Senior Manager, Earned Media and Public Relations

Riverside Health System•Newport News, VA

1d•$96,400 - $132,550

About The Position

The Senior Manager, Earned Media and Public Relations serves as Riverside's senior public relations strategist, leading earned media, executive thought leadership, institutional reputation, issues management, and the Public Information Officer (PIO) program. Reporting to the System Director, Brand & Integrated Communications, this role develops enterprise public relations strategies to advance Riverside's visibility, credibility, and influence among key stakeholders. The position oversees day-to-day media relations through direct management of the Manager, Media Relations & Communications, while personally leading national and trade media strategy, executive thought leadership, organizational reputation efforts, and high-impact earned media opportunities. The Senior Manager advises executive leadership and advances Riverside's in-house public relations function. The role leads enterprise earned media strategy, maintains relationships with national, regional, and healthcare trade media, and develops executive and physician thought leadership programs. It also leads reputation and public-perception strategies, serves as Riverside Health System's lead PIO, oversees PIO preparedness and program development, and partners with leadership on crisis communications. The Senior Manager establishes measurement and reporting frameworks for earned media and leads, coaches, and develops the Manager, Media Relations & Communications. The position also stays informed about digital and traditional advertising trends and participates in strategic discussions about innovative approaches to evolving business needs.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Communications, Public Relations, Journalism, Marketing, or a related field.
5–6 years of progressively responsible experience in public relations, media relations, corporate communications, or healthcare communications.
Demonstrated success leading proactive earned media strategies and securing media coverage.
Experience counseling senior executives and organizational leaders.
Experience managing complex communication issues and crisis situations.
Strong media relations, storytelling, and relationship-building skills.
Experience supervising and developing communications professionals.

Responsibilities

Develop and lead Riverside's enterprise earned media strategy in support of organizational priorities, strategic growth initiatives, and brand objectives.
Establish annual earned media goals, priorities, campaigns, and success metrics.
Identify proactive storytelling opportunities that strengthen awareness, credibility, and trust among key stakeholder audiences.
Advise the organization on earned media strategy and opportunities, and mature the in-house public relations function, including its processes, workflows, governance, and best practices.
Develop and maintain relationships with national, regional, and healthcare trade media.
Lead proactive outreach to secure earned media opportunities positioning Riverside as a leader in healthcare innovation, quality, workforce development, patient experience, and community health.
Direct media strategy for enterprise announcements, strategic initiatives, and high-profile organizational priorities.
Identify opportunities for thought leadership placements, feature stories, bylined articles, and executive interviews.
Provide strategic oversight and guidance to local and regional media relations efforts managed by the Manager, Media Relations & Communications.
Lead media engagement when complexity, visibility, organizational risk, or strategic importance warrants elevated involvement.
Develop and manage Riverside's executive and physician thought leadership program, including annual visibility plans for executives, physicians, and subject matter experts.
Secure opportunities for speaking engagements, industry recognition, award submissions, media interviews, bylined articles, and conference participation.
Partner with communications, content, social media, and marketing teams to amplify thought leadership initiatives.
Position Riverside leaders as trusted voices in healthcare and the communities Riverside serves, and maintain an enterprise roadmap of thought leadership and executive engagement activities.
Lead strategies that strengthen Riverside's reputation among media, community leaders, industry influencers, healthcare partners, policymakers, and other stakeholders.
Monitor emerging issues, trends, and reputational risks; develop proactive communications that reinforce trust and stakeholder confidence.
Analyze media narratives, message pull-through, and competitive visibility to identify opportunities and potential risks.
Serve as Riverside Health System's lead Public Information Officer (PIO) and oversee the organization's PIO program.
Lead PIO preparedness, training, activation processes, and ongoing program development; support designated PIOs across the health system to ensure consistent messaging and response protocols.
Partner with the System Director on crisis communications during incidents, emergencies, and high-profile issues, and coordinate media relations and external communications during response efforts.
Develop crisis communications plans, messaging frameworks, response protocols, and spokesperson preparation materials.
Monitor emerging issues and provide communications recommendations to leadership.
Establish and oversee Riverside's earned media measurement framework; monitor and report on media coverage, executive visibility, share of voice, message pull-through, and reputational trends.
Develop executive-level reports demonstrating communications impact and organizational value; evaluate campaign effectiveness and optimize strategies based on performance insights.
Lead, coach, and develop the Manager, Media Relations & Communications; establish departmental goals, priorities, and performance expectations.
Foster collaboration, accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement; allocate resources efficiently and build capabilities for the long-term public relations and media relations function.
Stay informed as a subject matter expert about emerging trends in digital and traditional advertising.
Participate in strategic discussions to identify innovative approaches for meeting evolving business needs.