September 14th, 2023
Position: Associate Director of Communications
FLSA Status (Exempt/Non-Exempt): Exempt
Reports to: Senior Director of Communications
Salary: $100,000
Start Date: As soon as possible
Work Location: Remote within the United States, with travel for organizational events and retreats
About Caring Across Generations
Caring Across Generations is a national organization working to make care more affordable and accessible at every stage of life, while making sure caregivers are treated with respect and dignity. Founded in 2011 by Sarita Gupta and Ai-jen Poo, our campaign is focused on creating change in three ways: organizing a powerful movement of the Caring Majority — the majority of Americans who are directly affected by the need for care; fighting for groundbreaking policy at the state and federal level; and changing hearts and minds through storytelling, pop culture interventions and cultural organizing
Position Summary
The Associate Director of Communications is responsible for managing Caring Across Generations’ media and communications efforts, ensuring that the organization’s voice and brand continue to lead the care movement and strengthening its reputation for winning policy that effects real change. As we scale, we need an associate leader on the communications team with an eye on the horizon who can bring communications expertise to position our programs for growth. We’re looking for someone who can spot and shape compelling stories, then model and assist a team in strategically elevating them.
The Associate Director will work closely with the Senior Director of Communications and with senior management on the development and implementation of Caring Across’ overall communications and marketing strategy. They will directly oversee a highly functioning media relations and communications team covering strategic communications, media relations, marketing, thought leadership, internal communications, and technical writing.
The role also works across teams with Caring Across’ development, campaigns, culture change, policy, and digital workgroups to identify new strategic communications opportunities, craft policy-focused products, provide essential support to events, and raise resources.
If you’re strong on combining strategy with flawless execution and want to work with passionate, smart, and caring people who are addressing some of the biggest challenges facing our nation, this may be the job for you.
Roles and Responsibilities
Develop and execute strategic communications plans, and support the three team members executing this work, that advance the programmatic goals and mission of Caring Across.
- Help develop and prioritize proactive media relations campaigns to support program goals, including drafting and supporting the drafting of op-eds, press releases and statements; and pitching stories, developing briefs, and staffing interviews.
- Build communications strategies — and prioritize and integrate strategies when needed for cohesion and maximization — to support the organizational priorities.
- Support crisis communications responses as needed, including coordinating confidential information among stakeholders such as program teams, organization leadership, government partners, and media.
- Identify opportunities to reach new and diverse audiences, in addition to existing audiences.
- Draft and assist in drafting content including blogs, articles, web copy, reports, briefing memos, and marketing collateral about program work and policy issues.
- Provide communications guidance to program teams as they develop and implement strategies aligned with organizational objectives.
- Represent Caring Across Generations in meetings and events with coalition partners, policymakers, and other key stakeholders.
- Research and analyze existing and emerging media narratives alongside programmatic work to identify opportunities for inserting communications strategies.
- Ensure brand messaging alignment and integration across all of Caring Across’ communications and media relations activities.
- Collaborate with other communications team members and the digital team to create content for various platforms, events, initiatives, and social media.
- Drive the organization’s thought leadership strategy to strategically promote spokespeople in media and industry spaces, position the organization for awards, and create a consistent series of speaking engagement and other bookings.
- Identify spokespersons for media interviews and/or other public events; and ensure they are well prepared for media interviews and/or speaking engagements.
- Handle confidential and embargoed information discreetly before it is released to the public and the media, ensuring announcements and news are released strategically.
- Help drive participation in and attendance to organization events and support the communications needs of our eventSupport the communications team processes and procedures.
- Supervise three direct reports.
- Oversee the organizational talking points library, ensure relevant and comprehensive assets are readily available to support organizing and campaign efforts.
- Assist in organizational adherence to established writing standards, style guide and brand voice/tone to ensure consistency in all communications and media materials.
- Assist in maintaining an organizational editorial calendar of campaigns, observances and opportunities.
- Develop, implement, and support comprehensive communications protocols, workflows, and work request and outcomes tracking systems.
- Collaborate with the entire communications team on projects, from design and photo to digital and research.
- Manage contracts and freelancers.
Fulfill other Caring Across responsibilities.
