Agora Industry
The global industry sector is undergoing a profound transformation, shaped by shifts in clean energy production, economic development, industrial competition, climate policy, trade policy, and geopolitical fragmentation. The question many governments are asking is how they can build low-cost, resilient and investable clean industrial systems in a world of fierce competition and uneven development.Agora Industry has built strong analytical foundations and international partnerships needed to shape how steel, chemicals, cement and other key industry sectors navigate this shift while advancing towards climate neutrality. We have developed rigorous techno-economic analysis across the EU, Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea, China and selected emerging economies.
As Agora Think Tanks and the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP) move into strategic cooperation, Agora Industry’s global team, bringing together around 25 colleagues, is entering a new phase: expanding into India, the United States, Latin America, and multilateral arenas, while deepening its analytical capabilities in industrial strategy, competition policy, industry finance and supply chain resilience in its core geographies in Europe and Asia.
We are looking for a Director, Global Industry to lead this next stage: someone who can connect rigorous analysis with political judgement, further build an international team, and position the organisation as a trusted partner to governments and institutions navigating the global industrial transformation.
To lead this transformation, we are looking for a
Director, Global Industry (f/m/d)
Full-time or part-time (min. 32 hours) | Strong preference for candidates based in one of Agora’s or Regulatory Assistance Project’s (RAP) hubs (Washington, Netherlands, Berlin, Brussels, Bangkok, Beijing, New Delhi) with option to work remotely | Requirement to spend regular and sufficient in-person time with the team, currently based predominantly in Europe, particularly Berlin | Frequent international travel required.
Your responsibilities include
As a member of the senior leadership team, you will:- Shape the organisation's strategy for the global industry programme, with accountability for analytical quality, geographic reach, and policy relevance.
- Lead and manage the global industry team, currently comprising around 25 staff, and work closely with regional directors on industry work across the organisation.
- Lead the programme’s analytical agenda across industry strategy, techno-economics, clean technologies and power, fuels and feedstocks integration, trade and standards, supply chain resilience, climate policy, industrial finance, lead markets, and the development implications of industrial transition.
- Shape international cooperation on industrial transformation, working through relevant multilateral initiatives (including G20 Industrial Decarbonisation Agenda, Climate Club, the Global Green Industrialisation Agenda, JETPs, IEA ministerial processes) to advance concrete policy design, lead market creation, financing mechanisms and cross-border coordination.
- Build a coherent global industry programme in close collaboration with regional directors, aligning priorities and sharing knowledge so that analytical work remains connected to the implementation realities of industrial system transformation on the ground.
- Represent the industry programme to governments, funders, industry associations, development institutions, and think tank partners at global and national levels.
- Manage research quality, publication output, and stakeholder communication, including media relations and expert positioning.
- Build and manage the budget, identify new funding opportunities, and develop funder relationships in support of the expanded programme.
We are looking for
- At least 15 years of relevant professional experience, including several years of management experience in an international setting with team leadership across multiple geographies.
- Strong strategic leadership on industrial transformation, including how climate policy, industrial development, competition policy, industry finance, and supply chain resilience interact, with deep expertise in at least one major area of industrial transition.
- Understanding of how industrial policy domains interact with development objectives and ability to engage credibly with policymakers across multiple regional contexts.
- Familiarity with multilateral governance processes (G20, JETP, international standards bodies) and multilateral development finance.
- Familiarity with political processes and understanding of how political decision-makers think; ability to develop and represent complex and nuanced positions across diverse institutional contexts, and proven ability to turn analytical work into policy influence.
- Collaborative leadership style appropriate for a think tank: setting direction while respecting research autonomy.
- Motivating personality who can inspire systemic, integrative thinking and work effectively across geographies and institutional cultures.
- Strong and diverse international network spanning policymakers, industry associations, funders, development finance institutions, and civil society.
- Meaningful networks in at least one major non-EU geography (India, Southeast Asia, US, Latin America, or China)
- Fluent written and spoken English; other language skills valued, particularly Hindi, Spanish, Portuguese, Mandarin, or Southeast Asian languages.
- Willingness and ability to travel frequently across the programme’s priority regions and multilateral forum locations.
We assume there are excellent candidates for this role who do not meet all criteria listed above. Maybe you have certain skills we have not thought of yet? Tell us why you are the right person for this job.
What we offer
- A high-impact senior leadership role in a mission-driven international organisation at the frontier of global industrial transformation policy.
- A diverse, international working environment with flat communication and decision-making hierarchies.
- Access to offices in Berlin, Brussels, Bangkok, Beijing and Washington for regular in-person collaboration with the team, with hybrid working options with good digital facilities.
- Flexible working hours and vacation entitlement significantly above statutory requirements.
- Professional development, a health & wellness package depending on the country of employment and access to mental health and coaching support.
- Permanent employment contract.
- Competitive compensation package.
- Support with visa and work permit applications if required.
How to apply
We look forward to receiving your application until 1st of November 2026 via the Agora website.We want an energy transition for everyone from everyone. Therefore, we are particularly pleased to receive applications from people from groups that have been underrepresented in energy and industry policy so far. We welcome applications regardless of gender and gender identity, nationality, ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability and age, and sexual orientation. For reasons of objectivity, we ask that you refrain from submitting an application photo.
As part of this, we are soliciting anonymous information on a voluntary basis regarding our applicant’s backgrounds. This information will be used only to inform future recruitment strategies and will not impact hiring decisions in any form. Your input will not be forwarded to third parties and will not be used in connection with your application. Please follow this link to participate in the survey.
https://limes.sefep.eu/index.php/833735?lang=en