Executive Director of Strategic Communications

The University of Virginia seeks applications for an Executive Director of Strategic Communications to join the Office of the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer (EVP-COO). The Executive Director will develop and execute the overall communications strategy for the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer’s portfolio with an emphasis on elevating awareness of the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer portfolio priorities and key initiatives, emphasizing the importance of this work to enable the University’s pursuit of its mission.

The Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer is the University's chief administrative, business, and operating officer and oversees the financial and administrative operations of the University and supporting infrastructure, services, and special initiatives that have a University-wide impact. The units within the EVP-COO portfolio partner with the EVP-Provost, the EVP for Health Affairs, and other University leaders to foster strong relationships among academic, healthcare, and administrative areas.

The Executive Director of Strategic Communications will report on a day-to-day basis to the Associate Vice President and Chief of Staff and have regular interaction with the Chief Operating Officer. For more information on the Office of the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, please visit https://evp-coo.virginia.edu/.

The successful candidate will:

• Advise EVP-COO Office leadership on the communications and public relations implications of potential policy and program decisions.
• Identify and assess opportunities to position the COO and leaders across the COO portfolio as thought leaders in their respective areas, including opportunities to contribute expert opinion/analysis pieces and to provide analysis or expertise on relevant and timely topics in the media.
• Establish a consistent identity for EVP-COO Office communications and develop and assess annual communications plans across the portfolio, including metrics and results reflecting target audience engagement, earned media success and other measurements.
• Develop a holistic communications plan encompassing portfolio-wide priorities and themes.
• Regularly assess the performance of existing communications platforms and products, and lead exploration of new or revised platforms or products.
• Collaborate with University colleagues to increase awareness of EVP-COO priorities and achievements among regional, state and national media markets, as well as decision-makers in local, state and federal governmental bodies and agencies; leaders at peer institutions; and journalists who cover higher education.
• Foster community among the communications professionals embedded in units across the EVP-COO portfolio at large, providing leadership and support to ensure that their communications amplify key messages, are appropriate for the targeted audience, align with University brand standards, and are coordinated to avoid conflicting with each other in timing or tone.
• Collaborate with communications leads in the offices of the President, the Provost, the EVP for Health Affairs, and Student Affairs.
• Serve as the primary liaison between the EVP-COO Office and the offices of University Communications and Advancement Communications, ensuring that the Chief Operating Officer’s priorities and portfolio accomplishments are communicated to internal and external audiences and to UVA constituencies through “UVA Today,” “Envision” and other institutional platforms.
• Serve as the primary liaison to communications leads in the central business services across Grounds which the EVP-COO Office has routine interaction. 
• Manage the EVP-COO website -- content, identity and branding – and social media presence.
• Conceptualize, design and execute visual products to meet communication objectives in print and multimedia.
• Administer the University’s Mass Digital Communications Policy (IRM-006), in coordination with the Chief Operating Officer, and in partnership with the Provost’s Office.
• Participate in Critical Incident Management Team activities, attend incident command for events, and support crisis communications under the direction of University Communications and the Division of Safety & Security.
• Write and edit articles, reports, white papers, news releases, backgrounders, publications, and briefing materials.
• Provide a summary of daily news to the COO team; sharing key information on current and emerging issues and priorities.
• Work with the University Counsel’s Office to manage FOIA inquiries and responses from the areas within the COO portfolio.
• Serve as the office liaison to the Staff Senate and Faculty Senate, keeping abreast of key issues and sharing relevant information from the COO portfolio areas.
• Provide editorial support to the EVP-COO for personal communications such as talking points, remarks, presentations, and public correspondence.
• Respond with respect, transparency and kindness when faced with difficult or ambiguous situations and swiftly changing priorities.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree with at least eight years of experience
• Experience envisioning, developing, and implementing a successful and comprehensive strategic communications plan based on an organization's goals and priorities.
• Experience working with a team of colleagues who are not direct reports, building consensus and strong collaborative partnerships across complex organizations.
• Proven experience in media relations, stakeholder communications, and social media strategy.
• Commitment to working in a fast-paced, team-oriented environment.
• Outstanding written and oral communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in public relations, communications, or journalism.
• Experience in higher education or non-profit public relations and communications.

• Experience in executive communications support such as remarks, presentations, white papers, and opinion essays.
• Experience supervising freelance and staff writers, designers, photographers, videographers, and social media professionals.

Compensation based on education, experience, and internal equity, and subject to applicable approvals.

This position will remain open until filled. This is an exempt level, benefited position. The University will perform background checks on all hires (if required) prior to employment. Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States. For this role, the University will not sponsor or consider candidates requiring sponsorship for employment visas now or in the future.

Please apply online, and search for R0088999. Complete an application online with the following documents:

• Resume 
• Cover letter
• Writing sample

Upload all materials into the resume submission field; multiple documents can be submitted into this one field. Alternatively, merge all documents into one PDF for submission. Applications that do not contain all required documents will not receive full consideration. 

Internal applicants: Search and apply for jobs on the UVA Internal Careers website. 

For finalists, references will be completed via UVA’s standardized process using SkillSurvey. A total of up to five references will be requested via SkillSurvey for top candidates during the final phase of the interview process. A total of three references is required.

For questions about the application process, please contact Daniel Strong, Senior Recruiter at das6zb@virginia.edu.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

This is primarily a sedentary job involving extensive use of desktop computers. The job does occasionally require traveling some distance to attend meetings, and programs.

The University of Virginia is an equal opportunity employer. All interested persons are encouraged to apply, including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Learn more about UVA’s commitment to non-discrimination and equal opportunity employment.