VP, Communications

Leadership Conference Education Fund • Washington, DC

1d • Hybrid

About The Position

The Leadership Conference is seeking a Vice President, Communications, to join our Communications Department. Reporting to the President & CEO, the ideal candidate will have experience as a seasoned, strategic, and collaborative communications leader with demonstrated success in strategic communications on civil and human rights, utilizing both earned and digital media.

As the senior lead over earned and digital communications strategies in a fast-paced advocacy environment and with a communications platform that supports and serves a large and diverse coalition, the Vice President is responsible for setting strategic department priorities, collaboratively creating and implementing strategies that advance organizational and coalitional priorities, while balancing rapid response needs and communications support for programmatic activities.

This position will have leadership responsibility for 3 direct report and 5 indirect report staff members, and is not part of the collective bargaining unit.

Requirements

• A minimum of 10 years of policy advocacy and political communications experience is required, and in nonprofits is preferred.
• A Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in education and experience.
• Proven track record of modernizing communications for organizations both internally and externally.
• Excellent senior leadership experience, including staff and project oversight and supervisory experience.
• Experience in fast-paced environments, including crisis communications and rapid response.
• Proactive, innovative thinking and a strategist with strong attention to detail.
• Thoughtful listener with a keen ability for discernment.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills with attention to detail and the ability to bring one voice to The Leadership Conference.
• Strong interpersonal skills and collegial working style.
• Multi-tasker and strong project manager with the ability to direct high-performing teams in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

• Develop collaboratively and implement strategic communications plans for organizational communications, incorporating organizational goals, priorities, and, with effective framing, branding, and message discipline, to be executed by the Communications department.
• Advise the President and CEO on communications strategy and, as a part of the senior leadership team (SLT), help develop organizational priorities and direction, and provide strategic guidance on external impact and influence.
• Partner with external communication vendors to plan, develop, and execute strategic messaging initiatives, ensuring alignment with organizational goals, brand standards, and project timelines within budget parameters.
• Develop metrics and KPIs to assess impact and find areas for audience growth and increase in participation in calls-to-action (CTAs), producing regular reports for the President & CEO and Boards.
• Collaborate and partner with the leadership team to develop a long-term strategy on how the organization builds a state-of-the-art communications operation for the organizations that support critical campaigns and coalition partners.
• Innovate and develop new, cutting-edge communication models that leverage the organization’s thinking, messaging, and tools used by coalition members.
• Engage communication leaders in member and allied organizations to develop greater shared narratives, messages, and communications campaigns and activities that advance advocacy priorities of the coalition.
• Drive the development and execution of a multi-channel digital program, expand The Leadership Conference’s reputation, voice, and reach to traditional and non-traditional audiences through digital content development, email list growth, and social media engagement.
• Work with the media relations team to maintain positive working relationships with targeted online, print, and broadcast journalists, editorial writers and columnists, and other people of influence.
• Oversee effective, transparent, and impactful rapid response processes across digital platforms and mediums in collaboration with programmatic staff members, to respond in real time to issues relevant to the organization.
• Ensure capacity, processes, and quality development of talking points, press releases, speeches, presentations, and other high-level materials as needed, especially for the President & CEO and senior leaders.
• Oversee an effective editorial function, including the writing, design, production, vetting, and approval process of print and online educational materials, publications, newsletters, reports, etc.
• Lead and support the development of a strategic and nimble communications team and oversee the team’s goals, timeline, and actions to meet communications and external impact goals. Ensure the team's infrastructure aligns with the organizations’ goals.
• Ensure departmental and organizational information flow on processes and priorities of the department, and ensure transparency that supports both proactive communications strategies, rapid response, and programmatic support on priorities.
• Drive and build the department’s annual budget and work plan. Ensure communications efforts are aligned with the organization’s financial development goals.
• Perform other duties as necessary and related.

Benefits

• generous paid time off, including fifteen (15) federal holidays, as well as biweekly organization-specific holidays
• medical, dental, and vision insurance
• transit benefits
• professional development assistance
• Employee Assistance Program

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive
• Number of Employees: 1-10 employees