Director, Public Relations

Thumbtack

11h

About The Position

Thumbtack is seeking a Director, Public Relations to build and own the company's earned media strategy and reputation. This role is for a strategic leader who thrives in ambiguity, challenges conventional PR thinking, and understands the evolving media landscape, including the impact of AI. The Director will translate ambition into authentic stories for customers, media, and stakeholders, and build the necessary systems, relationships, and team culture for consistent and courageous communication. The Brand & Communications team at Thumbtack focuses on storytelling to build belief in the company's mission and impact, acting as the 'emotional backbone' through strategic storytelling, creativity, and purposeful communication.

Requirements

10+ years of experience in public relations, communications, or earned media.
3+ years of demonstrated people leadership.
A track record of building (not just executing) PR strategy with examples of work that challenged norms and/or created new narrative territories.
The instinct and courage to operate without a pre-existing playbook, and the discipline to build one that others can follow.
Fluency in how stories move through a modern media landscape (inclusive of how earned media interacts with algorithmic discovery, AI-generated summaries and shifting audience trust) and the judgement to navigate it with clarity and conviction.
Strong editorial judgment and the ability to identify, shape, and protect stories that are genuinely differentiated.
A leadership style that raises the ambition of the people around you, someone who changes how a company thinks, not just what it does.

Responsibilities

Define and own a PR strategy built for a brand in motion, one that moves with the narrative, anticipates the media landscape, and isn't afraid to pioneer spaces without a roadmap.
Serve as the senior voice and strategic lead for all earned media, narrative development, and crisis management, connecting Thumbtack's 'why' to stories that resonate across consumer, trade, and corporate channels.
Lead integrated comms campaigns end to end: from story development and spokesperson prep through pitch execution and coverage analysis.
Build, hire, and develop a high-performing team and agency ecosystem, attracting talent who shares a bias for bold, intentional storytelling.
Design and continuously improve workflows, messaging frameworks, and rapid-response systems that enable speed and creative conviction.
Operate as a strategic business partner to senior stakeholders focusing on shaping narrative proactively and building the function’s credibility as a driver of business outcomes, not as an executor of comms tasks.
Foster a culture of accountability, creative risk-taking, and resilience while role modeling Thumbtack's values and leading through change.