Director, External Affairs

Position Summary: The Director, External Affairs plays a critical role in building and stewarding Empower’s relationships with trade associations, advocacy groups, academic institutions, and civic organizations to strengthen our public presence and policy influence. As a strategic connector and advocate, this leader helps amplify Empower’s mission to expand access to high-quality, affordable medication by aligning external engagement with social impact, brand reputation, and business growth. Through thoughtful collaboration across internal teams and external partners, this role ensures Empower remains a trusted, respected, and proactive voice in the healthcare and pharmaceutical landscape. Duties and Responsibilities: Develops and executes a comprehensive external affairs strategy that strengthens Empower’s presence among nonprofits, trade associations, civic groups, academic institutions, and healthcare coalitions. Cultivates high-value partnerships with external organizations whose missions align with Empower’s business objectives, public policy priorities, and social impact initiatives. Represents Empower at industry forums, community events, and strategic meetings, acting as a public-facing ambassador who reinforces the company’s reputation and thought leadership. Leads company engagement with trade associations and issue-based coalitions, ensuring consistent alignment of messaging, participation in key working groups, and influence on collective advocacy agendas. Builds and manages Empower’s philanthropic initiatives and civic engagement programs, including relationships with chambers of commerce, regional partnerships, and national stakeholder groups. Partners with the Government Affairs team to develop third-party ally support for advocacy campaigns, issue awareness efforts, and public policy positioning. Monitors emerging reputational issues, stakeholder narratives, and social sentiment—translating insights into proactive plans and advising senior leadership on external risks and opportunities. Collaborates closely with Communications, Marketing, Compliance, and Business Development to ensure consistent external messaging, brand alignment, and strategic positioning across all engagements. Prepares executive briefing materials, talking points, and engagement plans that support high-level outreach to government, nonprofit, and industry partners. While performing the responsibilities of the job, the employee is required to talk and hear. The employee is often required to remain in a stationary position for a significant amount of the workday and frequently use their hands and fingers to handle or feel in order to access, input, and retrieve information from the computer and other office productivity devices. The employee is regularly required to move about the office and around the corporate campus. The employee is regularly required to stand, walk, reach with arms and hands, climb or balance, and to stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl. Knowledge and Skills: Demonstrated success navigating complex stakeholder ecosystems, including government, trade associations, and community-based organizations, with strategic insight into healthcare policy and regulatory dynamics. Strong existing network and professional presence in healthcare, nonprofit, or civic communities—preferably with ties to the Houston-area, Texas, or New Jersey stakeholder landscape. Key Competencies Customer Focus: Ability to build strong customer relationships and deliver customer centric solutions. Optimizes Work Processes: Know the most effective and efficient processes to get things done, with a focus on continuous improvement. Collaborates: Builds partnerships and works collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives. Resourcefulness: Secures and deploys resources effectively and efficiently. Manages Complexity: Makes sense of complex, high quality, and sometimes contradictory information to effectively solve problems. Ensures Accountability: Holds self and others accountable to meet commitments and objectives. Situational Adaptability: Adapts approach and demeanor in real time to match shifting demands of different situations. Communicates Effectively: Develops and delivers multi-mode communications that convey a clear understanding of the unique needs of different audiences. Values People: Our people define who we are as a company, and we believe that understanding and addressing the needs of our team, clients, and community is fundamental to fostering a culture of support and growth. Quality: Quality stands at the core of our mission, reflecting our commitment to excellence in every medication we produce. Service: We are here to serve others. Every interaction with our patients, providers, employees and other stakeholders comes from a place of service. Innovation: By continuously exploring new methodologies and embracing technology, we ensure that every solution we offer is at the forefront of pharmaceutical care. Experience and Qualifications: Minimum of 10 years of progressive experience in external affairs, public affairs, corporate relations, or stakeholder engagement, with a strong preference for experience in the pharmaceutical, biotech, or healthcare sectors. Requires a bachelor’s degree in public policy, communications, business, public health, or a related field; master’s degree or Juris Doctor (JD) strongly preferred. Exceptional relationship-building, communication, and influence skills, with a proven ability to cultivate partnerships and represent organizations across civic, nonprofit, and policy-driven environments. Certificate in Legislative and Regulatory Affairs (CLRA) preferred; Certified Public Relations Counselor (CPRC) preferred; Certified Association Executive (CAE) preferred; Certificate in Corporate Social Responsibility (CCSR) preferred; registration as a state lobbyist may be required depending on jurisdiction. Demonstrated experience leveraging AI in daily work to drive efficiency, solve problems, and enhance decision-making—adept at integrating AI-powered solutions into all workflows.

Salary : $90,000 - $160,000