Director, Government Affairs

Cohesity•Washington DC, DC

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

Cohesity is a leader in AI-powered data security and management. Aided by an extensive ecosystem of partners, Cohesity makes it easy to secure, protect, manage, and get value from data — across the data center, edge, and cloud. Cohesity helps organizations defend against cybersecurity threats with comprehensive data security and management capabilities, including immutable backup snapshots, AI-based threat detection, monitoring for malicious behavior, and rapid recovery at scale. The Government Affairs Director is a senior individual contributor responsible for leading Cohesity's federal public policy and advocacy strategy. Working together with the Global Head of Government Affairs, this role serves as a senior player of Cohesity's engagement with Congress, the executive branch, federal agencies, and key trade associations on issues of IT procurement, cybersecurity policy, and artificial intelligence governance. A self starter, the Director shapes long-term advocacy strategies, manages senior external relationships, drives direct sales-enablement outcomes through policy, and positions Cohesity as the go-to resource for data resilience in Washington. The Director will work in close partnership with Cohesity's federal sales team, legal and compliance functions, and executive leadership to convert policy engagement into market access and revenue growth. This role requires political acumen, fluency in federal IT procurement and cybersecurity policy and the ability to represent Cohesity at the highest levels of government and industry.

Requirements

10+ years of experience in federal government affairs, congressional affairs, or public policy, including experience shaping and leading a federal advocacy agenda for a technology or enterprise software company
Congressional experience strongly preferred.
Prior role as a Hill staffer, committee staff, or in a federal agency with significant congressional interaction
Deep working knowledge of the NDAA, the federal appropriations process, and the cybersecurity and data-security policy landscape, with the ability to set strategy and engage across the full legislative cycle
Familiarity with federal technology procurement, cybersecurity, data protection and cyber resilience, IT modernization, zero trust, and AI policy, and the legislative and regulatory vehicles that drive them
Established relationships with staff across relevant committees and agencies, including Armed Services, Appropriations, Homeland Security, and Oversight and Government Affairs is a strong plus
Strong bipartisan political instincts and situational awareness. Candidates should be able to identify moments of leverage, shape policy positions, and flag risks early
Excellent written and verbal communication skills; comfortable advising executives and drafting materials for C-suite and board audiences
Highly organized, detail-oriented, and able to lead cross-functional initiatives and manage multiple priorities in a fast-moving environment
Demonstrated ability to leverage AI tools to enhance productivity, streamline workflows, and support decision making.

Nice To Haves

Cross-industry experience a strong plus, candidates who have navigated the federal landscape across technology, data security, defense, or adjacent sectors will stand out

Responsibilities

Develop and advance appropriations and NDAA legislative language that supports federal sales priorities, including data resilience, cyber modernization, and zero-trust architecture.
Build and maintain senior-level relationships across key congressional committees: Armed Services, Appropriations, Homeland Security, Intelligence, Commerce, and the AI Caucus.
Represent Cohesity in meetings with Members of Congress, staff, and key federal officials; prepare and support executive principals for high-profile Hill engagements and testimony opportunities.
Monitor, analyze, and brief leadership on legislative and political developments with potential impact on Cohesity's business or regulatory environment.
Provide early warning to legal, compliance, and engineering teams on emerging executive orders and agency rulemakings (e.g., cybersecurity EOs, AI procurement guidance, SBOM requirements, etc).
Seek and secure opportunities for Cohesity executives to participate in agency advisory panels, OSTP working groups, and IT Security Cross-Community (IT-SCC) meetings.
Shape federal IT procurement policy and spending priorities on cyber resilience, data management, and AI-enabled security through direct engagement with OMB and congressional appropriators.
Monitor and influence relevant legislation, appropriations riders, and FAR/DFAR rulemaking that affect federal IT and data security procurement decisions.
Provide strategic counsel to sales leadership on legislative barriers to entry and policy levers available to drive government customer adoption.