Technical Communications & Creative Services Specialist

ePATHUSA•Jackson, MS

About The Position

The Technical Communications & Creative Services Specialist supports the agency’s Communications Department and MIS Division, including its Comprehensive Child Welfare Information System (CCWIS) and related applications. The position develops, maintains, and coordinates technical and project documentation for system implementation, operational support, federal funding approval, and ongoing compliance with guidance and regulations issued by the ACF and Children’s Bureau. It translates complex systems, processes, and organizational priorities into clear documentation, visual communications, training materials, and other project deliverables, while supporting documentation governance and information management. The specialist works closely with the MIS Development Team on UX and UI design so applications are intuitive, easy to navigate, and visually appealing. The role collaborates with Communications staff, project managers, business analysts, system architects, developers, QA teams, vendors, and other stakeholders to deliver communications and project outcomes aligned with agency priorities, brand guidelines, project requirements, and applicable federal regulations. It also assists the PMO and agency divisions with new and ongoing projects, manages projects from concept through delivery, leads cross-functional meetings, and coordinates timelines, resources, and workflows. The role creates strategic communications and creative materials for digital and offline channels, including print and digital collateral, website and social media content, dashboards, and monitoring tools. It supports campaigns, tracks performance metrics, reviews applications and websites using user feedback and project metrics, and ensures digital communications and design deliverables meet accessibility standards, including WCAG guidelines. The position develops and maintains system implementation, operational, end-user, and training documentation, including deployment guides, configuration documentation, procedures, user guides, manuals, job aids, online help, and knowledge base content. It creates and maintains agency document repositories, including setup, organization, version numbering, file indexing, and staff training or assistance. It also initiates and manages a statewide document-scanning project with a selected vendor, establishes document naming and numbering conventions, and periodically audits those conventions against agency workflows and audit requirements. The specialist maintains documentation standards, templates, version-control processes, and governance procedures. In coordination with the PMO and Finance Division, the role prepares federally required CCWIS documentation, including Advanced Planning Documents (APDs) and updates, Operational APDs (OAPDs), supporting narratives, and related materials needed to obtain and maintain federal approval and funding. It supports responses to federal review comments, documentation requests, and audit inquiries, and documents system architecture, modular design, functionality, and technical implementation methods to demonstrate compliance with 45 CFR 1355 and 1356 and federal system certification expectations.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree or higher in a related field, such as Information Services, English, or Communications.
Effective communication, organizational, and time-management skills.
Strong writing, editing, and visual communication skills, with the ability to adapt style for different platforms and audiences; 7+ years required.
Proficiency in process optimization and internal documentation; 7+ years required.
Ability to work independently and collaboratively within a team; 7+ years required.
Professional experience in graphic design, digital media, or communications; 7+ years required.
Experience with MS Office Suite, Adobe Creative Cloud, MS SharePoint, MS Teams, Adobe Workfront, Google Workspace, Smartsheet, Confluence, Lucidchart, and SAP Business Network; 7+ years required.

Nice To Haves

Experience working with information systems, cloud technologies, data analysis, or technology implementation projects; 7+ years preferred.
Knowledge of User Experience (UX) design; 7+ years preferred.
Experience with accessibility standards, including WCAG; 7+ years preferred.
Experience with communications related to child welfare; 7+ years preferred.

Responsibilities

Develop, maintain, and coordinate technical and project documentation for system implementation, operational support, federal funding approval, and regulatory compliance.
Translate complex systems, processes, and organizational priorities into documentation, visual communications, training materials, and other project deliverables.
Collaborate with the MIS Development Team on UX and UI design to improve application usability, navigation, and visual appeal.
Coordinate with Communications staff, project managers, business analysts, system architects, developers, QA teams, vendors, and other stakeholders on communications and project outcomes.
Assist the PMO and agency divisions with tasks and documentation for new and ongoing projects.
Manage projects from concept through delivery and lead cross-functional meetings about projects, tasks, and process documentation.
Support internal and external agency communications, both written and verbal.
Assist in developing and executing strategic communications plans integrating digital and offline tactics.
Coordinate timelines, resources, and workflows to deliver high-quality work on time.
Develop dashboards and monitoring tools for users to track project or task progress.
Concept, design, and produce print and digital collateral, including infographics, presentations, whitepapers, and eBooks, in accordance with agency and industry brand standards.
Manage and create content for websites, social media platforms, and other digital assets.
Support organizational campaigns, monitor trends, analyze performance, and track metrics.
Contribute creative ideas and approaches to improve audience engagement and organizational visibility.
Ensure digital communications and design deliverables meet accessibility standards, including WCAG guidelines.
Develop and maintain implementation and operational documentation, including deployment guides, system configuration documentation, and operational procedures.
Maintain end-user documentation and training materials, including user guides, training manuals, job aids, online help, and knowledge base documentation.
Review agency applications and websites using user feedback and project metrics, and recommend improvements to content quality and user experience.
Create and maintain agency document repositories, including initial setup, organization, version numbering, file indexing, and staff training or assistance.
Initiate and manage a statewide document-scanning project with a vendor selected through a bidding process.
Establish and periodically audit document naming and numbering conventions to support uniqueness, traceability, retrieval, workflows, and audit requirements.
Maintain documentation standards, templates, version-control processes, and governance procedures.
Coordinate, prepare, and maintain federally required CCWIS documentation in compliance with ACF and Children’s Bureau guidance and regulations.
Work with the PMO and Finance Division to prepare federal information and incorporate it into required templates, including APDs, APD updates, OAPDs, supporting narratives, and related documentation.
Support responses to federal review comments, documentation requests, and audit inquiries.
Document system architecture, modular design, functionality, and technical implementation methods to demonstrate regulatory compliance and meet federal certification expectations.