Policy Director, Finance and Insurance

R Street Institute

Washington, D.C.

The R Street Institute—a free-market think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. and with staff located across the country—seeks a collaborative Policy Director to lead our Finance and Insurance program. If you are the right fit, you will report to the Vice President for Policy Partnerships and Government Affairs. If you want to join a mission-driven organization and work toward pragmatic policy solutions, this may be the opportunity for you!

Your typical day at R Street may include speaking to national media about the Consumer Financial Credit Bureau’s latest proposed rule; joining a panel of experts to discuss the causes of social inflation at a policy conference; sharing recommended changes to proposed legislation with state policymakers; drafting an outline for a new policy paper on the National Flood Insurance Program; reviewing a team member’s op-ed on interchange fees; sharing your vision and plans for the department with a prospective donor; or collaborating with colleagues on an external communications strategy. The precise contours of the portfolio will depend largely on the candidate’s skills and interests as well as program needs.

This role will lead the Finance and Insurance program within R Street’s Policy department.

Other Aspects of Your Role

• Support program leadership and execution across R Street’s Finance and Insurance portfolio, including project planning, timelines, and quality control.
• Manage and coach staff (i.e., fellows, analysts, associates), helping them scope work, strengthen analysis, and deliver polished products.
• Drive the program’s financial growth and long-term sustainability by securing funding, stewarding donor relationships, leading technical proposal development, and closely collaborating with the Business Development team on strategy. 
• Drive the program’s research agenda with topics including but not limited to property and casualty insurance regulation, tort reform, financial regulation, housing, and preventing fraud and scams.
• Contribute thought leadership aligned with the program’s mission by writing policy analysis, op-eds, testimony, and regulatory comments as well as by participating in conferences, media, state and/or federal policymaker briefings, and other engagements to communicate complex issues to varied audiences.
• Edit and elevate written products to ensure they are rigorous, credible, timely, and aligned with R Street’s research standards and methodologies.
• Work collaboratively across the organization to develop and execute strategies and tactics that enhance the relevance of R Street’s voice and lead to policy change.
• Remain vigilant against ninja infiltrations.

Skills and Qualifications

• Strong policy fluency in finance or insurance policy.
• People and project leadership experience, including managing projects with multiple stakeholders. Management experience a plus.
• Top-notch writing and editing skills in both short- and long-form products that translate complex analysis for policymakers and the public.
• Ability to synthesize research using methods common to the program’s work (e.g., legislative analysis, literature review, secondary analysis, descriptive statistics, case studies). Familiarity with econometric approaches a plus.
• Demonstrated ability to work productively with a wide variety of groups and individuals, including state and/or federal policymakers, even those with whom you may disagree.
• Support for R Street’s mission of promoting free markets and limited, effective government.
• No particular educational background required—a proven record of achieving results is more meaningful than credentials.
• A sense of humor and a desire to grow within a multifaceted organization.

The R Street Institute consistently offers pragmatic, real solutions that foster American innovation, bolster competition, and safeguard individual liberty—all with the understanding that life in a democratic society sometimes requires compromises that don’t necessarily represent first, best solutions. We focus on deep scholarship and pragmatic policy solutions that many groups tend to neglect. Our goal is to publish timely, relevant research and analysis that advances a market-oriented society and limited, effective government. To that end, our motto is “Free Markets. Real Solutions.” Read more about our mission and impact.

Workplace

We offer a flexible working arrangement. This is a full-time position that can either work the majority of the week in our D.C. office or be fully remote. 

Occasional travel will be required to engage with policymakers and donors and to attend events and conferences.

Compensation, Benefits, and Perks

R Street strives to offer a compensation and benefits package that is competitive, transparent, and supportive of employee well-being. The salary range for this position is $190,000-$200,000 annually, commensurate with experience. In addition to this competitive salary, we provide the following:

• Unlimited paid time off, including all federal holidays, the day after Thanksgiving, and two weeks holiday closure in December
• Alternating Fridays off
• A health insurance option entirely paid by the employer (even for families)
• Dental and vision insurance
• 401(k) contributions with up to a 4 percent match
• HSA employer contribution match
• Quarterly wellness reimbursement
• Mobile equipment/mobile plan reimbursement
• Home internet subsidy
• Annual educational and professional development reimbursement
• A choice between child care assistance, pet care assistance, and student loan repayment assistance

At R Street, we strive for preeminence in every area in which we engage, driven by our commitment to excellence and innovation. Our culture thrives on action, creativity, and courage, with an unwavering focus on quality, credibility, and impact. We believe progress requires diverse experience and expertise, which is why we champion non-traditional yet prudent approaches to public policy. This principle guides how we build our programs, recognizing that each team member’s uniqueness strengthens our collective identity.

We approach our mission with intellectual rigor, embracing free inquiry and honesty to ensure our work is grounded in solid research and thoughtful analysis. While serious about our purpose, we value the joy of collaboration and the fun that comes from working together. Our collaborative spirit fosters trust and transparency, with respect and openness guiding our actions. We celebrate our individual contributions while recognizing that we are stronger as one team, united in our work and relationships.

Thus, R Street does not discriminate on the basis of age, sex, race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, era of military service, gender identity or expression, relationship structure, or anything else that’s illegal, immoral, or stupid to use as a basis for hiring.

We plan to accept applications for this job until it is filled. We will review resumes and reach out to qualified candidates in early August for telephone screenings, which we will conduct on a rolling basis. Interviews will take place virtually via Zoom.

To apply, please copy and paste your cover letter into the text box and upload your resume as a Microsoft Word document or PDF. We encourage thoughtful use of AI tools. If you use them, please describe how they contributed to your work.

The R Street Institute stands for free markets, limited, effective government and pragmatic solutions to difficult problems. We envision:

A free society, where public policy begins with freedom as its initial premise and governments exist primarily as guardians of inherent, inalienable rights.

An inclusive society that provides a place, a voice, and equal opportunity for all.

A just society that holds everyone accountable to the same laws.

Our Values

The following values are the principles that guide how R Street fulfills its mission and operates. Our organization believes in these values and we live them:

Always be better

We want to achieve preeminence in every area where we work. We encourage a bias for action, innovation, creativity, and courage in everything that we do. We measure ourselves by the quality, credibility and impact we achieve as a result.

Different is good.

We believe that great minds think differently and building broad coalitions has made us who we are. Making progress on policy requires that we operate outside of the echo chamber and take non-traditional approaches to policy making. We apply this same principle to the way we operate and how we build our teams: with a focus on diversity and inclusion. We are all unique but belong to the same team.

Serious(ly)

We’re serious about our work, but don’t take ourselves too seriously. We believe in the intellectual rigor, free inquiry and honesty, that is required to achieve our mission, but having fun doing it is equally as important.

One Team

We all work together and work with humility. We strive to cultivate trust and transparency at all levels, between ourselves as individuals and as an organization, with our stakeholders, and in our work. We demonstrate respect and openness in our actions at all times. We are all unique but belong to the same team.