Senior Manager, Brand Strategy & Engagement

Riverside Health System•Newport News, VA

4d•$102,200 - $140,525

About The Position

The Senior Manager, Brand Strategy & Engagement serves as Riverside’s brand steward and strategic leader for brand engagement, consumer perception, employee advocacy, brand intelligence and creative brand expression. Reporting to the System Director, Brand & Integrated Communications, this role protects, strengthens and activates the Riverside brand across key stakeholder touchpoints, using audience, employee and consumer insights to inform brand strategy. The Senior Manager leads enterprise brand governance, consumer reputation initiatives, employee advocacy programs, brand engagement strategies and creative development to strengthen awareness, trust, loyalty and affinity for Riverside. The role oversees the Brand Manager and Marketing Coordinator and works with Marketing, Communications, Public Relations, Digital Content and operational leaders to ensure the brand reflects Riverside’s mission, values and strategic priorities. The position leads brand guidelines and governance; StoryMakers Creator Community, Brand Ambassador and employee advocacy initiatives; brand perception, reputation and audience insight strategies; and the Brand Strategy & Insights Team. It also guides creative strategy and development for traditional media, establishes brand measurement frameworks, reports on brand impact and continuously refines strategies based on insights and performance.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Communications, Public Relations, Business Administration or a related field.
5–6 years of progressively responsible experience in brand management, communications, marketing, consumer engagement or related disciplines.
Direct-to-consumer brand experience, including developing and activating consumer-facing brand strategies, integrated campaigns and audience engagement initiatives that build awareness, preference, trust and loyalty.
Experience developing and implementing brand strategies and engagement initiatives.
Experience leading teams and developing marketing or communications professionals.
Ability to translate research, insights and feedback into actionable business and brand strategies.
Experience managing cross-functional programs and enterprise initiatives.

Responsibilities

Serve as Riverside’s primary brand steward and ensure consistent application of brand standards across organizational touchpoints.
Oversee enterprise brand guidelines, including visual identity, voice, tone, messaging and brand architecture.
Lead brand governance across communications, marketing, digital, events and community engagement.
Partner with communications, marketing and operational leaders to strengthen the Riverside brand experience.
Conduct brand assessments and recommend improvements; support naming strategies, signage initiatives, affiliations and enterprise brand decisions.
Serve as executive sponsor and strategic leader of Riverside’s StoryMakers Creator Community.
Lead Brand Ambassador initiatives and employee advocacy programs, coordinating with communications and related creator and executive-voice initiatives.
Create authentic storytelling opportunities and oversee creator engagement, recognition and participation.
Lead brand perception, consumer reputation and audience insight strategies, including the Team Member Insights & Reputation Council.
Translate Riverside Voice findings and employee feedback into brand, engagement and reputation strategies; identify perception gaps and emerging trends.
Develop messaging frameworks and brand strategies that reinforce Riverside’s culture, values and employer brand promise.
Lead the Brand Strategy & Insights Team and establish processes to gather, analyze and apply employee, consumer and audience insights.
Monitor reputation indicators, consumer feedback, online reviews, brand sentiment and audience perceptions.
Partner with Human Resources, Internal Communications and executive leadership to align employee experience initiatives with brand objectives.
Use insights to guide storytelling, engagement programs, employer brand strategies and brand improvements; deliver recommendations that strengthen trust, credibility, alignment and brand equity.
Develop a strategic plan and operating model for the Brand Strategy & Insights Team so insights drive measurable brand improvements, messaging refinements and storytelling opportunities.
Lead brand strategy and creative development for traditional marketing assets, ensuring alignment with brand standards, messaging and organizational priorities.
Partner with Riverside designers to develop creative concepts, messaging strategies and visual assets for traditional media.
Oversee print advertisements, radio creative, outdoor advertising, billboards, transit advertising and brand-awareness initiatives.
Provide strategic direction and final brand review for traditional media creative before production and deployment.
Partner with the Senior Manager, Digital Media & Performance Marketing to align creative strategies with audience targeting, campaign objectives and media plans.
Ensure creative assets communicate Riverside’s value proposition, reinforce brand positioning and strengthen consumer perception.
Collaborate with Marketing, Communications and Public Relations to maintain consistency across paid, earned, shared and owned channels.
Monitor brand creative effectiveness and recommend enhancements based on audience insights, market trends and perception data.
Lead, coach and develop the Brand Manager and Marketing Coordinator; establish priorities, goals and performance expectations.
Foster collaboration, innovation, continuous improvement and accountability; guide resource allocation, workload management and program priorities.
Ensure successful execution of brand programs, engagement initiatives and strategic projects, and build organizational understanding of brand strategy and engagement objectives.
Establish measurement frameworks for brand health, engagement, advocacy, reputation and participation.
Monitor performance trends and engagement metrics, develop executive-level reports and recommendations, and use analytics to improve brand strategies.