Senior Principal, Development Marketing and Communications

The University of Texas at Austin • Austin, TX

9h • $115,633 • Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Principal, Development Marketing and Communications leads institutional philanthropic marketing and communications for Dell Medical School and serves as the principal communications adviser to the chief development officer. Reporting to the chief marketing and communications officer, the position sets communications strategy within institutional and fundraising priorities established by leadership. It advances donor and public understanding and demonstrates the impact of philanthropic support through institutional communications.

The position owns communications strategy, integration, editorial quality, risk management and performance for philanthropic priorities, transformational gifts and major campaigns. It establishes communications priorities, message architecture, channel approaches, editorial standards and success measures; develops institutional cases for support and campaign narratives; and advises senior leaders on communications investment and reputational considerations. It provides functional leadership and selected high-value writing, integrating expertise across executive communications, content, creative, media and digital channels.

Working with Development and specialized Marketing and Communications teams, the position translates complex clinical, research and education priorities into compelling philanthropic propositions. It operates autonomously within the approved institutional communications scope and priorities, resolving novel and high-consequence issues involving donor interests, confidentiality, gift terms, public transparency, brand integrity, legal requirements, campaign timing and reputational risk. Development retains authority for fundraising strategy, donor relationships, solicitations, gift terms and donor-specific cultivation and stewardship. The role has no direct reports.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in communications, marketing, public relations, journalism or a related field.
• At least 10 years of experience in marketing, communications, public relations, content strategy or a related discipline, including substantial responsibility for enterprise, philanthropic or comparably complex institutional communications.
• Experience leading major philanthropic or comparably complex institutional communications campaigns, including strategy development, cross-disciplinary delivery, governance, executive consultation and performance evaluation.
• Experience advising executive leaders on sensitive, high-profile or reputationally significant communications and independently framing options, risks and recommendations.
• Experience directing multidisciplinary work across organizational boundaries, establishing standards and decision rights, and resolving competing priorities without direct authority.
• Demonstrated ability to translate complex clinical, scientific, research, education or academic priorities for philanthropic and public audiences.
• Expert knowledge of integrated marketing and communications strategy and philanthropic communications, including portfolio direction, governance, standards and measures.
• Highly specialized ability to translate complex institutional priorities into accurate and compelling philanthropic propositions.
• Exceptional writing, editing, message-development and narrative-architecture skills across channels, formats and audiences.
• Advanced problem-solving and judgment in situations involving incomplete information, competing interests, confidentiality, gift terms, public transparency, legal considerations, reputational risk and time-sensitive opportunities.
• Ability to operate autonomously within broad policy, establish approaches and decision frameworks, make portfolio and channel decisions, and recognize matters requiring escalation.
• Broad command of media relations, executive communications, content strategy, brand, creative, digital engagement, marketing automation, web governance, accessibility, analytics and audience experience sufficient to integrate specialist contributions.
• Executive consultation and influencing skills, including advising senior leaders, framing choices and consequences, constructively challenging assumptions and building alignment without direct authority.
• Strong understanding of donor confidentiality, recognition obligations, reputational considerations and review requirements related to gifts, campaigns and philanthropic communications.
• Ability to distinguish institutional philanthropic communications from donor-specific cultivation, solicitation and stewardship and uphold clear decision rights.
• Demonstrated leadership of complex cross-functional portfolios and initiatives, including objectives, priorities, scope, governance, resource requirements, approvals, quality standards and performance measures.
• Ability to direct assigned work through functional authority, review and require revisions, resolve conflicting priorities and hold multidisciplinary contributors accountable in partnership with functional managers.
• Advanced analytical ability to interpret audience, channel and campaign performance, diagnose gaps and recommend changes.
• Ability to evaluate external providers, technology options and emerging practices while balancing creative opportunity with privacy, accessibility, security, brand, operational and reputational risk.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor colleagues, establish best practices and elevate institutional capability.
• Relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate.
• Ability to maintain the security or integrity of critical infrastructure is required for positions that research, work on, or have access to such infrastructure, as specified under Texas Executive Order No. GA-48.

Nice To Haves

• At least 10 years of experience leading advancement or philanthropic communications in academic medicine, health care, higher education or another complex mission-driven institution.
• Experience developing campaign communications strategies, broad cases for support, philanthropic message platforms, gift announcements, donor publications or impact communications.
• Experience serving as a Marketing and Communications adviser in an organization with Development writers, fundraising professionals and specialized communications functions.
• Experience advising senior leaders and managing sensitive, confidential or high-profile communications involving donors, gifts or institutional priorities.
• Experience coordinating communications across multiple organizational entities, audiences, brands or approval structures.
• Experience developing communications budgets, evaluating external providers and monitoring project expenditures and deliverables.
• Experience with web content management systems, email marketing and marketing automation platforms, social media management tools, analytics platforms and project-management systems.
• Familiarity with The University of Texas at Austin and the Central Texas health care and philanthropic environment.

