Executive Director, Marketing and Communications

Arizona State University • Tempe, AZ

2d • Hybrid

About The Position

The nation’s most innovative university seeks an experienced and visionary marketing and communications leader to serve as the Executive Director, Marketing and Communications at the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts. This position will oversee integrated planning and strategy to support the college during a pivotal moment in its evolution. The Executive Director functions as a "growth officer" for the college, bringing degree and non-degree concepts to market to drive both impact and growth of enrollment and revenue. The Executive Director serves as the chief strategist for marketing and communications solutions, and is responsible for leading the development and execution of short- and long-term strategic marketing and communications plans that advance the institute's goals. The Executive Director will provide strategic and creative direction and vision to in-house subject matter expert teams; foster deep partnerships with college leadership; and ensure coordinated, consistent and best-in-class execution to elevate the reputation of the institute at a national scale. Reporting to the Dean, the Executive Director oversees activities including student recruitment marketing and communications, product marketing, paid media strategies, owned and earned media strategies, internal and external communications and partnerships that drive revenue and relationships. The leader serves as the chief architect for how the institute tells its story, reaches new audiences, grows its programs and builds relationships with the community. The Herberger Institute has a dynamic and innovative approach to the field of arts and design, merging disciplines, connecting audiences and bringing the practice of creative and design thinking to solve complex problems. The Executive Director will be responsible for driving the story of the Herberger Institute overall, as well as working with school directors to advance market share and reputational excellence for ASU FIDM (fashion); the School of Art; The GAME School; School of Music, Dance and Theatre; The Design School; and The Sidney Poitier New American Film School as well as two museums, the ASU Art Museum and the ASU FIDM Museum. Herberger Institute is a leading arts and design influence globally and the Executive Director must have a strong creative vision and be fluent in the world of creativity, arts and design, embracing the power of collaboration and creative vision to drive transformational change. The executive director must balance a commitment to the arts with an embrace of welcoming everyone - not just those who choose to be an artist or designer - by seeing the role creative thinking plays in all industries. The Executive Director will be an orchestrator, working across the Institute and forging connections across the university to advance the growth of a portfolio of degree and non-degree revenue-generating marketing and partnerships. The role requires a strategic leader who can build systems, develop people and align complex campaigns and initiatives with measurable outcomes.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree and eleven (11) years of experience appropriate to the area of assignment/field including seven (7) years managerial experience; OR, Any equivalent combination of experience and/or training from which comparable knowledge, skills and abilities have been achieved.
• Demonstrated knowledge of strategic communication and marketing principles, with the ability to translate strategy into actionable plans.
• Demonstrated ability to provide inspirational leadership and facilitate teams to create a shared vision to deliver long-term goals and immediate business objectives.
• Demonstrated commitment to creative leadership, strong creative vision, and fluency in the world of creativity, arts and design.
• Strong service orientation, a disciplined work ethic and the ability to instill a high standard of excellence in the overall team.
• Ability to effectively work with and service requests of people holding positions of Dean and above.
• Proven strategic planning, creative direction, critical thinking and decision-making skills and a track record of innovation.
• Experience overseeing performance reporting and optimizing campaigns for measurable outcomes.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to convey complex ideas clearly and persuasively to various audiences.
• Experience with student recruitment, particularly within higher education or arts contexts.
• Experience with product or partnership marketing, particularly within higher education or arts contexts.
• Familiarity with academic program and course offerings and the process of bringing them to market, or equivalent experience from arts or museum institutions.
• Experience working with faculty, or similar, governance and consensus-driven decision-making in complex environments.
• Demonstrated ability to provide marketing expertise and lead strategy across multiple schools, often with competing priorities, and align leadership across units toward shared institutional priorities and execution.
• Highly organized and detail-oriented, with the ability to set priorities, manage multiple high-priority projects simultaneously and drive efficiency in a fast-paced environment.
• Familiarity with project management tools, defined processes and workflow optimization.
• Ability to remain flexible and responsive to new ideas, projects and directions while ensuring alignment with strategic goals.
• Strong client relationship skills and the ability to self-direct while also fostering collaboration within and across teams.
• Hands-on familiarity with core marketing tools and channels, including content management systems (such as Drupal), social media, print and digital mediums, advertising and email communications.
• Evidence of a “hands-on”, “roll-up-the-sleeves” mentality and “does what it takes” attitude to drive success.
• Previous experience supervising full-time employees and contracted agency resources.
• Previous experience working with established brands and effectively working within established brand standards.
• Experience designing or managing cross-functional workflows, shared services, or matrixed teams in a complex organizational environment.
• Ability to clearly communicate to perform essential functions

