Solicitation No.: 72012125R00001 for U.S. Personal Services Contractor (USPSC), Senior Communications Advisor, GS-15, USAID/Ukraine

The Senior Communications Advisor (SCA) reports directly to the Deputy Mission Director (DMD) of the USAID/Ukraine. The Mission is responsible for the development, implementation, and oversight of USAID-funded activities operating in Ukraine. This is USAID’s largest and most complex Mission in the Europe and Eurasia region, with over $4 billion dollars of funding appropriated to respond to Russia’s full-scale invasion and over 40 distinct activities. Due to the region’s strategic importance to the U.S. Government (USG), the Mission receives a high number of senior-level official visitors, works closely with the Embassy interagency, host government, and civil society actors, and places a high importance on communication and outreach to advance USG priorities and highlight the impact of the USG’s development efforts.

The Advisor’s mandate is to strengthen public understanding of USAID’s goal of helping Ukraine advance as a sovereign, independent, democratic, and prosperous society free to choose its own path forward. This is done by supporting technical offices in creating communications products that increase awareness among in-country, regional, and international audiences of the depth and breadth of USAID-funded assistance programs in Ukraine. The Senior Communications Advisor ("Advisor") will be a key member of the Mission’s Senior Management Team, supervising the Development Outreach and Communications (DOC) team (housed within Office of Strategic Engagement OSE) whose primary objective is to generate greater public awareness about, and support for, U.S. assistance to Ukraine, including the Mission’s response to Russia’s illegal and unjustified invasion. Other major responsibilities include developing and implementing integrated, highly-effective communications strategies and campaigns; developing/writing/editing all external Mission high-level communications and outreach materials (in collaboration with the respective technical offices, the Embassy Public Affairs section, and others) to various external audiences; planning, carrying out, and serving as the control person for trips by high-level visitors; preparing, overseeing, and supervising the creation of high quality briefing materials, scene setters, and other materials to effectively communicate USAID's work and advance the impact of operations and further USG policy objectives; developing, monitoring, and improving Mission outreach and communications tools, including social and digital media; and planning, scheduling, and executing public events, conferences, seminars, press conferences, interviews, and other public-facing activities. The Advisor will provide expert communications advice and support to Mission priorities.    

The Advisor serves as the OSE Office Director and is required to proactively plan and execute his/her time to maximize the effectiveness and impact of communications efforts. S/he must balance a large variety of needs across the DOC portfolio and with USAID’s technical offices, Front Office, Washington colleagues, the interagency, Implementing Partners, host country and international media, civil society, the private sector, and the host government.  S/he will interact on a daily basis with the U.S. Embassy Public Affairs Office (PAO) and others to ensure that USAID efforts are aligned with and mutually reinforcing of U.S. Embassy priorities and programs and that staff are aware of and coordinate with USAID activities.  S/he will also serve as the principal liaison with other USAID colleagues, including the Legislative and Public Affairs Bureau (LPA) and Europe and Eurasia (E&E) Bureau communications staff in Washington, D.C.