Manager, Communications - Engineering

University of Waterloo•Waterloo, ON

15h•CA$95,538 - CA$119,423

About The Position

The University of Waterloo is a leading global innovation hub that drives economic and social prosperity for Canada and the world. The Marketing and Communications function is responsible for enhancing and protecting the university’s reputation. The communications function specifically leads by helping the university communicate with clarity, credibility and purpose, while developing governance, standards and protocols to uphold consistent, coordinated and effective communications across campus. The Waterloo Engineering communications team brings the work of Canada’s largest engineering school to audiences on campus and around the world. As Manager, Communications, you will lead the day-to-day work of the Faculty communications team and turn ambitious priorities into focused, high-quality delivery. You will translate plans into workflows, allocate work and resources, measure performance, coach team members, and maintain strong editorial and service standards across a broad and fast-moving portfolio. Working with the Director, Faculty leaders, academic departments and specialist teams across Waterloo, you will help sequence communications, tackle strategic projects, resolve competing demands, and create the conditions for excellent work to move from idea to audience. This is an opportunity to combine people leadership, communications judgment, and operational discipline in a Faculty known for innovation at scale. The role is responsible for planning, organizing, and delivering clear, timely, accessible, and audience-centred communications that support institutional priorities, organizational initiatives, leadership communications, and the information needs of faculty and staff across the university. Working within established internal communications strategy, governance, and standards, the role ensures communications are coordinated, effective, and aligned with institutional priorities. The role works closely with the Director, Internal and Leadership Communications, senior leaders, and campus partners to support an informed, engaged, and connected university community.

Requirements

Undergraduate degree or post-secondary diploma in communications, public relations, journalism, English, political science, or a related field.
5–7 years of progressively responsible experience in communications, public relations, stakeholder communications, internal communications, organizational communications, or a related field.
1–2 years of experience supervising staff, coordinating workflow, or leading day-to-day communications delivery in a complex environment.
Experience managing multiple projects, stakeholder needs, and competing priorities in a high-volume environment.
Experience working within established communications standards, accessibility requirements, governance frameworks, and communications practices.
Experience advising stakeholders and planning communications for internal audiences, organizational initiatives, leadership communications, change-related communications, or employee engagement activities.
Strong expertise in communications planning, stakeholder communications, writing, editing, and audience-centred communications delivery.
Strong knowledge of internal communications practices, accessibility requirements, inclusive communications principles, and communications channels.
Strong understanding of internal communications, leadership communications, employee engagement, and organizational communications practices.
Ability to translate approved communications strategy, project requirements, and communications priorities into effective delivery plans and coordinated team execution.
Ability to use performance information, stakeholder feedback, and audience insight to support prioritization, service delivery, and continuous improvement.
Strong collaboration skills and ability to build productive working relationships with stakeholders, project partners, and service teams.
Strong verbal and written communication skills and ability to provide clear feedback, guidance, and communications consultation.
Strong understanding of workflow management, resource allocation, governance frameworks, and service delivery within a shared-services environment.
Demonstrated ability to implement process improvements and support adoption of established standards, tools, and practices.
Demonstrated ability to balance competing priorities, stakeholder needs, timelines, and resource constraints in a complex environment.
Sound judgment, attention to detail, and problem-solving capability.
Strong stakeholder-management and relationship-building skills.
Ability to identify when matters require escalation because of reputational, operational, policy, or institutional considerations.

Nice To Haves

Understanding of higher education or similarly complex organizations is an asset.

Responsibilities

Leads the internal communications team and is accountable for day-to-day delivery, quality, and team effectiveness.
Manages team resources and day-to-day operations to achieve service objectives and maintain effective performance.
Assigns work and allocates resources based on priorities, timelines, stakeholder needs, and team capability.
Establishes a collaborative, accountable, and service-oriented team environment.
Monitors workload and throughput to maintain service levels and ensure consistent, high-quality output.
Ensures communications align with institutional internal communications standards, accessibility requirements, editorial expectations, and quality standards.
Reviews communications outputs and provides direction to maintain clarity, consistency, accuracy, and audience appropriateness.
Supports implementation of approved messaging frameworks, planning approaches, and communications practices.
Escalates high-risk, high-profile, or institutionally significant communications requiring additional review or coordination.
Translates internal communications priorities into structured plans, schedules, and assignments.
Manages competing requests, timelines, dependencies, and resource constraints within established service models and available capacity.
Partners with the Director, Internal and Leadership Communications, senior leaders, and campus stakeholders to coordinate priorities, timelines, and delivery requirements.
Provides feedback on intake quality, timelines, capacity requirements, and feasibility to support effective planning and delivery.
Supports coordination of communications across major institutional initiatives, organizational changes, leadership communications, change-related communications activities, recurring employee communications, and significant faculty and staff activities.
Works with leaders, subject-matter experts, and campus partners to clarify requirements and support effective delivery within established communications frameworks.
Provides practical advice on messaging, audience considerations, communications sequencing, channels, implementation approaches, and employee communications requirements.
Manages relationships with stakeholders to support effective service delivery and resolution of communications-related issues.
Supports consistent application of institutional internal communications standards and frameworks.
Collaborates with leadership communications, communications service lines, marketing, digital, and campus partners to support integrated delivery.
Participates in emergency communications planning and response activities as assigned within the university's emergency communications framework.
Monitors communications performance, audience feedback, employee insight, and service delivery metrics to identify opportunities for improvement.
Supports implementation of communications standards, templates, planning tools, and governance practices.
Identifies opportunities to improve communications effectiveness, operational efficiency, employee engagement, and employee awareness of institutional priorities and initiatives.
Uses performance information, stakeholder feedback, and audience insight to strengthen service delivery and support continuous improvement.
Supports maintenance and continuous improvement of communications practices, tools, and documentation.
Leads, coaches, develops, and evaluates direct reports, providing clear direction, feedback, and performance management.
Establishes team priorities, allocates work, and supports effective resource utilization to achieve service objectives and maintain delivery standards.
Supports goal setting, professional development, and capability growth within the internal communications team.
Builds strengths in communications planning, writing, coordination, stakeholder engagement, and service excellence.
Fosters a collaborative, accountable, and inclusive team culture that supports engagement, continuous learning, and strong team performance.
Supports knowledge sharing, mentorship, and development of internal communications capabilities across the team.