Jobs at AFSA

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Employment at AFSA

The Foreign Service Act of 1980, the legal foundation for the Foreign Service, opens by declaring that “a career Foreign Service, characterized by excellence and professionalism, is essential in the national interest.” AFSA speaks for its members individually, ensuring that the law is upheld and due process followed, but also, crucially, for the long-term health and vigor of the Foreign Service as an institution, certain in the conviction that a career Foreign Service, characterized by excellence and professionalism, is in America’s national interest.

AFSA’s membership include active-duty and retired Foreign Service officers and specialists at the Department of State, as well as members of the Foreign Service from the U.S. Agency for International Development, Foreign Agricultural Service, Foreign Commercial Service, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and U.S. Agency for Global Media. AFSA exists to support the United States Foreign Service, which deploys worldwide to protect and serve America’s people, interests and values. The Foreign Service is the only U.S. government entity that is globally deployed with an enduring physical presence in almost every country in the world, creating an enormous competitive advantage for America and for Americans from all walks of life. AFSA’s members are career professionals who spend roughly two thirds of their careers abroad representing America to the people and leaders of other countries. Members of the Foreign Service are posted to more than 270 U.S. embassies, consulates and other missions around the globe—most in difficult and many in dangerous environments.

Our AFSA staff are hired from across the Foreign Service and international affairs communities. If you are interested in supporting the Foreign Service mission and working for AFSA, please keep an eye on our website below for available jobs. In the meantime, we have posted our Employee Handbook here for your information.

Manager, Membership and Events

The American Foreign Service Association is recruiting an individual with a background in managing membership Customer Relationships Management (CRM) systems and event logistics for a full-time position at its Washington, D.C. headquarters. The deadline to apply is June 8, 2025.

Compensation and Benefits

  • The salary for this position is $79,000-$82,000, depending on experience, with excellent benefits.
  • Ability to telework up to 3 days a week once onboarding has been fully completed.
  • Full-time employees have access to a health care and retirement benefits package.
    • Subsidized health, dental, and vision insurance
    • Disability (short and long), life, and AD&D insurance paid in full by AFSA.
    • 401(k) and/or Roth 401(k) with up to 5% matching
    • Paid sick, vacation and parental leave.

The Organization

The American Foreign Service Association (AFSA), created in 1924, is the professional association for the U.S. Foreign Service. AFSA’s 16,800 members include active and retired Foreign Service officers and specialists primarily at the Department of State as well as at the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Foreign Agricultural Service, the Foreign Commercial Service, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, and the U.S. Agency for Global Media.

AFSA is also a labor union, serving as the exclusive representative of members of the Foreign Service. AFSA negotiates with the management of the principal U.S. Government foreign affairs agencies on personnel policies and practices affecting members’ working conditions, and represents members in formal grievance proceedings, office of security and inspector general investigations, disciplinary proceedings, and EEO cases.

For more information about AFSA, please go to www.afsa.org.

The Position and Its Principal Responsibilities

The Membership and Events Manager reports to the Director of Membership and Programs. The position is primarily responsible for the management of the CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system, to ensure that the systems for the collection, analyzing, and reporting of membership dues are efficient and effective. This involves both the customer facing payment portal on the AFSA website, and the internal software for managing membership records. This position additionally manages all member event logistics such as recruitment events for new active-duty and retired Foreign Service members and is the lead technical expert for AFSA’s use of virtual platforms for webinars. As a part of these responsibilities, the Membership and Events Manager will work with the Communications team to ensure that materials and the AFSA website effectively communicate the benefits of membership. The position will help develop templates and responses for member inquiries related to membership and the AFSA website.

  • CRM: Responsible for the effective operations of the CRM, including scheduled tasks and monthly invoicing processes for dues payments. Serve as an administrator for the CRM, troubleshoot new problems that arise, reporting issues to the CRM vendor and working to resolve as needed. Maximize the reporting and query functionality to allow for analyzing membership data and work with the Director of Membership and Programs to convert data to action steps for improved member recruitment and retention. Manage the member-facing ecommerce portions of the AFSA website (purchasing and updating memberships), ensuring smooth operations, identifying needed improvements or fixes to current functionality, and working with the vendor on scoping, testing, and implementation of updates.
  • Member and Recruitment Events: Responsible for all event logistics for virtual and in-person events for AFSA members. This includes recruitment lunches, author talks, panel discussions, happy hours, expert presentations and board-led town halls. The incumbent will oversee event planning and management including coordinating stakeholders, planning logistics and handling day-of site management, including design, catering and set-up. They identify catering options to fit the event requirements, order all food and drink, maintain inventory of other supplies and materials needed. Incumbent will also design, source, and order membership promotional items such as lanyards, coasters, bags, chocolates, pens, etc. The incumbent is the technical expert for managing all virtual platforms and managing the technical requirements for proper A/V and video during AFSA events. As the lead on member events, the incumbent will be required to register as the alcoholic beverage manager for AFSA.
  • Member Communications and Services: In coordination with the Director of Membership and the Communications team, create marketing content and collateral for member and recruitment events, and ensure that the AFSA website effectively communicates the benefits of AFSA membership. The incumbent will assist with member inquiries that come through the main member inbox, creating templates for common technical issues, and troubleshooting new issues and communications pertaining to the logistics of joining AFSA and paying membership dues. Other duties may include assisting with member applications and entering prospects.

Required Skills and Characteristics

  • College degree or commensurate experience.
  • Minimum of two years of demonstrated CRM experience, to include management and design of systems, queries, and reporting. AFSA uses Abila’s Netforum CRM, but we encourage individuals with required experience with any similar CRM to apply.
  • Excellent analytical and logical reasoning skills to identify and solve complex challenges.
  • Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.
  • Well versed in Microsoft Office and experienced running events via videoconferencing, including Zoom and Microsoft Teams platforms.
  • The ability to obtain a State Department badge.
  • Superb oral and written communication skills.
  • Excellent interpersonal skills, to include email and phone.
  • Ability to serve as an alcoholic beverage manager on behalf of AFSA.

Preferred Education and Experience

  • Experience in or knowledge of the Foreign Service.
  • Prior experience working in membership.

To Apply

Please email a detailed cover letter that explains why you are interested in and qualified for this position and your resume to jobs@afsa.org. The deadline to apply is June 8, 2025. We expect the selected candidate to join the staff no later than mid-July. No emails or calls, please.

AFSA Employee Handbook