Strategy Consultant

Future Matters is a non-profit consultancy and think tank known for our expertise in strategy development and policy prioritization in support of a safer and more livable world.

We are hiring a new Strategy Consultant to expand and refine our current consulting services specifically in support of AI safety and biosecurity efforts. Our clients frequently face challenges in policy development, advocacy, coalition building, communications, and organizational strategy.

If hired for this role, you will advise think tanks, advocacy organizations, government officials, companies, and movement leaders who are committed to improving AI safety and biosecurity to take the most effective actions available to them. Through this work, you will help ensure that the development of advanced AI will not pose massive risks to humanity and that the world is better protected from devastating pandemics.

Seeking an experienced strategic thinker with excellent aptitude for advising, ideally with a background in public policy, AI governance, or communications. 

• Location:  Remote. East Coast US, UK or EU preferred.

• Full-time: 40 hours per week

• Compensation: €60.000 - €80.000 gross annual salary

• Vacation days: 27 paid vacation days

• Travel: Approximately 5 weeks per year, including internationally

• Benefits: 10% of work time dedicated to learning and professional development, co-working space allowance, learning budget.

• Stipend for other benefits: We want all our employees to enjoy a similar level of stability as our team members in Germany, where Future Matters is legally incorporated (within the legal limits of the country of residence and the financial limits of the organization). We will either cover directly or provide a stipend for health insurance, short-term disability insurance, and a contribution to retirement savings either through employer contributions to government programs or independently if not state-provided in your country of residence.  

• Start Date: Ideally, early to mid-September. A start date later in 2024 is negotiable for a candidate who is otherwise an excellent fit.

Your mission as a Future Matters Strategy Consultant 

We live in a world facing great threats that could dramatically change our lives and the future. The stakes are high, and we need thoughtful and determined action to meet these challenges. These are complex problems, but Future Matters believes that fundamentally, they are solvable if we engage in thoughtful strategy creation and prioritize our efforts.  (You can read more on our approach here.)

Your mission is to support clients to navigate extreme uncertainty to find key opportunities for action and to find great ways to leverage those opportunities. 

You will advise an established client base in AI safety and biosecurity on questions related to policy prioritization, communications and media, coalition building, and organizational strategy, while working to grow the number and prominence of clients we support. The large majority of the projects have been and are expected to be in the field of AI safety. 

Your scope will evolve to reflect the skill set you bring to the role and the emerging needs of clients. Our consulting team has conducted activities such as: 

• Consulting with leaders to develop strategic plans, conduct risk analyses, and quickly gain context on emerging opportunities. 

• Working with experts to turn complex knowledge and research into targeted lobbying efforts.

• Developing communication goals before important summits, ensuring a robust shared set of key messages among coalitions. 

• Optimizing agenda and formats of a high-level strategy conference of AI Safety organizations. 

• Rapid on-demand support for organizational leadership of an AI safety organization on emergent strategic challenges. 

• Advising on tactics for attracting leadership talent into policy work by pulling on lessons from other successful advocacy movements. 

• Teaching leaders to use communication psychology skills for better persuasion and on high stakes and technical issues.

• Editing op-eds that have been circulated to millions.

• Making introductions between key stakeholders on issues, resulting in successful lobbying. 

• Creating briefings on emerging topics to support AI safety actors. (You can see public examples here and here.)

In addition to working with clients, you will have a key role in representing Future Matters at conferences, meetings, and events related to AI safety, biosecurity, and other global risks. You will sell, scope and manage your own pipeline of projects. As a member of the Future Matters team, you’ll also be a critical part of developing our internal plans and strategies by staying up-to-date on the latest AI and biosecurity policy developments. 

About you:

• You have an excellent mind for strategic thinking. You can find useful points of influence in complex problems and “see the forest through the trees” to anticipate possible long-term implications of specific courses of action. 

• You are prepared to consult on emerging issues. The field of AI is developing rapidly. If a client calls you with a novel issue and wants input right away, you rise to the occasion. You can quickly digest what they share, put it in the context of everything you already know, and provide thoughtful advice.  

• You are an adaptable and insightful advisor. You are able to quickly gain the trust of a new person, ask just the right questions, and listen carefully to their needs. You enjoy offering clear actionable steps on a variety of challenges. 

• You are self-motivated and love working with a high impact team: You are attracted to a culture that is high in both autonomy and support for your work. 

Successful candidates must demonstrate these skills and qualities:

• Several years of professional experience. We are looking for a mid- to senior-level candidate. While people of many backgrounds may be successful, we expect that a competitive candidate will have demonstrated success in consulting, advocacy, communications, public policy, organizational management, or a combination of these fields.

