Details
Posted: 18-Jun-22
Location: Houston, TX, United States,
Type: Full-time
Salary: Open
Benefits at a Glance
Special Instructions to Applicants: Please attach a cover letter and a resume in the Supporting Documents section of the application. Please make sure to include employment dates on the resume in Month/ Year format.
Position Summary
The Director of Communications will have overall responsibility for developing and executing strategies to increase awareness Baker Institute's work and expand the institute's global reputation as a leading resource on public policy. The position will involve creating, implementing and measuring an outreach strategy that grows existing audiences and creates new opportunities to advance the Baker Institute's research and analysis.
This position will be a part of the leadership team, reporting to the institute director and supervising the institute's editorial, graphics and web managers to achieve outreach and communications goals. The director of communications will work closely with the institute's academic affairs director, fellows and scholars across all research centers and programs. The role will also require close coordination and effective collaboration with the institute's operations, development and finance teams. In addition, the position will coordinate communications activities with Rice Public Affairs and serve as the institute's point of contact for media relations and government relations consultants as needed. The ability to listen, understand the substantive research programs, communicate effectively, write clearly and execute in a timely manner on a range of topics and in varied formats is essential.
The ideal candidate will have experience building a successful strategic communications plan for a policy-focused organization. The candidate should have a strong background in media relations and bring a developed network of media contacts and relationships.
Essential Functions
- Develops, implements and measures strategic communication plan to increase impact of Baker Institute research, analysis and related work.
- Manages the institute's media relations and government relations efforts in coordination with Baker Institute subject matter experts, Rice Public Affairs and outside consultants as identified by the director of communications.
- Collaborates with the institute's fellows and scholars within each research center and program to develop new content strategies to increase impact in line with the institute's overall strategic communication plan.
- Supervises the editing, graphics and web managers to ensure efficient management of the institute's research publication process and the content flow throughout the institute's digital platforms.
- Drafts and monitors the institute annual strategic communication budget, recommending new ideas and providing reports on the cost effectiveness of budget expenditures.
Additional Functions / Information
- May assist with fundraising activities
- Occasional attendance at Baker Institute events on weeknights may be required throughout the academic year.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's Degree in communications, public relations, public policy or a related field
- Seven years of related experience managing comprehensive outreach and communications campaigns.
- In lieu of the experience requirement, additional related education, above and beyond what is required, on an equivalent year for year basis may be substituted
- Ability to work collaboratively and take initiative in sensitive and high pressure situations?
- Excellent oral and written communication skills, including experience writing persuasive and promotional communications
- Strong interpersonal skills
- Ability to supervise and motivate staff
- Ability to set priorities, and to schedule and follow through on multiple tasks to meet strict deadlines
Preferred Qualifications
- Graduate degree in public policy, journalism, public relations, or communications
- Five or more years of experience managing communications with a focus on public policy or politics
- Prior experience creating and implementing strategic communication plans from beginning to end
- Ability to translate and summarize technical writing for a general audience
Rice University is an Equal Opportunity Employer with commitment to diversity at all levels, and considers for employment qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, genetic information, disability or protected veteran status.
Current Rice University COVID policies, which include vaccination, face mask, testing, gatherings, occupancy limits, and travel policies can be found here: https://coronavirus.rice.edu/policies
