Vice President, Government Affairs & Policy

At Western Digital, our vision is to power global innovation and push the boundaries of technology to make what you thought was once impossible, possible.

At our core, Western Digital is a company of problem solvers. People achieve extraordinary things given the right technology. For decades, we’ve been doing just that—our technology helped people put a man on the moon and capture the first-ever picture of a black hole.

We offer an expansive portfolio of technologies, HDDs, and platforms for business, creative professionals, and consumers alike under our Western Digital®, WD®, WD_BLACK™ Brands.

We are a key partner to some of the largest and highest-growth organizations in the world. From enabling systems to make cities safer and more connected, to powering the data centers behind many of the world’s biggest companies and hyperscale cloud providers, to meeting the massive and ever-growing data storage needs of the AI era, Western Digital is fueling a brighter, smarter future.

Western Digital is seeking a Vice President of Government Affairs and Policy to build an impactful government relations program and team to advance the company’s public policy agenda and represent the company’s interests on government policy at the federal, state and local level.  Based in Washington, D.C., this is an opportunity to establish, grow and lead the company’s presence in Washington, D.C. and a global team. The Vice President will develop and execute strategies to build Western Digital’s visibility among government and public policy stakeholders, promote its public policy priorities, and shape public dialogue on critical business and technology issues in the data storage industry.  A successful candidate will have proven management, leadership and communication skills, as well as strong, high-level relationships with policymakers and officials in Washington, D.C. The position will report to the Vice President, Government Affairs, Securities and Corporate Governance.

 Responsibilities

• Lead and grow a corporate government relations function and team
• Build Western Digital’s presence in Washington, D.C. to develop its brand in the policy and political spheres as a thought leader on issues impacting the company and industry
• Develop, execute, and promote government relations strategies, outreach and advocacy capabilities in Washington, D.C. and in those countries or jurisdictions where the company has strategic interests
• Assist in the development and adoption of legislation and regulations in line with company and industry interests
• Establish trusted relationships with key business partners across the company to help identify and inform advocacy priorities and objectives
• Establish, leverage and maintain relationships with government officials, industry groups, public policy organizations, think tanks, and other stakeholders to support Western Digital’s business objectives
• Work cross functionally across all aspects of the business to understand and identify legislative, regulatory and policy risks and opportunities to the business and execute strategies to manage those risks and capitalize on potential opportunities
• Develop expertise on a wide variety of legislative, regulatory and policy issues impacting Western Digital’s business and timely advise senior executives on such developments and impacts
• Facilitate senior executives’ preparation for meetings with government and industry stakeholders and attend such meetings, as necessary
• Identify key hearings, conferences and industry organizations and contribute to Western Digital’s informed and active participation to establish the company as a thought leader in policy debates affecting the company’s business and interests
• Prepare various policy materials for internal and external use with stakeholders, including position statements, reports, updates, briefing packages and talking points
• Manage correspondence with government officials and policy stakeholders to ensure it is consistent with Western Digital’s positions on key issues
• In close cooperation with legal counsel and the Ethics & Compliance team, identify and create policies and procedures related to government interaction and political activities to create awareness of requirements and support compliance
• Manage lobbyists, consultants and the government affairs budget

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in law, government, public policy or related field

