Public Sector Lead (SF/DC)

At Persona, we're building the first universal and comprehensive identity infrastructure to help businesses of all sizes better serve and protect their end users' identities. Our identity platform enables businesses to collect and manage their end users' personal information securely, verify that their end users are who they say they are, analyze and detect fraud and abuse, and pull sensitive reports about their end users in a privacy-centric way. In a world where consumer behaviors are changing and privacy and identity are taking on a new meaning, we want to help businesses find their superpowers and do it while putting their end users, the people, first.

About the role
As the Public Sector Lead, you will lead Persona on our mission to promote equitable access to government services, reduce taxpayer waste, and improve operational efficiencies of state and federal offices. You will be integral to scaling up Persona’s presence with agencies, as well developing Persona’s public policy and government relations practice. From the get-go, you will build relationships with lawmakers, regulators and agencies, source and drive deals, and advocate for Persona across digital identity policymaking.

This role requires a deep understanding of our industry, our product, and different types of government relations and business development motions. This is an ideal role for someone with experience working with state and federal government, experience with business development and policymaking , and a desire to scale up a new practice. This role can be based in San Francisco, CA, or Washington, DC.

What you'll achieve

• Lead Persona’s public sector practice across state and federal sales, policymaking, and government relations
• Identify and pursue state and federal business opportunities, including contracts, grants, and reseller partnerships, and serve as the business lead on for proposals and responses to government solicitations
• Develop and execute strategies to influence federal legislation, regulations, and policies that impact Persona’s business interests
• Monitor and analyze legislative and regulatory development in the digital identity space, providing timely updates and recommendations to senior leadership
• Serve as the primary point of contact for state and federal government stakeholders, including elected officials, regulatory bodies, and other agency representatives
• Work closely with Sales, Product and Marketing as you lead engagements with customers, enabling a product feedback loop, and helping deploy new product messaging to the market
• Establish thought leadership & coalition building within our industry, and have the opportunity to represent Persona at industry-leading events, government meetings, and hearings
• Build relationships with decision-makers both virtually and in-person (~25% of this role will include travel for in-person engagements, conferences, and industry events)

What you'll bring to Persona

• You have 7+ years of experience in public policy, government relations, federal sales, or a related field (additional military or public service experience is a plus)
• You have familiarity with federal acquisition regulations, government contracting processes, and working with public policy consultants, contractors, resellers and lobbyists
• You have a strong desire to build, and to do so in a scrappy manner that inspires and motivates your teammates and others around you
• You have the ability and desire to deeply understand our market, industry, and core use cases of fraud and compliance
• You have the strategic sense and skills to see the big picture, but are also tactical enough to execute, own and operationalize deals on a day-to-day basis
• You are fluent in the lifecycle of a customer, from discovery and evaluation, through commercialization and post-launch account management; and know how to communicate and negotiate with external parties
• You are able to travel as needed, often to Washington DC and other key locations, for in-person engagements
• You have strong communication and interpersonal skills, executive presence, and attention to detail
• You have a growth mindset, ability to receive and act on feedback, and a sense of humor

Compensation & Equity
For this role, the estimated base salary range is between $140,000 - $180,000. Base salaries are just one component of the total compensation package and are determined by a number of factors such as years of experience, expertise, qualifications and more. In addition to base salary, we offer competitive equity packages that play a big part in recognizing you for the huge impact you will have on helping us achieve our mission. Please note, the salary range is a guideline that is subject to change without notice.

Benefits and Perks
Persona offers a wide-range of thoughtful and inclusive benefits for this role, including medical, dental, and vision, 3% 401(k) contribution, unlimited PTO, quarterly mental health days, family planning benefits, professional development stipends, wellness benefits, among others.

While we believe competitive compensation and benefits are a critical aspect of you deciding to join us, we do hope you consider why our core values and culture are right for you. If you’d like to better understand what it’s like working at Persona, feel free to check out our reviews on Glassdoor.

Diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging
At Persona, we strive to put diversity and inclusion at the forefront of everything we do, reflecting our core values. Our DEIB Employee Resource Group seeks to build a diverse and inclusive team that fosters an environment where each Personerd feels empowered to bring their unique differences to work and achieve their full innovative potential. Our hope is that by fostering such an environment, we strengthen our business and relationships by putting people first.

We strive to promote a culture that celebrates diversity and inclusiveness regardless of, but not limited to, race, gender, sexual orientation, family status, religion, ethnicity, national origin, physical disability, veteran status, or age.