Executive Director, Undergraduate Admission Communications and Marketing

University of Denver•Denver, CO

9d•Onsite

About The Position

The Enrollment Division at the University of Denver, which consists of Undergraduate Admission and Financial Aid, seeks to attract and enroll students who will become leaders, scholars, artists, entrepreneurs, and public servants uniquely qualified to live in and shape a global society. The Undergraduate Admission team recognizes education as a means of individual and societal transformation - our vision is to inspire, guide, and support prospective and current students as leaders and scholars who will positively impact their communities. The Financial Aid Office is dedicated to serving and educating students, families, colleagues, and the community through the financial aid process from pre-enrollment to program completion. We value empathy and integrity, knowledgeable and professional staff, advocacy and access, clear and consistent communication, and compliance. We have primary responsibility for the undergraduate financial aid process, and we also serve the graduate student population. Position Summary Reporting directly to the Vice Chancellor for Enrollment, the Executive Director of Communication and Marketing (Executive Director/EDCM) for the Enrollment Division is the strategic leader of the communication and marketing needs of Undergraduate Admission and Financial Aid. Acting as a key partner in conjunction with the Vice Chancellor and Associate Vice Chancellor for Admission, as well as University Relations, the EDCM is responsible for creating, developing and implementing an integrated communication/marketing plan. The EDCM leads the communication and marketing effort within the division and will plan, develop, implement and assess all communication and marketing needs, strategies and all forms of communication of the Division for key constituents/stakeholders with a high standard of excellence. All messages and communication plans will be developed and shaped with much thought for the direct needs of prospective students, parents, high school counselors and other key constituents; all messages should comply with and promote DUs brand attributes with both a “one DU” ideal and 4D experience representation. The EDCM will be sensitive to, and have an understanding of, the diverse academic, socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds of University staff and students as well as establish, maintain, and foster positive and harmonious working relationships with internal and external stakeholders. Upon identification and assessment of marketing and communications needs, the EDCM will select the most effective means of communication and create/implement the appropriate messages and materials for each population/project, ensuring all assets are consistent, professional, relevant and delivered in a timely and logical manner. The EDCM is required to keep abreast with communication, marketing and design trends with special emphasis on the trends/methods being implemented by other Enrollment divisions across the country. The EDCM will partner with campus colleagues to ensure a cohesive and consistent user experience for prospective undergraduate students and their families. These skills enable the EDCM to participate successfully on the senior leadership team in the Enrollment Division. In closing, the Executive Director is responsible for developing and executing an integrated marketing and communication plan, promoting and utilizing DU’s editorial and brand standard guides. Working with market research findings, identifying and reaching target audiences, generating imaginative solutions, producing excellent print and digital communication materials, and collaborating with enrollment, central marketing, academic units, media relations, athletics and advancement teams is a key objective of the position.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree
Seven years’ general business experience.
A track record showing the ability to develop and execute an integrated marketing and communication plan, promote brand identity, work with market research findings, identify and reach target audiences, generate imaginative solutions, produce print and electronic communication materials that yield demonstrable results/positive outcomes, and collaborate with finance, media relations, enrollment (recruitment/financial aid), and development teams.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree – prefer degrees in Public Relations, Journalism, English, Marketing, Communications, or related field.
Five years of significant higher education communication and marketing experience.
Supervisory experience.
CRM experience, Slate preferred.

Responsibilities

Developing and executing an integrated marketing and communication plan to achieve undergraduate enrollment goals.
Leveraging the undergraduate admission webpages through consistent, accurate and on-brand content, and ensuring appropriate analytics and informed responses.
Keeping abreast of marketing trends, especially as it relates to recruiting and admission.
Creatively developing unique and innovative strategies on a yearly basis to maximize potential and to meet the enrollment goals of the University.
Annually assessing and evaluating efforts across channels and partner firms to inform future work.
Working closely with central University Relations (UR) Division, as well as various partner firms in the creation, development, implementation, delivery and assessment of print materials, presentations, web designs/upgrades, messages, email campaigns, social media, digital advertising, video work, etc.
Ensuring that messages are on-brand; appropriate for the intended audiences; meet the purpose of the project/program/campaign; are within budget guidelines; and meet the deadlines dictated by our communication/recruiting plans.
Serving as liaison to UR division.
Staying up-to-date with DU academic programs, majors and initiatives to best represent the various divisions/departments/programs.
Accountable for Division Communication budget, including allocation recommendations of existing and new communication and marketing plans/campaigns, project cost quoting; and routine budget monitoring/stewardship.
Directly supervising a small team who will support the marketing and communications work of the division while also serving the division in other capacities to meet enrollment goals.
Leading the division-wide communications team in idea generation and developing strategic initiatives that more effectively engage our audiences and lead to measurable results against engagement and enrollment goals.