Associate Director, Environmental and Social Innovation

Milken Institute • Full-time • Washington, District of Columbia • 6d ago

About the Milken Institute

The Milken Institute is a globally minded, publicly supported, non-partisan, and nonprofit think tank headquartered in Santa Monica, with offices in Washington, DC, New York, London, Abu Dhabi, and Singapore. For the past three decades, the Milken Institute has served as a catalyst for practical, scalable solutions to global challenges by connecting human, financial, and educational resources to those who need them. Guided by a conviction that the best ideas, under-resourced, cannot succeed, we conduct research and analysis and convene top experts, innovators, and influencers from different backgrounds and competing viewpoints. We leverage this expertise and insight to construct programs and policy initiatives. These activities are designed to help people build meaningful lives, in which they can experience health and well-being, pursue effective education and gainful employment, and access the resources required to create ever-expanding opportunities for themselves and their broader communities.

The Milken Institute’s events and programmatic activities, involve the exchange of ideas with leaders from around the world. The Institute hosts more than 200 events each year, with our annual flagship event, Global Conference, bringing together 4,500+ participants from around the world, featuring more than 900+ speakers throughout 200+ sessions over the course of the event.

About Environmental and Social Innovation

Environmental and Social Innovation (ESI) is part of the Strategic Philanthropy pillar, and is focused on future-oriented philanthropy, prize-based innovation, and foresight driven program delivery to advance thriving communities. We research emerging issues, analyze trends, and synthesize evidence to inform how philanthropic capital can be deployed more effectively. This includes producing briefs, background memos, landscape scans, and narrative content that helps partners and decision-makers understand what’s changing, what’s promising, and where investment can have the greatest impact.

ESI operates as a generalist, problem-solving team. We work across topics and sectors, drawing connections between technology, philanthropy, community safety, and the future of education and work. Team members are expected to think critically, ask good questions, and translate complex ideas into clear, compelling work for diverse audiences. We are comfortable working with new tools, including AI and other emerging technologies, and we think carefully about how they can effectively and ethically improve research, analysis, and philanthropic practice. Our goal is not to chase technology for its own sake, but to use it thoughtfully in service of better insight, better decisions, and better outcomes. Guided by a future-oriented perspective, the ESI looks ahead to anticipate where social needs and philanthropic opportunities are likely to converge and build action-oriented programs.

About the Position

The Associate Director will support the Environmental and Social Innovation team within Milken Institute Strategic Philanthropy by helping lead and execute a growing portfolio of research, programmatic, and operational work. This role will be responsible for managing research-driven projects, supporting the design and development of initiatives, coordinating high-visibility convenings, contributing to innovation and prize-related programming, and ensuring strong operational execution across the team’s portfolio.

Working closely with project leads and senior leadership, the Associate Director will oversee project timelines, coordinate cross-functional collaboration, support the development of written thought leadership and strategic materials, and help manage the systems and processes needed to advance complex initiatives. The ideal candidate will bring strong project management and organizational skills, sound judgment, research experience, and the ability to communicate clearly and effectively with a range of internal and external stakeholders.

Responsibilities

Lead Research-Driven Projects: Oversee and manage research-driven projects that support the team’s strategic priorities and external-facing work. Coordinate project plans, guide research processes, synthesize findings, and contribute to the development of high-quality written deliverables, including reports, briefs, presentations, and other thought leadership materials.
Support Initiative Design and Development: Partner with project leads to support the design and development of new initiatives, partnerships, and program strategies. Contribute research, planning, impact measurement, and coordination support to help shape strong concepts and move projects from early development through implementation.
Coordinate High-Visibility Convenings: Help plan and execute high-visibility meetings, workshops, convenings, and events that bring together a range of stakeholders across sectors. Support logistics, materials preparation, speaker coordination, and follow-up to ensure a high-quality and well-managed experience.
Support Innovation and Prize-Related Programming: Support the implementation of innovation-focused initiatives, including prize and challenge programs as relevant to the portfolio. Contribute to research, operations, participant engagement, and cross-functional coordination across multiple stages of program delivery.
Drive Operational Excellence: Manage the systems and processes that support effective execution across the team’s portfolio. Track timelines, deliverables, and next steps; coordinate across departments; and provide strong administrative and operational support to ensure projects advance efficiently and successfully.
Lead the execution of research projects by coordinating internal and external contributors, conducting or synthesizing background research, tracking milestones, and helping shape high-quality outputs such as reports, briefs, presentations, and other written materials.
Manage the design and development of new initiatives, partnerships, and program concepts by preparing background materials, conducting analysis, coordinating input, and helping translate ideas into actionable plans.
Develop and manage project plans, trackers, timelines, and workflows for research-driven initiatives and other team priorities, ensuring projects move forward on time and in alignment with strategic goals.
Manage the planning and execution of high-visibility meetings, workshops, convenings, ceremonies, and other events by managing logistics, coordinating with cross-functional partners, preparing materials, supporting speakers and participants, and ensuring strong follow-up.
Design innovation-focused initiatives, including incentive prize and award programs where relevant, by contributing to research, participant communications, project coordination, operational planning, and implementation across multiple stages of delivery.
Prepare agendas, briefing materials, presentations, notes, status updates, and executive-ready summaries to support internal planning, leadership engagement, and external stakeholder communications.
Duties as assigned.

