Senior Public Affairs Opinion Writer (PART TIME)

Brief Job Overview

This position is working at 50% capacity (part time) for approx. 20 hours a week, and requires a Monday-Thursday schedule, 5 hrs/day. This role will work onsite in Rockville, MD 2 days a week and offer remote work the other days.

Key Responsibilities

• Propose and shape thought leadership themes and content based on what influential policymakers, regulators, and global health leaders need to understand about implications of policy developments, regulatory proposals, supply chain vulnerabilities, and medicine quality challenges.
• Write and edit a wide range of public affairs and thought leadership content, including: Bylines and op-eds, Blogs and LinkedIn thought leadership, Talking points, presentations, and executive remarks.
• Develop supporting public affairs materials such as backgrounders, FAQs, and issue briefs, as needed.
• Partner closely with External Communications and Global External Affairs leaders to drive editorial strategy for key policy issues by recommending narrative frames, positioning, and content types most likely to influence external dialogues.
• Build and maintain an editorial calendar, proactively pitching topics and story ideas aligned with advocacy and thought leadership priorities.
• Balance proactive content planning with the ability to respond quickly to emerging issues or short-turn requests.
• Regularly interview internal subject matter experts and review source materials to extract clear, compelling narratives.
• Navigate review and approval processes involving legal, regulatory, policy, scientific, and executive stakeholders.
• Incorporate appropriate feedback while maintaining clarity, neutrality, and narrative coherence.
• Ensure content aligns with USP’s brand narrative, voice, and tone —credible, and appropriate for audiences.
• Apply sound judgment in communications, avoiding overstatement and maintaining accuracy and balance.
• Manage multiple projects simultaneously in a fast-paced environment with competing priorities.

Who is USP Looking For?

• Demonstrated understanding of our mission, commitment to excellence through inclusive and equitable behaviors and practices, ability to quickly build credibility with stakeholders, along with the following competencies and experience:
• 7+ years of experience as a writer in one or more of the following environments: Public affairs or issues-focused communications agency, Corporate issues or external communications, Government or legislative communications, Reputable news service or journal.
• Experience writing for highly scrutinized industries (e.g., healthcare, life sciences, policy, energy).
• Experience writing about policy, regulatory, or scientific issues related to public health, pharmaceuticals, medicine quality, or supply chain resiliency strongly preferred.
• Exceptional writing and editing skills, with the ability to: Write under ambiguity, Shift tone, issue framing, and point of view as needed, Capture executive-level voice and intent, Strong interviewing and synthesis skills — able to “pull the story through” from conversations and source materials, Ability to quickly understand and articulate USP’s perspective on priority issues and translate them into accessible, persuasive narrative frames, Exceptional judgment in navigating nuance and accuracy when writing for policy-sensitive or highly scrutinized environments, Demonstrated ability to capture the unique voices of multiple executives and leaders, ensuring each piece reflects both individual perspective and USP’s organizational narrative, Strong stakeholder management skills and comfort navigating complex review processes, Ability to manage multiple topics and deadlines in a fast-paced environment.

Working Style & Collaboration

• The ideal candidate brings a strategist’s instincts: anticipating narrative needs before they are requested, pushing thinking forward, and identifying opportunities to shape external conversations rather than reacting to them.
• This role sits within the External Communications team and works closely with colleagues across policy, regulatory, scientific, and executive functions.
• The role requires strong sense of urgency and editorial judgment, paired with an understanding of broader communications strategy.
• Success requires curiosity, flexibility, and the ability to operate effectively in both planned and reactive communications environments.

Additional Desired Preferences

• A self-directed thinker who thrives on ambiguity and proactively finds clarity.
• A builder of ideas who connects dots, not just words.
• Experience supporting advocacy, public affairs, or thought leadership campaigns.
• Comfort working across multiple issue areas simultaneously.
• Ability to balance strategic understanding with hands-on execution.

Supervisory Responsibilities

None, this is an individual contributor role.

Benefits

• Base Salary Range: USD $127,102.00 – $156,550.00 annually.
• Target Annual Bonus: % Varies based on level of role.
• Individual compensation packages are based on various factors unique to each candidate’s skill set, experience, qualifications, equity, and other job-related reasons.

Compensation

Please note that this base salary range is reflective of full time hours and will be calculated accordingly for part time.

Note

USP does not accept unsolicited resumes from 3rd party recruitment agencies and is not responsible for fees from recruiters or other agencies except under specific written agreement with USP.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities

This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights (https://www.eeoc.gov/poster) notice from the Department of Labor.