Deputy Director

Description:

Deputy Director, Energy Transition Team 

Location: 1-year fixed term contract, remote but based within Europe 

Reports to: Director, Energy 

Hours per week (average): Full-time 

Overtime status: Exempt 

 
About our organization 
We Mean Business Coalition is a global nonprofit coalition of 7 non-profit organizations and 50+ partner organizations working with the world’s most influential businesses to take action on climate change. Together we catalyze business leadership to drive policy ambition and accelerate the transition to a zero-carbon economy. 

 
Building on our successful Fossil to Clean campaign, launched in 2023, the We Mean Business Coalition and its network of partners is launching a new 4-year program focused on accelerating the shift to electrified economies. Ultimately, our focus is on ensuring electrification becomes an imperative and aligning end-use electrification and data center demand with clean power, grid readiness and economic strategy to ensure competitiveness, affordability, energy security and better livelihoods. This program will start with a global focus, with tailored work in the EU and India, while looking to expand further into other Asia starting 2027. 

 
As part of this, we are searching for an experienced and strategic leader to join our Energy Transition team as a Deputy Director. The ideal candidate combines corporate experience (or close work with companies) with a strong background in regulatory affairs, government affairs, or energy policy and regulation. 

 
The Energy Transition Team develops and directs overall strategy, coordination and execution of the coalition's programs, activities and collective corporate actions linked to specific systems. We work across energy supply, such as power; and demand, including industry, buildings, and transport. We also lead on the Electrified Economies program that brings in not only our sector-specific work, but also that of the entire organization. As part of the role, you will work with colleagues across our Policy and Communications teams to deliver a world class and transformative program. 

 
As part of this team, the Deputy Director will primarily focus on our Electrified Economies program, overseeing and coordinating C-Suite and wider business engagement across the electrification value chain while bringing deep expertise in regulatory and government affairs to help the program, partners and companies navigate—and constructively shape—the policy landscape that underpins electrification. 

 
Essential Responsibilities:  
The Deputy Director, reports to the Director, Energy and will be responsible for leading delivery on a set of program specific KPIs and organizational OKRs. Working closely with the Director, Energy, teams across the organization and with and through the WMBC coalition, the Deputy Director will: 

 
Business Engagement and Strategy 
Work with the program team to build and coordinate relationships with major corporate partners across priority sectors 
Further expand and cultivate the program’s bench of corporate spokespeople in high priority sectors and geographies in coordination with the coalition’s Business Mobilization team 
Serve as the primary relationship owner and manage the execution of an Alliance of Executive Leaders who serve as leaders and spokespeople for the program 
Oversee day-to-day operations of the Alliance and develop executive-level convenings, briefings, and collaborative initiatives 
Coordinate internally to ensure alignment between corporate engagement and advocacy strategies for the program 

Regulatory & Policy Leadership 
Monitor and analyze policy and regulatory developments affecting electrification (e.g. grid infrastructure, power markets, and clean energy deployment) translating these into actionable insights for the program and business leaders in coordination with the Energy Manager 
Identify high-impact regulatory reforms that can unlock electrification at scale 
Help shape and oversee the program’s policy and regulatory strategies and advocacy that enable economy-wide electrification at the regional and national-level and support linkages with the coalition’s international policy advocacy work. 
Build coalitions that align business leadership with ambitious and durable policy outcomes, this includes establishing and maintaining relationships with policy, advocacy and communications leads in other aligned partner organizations to identify actionable opportunities for collaboration 

Program Leadership & Team Management 
Support overall strategy and execution of the Electrified Economies program 
Supervise and mentor team members working on corporate engagement and regulatory issues within the program 
Ensure programmatic rigor, impact tracking, and alignment with organizational goals 
Contribute to fundraising, donor engagement, and external communications as needed 
Represent the organization in various coalitions, initiatives and external forums with business leaders, policymakers and partners 

Skills  
Strategic thinker: Able to connect regulatory developments, business incentives, and energy transition outcomes 
Business fluency: Understands how companies make investment and operational decisions 
Regulatory depth: Strong grasp of the regulations and policies that will drive direct electrification such as energy market design, utility business models, and policy processes 
Executive presence: Comfortable engaging C-suite leaders and senior policymakers 
Coalition builder: Experienced at aligning diverse stakeholders toward shared objectives 
Analytical rigor: Able to translate complex regulatory and technical issues into clear strategic insights 
Management experience: Experience in guiding teams, setting priorities, and delivering results 
Excellent communicator: Strong written and verbal communication skills and interpersonal skills to be able to effectively coordinate and deliver cross-departmental work 
Proficient in key tools: Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint, familiarity with online conferencing and collaboration tools, and experience with Salesforce a major plus 

Experience  
At least 10 years of relevant experience in one of more of the following: government affairs or regulatory affairs within a company; energy regulatory bodies or public utility commissions; energy or climate policy roles in government; consulting or advisory roles working closely with major companies on regulatory strategy 
Direct experience engaging with corporate executives or senior business leaders 
Deep understanding of policies and regulations that will accelerate electrification, including electricity markets, utility regulation, grid infrastructure, and clean energy policy 
Experience shaping or responding to regulatory processes at state, national, or international levels 
Excellent planner and organizer with demonstrated experience managing complex projects and/or implementing programs 
Experience working on electrification of transport, buildings or industry (preferred) 
Experience working with NGOs; campaign and/or communications experience also a plus.