds and manages a multi-year strategy for government funding aligned with organizational priorities.
• Leads and coordinates with external lobbyists and consultants to support government affairs strategy, contract negotiations, and organizational priorities.
• Serves as a strategic advisor to the CEOs on government funding, public sector engagement, and external positioning.
• Supports and helps lead organization-wide strategic initiatives, partnering with leadership to drive cross-functional priorities and advance overall organizational impact.
• Partners closely with the CEOs to prepare for and support high-level meetings, funding strategies, and external engagements.
• Partners with Marketing & Communications to shape external messaging for government stakeholders.
• Leads negotiation of government contracts and agreements in partnership with Operations, Finance, Program leadership, and external partners.
• Oversees contract lifecycle management, including renewals, amendments, and compliance.
• Collaborates with Development, Programs, Finance, and external consultants to ensure timely reporting, compliance with all government funding requirements, and organizational accountability.
• Facilitates cross-functional collaboration at key stages (e.g., proposal development, contract negotiation) and works closely with program specialists and finance to ensure alignment with funding requirements and objectives.
• Translates government requirements, opportunities, and constraints into actionable guidance for internal stakeholders.
• Provides insights and recommendations on funding strategy, risks, and opportunities.
• Monitors legislation, policy developments, and public funding opportunities relevant to Baby2Baby programming.
• Additional duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required, master’s in public administration or related field, preferred.
• Minimum of 12+ years of professional experience in government, nonprofit, or related sectors, with increasing levels of responsibility.
• At least 3 years of experience managing and developing staff.
• Demonstrated success in operational or project management leadership roles, with a proven track record of driving execution and delivering results.
• Proven ability to plan, lead, and manage complex, cross-functional initiatives in fast-paced environments.
• Strong strategic thinker with exceptional attention to detail, follow-through, and ability to balance big-picture vision with operational execution.
• Highly organized, able to manage multiple priorities, meet deadlines, and operate effectively under pressure.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to synthesize information and tell a compelling story to diverse audiences.
• Highly collaborative, flexible, and solutions-oriented, with strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills.
• Self-motivated, confident, energetic, and a creative problem-solver.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and Google Workspace.
• Demonstrated commitment to Baby2Baby’s mission and values.

Other

Baby2Baby is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to fostering diversity within its staff. We have made diverse thinking a priority in order to keep our organization in touch with the needs of families in our program and to help hold us accountable to those we serve. Our organization strives for diversity, from the children we serve to our board and staff, not only in race, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, and religion but also in cultural background and life experiences.