• Job Type: Officer of Administration
• Regular/Temporary: Regular
• Hours Per Week: 35
• Salary Range: $100,000 - $110,000

Position Summary

Reporting to the Chief Communications Officer, the Associate Director, Executive Communications plays a pivotal role in shaping and executing the medical center’s communication strategy, particularly in conveying the vision, mission, and initiatives of CUIMC and VP&S leadership.

The Assoc. Director will play a central role in managing communications from the Office of the Dean and will be responsible for the execution of the Dean’s executive visibility and communication strategy across all communications channels. This role will support visibility of other members of leadership team as relevant. This role requires exceptional writing ability and strategic thinking, as well as the ability to closely collaborate with senior leadership to ensure alignment between messaging and organizational objectives.

The Assoc. Director will coordinate closely with the CUIMC Office of Communications and other stakeholders, providing guidance on leadership communications and support to ensure consistency and excellence in all communication efforts. The Assoc. Director will also assist in developing, implementing, and monitoring select Office of the Dean initiatives of high importance, and will be responsible for independently managing aspects of key projects and strategic efforts.

Responsibilities

• Executive communications — 60%
  • Manage and track internal and external communications from the Office of the Dean.
  • Write and edit executive communications on behalf of the Dean and other senior leaders, including public announcements, talking points, speeches, and official correspondence.
  • Coordinate with CUIMC administrative units and academic departments to develop executive communications.
  • Support editorial consistency and timely distribution of important campus-wide and time-sensitive announcements, incorporating feedback from multiple stakeholders and maintaining close attention to detail.
  • Develop and edit briefing materials as needed in coordination with Office of Communications, administrative units and academic departments.
  • In coordination with Office of Events, manage executive communications activities to support events and forums for key internal stakeholder groups (e.g. VP&S quarterly forums, annual State of the School address, community engagement functions).
  • Coordinate with the assistant director of social media to manage the Dean’s social media presence on LinkedIn and other platforms.
  • Oversee production of multimedia and video featuring the Dean, e.g. podcasts, social media posts, pre-recorded messages and remarks, etc.
  • Assist in crisis scenarios and issues management, including drafting responses and liaising with campus partners, e.g. the Columbia University Office of Communications and Public Affairs.
  • Coordinate with the CUIMC Office of Communications and other university offices on developing communications to various audiences and stakeholders and responding to media inquiries.

• Communications strategy — 30%
  • In partnership with the Chief Communications Officer, develop and implement a strategic plan for communicating Office of the Dean initiatives, programs, and policies to the campus community.
  • Independently solicit information from a wide variety of sources to gather the information needed to plan and create effective communications for internal and external audiences.
  • Develop communications protocols and guidelines for the Office of the Dean to optimize and deploy communications resources.
  • Track communications trends and identify new opportunities for shaping and delivering messaging.
  • Write articles, messaging, and other materials for the Office of Communications as needed.
  • Engage in analytics of executive communications and develop recommendations to increase effectiveness and impact.
  • As relevant and assigned, serve as communications representative on university working groups.

• Administrative and management — 10%
  • Respond to and resolve critical inquiries from faculty, administrators, and external organizations on behalf of the Dean.
  • Work with CUIMC Office of Communications and other partners to manage and deploy communications.
  • Prepare the Dean’s end-of-day communications briefing.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in education and experience, plus five years of related experience
• Experience working with senior-level faculty and administration.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in communications, journalism, or English preferred
• Experience in an academic medical center is preferred.
• 8-10 years of professional communications experience preferred, including leadership communication support.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.