- Engaged participant of the Strategy Team, charged with overseeing the execution of Caring Across’ programmatic strategy and cross-team collaboration.
- Participate in staff meetings, staff learnings and retreats.
- Attend supervision meetings.
- Complete work plans, digital output plans, and reports in a timely manner.
Qualifications
- 8-10 years experience in journalism, communications, or public relations.
- Excellent short-form and long-form writing skills in a variety of voices and tones to work across various mediums.
- Experience creating, implementing and measuring communications outreach across earned, owned and paid channels.
- Excellent grasp of grammar, AP style, and familiarity with AA conformance requirements (or a willingness to learn).
- Solid editing and proofreading capabilities.
- Strong attention to detail to juggle multiple competing priorities and handle a continuous stream of assignments.
- Proven management experience in a fast-paced, high-volume, resource-conscious environment.
- Experience managing and mentoring a team or direct reports.
- Fundamentally understand and incorporate a narrative triangle and supporter-focused theories of change.
- Multicultural competence and a commitment to racial equity, gender justice, and to building a multicultural, anti-racist organization.
- Proven project management skills to effectively manage competing priorities.
- Deep experience in distilling complex topics for various audiences in an organized, deadline-driven, fashion.
- Proven track record of delivering results using a user-centered, iterative, and data-driven approach.
- A high level of self-awareness, humility, and emotional intelligence and are skilled at giving and receiving constructive feedback to and from direct reports and peers.
- A willingness to travel when needed.
It’s a bonus if you have:
- Experience working at a public relations or communications agency.
- Hill experience or experience working with legislative or administrative advocacy, government relations, public policy and advocacy groups and coalitions.
- Experience working with a social impact-focused team.
- Experience working on entertainment industry-focused media relations or communications.
- Experience writing for events.
- Experience with agile project management and working in iterative planning cycles.
What we offer you in return and why you would love being a part of our team!
- We are 100% virtual (with occasional travel for events & retreats).
- Care is in our name; it is deeply embedded in our culture and our team consists of mostly current or former caregivers. We are fully supportive of your wellbeing and offer a flexible work schedule to account for your care needs.
- We offer a virtual office budget which includes a home office set up and a cell phone and Internet stipend.
- Generous paid time off, including 15 paid holidays, 12 days of PTO, and 12 days of sick leave, Paid Family Leave, in addition to a full-org vacation of one week in the summer and two weeks at the end of the year.
- 401k Contribution.
- 100% paid Medical, Dental, Vision, Life and Short-Term Disability Insurance. Long-Term Disability Insurance is paid by the employee at a very minimal cost.
- Work with a world-class team that looks and is like you (older adults, Black people and people of color, LGBTQIA+, disabled people and more are all fully represented here).
- We offer learning and growth opportunities, including an annual allowance for professional development.
- You have an opportunity to live a values-aligned work-life.
- Employee discounts for select stores, travel packages and restaurants. ● A fun team environment, even while we are busy changing the world.
How to Apply:
Candidates will be considered on a rolling basis until it is filled, but preference will be given to those who apply by September 29th, 2023.
Please apply at the following link: https://caringacross.bamboohr.com/careers/35
Applications should include:
- A resume
- Three writing samples
- In lieu of a cover letter, responses to the following questions:
○ What motivates you to apply for this role at Caring Across? (suggested word limit: 200)
○ How do you build relationships with journalists and keep them beneficial for both parties?? (suggested word limit: 200)
○ As a manager, what kinds of decisions do you delegate to your staff? (suggested word limit: 200)
Caring Across Generations is committed to fostering and maintaining a work environment where diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is fully integrated into everything we do. As such, we strongly prioritize and embrace Black, Indigenous, and people of color; a multigenerational workforce; LGBTQ+; those across religious and spiritual affiliations; and people with disabilities to join our representative and highly talented team.
Interview Process
Our team is small but mighty, and each interview process varies just a little based on the specific hiring manager’s needs. However, our standard timeline is as follows:
Rolling review of applications for 2-3 weeks. Candidates are contacted if they are moving forward
- Week 1: Phone screen
- Week 2: Team interview via video call
- Week 3: Paid work assignment
- Week 4: Second round team interview via video call and, when applicable, final interview
