Director, Communications

Yerba Madre•Los Angeles, CA

3d•$162,000 - $212,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The Director, Communications will establish Yerba Madre as a natural and organic source of energy by developing distinctive, credible, and inspiring stories rooted in the company’s heritage, brand DNA, product benefits, and regenerative practices. The role connects the benefits of yerba mate with the brand’s spirit to build awareness, deepen consumer connection, and invite people into its regenerative movement. As guardian of the brand voice, the Director translates this positioning into an integrated, multichannel communications strategy and maintains brand integrity across platforms. The position leads media relations, storytelling, internal communications, and crisis planning, partnering with Marketing, the Impact team, senior managers, and the CEO to ensure messages are distinctive, evidence-supported, and consistent with company actions. The role leads communications management, editorial communications, owned media, content production and distribution, corporate and internal communications, crisis planning, and a communications team. It is responsible for reputation and brand equity, media and community relationships, audience engagement, communications materials, event presence, content quality and measurement, budgets, and developing team and partner capabilities. The position works on-site at Yerba Madre’s downtown Los Angeles office three days a week.

Requirements

MBA or advanced degree in communications, Marketing, or a related field.
10 or more years of communications experience demonstrating increasing responsibility.
At least 5 years of experience working for a well-known food and/or beverage brand.
Previous involvement with an impactful cause- and mission-based marketing campaign.
Extensive list of media contacts.
Awareness of and proficiency with communications technologies.
A strong track record as a manager and mentor.
Experience developing disruptive communications plans.
Strong verbal and written communication skills.
Ability to work as part of a cross-functional team and collaborate, influence, and interact at all organizational levels, including with shareholders and board members.

Responsibilities

Develop and steward a distinctive brand voice rooted in Yerba Madre’s heritage and brand DNA, maintaining brand integrity across platforms.
Enhance corporate reputation and brand equity, and design and implement long-term outreach campaigns to build brand recognition and loyalty.
Engage consumers, media, athletes, artists, activists, investors, non-governmental organizations, employees, and other audiences.
Establish and drive a multichannel communications strategy that positions Yerba Madre as a natural and organic source of energy.
Orchestrate strategic alliances and commercial initiatives with media channels and partners across linear and nonlinear platforms.
Manage media relations and develop contacts with media members, influencers, and community leaders.
Manage communications materials, track engagement across platforms, and make data-driven decisions.
Manage the company’s presence at industry events, trade shows, and conferences.
Lead project management, corporate communications, crisis communications, and preemptive crisis planning.
Develop overarching messaging that connects the company’s heritage, brand DNA, product superiority, and regenerative practices into a clear brand narrative.
Earn media and multiplier endorsements and syndication to build media assets and strengthen brand positioning, with a focus on creativity and quality.
Build audience-centric activation plans spanning media coverage, owned and social content, opinion-leader engagement, and partner content amplification.
Coordinate and activate Yerba Madre’s channels and develop tailored content for relevant channels.
Create distinctive, premium, and innovative brand stories that communicate the company’s heritage, product benefits, and regenerative practices.
Assist in creating digital, video, audio, and print content; engage consumers year-round through company-owned and community-generated content.
Produce and distribute digital and traditional content, and plan and coordinate productions and target-group-specific distribution across TV, print, radio, online, and social media.
Develop and strengthen authentic connections with diverse audiences, and oversee quality assurance, analysis, and success measurement.
Establish organizational messages and an internal communications strategy in conjunction with senior managers and the CEO.
Communicate organizational initiatives and projects successfully to employees and stakeholders, including through internal social media.
Draft messages or scripts for senior executives to present to employees.
Maintain consistency of internal messages across mediums and departments and ensure internal messages align with external communications.
Respond to employee feedback and adjust communications content accordingly.
Handle internal communications responses to crises affecting organizational perception and reputation, and advise senior executives of developments throughout the organization.
Lead a diverse communications team, create its budget, and ensure budget compliance.
Develop and foster global and national training to enhance content quality and employee and partner skill sets.
Mentor and motivate cross-functional teams to deliver high-quality moving and still imagery, media insights and products, and internal and external communications.
Partner with Marketing to build brand awareness and product understanding through communications.
Ensure the quality of all information released.