Strategic Policy & Enterprise Risk Lead

Administration & Operations; Fairfax (VA); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

George Mason University’s Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) department seeks a Policy & Planning Specialist 2 to lead the policy lifecycle from development to renewal and governance anchoring across university operations. This role focuses on clear, compliant policy language aligned with strategic goals and includes significant cross-functional leadership responsibilities.

The Manager, University Policy and Enterprise Risk will collaborate with the CRO, policy owners, internal audit, and legal

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in related field or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 5–7 years in policy management, ERM, compliance coordination, or organizational governance.
• Experience with governance committees, policy owners, auditors, or risk stewards.
• Experience developing training materials, process documentation, or guidance related to policy, compliance, or risk practices.
• Experience using project management or risk tracking tools, workflow systems, or document management platforms.
• Knowledge of enterprise risk management frameworks (e.g., COSO ERM, ISO 31000) and higher education governance/compliance environments.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including policy drafting and executive-level reporting.

Responsibilities

• Policy Development, Management & Governance Support: coordinates the full lifecycle of institutional policies, drafts/revises policies, manages review processes, publishes policies, and archives.
• Maintains policy repository and ensures version control and clarity in policy language.
• Provides guidance to policy owners on required processes, templates, timelines, and governance structures.
• Contributes to policy management efficiency by updating practices and approaches as needed.
• Enterprise Risk Management: supports ERM framework improvements, identifies and prioritizes institutional risks, maintains risk registers and data, and proposes mitigation strategies.
• Communication & Collaboration: develops policy-specific communication plans, trains stakeholders, collaborates with internal audit, compliance, legal, and policy teams, and drives accountability for deliverables across cross-functional stakeholders.

Skills

Policy management

Enterprise risk management

Governance

Communication

Project management

Stakeholder engagement

Analytical thinking

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent

Master’s degree (preferred)

Tools

Policy management systems

Risk tracking tools

Workflow systems

Document management platforms

Job description

George Mason University’s Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) department seeks a Policy & Planning Specialist 2 to lead the policy lifecycle from development to renewal and governance anchoring across university operations. This role focuses on clear, compliant policy language aligned with strategic goals and includes significant cross-functional leadership responsibilities.

The Manager, University Policy and Enterprise Risk will collaborate with the CRO, policy owners, internal audit, and legal