Vice President, Marketing & Communications

Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee•Nashville, TN

18h•Hybrid

About The Position

We are hiring for a full-time Vice President, Marketing & Communications to join the External Affairs Department at Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee. For nearly 50 years, Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee has dedicated itself to nourishing and empowering their neighbors so they can thrive. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Second Harvest implements sustainable solutions to food insecurity through a strategically selected network of more than 600 partners across 46 counties in Middle and West Tennessee. Our partners include food pantries, congregate meal sites, shelters, childcare facilities, senior centers, group homes, and youth enrichment programs. The Vice President, Marketing & Communications is a senior leader responsible for stewarding the Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee brand, shaping organizational narrative and reputation, and advancing integrated fundraising, awareness, and engagement strategies across the organization. As a member of the Leadership Team, the Vice President serves as a strategic partner to the President & CEO, extending and amplifying the CEO’s leadership presence across the community, peer networks, media, and the hunger‑relief sector. This role provides enterprise‑wide leadership across external communications, internal communications, brand strategy, campaign integration, and social‑enterprise marketing, ensuring alignment with organizational mission, values, and long‑term strategic priorities. The Vice President leads brand and marketing strategy for both the core nonprofit organization and its social enterprise portfolio, partnering closely with the Vice President, Social Enterprise to position mission‑driven products for competitive markets while reinforcing public trust and impact. This role directly leads a team of marketing and communications professionals and serves as the organization’s senior strategic lead for agency partnerships spanning paid media, public relations, direct response, digital platforms, and creative services. Consistent with Second Harvest’s mission, the Vice President actively advances the organization’s commitment to equity, inclusion, and belonging, ensuring that communication reflects dignity, authenticity, and the lived experiences of the neighbors served.

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing, Communications, or related areas required.
10+ years proven experience in developing and implementing innovative marketing and communications strategies in complex organizations.
Enterprise ‑ level strategic leader with the ability to translate organizational mission, business strategy, and programmatic priorities into integrated marketing, communications, and storytelling strategies that advance fundraising, advocacy, stakeholder engagement, and long‑term brand equity across diverse audiences.
Deep knowledge of nonprofit marketing and philanthropy with demonstrated success supporting large‑scale.fundraising initiatives (including capital campaigns), donor stewardship, corporate and foundation partnerships, and public‑facing campaigns that build legitimacy, momentum, and trust—without reliance on mass solicitation.
Proven architect of integrated communications ecosystems, aligning brand, content, digital platforms, media relations, executive communications, internal communications, and community engagement to ensure consistency, clarity, and measurable impact across channels and constituencies.
Advanced capability in AI ‑ enabled marketing and communications, including: Leveraging AI tools to enhance content creation, message testing, audience segmentation, and donor lifecycle engagement. Using AI‑assisted analytics to identify trends, optimize campaign performance, and inform data‑driven decision‑making. Establishing ethical guardrails for AI use that protect brand voice, donor trust, data privacy, and mission integrity. Integrating AI thoughtfully alongside human creativity to increase efficiency without sacrificing authenticity or equity.
Data ‑ literate and results ‑ oriented, with the ability to define meaningful KPIs, interpret performance data, and connect insights to strategy—particularly in support of fundraising, engagement, and reputation management efforts.
Highly collaborative executive partner, skilled at working cross‑functionally with Leadership Team, and the CEO to align messaging with organizational priorities, rapidly respond to emerging issues, and steward resources responsibly in dynamic environments.
Inspirational people leader and culture ‑ builder who recruits, develops, and empowers high‑performing marketing and communications teams; fosters accountability and continuous improvement; and effectively manages internal staff, consultants, agencies, and vendors.
Exceptional storyteller and communicator, with superior written and verbal communication skills and the ability to distill complexity into clear, compelling narratives tailored to donors, board leaders, partners, staff, media, and the broader community.
Technologically fluent , with hands‑on familiarity across CRM platforms, digital fundraising tools, marketing automation systems, social and paid media platforms, design and production workflows, and emerging AI technologies that support modern nonprofit engagement.
Knowledge of Adobe Illustrator/Photoshop, and standard office programs including Microsoft Word, Outlook, Excel, and PowerPoint.
Strategic steward of brand and reputation, ensuring consistency across all touchpoints while evolving the brand to reflect organizational growth, large‑scale initiatives (such as campus development or system transformation), and long‑term vision.
Coaching and developing others, Leadership strategic thinking, Conflict management, Decision making, Change management.
Acceptable results from professional reference feedback, criminal background, and Motor Vehicle Record.
Current Driver’s License and automobile insurance are also required.