• 15+ years of experience in government affairs, including experience in a multinational corporate government affairs department
• Congressional, agency and/or White House experience preferred, with strong bipartisan House and Senate relationships with leadership and committees
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain relationships with legislators, regulators, agencies and other government leaders
• Significant knowledge and understanding of federal legislative and regulatory processes, legislative and executive policymaking processes, and policy developments impacting the data storage industry
• Proven ability to set the direction and strategy for a government affairs function and to develop and execute strategy and innovative solutions
• Demonstrated ability to incorporate public policy with business strategy and propose practical business solutions, including creating opportunities to advance corporate objectives and grow revenue
• Experience working for a technology company or experience in the data storage industry, particularly in the policy area, is preferred
• Demonstrated experience building and managing a high-performance and collaborative team
• Detail-oriented, self-initiating, well-organized and capable of managing multiple projects simultaneously and independently
• Strong project management skills necessary to lead cross-functional projects and drive them to completion effectively and timely
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to understand and translate complex and potentially technical concepts into simple, but effective statements for internal and external stakeholders
• Committed to growth mindset and continuous improvement
• Understanding of compliance laws regulating political activities
• Excellent oral, written communication and presentation skills with the demonstrated ability to communicate effectively at all levels of the company, including senior executives and the Board of Directors and ability to influence/persuade external stakeholders
• Strong sense of ownership and accountability in managing functional objectives, staff, and internal and external stakeholders

Western Digital is committed to providing equal opportunities to all applicants and employees and will not discriminate against any applicant or employee based on their race, color, ancestry, religion (including religious dress and grooming standards), sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, breastfeeding or related medical conditions), gender (including a person’s gender identity, gender expression, and gender-related appearance and behavior, whether or not stereotypically associated with the person’s assigned sex at birth), age, national origin, sexual orientation, medical condition, marital status (including domestic partnership status), physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, protected medical and family care leave, Civil Air Patrol status, military and veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. We also prohibit harassment of any individual on any of the characteristics listed above. Our non-discrimination policy applies to all aspects of employment. We comply with the laws and regulations set forth in the "Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal” poster. Our pay transparency policy is available here.

Western Digital thrives on the power and potential of diversity. As a global company, we believe the most effective way to embrace the diversity of our customers and communities is to mirror it from within. We believe the fusion of various perspectives results in the best outcomes for our employees, our company, our customers, and the world around us. We are committed to an inclusive environment where every individual can thrive through a sense of belonging, respect and contribution.

Western Digital is committed to offering opportunities to applicants with disabilities and ensuring all candidates can successfully navigate our careers website and our hiring process. Please contact us at [email protected] to advise us of your accommodation request. In your email, please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting as well as the job title and requisition number of the position for which you are applying.

Based on our experience, we anticipate that the application deadline will be (3 months from posting), although we reserve the right to close the application process sooner if we hire an applicant for this position before the application deadline. If we are not able to hire someone from this role before the application deadline, we will update this posting with a new anticipated application deadline.

#LI-JS1

Compensation & Benefits Details

• An employee’s pay position within the salary range may be based on several factors including but not limited to (1) relevant education; qualifications; certifications; and experience; (2) skills, ability, knowledge of the job; (3) performance, contribution and results; (4) geographic location; (5) shift; (6) internal and external equity; and (7) business and organizational needs.
• The salary range is what we believe to be the range of possible compensation for this role at the time of this posting.  We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and this range is only applicable for jobs to be performed in California, Colorado, New York or remote jobs that can be performed in California, Colorado and New York.  This range may be modified in the future.
• You will be eligible to participate in Western Digital’s Short-Term Incentive (STI) Plan, which provides incentive awards based on Company and individual performance.  Depending on your role and your performance, you may be eligible to participate in our annual Long-Term Incentive (LTI) program, which consists of restricted stock units (RSUs) or cash equivalents, pursuant to the terms of the LTI plan. Please note that not all roles are eligible to participate in the LTI program, and not all roles are eligible for equity under the LTI plan. RSU awards are also available to eligible new hires, subject to Western Digital’s Standard Terms and Conditions for Restricted Stock Unit Awards.
• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid vacation time; paid sick leave; medical/dental/vision insurance; life, accident and disability insurance; tax-advantaged flexible spending and health savings accounts; employee assistance program; other voluntary benefit programs such as supplemental life and AD&D, legal plan, pet insurance, critical illness, accident and hospital indemnity; tuition reimbursement; transit; the Applause Program, employee stock purchase plan, and the Western Digital Savings 401(k) Plan.
• Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole discretion, consistent with the law.