Senior Manager, Strategic Communications and Outreach

Location: Remote Must reside within the United States

Job Type: Full-time (35 hours per week) Exempt

Travel: Some US and international business travel may be required, including overnight stays

Start Date: Available immediately.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

The Pacific Institute is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Diversity is a core value at Pacific Institute. We are dedicated to enhancing diversity, equity, and inclusion within our team and culture for two reasons:

To stay true to our values and principles: We recognize that historical and current injustices have left out certain voices and perspectives from decision-making about accessing and managing water resources. We acknowledge that the representation of these groups in water-related decision-making and careers is an important step towards addressing past and current injustices. Because Pacific Institute participates in water-related decision making, we acknowledge that hiring and retaining a diverse staff can contribute to a broader need to address systemic injustices.

To better achieve Pacific Institute’s mission and vision: We know that having diverse perspectives makes for better research, creative solutions, and can help us achieve our mission. We recognize that a diverse team with varied perspectives, skills, and experiences is essential for generating and scaling innovative ideas that solve increasingly complex challenges. We make an active effort to create an inclusive environment where everyone feels respected, heard, validated, empowered, and celebrated across different identities and cultures. We aim to constantly evolve our approach to DEI to reflect best practices in this work, just as we do with our water and climate research. To support our dedication to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), we require all applicants to include a brief statement in their cover letter. Please describe how your skills, experiences, and perspectives will strengthen our DEI initiatives and contribute to creating an inclusive workplace culture.

About the Role:

The Senior Manager, Strategic Communications and Outreach, reporting to the Director of Communications and Outreach, will be a key member of the Communications and Outreach team. This role is ideal for a professional with significant experience in public affairs, media relations, strategic communications, and outreach, particularly on water and climate issues at the state and/or United States federal level. The Senior Manager will work strategically and with an impact-oriented approach, collaborating with programmatic staff to reach project, program, and organizational goals.

The Senior Manager will work collaboratively with program staff to develop and implement strategic communications and outreach plans across the Pacific Institute’s programmatic portfolio, including Water Efficiency & Reuse, Nature-Based Solutions, Water Equity, Corporate Water Stewardship (excluding the CEO Water Mandate), and nexus issues and cross-cutting themes such as global Water Conflict. Strategies and plans will build awareness of specific water challenges and drive the awareness, adoption, and implementation of solutions recommended by the Pacific Institute. The Senior Manager will work with program staff to accelerate awareness and direct uptake of solutions by state and federal resource agencies, utilities, companies, frontline communities, and other implementers, as well as influence policies and mobilize key levers of change to expand adoption. The Senior Manager will work on both US-based and some global projects, collaborating with project teams, finance, and external stakeholders such as vendors, agencies, journalists, and project partners.

CORE Responsibilities:

Strategic Communications & Outreach Leadership (60%) 

• Planning: In collaboration with programmatic team members and Communications and Outreach team, lead development and implementation of Communications and Outreach plans and strategies for regional, national, and, at times, global projects across the portfolio consistent with the Pacific Institute’s organizational strategy.
• Media relations: Lead proactive and reactive earned media strategy for programmatic issues, projects, and programs in the portfolio both in the US and globally.
• Messaging & Content: In collaboration with programmatic staff, lead on messaging and content strategy for issues, projects, and programs in the portfolio across social media, website, newsletter, and other channels. Contribute to impact reporting for the programmatic projects in the portfolio.
• Multimedia content: Manage the content strategy for the portfolio across social media, website, newsletter, and other channels. Work with Communications and Outreach team members to oversee development and distribution of multimedia content. Contribute to updating and maintaining style guides and report designs. 
• Launches: In collaboration with programmatic staff, develop and implement calendar and plans for report launches for outputs in the portfolio. Oversee the publication process for new project outputs with focus on increasingly interactive presentations, including story maps, data storytelling, infographics, and interactive report launches. 
• Outreach: In collaboration with programmatic staff, develop and implement outreach plans for specific issues, projects, programs, and launches. Collaborate with programmatic teams to develop coordinated events/speaking engagement strategy to position thought leadership and outputs with key audiences.

Project Management (25%) 

• Vendor management: Collaborate with internal Communications and Outreach Team members and manage relationships with external vendors to implement plans and achieve on-budget and on-time outcomes.  
• Finance/budgeting: Collaborate with programmatic/research project leads and finance to manage Strategic Communications & Outreach budgets for programmatic/research work, while ensuring resource alignment. Develop systems to manage funding pulled from a large number of individual project budgets with variable levels of funding. 
• Fundraising: Collaborate with internal project/research leads to support adequate funding in project budgets for Communications & Outreach work. Collaborate with the Development Team to seek additional funding for Communications & Outreach work in direct support of projects/research. 
• Metrics: Leverage analytics and metrics in planning and evaluating strategies, goals, and tactics. Manage metrics at monthly, quarterly, and annual intervals. 
• Presentations: Present strategies, tactics, and outcomes at internal team and staff meetings, project meetings, and partner organization/advisory group meetings. 

Administration (15%) 

• Collaborate across the Communications and Outreach team to contribute to a range of work supporting the Pacific Institute more broadly. 
• Conduct regular grant and budget reporting. 

Required experience/ Minimum requirements:

• Required experience is the minimum number of years of experience (work, internships, undergraduate work, etc.) the person must have to be qualified for the role.
• Minimum 8 years of experience developing and managing strategic communications, public affairs, media relations, policy communications, outreach, and/or events plans and strategies, demonstrating a track record of delivering measurable outcomes.
• Proven experience successfully developing and managing complex budgets, timelines, agency partnerships, metrics frameworks, and external partnerships.
• Existing contacts with US media focused on water, environmental public affairs, climate, corporate sustainability, and/or environmental justice.
• Proven experience in media relations, including issuing press releases and successfully pitching stories.
• Proven experience in social media and other digital multimedia communications strategies.
• Strong attention to detail, experience managing competing deadlines, and strength in responding rapidly to emerging and/or crisis communications needs.
• Exceptional writing skills and proven experience managing other writers to develop op-eds, press releases, infographics, speeches, and other communications.
• Strong messaging development skills and discipline.
• Strong verbal communication skills and proven strength in communicating complex, technical, and/or scientific ideas in clear and compelling ways.
• Proven experience to strategize, plan, and implement high-level events presence.
• Deep passion for water issues in the United States.
• Technical understanding related to climate change’s impacts on water.
• Technical understanding of water practices and policies related to issues in the portfolio, including water efficiency and reuse, water and climate equity, nature-based solutions, and corporate water stewardship.
• Understanding of water equity issues facing frontline communities.
• Strong ability to negotiate and collaborate with diverse stakeholders demonstrating cultural competence.
• Fluent in English.

Preferred/Desired qualifications:

• Experience working with elected officials and policymakers; understanding of the legislative and policymaking process at the state and federal level. 
• Experience working with water-related organizations and/or associations in the United States, as well as international entities such as the United Nations or Stockholm International Water Institute. 
• Experience developing emerging digital multimedia tools such as interactive maps, data portals, and infographics that make science-based technical information accessible and interactive for multiple audience groups. 
• Advanced degree in related field.  
• Fluent in Spanish. 

Compensation and Benefits

This position is eligible for paid vacation and benefits. The Pacific Institute offers an excellent compensation package, including a generous health, dental, and Institute-matched retirement plan and a competitive salary that is commensurate with experience and reflects the field. Hiring Range: $87,000 – $100,000 (if selected for an interview, a salary range within our hiring range that is specific to the candidates’ geographic location will be shared).