Responsibilities

• Set integrated philanthropic communications strategy for the institution’s highest-priority philanthropic objectives, transformational gifts and major campaigns.
• Serve as the principal Marketing and Communications adviser to the chief development officer and Development leaders, translating approved priorities into communications objectives, audience strategies, message architecture, channel plans, governance and implementation requirements.
• Establish annual and multiyear communications strategies, portfolio roadmaps, editorial calendars, decision frameworks, priorities, sequencing and resource recommendations.
• Lead communications strategy and message architecture for major philanthropic campaigns and initiatives.
• Anticipate donor, stakeholder, media, legal, brand and reputational implications; determine appropriate responses, consultation and escalation pathways.
• Create communications approaches, standards and solutions for novel Development communications challenges.
• Architect and direct integrated communications initiatives for donor, prospective-donor and public audiences across institutional channels.
• Lead development of institutional cases for support, campaign message platforms and public-facing fundraising materials.
• Personally produce selected high-value communications and provide final editorial direction for high-risk materials, including gift announcements, donor-recognition content, impact stories, broad stewardship communications and executive materials.
• Set editorial strategy and direct production of donor newsletters, magazines, impact reports and stewardship publications.
• Identify enterprise-level stories demonstrating outcomes enabled by philanthropy and adapt them for institutional channels and audiences.
• Partner with Development External Relations on annual giving and multi-audience fundraising initiatives, while Development retains authority for solicitation and ask-specific language.
• Develop or direct executive speeches, presentations and talking points and coordinate sensitive or institution-wide matters with executive communications colleagues.
• Define objectives, audiences, scope, decision rights, timelines, roles, standards and deliverables for complex initiatives; resolve barriers and hold contributors accountable.
• Balance strategic commitments with emerging opportunities and urgent requests, making and communicating tradeoffs among audience value, timing, capacity and risk.
• Serve as lead Marketing and Communications partner to Development leadership, gift officers, Development writers, Development External Relations and other advancement colleagues.
• Establish shared workflows, governance and review processes with Development and Marketing and Communications leadership, including ownership, approvals, quality standards and escalation protocols.
• Ensure Development validates philanthropic priorities, funding information, donor facts, gift terms, recognition requirements and solicitation content, while Marketing and Communications maintains institutional messaging, brand, editorial quality, public positioning and channel standards.
• Protect donor confidentiality and determine review, timing and release requirements for sensitive gift announcements and donor recognition in coordination with authorized partners.
• Coordinate event-related communications with Development External Relations, respecting its ownership of invitations, programs and attendee communications while leading broader institutional messaging and executive materials as agreed.
• Identify matters requiring executive, legal, privacy, University communications or other institutional review; frame issues and facilitate timely resolution.
• Activate and provide functional direction to Marketing and Communications specialists across media, content, internal and executive communications, brand, social media, digital engagement, design, photography, video, web development and marketing automation.
• Create strategic and creative briefs, set integration points and quality expectations, provide Development context and integrate specialist contributions into cohesive communications.
• Lead cross-disciplinary delivery, make scope and sequencing decisions, review work, require revisions and resolve delivery issues with specialized teams and functional managers.
• Integrate Development content and campaigns with institutional editorial calendars, brand initiatives, media opportunities, executive communications and digital priorities.
• Establish Development-related web and digital content strategy, governance and experience standards.
• Partner with digital engagement and marketing automation colleagues on digital giving campaigns, email programs, audience journeys and related experiences.
• Establish briefs, business requirements, review responsibilities, testing protocols, quality controls and reporting expectations for marketing automation and digital communications.
• Define performance measures and use analytics, audience insights, testing and stakeholder feedback to evaluate effectiveness and adjust strategies, content, channels or resources.
• Develop performance analyses and investment recommendations concerning reach, engagement, conversion, audience experience and return on communications resources.
• Evaluate emerging technologies and practices, including generative AI and automation, and determine use cases, guardrails, pilot requirements and adoption recommendations.
• Represent Marketing and Communications in Development, institutional leadership or external forums when philanthropic communications expertise is required.
• Mentor communications colleagues and Development partners on philanthropic narrative, institutional positioning, editorial judgment and risk-aware communications.
• Adhere to internal controls and reporting structure and perform related duties as required.

Benefits

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) retirement plan eligibility, subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.

What This Job Offers

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