Government Affairs Manager, UK & Ireland

Shopify’s mission is to make commerce better for everyone. From building a new product feature for our commerce platform, to helping a merchant troubleshoot an issue over the phone, we want to empower our ecosystem through our work.

Having a unified vision, a north star, is vitally important to ensure that we are all headed in the same direction. No matter the size or experience, we want to power every merchant’s experience. This is why we’re all here.

Shopify is now permanently remote, and we’re working towards a future that is digital by design. That location you see above? Consider it merely an example of hundreds of potential locations across EMEA where Shopify is hiring. Learn more here: https://www.shopify.com/careers/work-anywhere

Shopify is the world’s fastest growing commerce platform, with no plans to slow down, powering over 1.7 million stores in more than 175 different countries. It takes a whole team working behind the scenes to help Shopify create a platform that makes commerce better for everyone.  Every member of  our team must be able to apply their knowledge and experience to novel scenarios and provide the best possible advice on sometimes unprecedented policy issues, in ways that allow Shopify’s business to stay agile and competitive.  Every person on our team is committed to making commerce better for everyone, and it truly shows.  

About the team

Shopify’s Government Affairs team, situated within the broader Legal team, works with policymakers, legislators, civil society groups, academics, and the public-at-large to speak up for small businesses and entrepreneurs, and advocate for a more free, open, and competitive internet. 

About You

We’re looking for a curious, passionate and dedicated London-based public policy professional to serve as Government Affairs Manager for the United Kingdom and Ireland. We are looking for someone with experience working on policy issues within the Legislative and Executive branches. Our ideal candidate will have prior experience working on policy issues relevant to Shopify, including platform regulation, intellectual property, data protection, competition, e-commerce regulation, and other similar areas.  

Your primary responsibility will be to strategically manage our engagement on policy issues across the government offices within the United Kingdom and Ireland, and help us tell Shopify’s story to policymakers.  You will represent us in meetings and discussions with policymakers and you will work closely with the rest of the Legal Team to ensure we are anticipating and preparing the business for significant legal and regulatory changes on the horizon. You should also feel comfortable working with engineers, product managers, tax specialists, and a variety of other teams, as part of your efforts to understand how policy proposals may affect our business, and the merchants that use our platform. Additionally, you will serve as our primary contact with our UK industry associations and external public affairs firms, and you will help us draft written submissions where appropriate. 

As long as you have relevant substantive experience, we don’t care exactly where you got that experience - you don’t need to be a lawyer, and we are open to candidates who have gained experience in any role anywhere, including in government, in a civil society group, at a company, at an industry group or at a public affairs or law firm. You also need to be an excellent writer and communicator, and a creative thinker.

Success at Shopify requires intellect, humility and a sense of humour. You need to take the work seriously, but not take yourself too seriously. You also need to be comfortable with being uncomfortable, able to work with many different types of personalities, really connect with people and earn their trust, and enjoy working as a team player. You will handle complicated matters with empathy and professionalism, striking a balance between legal and policy requirements while maintaining our amazing workplace.

Responsibilities:

• Represent Shopify in discussions with policymakers, legislators, and civil society groups in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

• Monitor UK and Irish legislation and policy initiatives and evaluate the potential impact on Shopify.

• Prepare written submissions about relevant policy proposals.

• Prepare policy papers and circulate internally to ensure that our view is informed by stakeholders across the organisation.

• Manage relationships with trade associations and external policy firms in London and Dublin.

• You are located in or around London, United Kingdom.

• Strong knowledge of tech policy stemming from time in government or covering tech policy elsewhere - NGO, private sector, or civil society organization.

• Understanding of policy areas important to Shopify, including platform regulation, intellectual property, data protection, content moderation, competition, and e-commerce regulation.

• Existing relationships with local policymakers, industry groups, and civil society groups.

• Excellent communication and writing skills.

• The​ ​ability​ ​to​ ​build​ ​and​ ​maintain​ ​strong​ ​relationships​ ​with​ ​a​ ​variety​ ​of​ ​people and teams, both internal and external.​ ​​​You​ ​will​ ​need​ ​to​ ​be​ ​able​ ​to​ ​gain​ ​the​ ​trust​ ​of​ ​a​ ​wide​ ​range​ ​of​ ​folks​ ​at Shopify,​ ​to​ ​speak​ ​to​ ​each​ ​team​ ​“in​ ​their​ ​language,”​ ​and​ ​to​ make them ​feel​ ​comfortable​ ​enough​ ​to​ ​reach​ ​out​ ​when things​ ​go​ ​wrong. You will also need to build trusted relationships with key external stakeholders. You will need to do all of this in a new “Digital by Design” (read, remote) workplace.

• The ability to talk about highly technical products and services with both technical experts and regulators with no technical background.

We know that applying to a new role takes a lot of work and we truly value your time. Maryam, our VP, Government Affairs, is looking forward to reading your cover letter. In your cover letter, please include a paragraph on a current policy issue that may affect Shopify and your initial thoughts on what Shopify’s position should be on such an issue.

Closing date: Sunday, October 24th at 11:59PM GMT+1. 

At Shopify, we are committed to building and fostering an environment where our employees feel included, valued, and heard. Our belief is that a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion enables us to truly make commerce better for everyone. We strongly encourage applications from Indigenous peoples, racialized people, people with disabilities, people from gender and sexually diverse communities and/or people with intersectional identities. Please take a look at our 2020 Sustainability Report to learn more about Shopify's commitments.