Humanitarian Affairs Expert​/Exercise Designer; Fort Leavenworth, KS

Humanitarian Affairs Expert/Exercise Designer (Fort Leavenworth, KS)

• Eligibility:
  Open only to U.S. citizens (SECRET clearance required)
• Position Type:
  Full-Time/Permanent
• Location:
  
  Fort Leavenworth, Kansas (in-person/no hybrid or remote)
• Salary: $100-130K/year + bonus eligible
• Apply By:
  Rolling

Motive International () is not like most Federal contractors. We are a social enterprise with a hybrid for-profit/not-for-profit business model focused entirely on a mission to mitigate global conflict and instability. We implement programs and deliver innovative, technology-enabled solutions to public and private sector clients and conduct pro-bono impact initiatives all around the world that help make societies more peaceful and prosperous.

Our small team is comprised of passionate, world-leading experts and motivated professionals who believe deeply in our mission and values. We are a certified 8(a) and Economically Disadvantaged Woman Owned Small Business (EDWOSB) based in Washington, DC, with a reputation for excellence, integrity, and fearlessly pursuing our mission.

Motive is part of a team contracted to deliver ongoing support to the U.S. Army’s Mission Command Training Program (MCTP), which designs and executes large-scale military exercises including the Warfighter Exercise (WFX) series for Army Corps and Division echelons. Motive’s contracted support to MCTP began in August 2026 and will endure for many years.

Motive’s role in MCTP is to staff the Unified Action Partner (UAP) cell, a full-time embedded team of interagency subject matter experts (SMEs) responsible for designing civil domain elements of exercise scenarios to ensure a complex, realistic training environment. UAP SMEs work on-site at MCTP HQ venworth, Kansas, where they support full exercise lifecycle design and planning tasks, then travel to CONUS and OCONUS locations where exercises are held throughout the year.

Motive welcomes applications from fully qualified candidates for the UAP SME positions, which are specialized in the following domains:

• Intelligence (ideal for candidates with prior service in/around CIA, NSA, other IC agencies)
• Foreign Affairs (ideal for candidates with prior service in/around the State Department)
• Humanitarian Affairs (ideal for candidates with prior service in/around official development assistance agencies such as USAID or the State Department, INGOs, Red Cross, or UN agencies)

Motive will review applications on a rolling basis, with priority for positions with active openings.

Highly qualified candidates will be contacted to either interview for immediate vacancies or complete steps to join our bench of pre-qualified alternates, if no positions are immediately available. Non-selected candidates may be added to Motive’s general applicant pool and may be contacted at a later date for other opportunities.

Minimum Qualifications:

• U.S. citizen with minimum SECRET security clearance
• Master’s degree
• Min. 8 years of professional experience in relevant SME domain
• Overseas professional experience in complex crisis or contingency environment
• Willingness to reside permanently in the Ft. Leavenworth, KS, area
• Ability to travel up to 20% time, including to OCONUS locations
• Exceptional communication and teamwork skills

Preferred Qualifications:

• Solid understanding of the military/civil-military operations
• Familiarity with military exercise lifecycle/exercise design or planning experience