Qualifications

7+ years of full-time professional experience in social impact, philanthropy, innovation, economic development, research, or related fields, with progressively increasing responsibility in project management, research, and program execution.
Demonstrated experience leading complex projects from planning through execution, including managing timelines, coordinating across teams, driving deliverables, and maintaining momentum across multiple workstreams.
Strong research and analytical experience, including the ability to conduct and synthesize qualitative and secondary research, analyze complex information, identify key insights, and translate findings into clear, useful, and actionable outputs.
Excellent writing and communication skills, with experience producing high-quality briefs, reports, presentations, memos, agendas, briefing documents, and other materials for internal and external audiences.
Strong organizational and operational skills, including experience managing convenings, coordinating logistics, maintaining systems and trackers, and supporting efficient execution across a fast-paced portfolio.
Proven ability to work effectively across project teams and functions, including collaboration with senior leaders, external partners, consultants, and cross-functional colleagues in a dynamic and deadline-driven environment.
Comfort working across a range of technology platforms and collaborative tools, including systems used for project management, virtual convenings, communications, and shared document workflows.

Personal Qualities

Detail-oriented self-starter who drives projects forward and addresses issues proactively
Capable of managing multiple tasks and projects effectively
Strong interpersonal skills with a collaborative approach to working with various stakeholders across sectors and cultures
Entrepreneurial mindset with flexibility, a positive attitude, and a commitment to continuous learning and improvement

Academic Qualifications and Technical Skills

A graduate degree in a relevant discipline is preferred, though a strong combination of experience and skills will also be considered.
Experience with incentive prizes, innovation competitions, challenge programs, accelerators, or other entrepreneurship-focused initiatives strongly preferred.
Strong written and communication skills, with the ability to clearly communicate complex topics.
High level of computer proficiency, including Microsoft Office suite, project management tools, and familiarity with CRM systems or databases.

Working Conditions & Travel Requirements

This position will work in a professional office environment on a hybrid schedule consisting of three (3) days per week reporting in-person to the Washington, DC office location (Tuesday – Thursday), with the remaining two (2) days working remotely. Please understand, this schedule is subject to change at the Institute’s sole discretion.

This person will also be required to travel occasionally to other offices and/or venues to assist with events as needed, requiring occasional work outside of traditional hours. International along with domestic travel is possible. Additionally, this position requires interacting virtually on a regular basis with Milken Institute staff based in other locations in the United States and around the world.

Note

The statements herein are intended to describe the overall nature and level of work being performed by employees and are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified. Furthermore, they do not establish a contract for employment and are subject to change at the discretion of the employer.

We are interested in qualified candidates who are eligible to work in the United States. Please note, we are not sponsoring visas at this time, being authorized to work in the U.S. is a precondition of employment.

Please submit resume and cover letter illustrating how your experience and skills will contribute to the department and any unique qualities you bring to the position. If applying via Indeed, please upload your resume and any supporting documentation as one attachment. Any application that does not include both a resume and cover letter will be rejected. If you are unable to complete this application due to a disability, contact our Human Resources department to ask for an accommodation or an alternative application process.

Our Culture

The Milken Institute is proud to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, age, disability or status as a veteran.

Every person at the Milken Institute is treated with respect, supported with resources and training, and exposed to a broad range of experiences. We foster a space for growth with opportunities to share knowledge and passion with both clients and colleagues. We are committed to building a diverse workforce and creating an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive. Our leadership is actively involved in our commitment to diversity and inclusion, and fostering a culture that creates opportunities for everyone.

Benefits