Associate Director of Advancement Communications

Company: St. Paul's School
Location: Manchester
Posted on: October 3, 2021

Job Description:

Job Title:          Associate Director, Advancement Communications

Status:            Exempt, full-time, full-year staff position

Department:  Communications

Reports to:     Director of Communications

Summary:  The associate director of advancement communications will help develop and lead the execution of a comprehensive communications strategy designed to promote and foster high-quality, lifelong, and meaningful engagement between St. Paul’s School and its alumni and parents. The person in this role will be well-versed in creating and managing multichannel, audience-segmented campaigns and communications pieces that speak directly and authentically to the School’s alumni and parent bodies. The associate director will partner closely with colleagues in the Communications and Advancement offices, as well as multiple departments across campus, to grow and sustain a culture of giving and active engagement among alumni and parents. This person will serve as a vital link between Advancement and Communications, developing a clear and responsive channel of communications and effectively managing a deadline-driven strategy in support of annual and capital fundraising, leadership giving, alumni engagement, and donor stewardship. This role will require an instinct for what makes a good story; an ability to effectively manage multiple projects; a passion for delivering high-quality content; and a sense of joy derived from working with two dynamic teams toward a common mission. 

Essential Duties and Responsibilities include the following. Others may be assigned at any time at the discretion of the director of communications.

• Serves as a day-to-day liaison between Communications and Advancement, developing and executing projects in partnership with both teams.
• Internalizes the School’s core mission and values and ensures that messaging framework is consistently executed in all digital and print materials for the Advancement Office.
• In parallel, ensures the School’s visual identity is accurately and consistently represented on all School alumni- and parent-related channels and provides guidance to SPS Advancement colleagues in the proper application of the School’s brand.
• Utilizes data, benchmarking, and best practices as foundational resources in the development of advancement communications strategies that are targeted by audience or affinity, as defined by the project.
• Develops and executes a creative brief project management system between Advancement and Communications to ensure clarity of expectations and timelines for all projects supported by Communications.
• Is a source of expertise in the field of advancement communications and stays current on industry trends and best practices within the education industry.
• Skillfully writes and edits materials for the Advancement Office’s audiences, including campaign materials, case statements, impact pieces and other media, as needed.
• Collaborates closely with director and associate director of communications on a multichannel storytelling strategy designed to produce content for multiple purposes and audiences. Develops a pipeline for this content to be shared between the Communications and Advancement offices.

 Supervisory Responsibilities:  None

Travel Requirements: Occasional travel may be required.

 Qualification Requirements: 

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Flexibility, excellence, and passion are vital qualities within the St. Paul’s School community. Inclusion, collaboration and cultural sensitivity are valued competencies. Therefore, we are in search of a team member who is able to effectively interact with a varied population of internal and external partners at a high level of integrity. 
• 8 or more years of experience in strategic marketing and/or communications desired. Some amount of experience in independent school or college/university advancement offices is expected.
• Bachelor’s degree in creative nonfiction writing, journalism, English, communications, marketing or related field.
• Deft project management expertise, with a demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects on time, and on mission.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, a high degree of emotional intelligence, and the ability to clearly and persuasively communicate concepts and ideas.
• Demonstrated experience in designing and executing projects across all aspects of advancement communications, including fundraising, stewardship and engagement.
• Experience in capital campaign fundraising is preferred.
• Demonstrated mastery of high-quality, professional-level concept development, copywriting and editing, including experience writing, editing, proofreading, and organizing content for print, websites, and other electronic publications/communications.
• Ability to adhere to strict deadlines, work under pressure with composure, and exercise a very high level of attention to detail.

 Physical Requirements: 

The physical demands described below are representative of those encountered while performing the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these essential functions.

• The physical demands of this job require frequent standing, walking, sitting, speaking, and hearing.
• Specific vision abilities required include close vision, distance vision, depth perceptions, and the ability to adjust focus.
• The employee must be able to communicate by oral and written means in an appropriate business manner and have cognitive skills to understand instructions, readily recall facts and details, and make effective decisions under pressure.
• Must be able to climb stairs and be capable of using visual display keyboard with continuous wrist movement on a keyboard
• Must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds

Work Environment:  The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

•  Work is performed in a professional environment with a wide variety of individuals having differing functions, personalities, and abilities, including working with diverse groups of people in a variety of work settings
• Work requires being indoors and outside on occasion during all four seasons of the year
• Normal work schedule is Monday through Friday, regular business hours. Additional hours may be required, including being available for emergency communications needs during the evenings or weekends

To receive full consideration, please submit a resume and cover letter.  The position will remain open until filled.  Review of resumes will begin immediately.

Keywords: St. Paul's School, Manchester , Associate Director of Advancement Communications, Other , Manchester, New Hampshire