Manager - Advocacy
Work Experience: Minimum 5 years in a relevant role
Reporting to: CEO
Location: Mumbai
Last Date to Apply: 28-February-2026
Background:
Founded in April 1994, The Humsafar Trust (HST) is India’s first community-based organization (CBO) of selfidentified LGBTQ+ persons. HST’s Advocacy & Inclusion vertical engages with communities and stakeholders to promote the meaningful inclusion of LGBTQ+ persons. Through outreach with corporates and other workspaces, it has been helping create inclusive environments, supporting incidents of discrimination, designing policy change, and setting up partnerships with over 75 organizations across India. Additionally, HST organizes awareness and sensitization workshops for healthcare providers, law enforcement agencies, judiciary, legislators, politicians and political parties, government bodies, media, and student communities to sensitize them on LGBTQ+ issues. HST’s Advocacy & Inclusion vertical implements various initiatives to empower LGBTQ+ youth that shape the course of the movement.
Job Responsibilities:
The Advocacy Manager will provide strategic leadership to The Humsafar Trust’s advocacy and external engagement portfolio. The role will lead advocacy strategy, donor and CSR partnerships, crisis response, organisational representation, and integration of community needs into management decisions. The position requires strong leadership, policy understanding, and experience in managing complex advocacy initiatives within the LGBTQ+ and development sectors.
Key Responsibilities:
• Provide strategic leadership to the organisation’s advocacy, external engagement, and inclusion portfolio.
• Lead design, planning, and provide oversight to CSR - and grant-funded advocacy projects, including programmatic and financial accountability.
• Liaise with CSR partners, donors, foundations, and institutional stakeholders and manage high-level relationships.
• Represent The Humsafar Trust at national and international forums, policy consultations, conferences, media platforms, and development sector spaces.
• Lead organisational crisis response related to discrimination, violence, legal exclusion, health emergencies, or institutional denial of rights to LGBTQ+ persons.
• Identify emerging advocacy priorities and translate community needs into programs, policy requirements and partnerships.
• Approve advocacy workplans, budgets, timelines, reports, and key deliverables.
• Guide and mentor the advocacy team, ensuring performance management, capacity building, and ethical practice.
• Participate in senior management discussions by representing community realities and advocacy priorities.
• Contribute to organisational strategy, policy development, SOPs, and institutional positioning.
• Lead national and international LGBTQ+ collaboration opportunities and strategic alliances.
• Provide final oversight on media visibility, public positioning, and donor-facing communications related to advocacy work.
• Coordinate with vertical heads to ensure integrated organisational functioning.
Qualifications & Competencies:
• A Masters degree in a relevant stream
• Experience in managing a team of 3 or more people.
• Demonstrated commitment to advancing the social, economic, and legal inclusion of LGBTQ+ communities.
• Strong leadership presence with the ability to navigate complex, high-stake advocacy and institutional environments.
• Provide strategic, detail-oriented, and solution-driven, with the ability to respond effectively to dynamic situations.
• Highly independent and proactive, capable of operating with minimal supervision and exercising sound judgment.
• Deep passion for LGBTQ+ inclusion, community engagement, and rights-based advocacy.
• Well-informed and up to date on national and global developments impacting LGBTQ+ communities, policy, and rights.
• Strong financial acumen, with experience managing budgets, reviewing utilisation, and assessing resource allocation.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to represent the organisation confidently in diverse forums.
• Ability to analyse complex information, prioritise competing demands, and make strategic decisions.
• Experience working on gender and/or queer inclusion initiatives is strongly preferred.
• Proficiency in English and Hindi is required; Marathi or other regional languages are an added advantage.
• Preferred experience in overseeing advocacy-led communications and guiding social media or visibility strategies.
Compensation:
We are an equal-pay employer. The compensation offered is at par with the market rate. The following factors will be considered while finalizing the salary:
• Experience of the candidate.
• Community exposure of the candidate.
• Soft skills of the candidate.
Application Process:
Eligible candidates interested in the position are requested to fill the below form: https://tinyurl.com/HSTAdvocacyManagerApplication.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for an interview.
For any queries, reach out to jobs@humsafar.org by 24th February 2026 pm.