Lead, State Policy and Advocacy

Title: Lead, State Policy and Advocacy

Location: Remote | Frequent travel across states

About the Organisation

Our partner organisation is a high-growth, mission-driven non-profit working to strengthen early childhood education and community engagement across India. They work closely with both central and state governments, impacting millions of children through systemic reform and digital, community-centric interventions.

About the Role

This is a senior, full-time leadership position reporting directly to the Co-Founders. The role operates at the intersection of Early Childhood Development (ECD), public policy, and systems strengthening.

The organisation has been supporting multiple national and state-level initiatives within the early childhood ecosystem, and this role will help expand and deepen that portfolio.

The Lead, State Policy and Advocacy will steer strategic partnerships across priority states, working closely with the Co-Founders to anchor, scale, and strengthen collaborations with State Governmentsparticularly the Departments of Women and Child Development and Education.

The role includes managing state-level policy teams, responding to government requests, coordinating internal teams, and ensuring seamless execution of state partnerships.

Key Responsibilities

• Build and sustain trusted relationships with senior government stakeholders to strengthen the ECCE ecosystem.
• Lead and manage State Program Management Units (PMUs) to design, operationalise, and monitor ECD-related initiatives in collaboration with state departments.
• Support state operations teams by engaging with key stakeholders to advance organisational initiatives, including digital interventions, events, training programs, and curriculum development.
• Develop high-quality knowledge productsbriefs, strategy notes, policy documents, file notings, proposals, and research reports to guide government decision-making.
• Provide end-to-end support to state government partners across planning, coordination, drafting, research, report writing, speech writing, and M&E activities.
• Collaborate with national policy and functional teams to provide policy inputs, conduct comparative state analyses, document best practices, coordinate field visits, and support state-level priorities.
• Demonstrate ownership, initiative, and agility while delivering consistently high-quality outputs in dynamic environments.

Key Outcomes

• Strengthened the ECD ecosystem, leading to measurable improvements in developmental and learning outcomes for children aged 06 years.
• High-impact state-level initiatives and policies are driving sustainable systemic reform.
• Robust, trust-based partnerships with senior government officials and civil society stakeholders.

Required Qualifications

• 8-10 years of total work experience, including 3-5 years in senior government-facing roles within government, private, or non-profit organisations.
• Master's degree or equivalent in public policy, economics, management, or related fields.
• Strong analytical, synthesis, and communication skills with the ability to operate effectively within complex, multi-stakeholder systems.
• Excellent writing and research capabilities, including structuring and drafting high-quality documents under tight timelines.
• Proven ability to manage multiple workstreams independently and thrive in fast-paced, high-pressure environments.
• Strong alignment with the organisation's mission and values, including commitment to equity and systems change.
• Willingness to travel extensively (7-10 days per month), often at short notice, to support state-level engagements.

Preferred Criteria

• Experience in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE).

• Mission-driven, optimistic, and committed to systemic transformation.

• Experience supporting government institutions and navigating public systems.

• Prior experience (including internships) with state government departments.