• Aptitude for consulting. While you may or may not have held the title of “consultant,” you have skills in scoping problems and offering actionable solutions to clients or stakeholders. 

• High interpersonal skill. You can tell the story of important times you have gained the trust of a new ally and are well-versed in networking and managing relationships.

• Clear and concise verbal and written communication. You can transmit information effectively without losing critical context or details.

• Demonstrated excellent skills in project management. You have worked in an environment that shows your ability to juggle deadlines and competing priorities and stay on task without oversight.

• Entrepreneurial drive. You can show that you are action-oriented, comfortable pitching services to potential clients, and able to iterate and refine your work to make the biggest impact. 

• Ability to travel approximately 5 weeks of the year. You will attend organization retreats with Future Matters and also attend conferences around the world. 

• Full professional fluency in English. 

In addition, those with experience in policymaking, AI governance, or strategic communications are strongly encouraged to apply. 

Depending on the candidate pool, we may hire a professional with very solid skills in the “must have” criteria who can develop robust knowledge of our “critical needs” areas quickly.

However, any prior experience policymaking, AI governance, or strategic communications is valuable and should be highlighted in your application. 

We are especially interested in applications from candidates with substantial expertise in these fields. A candidate with exceptional qualifications, like the ones listed below, could use the Strategy Consultant role to leverage their existing skillset for enormous benefit to AI safety and biosecurity efforts. 

Exceptional candidates may have: 

• An “insiders perspective” on policy creation in a major western power.

  • This may include 5+ years work experience in government, public policy, advocacy and/or graduate level education in a related field.

  • Professionals with success in influencing policy development and negotiation at multiple steps in the policymaking process are strongly encouraged to apply.

  • Greatest priority is for candidates who have experience interfacing with the government in the United States, followed by the United Kingdom, and then the European Union.

  • Note: Candidates with additional experience in national security or international relations are especially needed at this time. If you have this background, we may invite you to develop a senior role focused primarily on advising policymakers. 

And/Or

• Exceptional experience in the AI governance field. 

  • This may include 3+ years experience at an AI governance organization or at a government organization or think tank relevant to the field.

  • Greatest priority is for candidates who bring a deep pre-existing network of relationships with professionals within the field. 

And/Or

• Expertise in strategic communications. 

  • This may include 5+ years experience in communications and/or graduate level education in a related field.

  • A strong working knowledge of the principles of strategic communication, ideally with a track-record of successful campaigns.

  • Experience preparing for media interviews, or helping others prepare for them, is an extra plus.

What to expect at Future Matters 

Impact at the core: 

Fundamental to everything that we do, we seek to have the greatest impact possible with our limited resources. Optimizing for impact means finding leverage points where limited effort can trigger large scale changes. By prioritizing and focusing, we aim to create an outsized impact, beyond what is usually feasible for a small organization. 

Approaching strategy with the mindset and tools of a scientist:

We seek to be unusually systematic and rigorous in the development of strategy. This means basing our strategy recommendations on the best available evidence and using tools derived from disciplines such as forecasting research or behavioural sciences in strategy development. We also aim to cultivate a low-ego culture, where the best argument, evidence, or reasoning are decisive, not a position in the hierarchy. We celebrate team members sharing where they have been wrong and what they learned from it.

Striving for an excellent work environment: 

We believe that excellence comes from giving talented people a work environment where they can thrive. This means smooth operations to minimize administrative work, clear roles and responsibilities to limit coordination and increase autonomy to act fast. We also value continuous investment in learning and development of all staff members, and encourage employees to use 10% of your work time for learning.

Supportive team culture:

We achieve our successes together and celebrate each other for our wins. Despite being a remote organization, we make an effort to stay in touch on a personal level. We take time weekly for work-free socializing and meet three times a year in person for organization retreats to get to know each other better and learn together.

Application Process

The application process may be subject to slight changes depending on the candidate pool. This job is open for applications on a rolling basis. We encourage you to apply as early as possible as we will be reviewing materials as they come in.

1. Submit a written application with a resume or LinkedIn profile.

2. Short 30-minute interview via video call.

3. Invitation to complete a paid at-home work test to simulate the work you would do if hired and evaluate for skills important for this role. 

4. One or two longer interviews of 60-90 minutes via video call.

5. One-day paid work trial. This will be in-person or remote depending on the candidate. We expect to call references during this phase. 

6. Employment offer, with an expected start date in September 2024 (flexible for the right fit).

We are an equal-opportunity employer, and we value diversity at our organization. We do not discriminate on the basis of ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, age, physical attractiveness, marital status, or disability. Therefore, we are happy to make any reasonable accommodations necessary to welcome all to our workplace.

Any questions about your application? Please email contact@future-matters.org and we will be happy to assist you.