Nice To Haves

Experience in fundraising is preferred.

Responsibilities

Own and steward enterprise‑wide brand strategy, narrative framing, and reputation management for Second Harvest.
Ensure consistent, mission‑aligned messaging across fundraising, programs, advocacy, partnerships, and earned‑revenue efforts.
Maintain and evolve the Brand and Language Guide; ensure strong brand governance and quality control across all internal and external channels.
Lead long‑range brand positioning to support organizational growth, resilience, and public trust.
Serve as the President & CEO’s primary thought partner for external positioning, messaging, and leadership presence.
Support CEO engagement across community events, peer convenings, sector leadership forums, media opportunities, and key stakeholder moments.
Develop strategic messaging frameworks, briefing materials, and narratives that align CEO engagement with organizational priorities, campaigns, and long‑term strategy.
Provide counsel and leadership on issues management, crisis communications, and sensitive external matters.
Set strategic direction for integrated fundraising, awareness, and engagement campaigns in partnership with Development and Programs leadership.
Hold enterprise accountability for campaign effectiveness, learning, and long‑term growth rather than day‑to‑day execution.
Ensure fundraising communications are compelling, data‑informed, and aligned to donor trust, retention, and revenue goals.
Oversee strategic alignment of signature campaigns and events within the broader organizational narrative.
Provide leadership and strategic oversight for the organization’s signature campaigns, and the design, messaging and media support for high‑visibility fundraising events.
Ensure consistent brand experience, donor value, sponsor fulfillment opportunities, and year‑over‑year performance improvement in partnership with philanthropy partner.
Partner cross‑functionally to balance mission storytelling, revenue goals, and community engagement.
Provide executive leadership for brand strategy and market positioning of Second Harvest’s social‑enterprise portfolio.
Partner with the Vice President, Social Enterprise to ensure clear brand architecture, go‑to‑market messaging, and mission alignment.
Oversee consumer‑facing branding, packaging, and product storytelling to support earned‑revenue growth while reinforcing nonprofit credibility.
Ensure social‑enterprise brands reflect quality, dignity, and the organization’s impact‑driven mission.
Own organization‑wide internal communications strategy, ensuring clarity, transparency, and alignment during growth, change, and strategic initiatives.
Partner with Leadership and People & Culture to support culture‑building, engagement, and change management through effective communication.
Ensure internal communications elevate staff understanding of priorities, progress, impact, and organizational performance.
Lead earned media and public‑relations strategy to position Second Harvest leadership and subject‑matter experts as trusted voices on hunger, food insecurity, and systems‑level solutions.
Strengthen regional and national visibility while safeguarding credibility and trust across the 46‑county service area.
Ensure media efforts support long‑term reputation rather than short‑term exposure.
Support Board engagement through strategic communications, presentations, and narrative framing.
Partner with the CEO on Board‑level messaging and committee work related to External Affairs, brand, and public trust.
Lead, mentor, and develop the Marketing & Communications team, fostering strategic thinking, collaboration, and leadership growth.
Oversee agency partnerships and vendor relationships with enterprise‑level accountability for performance, budget stewardship, and results.
Partner with Finance and the CEO on budget planning, investment decisions, and contract approvals where required.
Other duties as assigned by President & CEO.