Communications and Brand Manager – Mercy Corps Ventures

Location: United States, Colombia, open to other Mercy Corps office locations.

Position Status: Full-time, Exempt, Regular.

Valid unrestricted work authorization in the country in which you will be based is required at the time of application for this position.

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is powered by the belief that a better world is possible. To do this, we know our teams do their best work when they are diverse, and every team member feels that they belong. We welcome diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be stronger and have a long-term impact.

About Mercy Corps Ventures

Mercy Corps Ventures (MCV) invests in and catalyzes venture-led solutions to increase the resilience of underserved individuals and communities. Founded in 2015 as the impact investing arm of Mercy Corps, we’ve supported 53 early-stage ventures to scale and raise over $450 million in follow-on capital and reach over 25 million end users with impactful products and services. 44% of our portfolio has at least 1 female founder. It centers around resilience-building solutions in adaptive agriculture and food systems, inclusive fintech, and climate-smart technologies, so that those living in frontier markets can withstand disruption and plan for the future. Through capital and support, piloting new approaches, action-oriented insights, and rigorously managing impact, we catalyze the ecosystem toward smarter, more impactful investments.

At MCV, we transparently share our insights with the wider ecosystem to build the evidence base around the potential and possibility across emerging markets within the tech, innovation and startup ecosystems. As we operate at the earliest stages of innovation, our goal is to de-risk the innovation cycle and attract new funders and capital.

Communications & Brand Manager

The Communications & Brand Manager is critical in achieving that mission, as this role is MCV’s voice to the world – ensuring our work and results are discovered and seen around the world, to ultimately influence the tech ecosystem for good.

This is the role for you if:

• You are a highly skilled storyteller and communicator who prepares accessible multimedia content digestible for wide audiences by translating deep technical insights from our team and portfolio companies
• You are a strategic brand builder eager to drive our brand through online channels (X, formerly known as Twitter, LinkedIn, Medium), events, key partnerships and other channels where appropriate, ensuring consistency across all platforms.
• You have strong professional experience with/in media and are excited to expand MCV’s media presence by building on and expanding your networks with media.
• You have an understanding of content trends for the startup, tech and innovation ecosystems across emerging markets (mainly Africa and Latin America), as well as a demonstrated interest in businesses and technology as a force for good, particularly for financial and climate resilience
• You can lead strategic communication and branding initiatives to enhance MCV’s visibility and reputation.
• You have a data-driven approach to analyzing communication campaign performance and making adjustments based on data.

See our Medium page for our recent insights.

Essential Responsibilities

COMMUNICATIONS (70%)

The role is responsible for preparing and packaging internal insights into digestible content for wider audiences, taking content from 80% to 100% – making sure it’s accessible for our target audiences. This includes all insights-related marketing and communication:

• Contribute to Content Strategy: Identify, pitch, and propose strategic content (articles, reports, interviews) and media opportunities to expand MCV’s influence. Develop Content Strategy in collaboration with the Management team that is aligned with key topics and trends.
• Content Management: manage MCV content strategy and calendar in coordination with functional teams.
• Content Development: Produce and package communications pieces for external audiences by leveraging insights generated by MCV functions, including the Annual Impact Report, Why We Invested blogs, thought leadership pieces and pilot launch and endline announcements.
• Manage Content Promotion: Develop and drive our social media and monthly newsletter strategy, promoting all owned content, including fund and portfolio news through MCV-owned and external channels.
• Design and deliver communicationsand marketing initiatives to profile MCV’s insights, in collaboration with key members of the MCV team
• Manage media outlets: You build and manage relationships with all relevant media outlets. Including engaging media by pitching op-eds, issuing press releases, and facilitating interviews with team spokespeople in collaboration with the Mercy Corps PR team and/or other media agencies.
• Manage and grow reach and engagement with our content (current and future – including website, Medium, social media, newsletter, etc).
• Oversee Measurement: provide ongoing data-driven analytics and regular reports on our content marketing performance, and optimize based on results.

MESSAGING & BRAND MANAGEMENT (30%)

The role is responsible for ensuring that our messaging and brand are consistent across all internal and external channels and are strong, clear, and differentiated. This includes activities such as:

• Brand audit of MCV and peers to understand how MCV can better differentiate and stand out.
• Oversee the MCV messaging platform and updates to core materials (website, pitch materials, social media channels, etc) .
• Support the team with understanding key messaging.
• Oversee key messaging for media, events, publications, fundraising etc.
• Production and management of brand style across visual artifacts (brand guidelines, internal templates, etc), including working through strategic branding initiatives.

SAFEGUARDING RESPONSIBILITIES

• Actively learns about safeguarding and integrates it into their work, including safeguarding risks and mitigations related to their area of work.
• Practices the values of Mercy Corps including respecting the dignity and well-being of participants and fellow team members.
• Encourages openness and communication in their team; encourages team members to submit reports if they have any concerns using reporting mechanisms e.g., Integrity Hotline and other options.

Supervisory Responsibility

This role may include the direct management of marketing and communications team members, part-time consultants and vendors.

Accountability

Reports Directly To: Senior Director of Strategy and Operations, Mercy Corps Ventures

Works Directly With:

• The Mercy Corps Ventures team
• Select Mercy Corps research and communications team members
• Relevant vendors (such as researchers, copy-editors, designers, media partners, etc.)
• Relevant consultants.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

Minimum Qualification & Transferable Skills

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent and 5+ years of experience in branding and communications, ideally in the tech or startup sector (i.e. accelerators, incubators, service providers, VC funds) or a related field.
• Track record in creating and executing brand and communication strategies from start to finish
• Experience in creating high-quality multimedia content for a variety of communication channels in English
• Existing network and relationships among journalists, industry publications, peer networks, industry events, and a social media presence
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal
• Strong writing and proofing skills (backed by samples) and excitement to produce external materials related to the emerging markets startup tech ecosystem including writing, copy-editing, and production of insights.
• Experience in climate tech or financial inclusion is a plus.
• Proficiency in digital marketing strategy, tools, and tactics for insights dissemination
• Capacity to work independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced environment and take direction and feedback from results-driven colleagues constructively

Success Factors

We are a low-ego, collaborative team and these traits are essential for any candidate, and especially for an inherently cross-functional role such as our Communications and Brand Manager. We are looking for a team-oriented individual who works collaboratively in a high-performance environment. The ideal candidate should have creative solutions to working across multiple teams to draw out insights and have experience with, or the desire to work in, a small and agile team. They should value the diversity of a global team, and bring an authentic, diverse perspective and set of experiences to our growing team. We are a fully remote team, so any candidate should be comfortable with a primarily digital environment.

The ideal candidate must have excellent communication and interpersonal skills, and should have the desire and ability to be part of a highly collaborative, dynamic, mission-driven, and team-oriented culture.