Nice To Haves

• Previous director-level experience working as a marketing director and strategist for large, complex organizations, preferably in higher education or the arts.

Responsibilities

• Responsible for crafting a comprehensive growth plan across degree and non-degree offerings and securing necessary approvals.
• Provides comprehensive strategic leadership for the development and execution of short- and long-term marketing, communications, partnerships and products that advance the Herberger Institute.
• Directs and guides subject matter expert teams in directing and executing integrated multi-channel marketing, communications and recruitment plans, ensuring work is strategically aligned and delivers measurable outcomes related to all advertising, recruiting, outreach, earned media, alumni engagement, and community relations to reach enrollment and revenue goals.
• Leads team to develop and execute multi-channel campaigns across digital and traditional platforms, including social media, paid media, publications, video, collateral, and presentations, ensuring content is compelling, brand-aligned and audience-focused.
• Elevates the institute's profile by coordinating thought leadership initiatives, securing high-visibility opportunities for faculty, and managing rankings strategies to advance the Institute's standing in redefining what an arts and design college can be.
• Advances the institute's brand, shaping and articulating its transformational vision of art and design, ensuring consistency of message, clarity of purpose and effective execution.
• Play a fundamental role in advancing the vision of the institute as expansive - where creative thinking fuels all industries.
• Establishes and maintains strong, collaborative relationships with the Dean and institute leadership to ensure strategies reflect institute priorities.
• Serve as a thought partner to the Dean, translating leadership vision into inspired action.
• Guides the use of formal and informal market research, data analysis and performance metrics to inform planning, strengthen strategies and optimize outcomes.
• Produces and presents a variety of reports to senior leadership, including creative plans, progress reports and concept proposals.
• Routinely tracks progress of implementation and progress towards goals.
• Ensures adherence to ASU’s brand standards and maintains high levels of quality, accuracy and consistency across all communications.
• Leverages the power of ASU's brand and elevates the creative execution of the work of the institute so creative materials are best in class.
• Oversees vendor relationships, ensuring optimal use of resources and alignment with project needs.
• Designs organizational systems, workflows and teams that support integrated marketing and communications across the institute's academic units and museums.
• Oversees project prioritization, resource allocation and budget management to ensure goals are met and projects are delivered on time and on budget.
• Fosters a team culture of high performance and continuous improvement, collaboration and innovation.
• Provide mentoring to a team spanning creatives and strategists.
• Leads with transparency, ensuring clear bi-directional communication with leadership and subject matter experts to foster alignment and trust across the institute.
• Acts as the primary liaison to the University’s central teams, including Enterprise Brand Strategy and Management, Enterprise Partners Outreach Hub, Media Relations and Strategic Communications, Learning Enterprise and EdPlus, leveraging central resources to amplify the Institute's reach while maintaining unit-level autonomy and agility.

Benefits

• Salary and wages paid
• Comprehensive package of affordable benefit plans and programs
• Access to world-class educational opportunities at deeply discounted rates
• Flexible work options
• Alternative work schedules can include four, 10-hour workdays in a workweek; a nine-day, 80-hour schedule over two workweeks for exempt employees only; and staggered start and stop times.
• Hybrid work is an arrangement where employees spend a minimum of 60% of their regular workweek at their primary ASU work location.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive