Government and Community Relations Lead

Government and Community Relations Lead

The Government and Community Relations Lead – Philadelphia/Pennsylvania is Hanwha Defense USA's lead for local and state government relations, community engagement, and public affairs in Philadelphia and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The position's primary focus is advancing and protecting our interests with the City of Philadelphia, the Commonwealth, and the civic, business, labor, and neighborhood stakeholders that surround our location. The position will be filled at the Senior Manager or Director level depending on the selected candidate's experience.

This is a relationship role first. The Lead is HDUSA's eyes and ears at the city and state level: the person who knows the Philadelphia political, civic, and business landscape, has standing relationships across it, and can translate what is happening locally into clear intelligence and recommendations for HDUSA leadership. The Lead is expected to operate with significant independence given physical distance from HDUSA headquarters, while maintaining tight alignment with the federal government relations function in Washington.

Essential duties and responsibilities include:

• Serving as HDUSA's primary representative to Philadelphia city government, including the Mayor's office, City Council, city agencies and authorities, and to relevant Commonwealth officials, legislators, and agencies in Harrisburg.
• Building and sustaining relationships with elected officials, their staff, and agency leadership.
• Leading and executing a comprehensive stakeholder engagement strategy for the shipyard and its expansion, including stakeholder mapping, targeted outreach, and plans that build public understanding and support for investment, hiring, and operations.
• Building and maintaining relationships with community leaders, neighborhood organizations, civic associations, labor, workforce and education partners, advocacy groups, the business community, and other key local stakeholders.
• Representing the company at public hearings, community meetings, civic events, and other forums where the shipyard's interests are at stake.
• Developing and driving short- and long-term community affairs initiatives, and developing strategies to build a broader profile and reputation for Hanwha in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania.
• Monitoring local political, regulatory, and community developments and reporting to HDUSA leadership on a regular cadence, identifying risks and opportunities to broader business goals and recommending action.
• Serving as an internal advocate for community interests, proactively building relationships across functions to ensure community engagement priorities are represented in facility, infrastructure, workforce, and expansion planning and decision-making.
• Supporting integrated planning by driving alignment on communications, events, announcements, and project initiatives, ensuring community engagement is embedded in cross-functional strategy rather than bolted on afterward.
• Helping manage HDUSA's external government relations consultant(s) for Philadelphia and Pennsylvania matters, setting priorities, tracking deliverables, and ensuring consultant activity is aligned with company strategy.
• Supporting communications on local and state matters, including messaging, talking points, event planning, and media engagement in coordination with corporate communications.
• Handling sensitive political, regulatory, commercial, and community information with discretion.
• Performing other duties as assigned.

Qualifications/experience include:

• At least five to ten years of relevant experience in government relations, public affairs, community engagement, economic development, campaigns, or public-facing roles.
• Deep familiarity with Philadelphia's political, civic, business, and community landscape, with established relationships across city government, Harrisburg, and local stakeholders strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience building and managing relationships with elected officials, agency leadership, community leaders, and advocacy organizations.
• Demonstrated success influencing public policy outcomes or securing governmental and community support at the local and/or state level.
• Experience managing multiple projects simultaneously and coordinating across internal and external stakeholders; strong organizational and program management skills.
• Experience working with highly confidential information.
• Experience managing external consultants or lobbyists preferred.
• Familiarity with shipbuilding, manufacturing, or the defense industrial base preferred but not required.

Education includes:

• Bachelor's degree in political science, public policy, communications, business, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.

Skills include:

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to synthesize complex or sensitive information into clear, concise briefings for senior leadership.
• Ability to represent the company credibly before government…