Senior Principal, Development Marketing and Communications

University of Texas at Austin•Austin, TX

2d•$115,633•Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Principal, Development Marketing and Communications leads Dell Medical School’s institutional philanthropic marketing and communications strategy within priorities established by institutional and Development leadership. Reporting to the chief marketing and communications officer, the role serves as the principal communications adviser to the chief development officer and is accountable for strategy, integration, editorial quality, risk management and measurable performance supporting philanthropic priorities, transformational gifts and major fundraising campaigns. The position establishes communications priorities, message architecture, channel approaches, editorial standards and measures of success; 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 while integrating specialists across executive communications, content, creative, media and digital channels. The role translates complex clinical, research and education priorities into philanthropic propositions in partnership with Development and Marketing and Communications teams. The position operates with full autonomy within its institutional communications scope and approved priorities, resolving novel, ambiguous and high-consequence communications issues. It balances donor interests, confidentiality, gift terms, institutional voice, 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 position has no direct reports.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in communications, marketing, public relations, journalism or a related field, with 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. Relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate.
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.
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 establishing enterprise portfolio direction, governance, standards and measures aligned with institutional and fundraising objectives.
Highly specialized expertise translating complex clinical, scientific, research, education and academic priorities into accurate, differentiated philanthropic propositions for executive, donor and public audiences.
Exceptional writing, editing, message-development and narrative-architecture skills across channels, formats and audiences, with judgment to handle or direct sensitive, high-value work.
Advanced problem-solving in situations involving incomplete information, competing interests, limited precedent, confidentiality, gift terms, 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 the chief development officer and senior leaders, framing choices and consequences, challenging assumptions constructively 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 decision rights between Development and Marketing and Communications.
Demonstrated leadership of complex cross-functional portfolios and initiatives, including establishing 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 in strategy, investment, operating practice and resource deployment.
Ability to evaluate external providers, technology options and emerging practices and balance creative opportunity with privacy, accessibility, security, brand, operational and reputational risk.
Demonstrated ability to mentor colleagues, establish best practices and elevate institutional capability within philanthropic communications.
Ability to maintain the security or integrity of critical infrastructure, if the position researches, works on or has access to critical infrastructure as defined in the posting.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in communications, marketing, public relations, journalism or a related field with 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 supporting Development and 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, messaging, channel plans, governance and implementation requirements.
Establish annual and multiyear communications strategies, portfolio roadmaps and editorial calendars aligned with enterprise priorities, institutional narratives, campaign phases and available capacity.
Create decision frameworks incorporating philanthropic priorities, audience needs, donor relationships, confidentiality, recognition obligations, transparency, institutional voice and reputational considerations.
Determine communications portfolio priorities, sequencing, resource requirements and delivery approaches; recommend investments and capacity allocations as conditions, opportunities or risks change.
Lead communications strategy and message architecture for major philanthropic campaigns and initiatives.
Anticipate communications needs and assess donor, stakeholder, media, legal, brand and reputational implications; determine appropriate response, consultation and escalation pathways.
Develop new communications approaches, standards and solutions for unprecedented challenges within delegated authority and institutional policy.
Architect and direct integrated communications initiatives for donor, prospective-donor and public audiences across web, email, social media, presentations, publications, media and other institutional channels.
Lead development of institutional cases for support, campaign message platforms and public-facing fundraising materials that present clinical, scientific, research and education priorities accurately and compellingly.
Personally produce selected high-value communications and provide final editorial direction for high-risk institutional materials, including transformational gift announcements, donor-recognition content, impact stories, broad stewardship communications and executive materials.
Establish editorial strategy and direct production of donor newsletters, magazines, impact reports and stewardship publications, integrating content, design, photography, video, digital and executive contributions.
Identify enterprise-level stories demonstrating outcomes enabled by philanthropy and determine how to adapt them across institutional channels and audiences.
Partner with Development External Relations on annual giving and multi-audience fundraising initiatives, providing communications strategy, institutional messaging, creative direction and access to specialized services.
Develop or direct executive speeches, presentations and talking points with a broad Development purpose, coordinating on sensitive, high-visibility or institution-wide matters.
Define objectives, audiences, scope, decision rights, timelines, roles, quality standards and deliverables for large or complex initiatives; resolve barriers and hold assigned contributors accountable.
Balance strategic commitments with emerging opportunities and urgent requests, make tradeoffs among audience value, timing, capacity and institutional risk, and communicate decisions to senior stakeholders.
Serve as lead Marketing and Communications partner to the chief development officer, Development leaders, gift officers, Development writers, Development External Relations and other advancement colleagues.
Build advisory relationships and maintain expert understanding of philanthropic priorities, campaign plans, donor audiences, operating cycles, communications risks and interdependencies.
Apply the division of responsibilities between donor-specific Development communications and broader institutional communications through institutional channels.
Establish shared workflows, governance and review processes, including ownership, decision rights, approvals, quality standards, escalation thresholds and issue-resolution 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 gift announcements, donor recognition and other sensitive communications 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.
Serve as the primary strategic and operating connection between Development and the core Marketing and Communications organization.
Activate and provide functional direction to specialists in media relations, content, internal and executive communications, brand, social media, digital engagement, design, photography, video, web development and marketing automation, respecting specialized leaders’ functional authority.
Create strategic and creative briefs, establish integration points and quality expectations, provide Development context, resolve conflicting inputs and integrate specialist contributions.
Provide functional leadership across cross-disciplinary delivery, make scope and sequencing decisions, review work and require revisions to meet standards, and resolve delivery issues with specialized leaders and functional managers.
Integrate Development content and campaigns with institutional editorial calendars, brand initiatives, media opportunities, executive communications and digital priorities.
Determine when visibility, risk or enterprise impact requires escalation or specialized review and lead the communications workstream through resolution.
Establish Development-related web and digital content strategy, governance and experience standards for timely, accurate, audience-centered, accessible, secure and on-brand content.
Partner with digital engagement and marketing automation colleagues to architect digital giving campaigns, email programs, audience journeys and related experiences.
Work within Development-established audience, segmentation, donor-data, consent, solicitation and gift-designation decisions while determining institutional communications strategy, messaging, channel orchestration, creative direction and editorial standards.
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 assessing reach, engagement, conversion, audience experience and return on communications resources.
Evaluate emerging technologies and practices, including generative AI and automation; determine use cases, guardrails and pilot requirements and recommend adoption when benefits justify risks.
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 practices.
Adhere to internal controls and reporting structure and perform related duties as required.