Communications Director

Communications Director School of Humanities and Sciences, Stanford, California, United States Communications Post Date Dec 10, 2024 Requisition # 105413 Communications Director The School of Humanities and Sciences (H&S) is the foundation of a liberal arts education at Stanford. The school encompasses 24 departments and 24 interdisciplinary programs. H&S is home to fundamental and applied research, where free, open, and critical inquiry is pursued across disciplines. As the university’s largest school, H&S serves as the foundation of a Stanford undergraduate education no matter which discipline students pursue as a major. Graduate students work alongside world-renowned faculty to pursue and shape foundational research that leads to breakthroughs and discoveries that shed new light on the past, influence the present, and shape the future. Together, faculty and students in H&S engage in inspirational teaching, learning, and research every day. The McCoy Family Center for Ethics in Society at Stanford University is home to a diverse and growing portfolio of initiatives that reach audiences across campus and beyond. These initiatives include an undergraduate honors program, ethics-focused classes, fellowships on and off campus, research collaborations, curricular endeavors, and public events with renowned speakers. Through these efforts, the Center is committed to bringing ethical reflection to bear on important social problems through research, teaching, and public engagement. Much of the Center’s expanding work is in the arena of technology ethics, which presents new opportunities for interdisciplinary work and partnerships across Silicon Valley and beyond. Our motto is “world first” – meaning our work asks, “What do we see around us now that is affecting real human beings – or that will change humanity’s future?” Our current areas of focus emphasize three of the defining issues of our time: climate change, civil dialogue, and the ethics of artificial intelligence. We seek a Communications Director to be a leader on our team. The Communications Director will envision, execute, and iterate on ideas to increase awareness of and engagement with our many offerings. We need a creative and strategic storyteller to ensure that our work reaches diverse audiences and is impactful on campus and in the public sphere. The Communications Director will represent the Center in a variety of venues with the goal of expanding the Center’s name recognition and stimulating more opportunities for ethical reflection both on and off campus. This position will be responsible for the entire suite of communication efforts and products for the Center. The Communications Director will have the opportunity and resources to experiment with new formats for sharing our work and we are eager to support these innovative efforts. It is critical that this person exhibit sound judgment and decision-making, effective written, oral, and digital communication, strong attention to detail, and respectful relationship management, both internally and with external partners. The job responsibilities include: envision and execute storytelling opportunities to showcase the Center’s work via varied outlets; lead creative advertising strategies to amplify awareness of our offerings, including fellowships and public events; maintain the Center's website and social media channels; create our email newsletter to highlight the Center’s work; track analytics on communications impact to refine efforts; dynamically lead experimentation with our communications strategies to broaden awareness of our work and to demonstrate impact to funders. The person in this role will have the budget and discretion to hire and supervise freelance writers, designers, and student workers to help execute the production of communications outputs. This is a 100% FTE exempt, continuing position. This position will be based on the Stanford campus and will be considered for an option of telecommuting (hybrid of working on-site and off-site), subject to operational need. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis through January 31, 2025. Review will begin in early January 2025. To be considered, please submit a cover letter and a resume. JOB PURPOSE: Design, create, and develop communication deliverables to execute on a unit or program communication strategy. CORE DUTIES*: · Develop communication deliverables in an area of expertise or for a unit or a complex program. · Develop complex communications for various content delivery channels. · Develop and design complex materials according to defined requirements using software applications and mediums. · Work with vendors to obtain information to evaluate quality, process, and costs to support vendor selection. · Maintain knowledge by attending webinars, conferences, networking etc. to remain at the forefront of current industry standards, trends and technology. · Contribute to the development of communication strategy for the unit or program. · Analyze data and curate illustrations, photos, and pictures for assignments. · Work in collaboration with Institutional Communicators on media relations content and other areas. *- Other duties may also be assigned MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS: Education & Experience: Bachelor's degree and five years of relevant experience or combination of education and relevant experience. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: · Excellent written and oral communication skills. · Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with internal communications groups across campus. · Demonstrated excellent interpersonal skills · Demonstrated ability to synthesize complex materials and communicate information in a manner easily understood. · Experience with project management and the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously. · Demonstrated ability to perform detailed work with high level of accuracy and attention to detail. DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS: · Familiarity with ethical issues and social problems that the Center's work addresses, and a desire to learn more about different disciplinary approaches to these problems. · Comfortable proactively generating ideas and following through on execution, enthusiastic about promoting the work of the Center, and enjoy working in a collaborative environment · Comfortable working with individuals at all levels of the university hierarchy. · A strong media relations background with experience cultivating media contacts, building targeted media lists, and conceiving, writing, and editing news releases as well as short-form pitches. · Ability to work with an external graphic designer to produce websites, factsheets, and other collateral. · Comfortable and experienced with technology, specifically the Microsoft Office and Adobe software suites, blast email services such as Mailchimp or iContact; website CMS systems; and CRM software such as Cision and SalesForce. PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS*: · Constantly perform desk-based computer tasks. · Frequently stand/walk, sit, use a telephone, grasp lightly/fine manipulation, speaking. · Occasionally grasp forcefully, writing by hand. · Rarely sort/file paperwork. WORKING CONDITIONS: Occasional work on evenings and weekends. The expected pay range for this position is $115,184 to $133,806 per annum. Stanford University provides pay ranges representing its good faith estimate of what the university reasonably expects to pay for a position. The pay offered to a selected candidate will be determined based on factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the qualifications of the selected candidate, departmental budget availability, internal equity, geographic location and external market pay for comparable jobs. At Stanford University, base pay represents only one aspect of the comprehensive rewards package. The Cardinal at Work website (https://cardinalatwork.stanford.edu/benefits-rewards) provides detailed information on Stanford’s extensive range of benefits and rewards offered to employees. Specifics about the rewards package for this position may be discussed during the hiring process. Why Stanford is for You Imagine a world without search engines or social platforms. Consider lives saved through first-ever organ transplants and research to cure illnesses. Stanford University has revolutionized the way we live and enrich the world. Supporting this mission is our diverse and dedicated 17,000 staff. We seek talent driven to impact the future of our legacy. Our culture and unique perks empower you with: · Freedom to grow. We offer career development programs, tuition reimbursement, or audit a course. Join a TedTalk, film screening, or listen to a renowned author or global leader speak. · A caring culture. We provide superb retirement plans, generous time-off, and family care resources. · A healthier you. Climb our rock wall, or choose from hundreds of health or fitness classes at our world-class exercise facilities. We also provide excellent health care benefits. · Discovery and fun. Stroll through historic sculptures, trails, and museums. · Enviable resources. Enjoy free commuter programs, ridesharing incentives, discounts and more The job duties listed are typical examples of work performed by positions in this job classifications and are not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, tasks and responsibilities. Specific duties and responsibilities may vary depending on department or program needs without changing the general nature and scope of the job or level of responsibility. Employees may also perform other duties as assigned. Consistent with its obligations under the law, the University will provide reasonable accommodations to applicants and employees with disabilities. Applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process should contact Stanford University Human Resources at stanfordelr@stanford.edu. For all other inquiries, please submit a contact form. Stanford is an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Additional Information Schedule: Full-time Job Code: 4215 Employee Status: Regular Grade: I Requisition ID: 105413 Work Arrangement : Hybrid Eligible