How to Apply

Perrett Laver has been exclusively retained by The Rockefeller Foundation for this search. #LI-DNI

To apply, please submit your CV and a cover letter outlining how your experience aligns with the role description and person specification via the following link: https://plusportal.perrettlaver.com/VacancyDetail/abcf7c4b-afcc-8828-37d0-3a217fa3b665

Please note that applications submitted directly to The Rockefeller Foundation will NOT be considered.

All conversations and correspondence will be treated with the utmost confidentiality.

Application Deadline: Friday, June 19, 2026, at 12:00 PM Bangkok Time.

Position Overview

The Asia Regional Office for The Rockefeller Foundation achieves the Foundation’s priority objectives in the region by driving network collaborations and partnerships, having an ear to the ground, and expanding the influence of the organization within the Asia region. This includes working to both facilitate large-scale impact in Asia in partnership with different initiative teams within the Foundation, but also to seed nimble and trusted networks within the region to truly capitalize on Asia’s philanthropic and development potential for human welfare across the globe. The Managing Director will serve as a regional deputy to the Senior Vice President and is a critical strategic partner and leader in this effort.

The Managing Director will act both independently and represent the Foundation as directed, co-own the development and execution of the Asia regional strategy, and run the operating system of the Asia office. The role requires leading, managing, and implementing the influence and advocacy strategy for the Foundation in Asia. The Managing Director is also responsible for exploring potential collaborations from other Asian geographies to spread the Foundation’s mission across Asia.

Work Schedule: This role is on a hybrid work schedule, and required to be in the office on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. This role will require the ability to travel.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

Internal Program Coordination (50%): Act as the central coordination point between regional stakeholders and global program teams to ensure effective implementation of initiatives.

• Work closely with the SVP to shape and advance the Foundation’s regional strategy, ensuring alignment across strategic priorities, partnerships, and programmatic execution.
• Act as a strategic integrator between global strategy and regional execution to bring Asia’s voice and intelligence to the organization and translate the enterprise strategies into a coherent Asia narrative and execution plan, including resource mobilization.
• Provide forward-looking strategic intelligence and contextual analysis of regional political, economic, and development landscapes to inform programmatic priorities and institutional positioning.
• Ensure that regional engagements contribute to institutional learning, helping translate field insights into global strategy refinement.
• Facilitate collaboration across internal teams to ensure alignment, integration, and effective implementation of regional initiatives.
• Identify and support opportunities for partnerships, innovation, and investments, while providing programmatic oversight to grantees and partners, including management of and quality assurance of programmatic and policy outputs.
• Responsible for the design and coordination of leadership visits and regional marquee events, including AsiaXchange, in coordination with global teams, to advance institutional priorities, partnerships, and visibility.

External Engagement and Partnerships (20%): Support the Senior Vice President as a representative in the region, stepping in as needed in place of the SVP, to strengthen the Foundation’s influence, partnerships, and visibility.

• Manage a select group of priority external relationships.
• Help shape the RF’s regional strategy and positioning, working closely with the SVP to identify emerging opportunities, risks, and high-leverage moments across the region and translate these into actionable regional priorities.
• Drive ecosystem orchestration by convening and sustaining strategic relationships with key regional stakeholders and positioning the Foundation as a trusted thought partner in the region.
• Identify and cultivate strategic partnerships, collaborations, and co-investment opportunities to amplify impact.
• Manage a select group of priority external relationships.
• Represent the organization in high-level engagements with governments, multilateral institutions, development partners, philanthropic organizations, private sector leaders, and civil society, while strengthening the Foundation’s reputation and visibility through strategic forums, convenings, and communications.
• Provide public thought leadership and ensure effective implementation of regional strategy and uphold high standards of quality and coherence across partnerships, engagements, and programmatic initiatives.

Asia Regional Office Operations (30%): Provide overall leadership and management of the regional office to ensure operational excellence and alignment with organizational priorities.

• Oversee regional operational planning, including annual budgets and resource allocation, ensuring alignment with strategic priorities and optimal deployment of resources.
• Partner with the SVP to foster a collaborative and inclusive culture, with a strong focus on team cohesion, capability building, and overall staff development and engagement.
• Coordinate with global operational functions (finance, HR, legal, security, communications) to ensure smooth regional operations.
• Collaborate closely with teams across the Foundation, including those based in New York, to ensure effective knowledge flow, timely inputs, and regular updates on regional progress.

Education, Experience, and Skills

• A Master’s degree or higher in public policy administration, international development, international relations, economics, social science, or a related field.
• A minimum of 12 years of professional experience working at a senior level in policy engagement and partnership roles in Asia, with demonstrated experience in network-building and external representation across country, regional, and global settings. Familiarity across multiple Asian markets is preferable.
• Strong ability to engage diverse stakeholders with diplomacy and communicate effectively across multicultural contexts.
• Proven success in independently managing senior government and multilateral relationships (i.e., beyond representation).
• Demonstrated experience in driving large-scale collaborations, particularly with development finance institutions, multilateral organizations, and philanthropies.
• Demonstrated ability to shape and influence agendas, applying strong systems thinking and analytical capability to translate complex trends and policy shifts into strategic direction and actionable partnerships.
• Proven ability to manage complex plans and deliver results, translating strategy into coherent and actionable programs.
• Experience managing projects, consultancies, and budgets, while fostering a collaborative and high-performing team culture.
• Fluency in English. Proficiency in other Asian regional languages is a plus.
• Deep commitment to the Foundation’s mission, values, and fiduciary responsibility, with a strong sense of financial stewardship.
• Exceptional communication and presentation skills, with experience engaging executive leadership, boards, and external partners.
• High energy, integrity, and dedication to excellence, consistently producing work of the highest quality.

Competencies

• Action Oriented: Takes on new opportunities and tough challenges with a sense of urgency, high energy, and enthusiasm.
• Collaborates: Builds partnerships and works collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives.
• Manages Complexity: Makes sense of complex, high quantity, and sometimes contradictory information to effectively solve problems.
• Nimble Learning: Learns through experimentation when tackling new problems, using both successes and failures as learning fodder.
• Strategic Mindset: Sees ahead to future possibilities and translates them into breakthrough strategies.
• Develops Talent: Develops people to meet both their career goals and the organization's goals.

About The Rockefeller Foundation

The Rockefeller Foundation is a pioneering philanthropy built on collaborative partnerships at the frontiers of science, technology, and innovation that enable individuals, families, and communities to flourish. We make big bets to promote the well-being of humanity in food, health, energy, and finance, including through our public charity, RF Catalytic Capital (RFCC). For more information, sign up for our newsletter at www.rockefellerfoundation.org/subscribe and follow us on X @RockefellerFdn and LinkedIn @the-rockefeller-foundation.

As an organization, we focus on six values to advance our culture and continue our success. We are dedicated to being Transparent, Optimistic, Accountable, Collaborative, Trusted, and Equitable. We expect all employees at the Foundation to contribute by developing their unique perspectives and talent, challenging conventional wisdom through evidence and reason, and amplifying marginalized voices.

The Rockefeller Foundation is committed to the principles of equal employment opportunity and compliance with all federal, state, and local laws concerning employment discrimination, including the Americans with Disabilities Act. To this end, the Foundation ensures equal opportunity to all employees and applicants regardless of race, color, age, gender, sexual orientation, religion, marital status, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, lawful alien status, physical, mental, and medical disability, veteran status, liability for service in the United States Armed Forces, or any other protected status.

The Rockefeller Foundation is an Equal Opportunity Employer.