Senior Advisor for Cultural Life

The Agency You’ll Join:
The New York City Mayor’s Office is responsible for overseeing city services throughout the five boroughs, coordinating public agencies and departments, and managing public property. The administration is leading the fight in making the city more affordable, reducing inequality, improving public safety, ensuring delivery of efficient and effective services, and working to make New York City’s economy stronger. We value leadership, transparency, fairness, and efficiency as we actively seek diverse talents from various sectors to join our team. For current job opportunities, visit our careers page.

The Team You’ll Work With:
The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice advances policies that promote a more equitable and vibrant New York City. The portfolio includes the City’s economic, cultural, and labor agencies, including but not limited to the Mayor’s Office of Talent and Workforce Development, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC), and the Department of Small Business Services (SBS).

The Problems You’ll Solve:
New York City’s rising cost of living has increasingly put pressure on residents, workers, and institutions across every neighborhood and sector. Sustaining a dynamic, accessible city requires intentional support for career-sustaining jobs, worker development and protection, and the economic and cultural ecosystems that allow communities to thrive. Under the direction of the Chief of Staff and the Deputy Mayor, the Senior Advisor for Cultural Life will help advance this work by performing the following functions:

- Policy Leadership and Agency Coordination – Responsible for establishing policy vision and direction related to Cultural Life. Manage and coordinate across the assigned agencies, offices, and boards. Act as their primary liaison to understand their budget, staffing, and operational needs while also driving the Mayor’s vision for the portfolio. Agencies and entities in this portfolio include: the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, the New York Public Library, the Queens Public Library, the Brooklyn Public Library, and other offices and entities with a nexus to cultural life, the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment, the Trust for Governor’s Island, and NYC Tourism + Conventions.
- Initiative Management – Oversee initiatives across the cultural life portfolio to ensure goals, deliverables, and timelines are met. This includes budget analysis, legislative review, policy evaluation, and implementation support.
- Sector Oversight – Provide timely analysis and updates on key issues in the sector. Foster collaboration between relevant agencies with overlapping goals and strategies to strengthen New York City’s role as a global leader in cultural life.
- Internal and External Stakeholder Engagement – Represent the administration in meetings with government partners, cultural leaders, community organizations, and industry stakeholders. Engage communities across the five boroughs to support inclusive programming that reflects the city’s diversity.
- Staff Management – Directly oversee one full-time team member and more as needed.
- General Support – Prepare briefing memos, conduct background research, coordinate meetings, and respond to correspondence from key stakeholders across the cultural sectors.

About You:
- You can work independently in a fast-paced environment while contributing to a collaborative, team-oriented culture.
- You are a proactive self-starter who supports a learning organization and is comfortable handling a wide range of responsibilities.
- You can quickly absorb complex policy, legislative, and technical materials and brief senior leadership.
- You are highly proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
- You have exceptional written, verbal, and presentation skills.
- You have experience working with agencies in the portfolio, which is a strong plus.

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