Vice President, Strategy & Operations

Morreale Communications•Rosemont, IL

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

Morreale Communications is an award-winning woman-owned public relations firm with a specialty focus in the areas of Transportation & Infrastructure, Health & Wellness, Energy & Utilities and Public Affairs. We pride ourselves in our commitment to excellence, innovation, and integrity in all aspects of our operations. We are seeking a goal-oriented, experienced operations and people leader who leads with strategy and follows through with great attention to detail and measurable outcomes. Candidates must be able to demonstrate evidence of prior success driving operational initiatives and metrics and be able to describe the work they did to achieve those results. As we continue our growth, this position will advise and council our project teams, with an eye on goal setting, accountability and metrics driven solutions for our project team and clients. This position is part of the firm’s executive leadership team, and will contribute to maintaining a strong company culture, staff mentorship, developing new business initiatives, and leading the implementation of seamless project controls. Direct Reports for this role currently include: Vice President, Transportation, Infrastructure, and Mobility Vice President, Strategic Communications Sr Director, Creative Strategy and Integrated Marketing Human Resources Business Partner Manager, Proposals and New Business Pursuits Other leadership roles to be determined in the future as needed

Requirements

15+ years of experience in Public Relations with experience in the areas of communications, government, transportation, energy, and/or healthcare
Previous experience working in a fast-paced agency environment
Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field
Ability to work in person a minimum of three times per week in our office in Rosemont, attend client and networking engagements, and travel as needed

Nice To Haves

Experienced leading a mid-sized Public Relations agency
Experienced successfully leading new business teams and pursuits
A natural motivator and leader grounded in process and metrics
A natural multi-tasker who brings solutions and can prioritize competing interests
Driven to succeed

Responsibilities

Partner with leadership to drive the behaviors, decisions, and actions that advance firm objectives and business-unit goals
Serve as a strategic, results-oriented, growth-focused collaborator, influencer, and communicator who motivates teams and fosters alignment
Establish Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to streamline operations, enhance efficiency, ensure clarity and consistency across project teams, and maintain accountability
Develop the Annual Operating Plan and lead multi-year strategic planning initiatives
Develop a dashboard that provides real time insight to team members on their key performance indicators
Facilitate regular leadership meetings and oversee company operations within the EOS framework
Identify organizational challenges, recommend solutions, and implement improvements to increase operational efficiency
Oversee BigTime software and partner with staff to ensure timely and accurate integration of project data, resource planning, and timesheet submission and approval process
Demonstrate strong business acumen and a deep understanding of key business priorities and performance drivers
In partnership with Finance and Accounting, lead monthly project-health reviews to ensure projects remain on scope, schedule, and budget
Ensure project team members are meeting their utilization rate goals
Ensure all business certifications and licenses are current and recommend additional certifications that support strategic growth
Introduce innovative ideas, trends, and best practices that enhance revenue, employee engagement, and professional development
Manage annual growth targets, including revenue and staffing levels, ensuring talent resources align with current and emerging business needs
Partner with Finance to drive company financial targets and ensure we meet or exceed organizational goals
Manage the company’s overhead rate, financial disclosures, and required government reporting
Lead the development of company forecasts, projections, and billability targets
Oversee the annual company budgeting process
Track and manage company-wide and project-level financial performance
Monitor staff utilization and billability to ensure alignment with financial objectives
Effectively manage, motivate, and mentor Morreale staff by clearly communicating expectations and providing thoughtful feedback that drives project excellence and alignment with company goals, objectives, and core values
Manage direct reports by setting clear expectations, tracking KPIs, and motivating and inspiring high performance
Partner with Human Resources to manage the full employee lifecycle, proactively identifying staffing needs and opportunities for improvement
Lead the new business team to ensure strategic pursuit of opportunities including developing a streamlined decision-making process for pursuing new business, partnering with new business leads to submit innovative and winning proposals, facilitate debriefs, and quantify the cost of winning new business
Drive organic growth within the current client portfolio by identifying cross-selling opportunities and expanding contract values
Partner with Sr Director of Creative Strategy and Integrated Marketing to establish the Production Suite as its own revenue-driving vertical
Identify opportunities and support new business initiatives that align with the firm’s strategic plan
Partner with firm’s senior leadership to engage clients in biannual check-ins and end of year client satisfaction survey
Leverage a strong network to cultivate new clients and serve as a brand champion, representing the firm at industry events