Omidyar Network is a philanthropic investment firm dedicated to harnessing the power of markets to create opportunity for people to improve their lives. Established in 2004 by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam, the organization invests in and helps scale innovative organizations to catalyze economic and social change.
Omidyar Network has committed more than $1 billion to for-profit companies and nonprofit organizations that foster economic advancement and encourage individual participation across multiple initiatives, including Education, Emerging Tech, Financial Inclusion, Governance & Citizen Engagement, and Property Rights.
About the Intellectual Capital Team:
The Intellectual Capital function is dedicated to supporting strategic decision-making, exploring and incubating of potential new areas of work, commissioning cutting edge research, continuous learning and evaluating our impact. In that capacity, Intellectual Capital works directly with the initiative teams as well as on cross-cutting topics and new frontier areas for the firm to explore. We are a tightly-knit team that values intellectual rigor, diverse perspectives, and a sense of humor. Our global team consists of ~15 people across four offices.
POSITION SUMMARY:
Our externs will provide support to the team primarily in supporting our frontier-focused explorations, for example:
- Future scanning: developing the process to scan for “signals” of emergent future themes and trends, determining how to package and share those signals with the broader ON team, and building the stage-gating process to move from capturing signals to prioritizing concrete ideas for deeper exploration
- The Future of Work: understanding how work will evolve due to technological change (e.g., AI/automation) and exploring ways to address these challenges, such as tech-enabled portable benefits, next-gen approaches to organize workers, and rethinking safety nets (e.g., universal basic income, innovative cash transfers), with a focus on the United States
- Managing risks of technology: exploring the ways in which technology and the tech giants cause unintended negative consequences for society, the economy, and democracy, and how to address those issues
- Investments: managing the diligence, investment approval, and investee management processes for investments (for-profit and non-profit) that are part of our frontier-focused portfolios
- Research: producing or commissioning high-quality research and analysis to further our internal thinking or for public dissemination on issues that matter to us and can help galvanize social impact (e.g., rapid literature reviews, real-world consumer research, external publications like Constituent Voices)
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:
- A deep passion for Omidyar Network’s mission and approach to social change, and preferably some professional exposure to our focus areas
- A minimum of 2 years work experience, preferably with the following credentials:
- Experience (at least 18 months) with a top tier consultancy required – this role is ideal for people already at a consultancy with an extern/secondment program or for people taking time between consulting and going to graduate school
- Experience working on public policy, workforce development, poverty, or similar topids in the United States
- Experience working on technology and the tech sector, e.g., at a start-up or through consulting work
- Experience working on the ground in middle income and/or developing countries (India, SSA LAC, etc.)
- Experience in the private sector and/or in investing
- Excellent research and analysis skills, including experience with quantitative and qualitative research methods and research design
- Ability to switch between strategic and practical thinking, with top-class project management skills
- Clear written and oral communication skills
- Fluency in various formats (e.g. PowerPoint, Excel, Word)
- High tolerance for ambiguity, ability to work with limited day-to-day guidance
- Strong academic credentials
- Authorization to work in the US
This position will be based in Washington DC. Externs will be housed in the Intellectual Capital unit, and report to a Manager or Senior Manager.
Candidates must have authorization to work in the US.
In your cover letter, please include your preferences for: (1) office, (2) start date, and (3) duration (3 vs. 6 months)
If interested, please apply here.
