Document Governance Specialist, Risk

Company: International Justice Mission
Location: Washington
Posted on: April 1, 2026

Job Description:

Who We Are International Justice Mission (IJM) is the global leader in protecting vulnerable people from violence around the world. Our team of over 1,300 professionals are at work worldwide in over 30 offices. Together we are on a mission to rescue millions, protect half a billion, and make justice unstoppable. We are a global community that cares for one another. We believe that the way we work is as important as the results we achieve. We provide professional excellence with joy and celebration to all those we serve. The Need For over 25 years, IJM has pioneered the work to protect vulnerable people from violence. 9 out of 9 times in the last decade, IJM’s Justice System Strengthening Projects have reduced slavery and violence between 50 and 85% for very large populations of people in poverty. As we grow to expand our impact to protect 500 million people from violence, we are seeking a Document Governance Specialist , Risk to support the Risk organization in the design, development, and implementation of future ready , human centered Document Governance and other key risk guidance and initiatives. Document Governance is inclusive of policies, procedures, standards, and other internal guiding documents. This role combines document strategy and management, risk management and advisory, and risk enablement. The role does not include document ownership, and it does not include board level documentation. You will apply Human Centered Design (HCD) principles to describe operational, regulatory, and risk requirements, facilitating the identification and articulation of these requirements in written publications that are simple, practical, and relevant, and that help drive the behaviors (adoption, adherence, risk based decisioning) that are vital to mission success. This role is responsible for ensuring that our governing documents, as key components of our risk framework, enable our mission. This position is hybrid (onsite Tuesdays & Thursdays) if located in the Washington, DC area or remote for non-local candidates. It reports to the Global Director, Risk Leadership and is only available for candidates with the right to work in the US. Responsibilities Document Governance Influence and support a collaborative process to architect, build, implement, and manage a bespoke global Document Governance strategy tailored to the organization’s high-risk operational context that aligns with IJM’s organization values, reflects IJM’s operational realities, and drives mission success. Take a human-centered and behavior-focused approach to all document design and development efforts, prioritizing approaches and solutions designed to drive sustainable behavior change that is vital to effectively manage risks, seize opportunities presented by uncertainty, and accelerate mission success. Oversee the lifecycle of global Document Governance – e.g., scoping, stakeholder engagement and discovery, iterative drafting and testing, approval, communication, implementation and adoption, monitoring and learning, maintenance and refinement, archiving, etc. so that documents are consistent with publication benchmarks, and consistently shepherded through the evaluation, learning, and renewal process. Develop and own a process of continuous improvement of the organization’s global Document Governance framework to ensure our documents remain evergreen and user friendly. Promote an organizational mindset shift from “policy as compliance” to “guidance and requirements are risk tools,” and from “policy as prevention” to “guidance and requirements enable mission success.” Participate in and help shape the development, socialization and adoption of the organization’s risk language, risk appetite and tolerance, and newly designed or uplifted components of the risk management framework to foster a culture of risk-based decision making and proactive risk management across all levels of the organization. Risk Management and Advisory Work with senior leaders and pertinent subject matter experts to guide, facilitate , and support the selection and drafting of governing documents in accordance with the principles and processes of the new document and risk management framework. Develop a reputation for being a well-informed, supportive, pragmatic, and solution-oriented advisor for document owners, and communicate proactively and effectively with all relevant customers and stakeholders at each “moment that matters” in the document lifecycle so that your knowledge, trust, and relationships facilitate ease and wise decision-making in the document uplift process. Bring a sense of the possible, with objective and experience-based grounding in the requirements, when helping to shape our document corpus so that we can achieve our goal of creating user-friendly documents that enable mission success. Take a human-centered approach to delivering results in every responsibility area, actively listening to, engaging, empathizing, collaborating, and co-creating with internal customers and other stakeholders, bringing value as an advisor. Facilitate the contextualization and harmonization of governing documents across regions and functions, striking an appropriate balance between needed global consistency/standardization and local requirements. Risk Enablement Enable IJM's vision of protecting half a billion people by facilitating the stewardship of governing documents, thereby enabling those who need to rely on the documents as they take courageous action on mission. Prioritize governing document development that drives business success by helping mitigate the greatest threats or unlock the greatest opportunities to scale the protection of people living in poverty from violence. Ensure we take a risk-based approach to drafting governing documents that support the organization’s risk appetite and tolerance. Investigate what is working well in document management at IJM and how we can do more of it. Where possible, develop strategies based on these proven blueprints, aiding in a pragmatic focus on the pursuit of the possible. Identify where the