Principal, Global Event Security and Risk Management

# PRINCIPAL, GLOBAL EVENT SECURITY AND RISK MANAGEMENT

## Summary

The Wikimedia Foundation is looking for a Principal, Global Event Security and Risk Management, to join our team. Our aim is to ensure everyone, everywhere can securely participate in free knowledge. As an organization, we are committed to proactively identifying and mitigating risks that impact both the Foundation and the Wikimedia movement. This includes enabling secure physical convenings and spaces for the robust global communities of volunteers we serve and often support through grants, and effectively addressing other physical security and enterprise risks our ecosystem faces.

The Principal will report to the Deputy General Counsel in the Legal Department, and will lead the Foundation’s efforts in proactively preparing for and addressing critical risks to the physical security of staff, community members, and other participants engaging in Wikimedia movement activities. The Principal will coordinate with staff in the Foundation’s internal Enterprise Risk Management working group to broadly identify and track risks to the Foundation and Wikimedia movement. In their focused work of identifying and leading the response to physical security threats, the Principal will partner with internal teams such as legal, grantmaking, external and movement communications, human rights, product security, and trust & safety; and groups outside of the Foundation, such as Wikimedia volunteer organizers, external partners, and security experts.

As the point person for the mitigation of physical security risks, the Principal must remain informed on global geopolitical developments, in order to identify emerging and shifting threats to Wikimedia users around the world, and synthesize information from a variety of sources, including Foundation risk reports and consultations with internal teams. The Principal’s goal is to support the organization, the Wikimedia movement and its communities in their efforts to reduce vulnerability and minimize harm when threats materialize.

The successful candidate will possess a wide range of experience and a deep understanding of best practices in risk coordination, security, and crisis management. They will have experience working in global contexts, particularly the global south, and will bring curiosity, an ability to work across different cultures, and vision. They will have strong people skills, with the ability to empathetically motivate and inspire both staff and volunteers, while understanding the needs and capacities of disparate stakeholder groups. Their experience and good judgment will enable them to achieve impact on a wide variety of high-stakes, emergent risk issues facing the Foundation and the communities it supports.

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## You are responsible for:

– **Working with movement organizers** — Develop and maintain an understanding of the environments and challenges facing Wikimedia volunteers around the world, mitigate those risks, and define best practices for physical security in movement activities.

– **Strengthening enterprise risk management** — Improve the Foundation’s overall approach and execution, including policy development and implementation.

– **Leading risk and gap assessments** — Identify, document, and track high risks for the Foundation, consulting with subject matter experts in technology, brand, operational, legal, and strategic risk.

– **Improving expertise in emerging physical security threats** — Enhance the organization’s ability to identify, mitigate, and address threats to staff, communities, and affiliates.

– **Leading risk assessments for community events** — Consolidate input from multiple teams and communicate findings to stakeholders, including community organizers.

– **Creating emergency response plans** — Bring together stakeholders and experts, including law enforcement or external consultants, and manage implementation once approved.

– **Being on-call for emergency alerts** — Review alerts, ensure proper escalation, lead emergency response working groups, designate incident coordinators, and provide risk management expertise.

– **Remaining current on emerging geopolitical trends and best practices in physical security.**

– **Briefing senior leadership** with recommendations on systems improvement, resource management, and operational effectiveness.

– **Providing crisis support** to internal teams working directly with at-risk communities.

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## Skills and Experience:

– Substantial professional experience in corporate and physical security work in diverse geographic and political contexts, especially in the global south.
– Significant leadership experience in risk management.
– Extensive experience developing, communicating, and executing emergency response plans.
– Strong networking and analytical skills, with the ability to synthesize geopolitical trends and assess their impact.
– Strong communication skills for executive summaries, detailed response plans, and compassionate communication.
– Ability to remain calm and focused in ambiguous or high-risk situations.
– Demonstrated experience collaborating with subject-matter experts in threat modeling and contingency planning.
– Strong people skills to lead and motivate lateral teams in high-intensity situations.
– Resilience and ability to exercise self-care during periods of difficult subject matter.
– Experience using digital security tools for secure communication at on-site events.
– Adaptability with online communities and technology, and openness to new tools.
– Flexibility in working hours, including nights, weekends, or holidays, and ability to work across time zones (UTC-8 to UTC+1).

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## Qualities that are important to us:

– Interest in the role of technology in culture and civic society.
– Readiness to assess and respond to risks with cultural awareness.
– Experience with internet technologies and their impact on human rights.
– Proactive problem solving and comfort with ambiguity.
– Willingness to undertake moderate international travel (4–6 trips per year).
– Written and oral fluency in English; ability in Arabic, French, or Spanish is a plus.

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## About the Wikimedia Foundation

The Wikimedia Foundation is the nonprofit organization that operates Wikipedia and other free knowledge projects. Our vision is a world in which every single human can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. We believe everyone has the potential to contribute and should be able to access knowledge freely.

We host Wikipedia and other projects, build software experiences, support volunteer communities, and advocate for policies that enable free knowledge to thrive.

The Foundation is a charitable, not-for-profit organization funded by millions of individual donations (average donation: ~$15), as well as institutional grants. It is a U.S. 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization headquartered in San Francisco.

We are an equal opportunity employer and strive for an inclusive workplace. We do not discriminate based on any legally protected characteristics.

The Wikimedia Foundation is remote-first, with staff in 40+ countries. Salaries are competitive, equitable, and adjusted by location. U.S. pay range for this role: **$145,429–$223,286**. For non-U.S. hires, compensation is adjusted to the country of hire.

We currently hire in the following:

**US States:** Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia*, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico*, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming.
(*US Territory or Federal District)

**Countries:** Brazil, Canada, Colombia, France, Germany, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya*, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Poland, Singapore*, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom.
(*citizens/permanent residents only)

Applicants may contact [email protected] or +1 (415) 839-6885 for accommodations during the application process.

Learn more here