Before joining the IJM team, Ruth E. McGinn worked on Capitol Hill and then served in an integral role at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, the government agency tasked with managing the 1.8 million members of the federal civil service. As the special assistant to the director, she prepared presentations, speeches and congressional testimony, reports for the president and Congress, and assisted the director in the daily management of a dynamic agency with over 3,600 employees and an annual budget in excess of 261 million dollars.

“While I enjoyed my work at OPM tremendously, when Director James retired, I began to wonder if there was a place where my seemingly random skills and experiences could be used in a way that would also make my heart come alive,” McGinn recounts. Initially under the impression that IJM was only a cadre of lawyers, investigators and trauma social workers, she was excited to learn that there was also a great need for experienced support staff to help in the work of justice. And so, over two years ago, she brought her considerable administrative and management talents to International Justice Mission. As executive assistant to IJM President and CEO Gary Haugen, McGinn now serves as the primary liaison between the president and the board of directors and the public, travels with Haugen to assist in IJM’s work around the world and works closely with Haugen to assist with the execution of his significant responsibilities and complicated schedule. McGinn explains, “I’m in it for the long haul now. I can’t believe this is the job I get to do. To use the skills and experiences I have acquired to serve the world’s poor is one of the most marvelous and unexpected joys of my professional life. There is no place I would rather be.”

McGinn is just one member of the dynamic team of executive assistants at IJM. These men and women do a great deal to ensure the functioning of each department and have come to IJM from staffing top-level executives in the public, private and non-profit sectors. Each executive assistant uses his or her unique skill set to further the work of justice.

IJM currently has an urgent need for more talented professionals like Ruth McGinn. If you have experience providing support in a fast-paced, highly professional work environment, please consider applying for one of these positions to bring your skills to bear on behalf of IJM’s clients. Current executive assistant vacancies and other job openings at IJM can be viewed here.