organization can remove friction points and administrative bottlenecks in document publication and adherence, so that the desired behavioral changes, requirements, and guidance are the path of least resistance for document users to adopt. Measurement, Learning, and Reporting Support, and at times own, the establishment of mechanisms to monitor governing document implementation, effectiveness, and user experience, and to report on same. Support the development of metrics and dashboards to assess governing document effectiveness in achieving targeted vital behavior change and management of targeted risk, and incorporate assessment learnings into continuous improvement practices. Support Compliance and MERL assessments from a document governance perspective. Collaboration & Partnership: Develop strategic partnerships across the organization with relevant SMEs, program and country teams, external consultants, and peers across the division to create open dialogue and relationships based on trust that will facilitate informed, valid, integrated, and relevant transformation of our governing documents. Take a human-centered approach to gathering information and delivering results in every responsibility area, deeply listening to, engaging, empathizing, and collaborating with internal customers and other stakeholders to equip and understand their needs and the impact of governing documents on their work. Participate in a variety of cross-functional, initiative-specific project teams to represent and contribute on behalf of the risk organization and our efforts. Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field. 10 years of broad experience in policy or other governing document drafting, development, and lifecycle management, preferably with a risk-based approach in a global, mission-driven organization. Work experience in project or program management. Experience with Human-Centered Design (Design Thinking), with Systems Thinking, or in User Experience design strongly preferred. Demonstrated ability to successfully design for behavior change. Demonstrated ability to produce deliverables that are practical, intuitive, accessible, easy to implement, and experienced by internal customers as elegant solutions to significant workday problems rather than as initiatives to be implemented or tick-box exercises. Proven track record of successfully building relationships and trust with stakeholders as users, customers, collaborators, and as co-creators. Exceptional cross-cultural communication and facilitation skills with a proven ability to influence opinions and decisions at all organizational levels. Critical thinker with a growth mindset. Demonstrated success in solving complex, multi-stakeholder challenges, navigating ambiguity and cross-functional projects, and designing scalable frameworks or operating models that drive behavior change. Deep experience in agile delivery while leading enterprise-wide change. A track record of working in or consulting for the Human Rights, Humanitarian, Development, or International NGO sector, with a grasp of how this environment presents unique governance challenges and opportunities. Critical Qualities: Eager commitment to IJM's Core Values: Christian, Professional and Bridge- Building; You are kind, patient, and gracious when working across cultures. You have the ability to travel domestically and internationally on an occasional and short-term basis. Your writing is clear, concise, simple, objective , and you are able to convey complex information efficiently and accessibly for a broad audience and range of reading levels and English language proficiencies . You are a collaborative problem-solver, eager to listen and understand the nuances of feedback and roadblocks. Your strategic thinking strength is balanced with your drive to execution, and your advisory work is centered on relationships. You are easily able to learn quickly, maintaining curiosity and openness as the landscape and environment become familiar. You utilize your strength in learning to communicate, educate and integrate lessons learned into every document uplift effort. Application Process: Upload Resume, Cover Letter & Statement of Faith* in one PDF document . *What is a statement of faith? A statement of faith should describe your Christian faith and how you see it as relevant to your involvement with IJM. The statement can either be incorporated into the cover letter or submitted as a separate document and should include, at a minimum, a description of your spiritual disciplines (prayer, study, etc.) and your current fellowship or place of worship. What does IJM have to offer? Comprehensive Medical/Dental/Vision benefits Monthly commuter and parking benefits in the DC metro area Retirement benefit options Paid leave starting at 23 days 12 holidays (plus early release the day prior) Daily, quarterly, and annual community spiritual formation Robust staff care resources IJM holds strict safeguarding principles and a zero tolerance to violations of the Safeguarding Policy, Protection against Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment Policy, and Code of Ethics. Candidate selection is based on technical competence, recruitment, selection and hiring criteria subject to assessing the candidates value congruence and thorough background, police clearance, and reference check processes. At IJM, we’re committed to building a diverse workforce through fair and equitable employment practices. IJM encourages people of any race, color, age, sex, marital status or political ideology to apply for employment. While we welcome everyone into this work, we truly believe that the work we are doing is God’s work, not our own, and practice spiritual disciplines together daily. That’s why we legally require under SEC. 2000e-1 [Section702] of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that all employees practice a mature orthodox Christian faith, as defined by the Apostles’ Creed. IJM requires a background check, police clearance and thorough review of references with an employment offer and/or employment contract.

Keywords: International Justice Mission, Chantilly , Document Governance Specialist, Risk, Legal , Washington, Virginia