Stakeholder Engagement Analyst

Location: Remote, anywhere in the United States

Are you passionate about corporate social responsibility and sustainability? Do you want to tackle challenging issues like climate change, plastic pollution, water stewardship, biodiversity, and environmental justice? Are you comfortable engaging with environmental and social stakeholders with contrary perspectives, some of whom you may personally disagree with—from corporate executives to grassroots activists? Do you enjoy building partnerships within and across organizations, between groups in conflict? Do you like the culture of a small organization where you have the freedom to explore your interests, build new skills, and grow your network? If so, find out more about our Stakeholder Engagement Analyst position.

Future 500, a non-profit consultancy specializing in stakeholder engagement, has a mission to build trust between companies, advocates, investors, and philanthropists to advance business as a force for good. We are a nimble team that provides strategic counsel on a range of environmental and social issues to some of the world’s most influential corporations—from consumer goods to heavy-emitting sectors like chemicals, mining, and fossil fuels—in alignment with their stakeholders’ expectations.

We are seeking a dynamic and driven early- to mid-career professional to support project management, research, speaking, and external engagement in support of our mission to build trust between companies and their stakeholders, advancing their business as a force for good.

In partnership with our team, your responsibilities will include:

• Project support: Collaborate with project leads in advising companies in heavy and extractive industries to consumer brands & retailers in building relationships, understanding theories-of-change, and exploring areas of conflict and common ground with their stakeholders.
• Stakeholder engagement: Develop and maintain relationships with and between NGOs, philanthropic foundations, activist organizations, impact investors, and companies.
• Research: Conduct stakeholder research, analysis, and monitoring on issues ranging from mining to nature-based solutions and responsible investing to environmental justice.
• Production of key deliverables, such as:
  • Stakeholder inventories, maps, and slide decks: Identify stakeholders relevant to environmental and social topics and analyze opportunities for engagement.
  • Competitive benchmarking decks: Compare how different companies approach sustainability topics to highlight a “best-in-class” baseline for developing new sustainability initiatives within companies.
  • Stakeholder Feedback Reports: Interview key external stakeholders on nuanced questions facing the business community and write up reports, to help companies gather feedback on sustainability issues.

Note: We will encourage and mentor you in presenting deliverables to clients.

• Supporting the development, management, and facilitation of Future 500-hosted events, such as our Corporate Working Groups.
  • Note: We encourage and support our team members in moderating, speaking, leading sessions at our events and other conferences, to build their personal brands among our corporate partners and trusted relationships with stakeholders in our networks.
• Supporting business development by reviewing and crafting project proposals, participating in calls, and developing relationships.
• Writing blogs/articles on pressing environmental and social issues, with the opportunity to publish in sustainable media channels.
• Develop social media content and communications, in collaboration with the entire team, to promote Future 500 activities and build our brand.
• Attending conferences and events, and networking with other professionals.
• Administrative duties in support of your assigned projects and partners.

You ideally possess the following professional characteristics:

• Genuine desire and capability to work constructively with individuals from diverse and conflicting political, environmental, and social perspectives—even those you may personally disagree with. Examples include: an oil-industry executive or an environmental justice advocate.
• Passion about our mission to build bridges and trusted relationships between individuals in organizations as different as Greenpeace and ExxonMobil.
• Ability to hold trust and confidences across all stakeholders with whom you may work.
• Recognition that corporate change is often incremental and that there will be many “small wins” and the occasional big one.
• Growth mindset with a desire to learn and comfort researching a variety of issues simultaneously.
• Ability to work independently with minimal oversight.
• Ability to thrive in a dynamic and fluid work environment with a small, virtual team, and to take initiative. We won’t micromanage you.

We also require the following:

• Bachelor’s degree, preferably in an environmental, social impact, or business field. Master’s is a plus.
• Minimum 3-5 years of professional experience in a corporate, NGO, philanthropic, or consultancy setting focused on the environmental and social impact of business.
• Required experience (education or work) in one of our issue areas and/or industries, which include energy, utilities, oil and gas, mining, food and agriculture, nature and biodiversity, consumer manufactured goods, plastic waste, carbon capture, and chemicals-of-concern. Prefer experience in sustainability.
• Excellent project and time management skills, with the ability to manage and prioritize multiple concurrent projects.
• Strong research, writing, verbal, and interpersonal skills; capable of communicating professionally with corporate and NGO executives.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and Google Suite.
• Willingness to travel to events and partner offices (approx. 2-3 days per trip, 4-6 times per year).
• Commitment to advancing inclusivity and equity in our organizational priorities and thoughtfully through the counsel we provide our partners.
• A comfort and interest in jumping in to fill needs, sometimes with little direction, as they fluidly arise.
• Be a United States Citizen or Permanent Resident.

Think you would be a good fit, but are unsure if you meet all these requirements? We encourage you to apply!

Your compensation & benefits will include:

• Salary commensurate with experience, with starting salary in the range of $60K-$90K annually.
• Remote work within the United States and a flexible work schedule.
• Flexible and unlimited PTO, with minimum expected use of 17 days annually + 12 paid holidays.
  • We encourage taking a minimum of six weeks of paid parental leave, in addition to all applicable federal, state, and local benefits.
• Retirement savings plan with a 3% Future 500 match, eligible upon your first day.
• Technology reimbursement that can be applied to computers, phone purchase, home internet, data, and related needs.

About Future 500:

We are a 501(c)3 non-profit consultancy specializing in stakeholder engagement around social and environmental issues. We work to build bridges between parties at odds—most often, corporations and activists—to advance solutions to sustainability challenges. Sometimes, this involves advising companies on how to better engage with their stakeholders or develop sustainability strategies; other times, it means collaborating with NGOs and foundations to highlight key issues or promote bipartisan policy measures.

We also provide a range of sustainability services to our partner companies, including stakeholder analyses and in-depth examinations of key issues and emerging trends.

Our small staff comprises a mix of professionals with experience spanning the corporate and NGO sectors. Together, we work on a wide range of issues—everything from climate change and plastic waste to green chemistry and social and environmental justice. Regardless of the project at hand, we aim to earn and maintain the trust of all parties while striving for common ground.

The majority of our team is located across the continental United States, although we work with clients in various time zones, including those in Europe. This position will be remote and can be located anywhere in the United States.

Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion:

At Future 500, our mission is to advance business as a force for good. Core to realizing our mission is building a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive culture inside our own organization, and advancing a more just world through the counsel we provide our partners. A diverse team—with a range of lived experiences, backgrounds, and viewpoints—underpins our ability to respectfully challenge each other and our partners with new and often overlooked priorities. And we think building an inclusive workplace, where anybody can thrive, is just the right thing to do. For that reason, all applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.