Vice President for Strategic Communications job in New York

Job:

Vice President for Strategic Communications
Job Summary:

Barnard College is among the most selective academic institutions in the nation, providing the highest-quality liberal arts education to promising and high-achieving young women. Barnard offers the unparalleled advantages of an outstanding residential college in partnership with Columbia University, a major center for research, all in the heart of New York City.

Reporting to the President, the Vice President for Strategic Communications is responsible for overseeing strategic, proactive, and effective communications at Barnard with all internal and external stakeholders. The Vice President ensures an alignment of messaging across the College and executes clear, consistent, and timely communication with audiences including students, alumnae, faculty, and staff, as well as the media, peer institutions, policymakers, and the general public.

As the College’s chief communications officer and spokesperson, the Vice President represents and promotes the College, increasing its visibility and advancing the institution’s mission, vision, and goals. The ideal candidate is nimble and diplomatic and prepared to lead the College’s reputation management and response to a wide variety of potential issues with reputational impact.

The Vice President is the chief architect of the College’s marketing and media strategy, developing sophisticated long- and short-term integrated communications plans in support of the College’s vision and institutional priorities. This includes overseeing the execution and evolution of the College’s brand identity and creating a marketing framework that is aligned with the College’s values and responsive to the current media landscape. A successful candidate will proactively identify opportunities to promote the College and its work in traditional and new media, in addition to providing media relations counsel to all academic and administrative units.

The Vice President leads a team of dynamic and creative professionals who work together to create and implement marketing and communications campaigns that will attract the best and brightest college applicants, motivate alumnae and donors, recruit high quality faculty and staff, and further the College’s historic mission of advancing women’s leadership and education. The Vice President also hires and works alongside consultants that further the mission of the College. The Vice President has excellent management skills and the ability to grow and sustain a best-in-class communications and marketing team.
Job Description:

Duties & Responsibilities:

Provides strategic counsel to the President, senior leadership team, and Board of Trustees on all aspects of communications and marketing;
Develops and implements an integrated marketing and communications plan to define Barnard’s identity, broaden awareness of its programs and priorities, and increase the visibility of the institution across key stakeholder audiences;
Identifies challenges and emerging issues faced by the College, working with leadership teams and staff to recognize communications opportunities and solutions and devise and execute appropriate strategies;
Leads the Office of Communications, a creative and dynamic staff with responsibility for Media Relations, Strategic Communications, Digital Strategy, Creative, Editorial, and Marketing functions across all units of the College;
Tells Barnard’s unique story, and those of its individual community members, in a way that advances the College’s mission and strategic goals, attracts the best and brightest applicants, and increases support from alumnae and other key stakeholders;
Communicates College priorities, initiatives, and accomplishments in ways that foster commitment to Barnard’s mission and values and ensures that faculty, students, and staff are well-informed;
Creates public relations and marketing strategies that allow the College to cultivate and enhance meaningful relationships with a variety of audiences locally, nationally, and internationally, including the media and other key constituencies;
Works closely with senior administration to ensure that all College communications are consistent with the College’s strategic objectives across all academic and administrative units;
Serves as the College’s chief spokesperson;
Develops and oversees crisis communications strategy and implementation for the College;
Leads, mentors, and motivates others to excel in the pursuit of the College’s mission and strategic goals;
Participates in, and when necessary leads, the planning of major College events and programs;
Represents the College at internal and external events;
Serves on and leads College committees when necessary;
Performs additional duties and responsibilities in support of the President and Board of Trustees, as needed.
Skills, Qualifications & Requirements:

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

Excellent ability to articulate messages clearly, compellingly, and quickly at all levels and for all audiences;
Strong problem-solving skills, editorial judgment, and tactical thinking;
Stellar writing and presentation skills that demonstrate versatility, speed, and accuracy;
High level of discretion, judgment, and professionalism; ability to interact and build relationships with a variety of constituents including media, senior leadership, faculty, administrators, students, trustees, alumnae, neighbors, and elected officials;
Keen interest in local, national, and world news coverage of major events and key issues in higher education; comprehensive understanding of print, digital, and social news cycles;
Thorough understanding of brand management, marketing, and public relations;
Ability to produce excellent quality work under pressure;
Demonstrated success managing teams, multiple projects, and competing priorities within a complex institution;
Proven ability to interpret analytics and data in order to build or adapt communications strategies around such findings.
Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field.
10+ years of progressively responsible experience in communications, media relations, marketing, and/or external affairs, including five years in management at an upper or executive level in a complex organization
Demonstrated crisis management experience
Demonstrated track record in brand development and management
Substantial experience in web-based marketing and social media.
Demonstrated ability to create and implement successful, large-scale communications campaigns, lead integrated communications, and build effective media relations.
Proven record of people and project management with strong leadership, communications, and interpersonal skills.
Preferred Qualifications:

Master’s degree in a relevant field.
Experience working with New York City’s media market as well as national and international press including, for example, New York Times, Washington Post, and Chronicle of Higher Education.
Robust understanding of key issues in higher education.
Community and/or government relations experience.
Salary Range: $250K - $350K

The salary of the finalist selected for this role will be set based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to departmental budgets, qualifications, experience, education, licenses, specialty, and training. The above hiring range represents the College's good faith and reasonable estimate of the range of possible compensation at the time of posting.

Company:

Barnard College
Time Type:

Full time